Gen Two- Chapter Five

I hadn't looked at the clock in hours, and it felt like it had been that long since I last moved. During that first week of dad's disappearance it had been next to impossible to stand being in my room for even short amounts of time. However, ever since I overheard mom's startling confession lazing about dismally on my bed had become my new favorite pastime. I was highly glad there was still a decent chunk of summer vacation left. All I could focus on was what I heard. Homework would be too much of a pain to try and handle too.

On one hand, I understood everything perfectly. Putting together mom's and Uncle Blaze's words, there was no denying it. Dad had been doing something illegal. He was poking around in something no normal person would dare to touch, and there had been people on the other side ready to pounce if he messed up and revealed himself. Unfortunately, he had gone ahead and done just that. So, that was that. There was the other part of me though that simply couldn't wrap my head around it. Dad? Dad of all people, my dad, was involved in something like that? It didn't fit with the person I knew him to be at all. I wanted to know more. I wanted to understand better, but I obviously wasn't going to be getting any answers. I shouldn't have even known what I knew. Mom was still pretending to be hopeful. If she wasn't going to come clean about that, there was no way she would explain everything to me if I admitted I had been eavesdropping.

     "Coal?"

A call of my name and a solid knock on the door made me jump.

     "You can't stay in there all day. You've had plenty of time to mope over the weekend. You need to come eat some lunch since you couldn't be bothered with breakfast." Desire instructed like the determined kind of sister she generally was.

     "I'm coming." I muttered reluctantly, not caring that my response was not audible to her in the slightest.

I stalled for a minute or two, but I did make my way out eventually. Desire wasn't anywhere in sight, which was expected. She was good at being commanding without being bossy or overbearing. She also knew that I knew that she would come back to bother me much more intensely if I didn't listen to her the first time around.

     "Mom's still over at Uncle Eden's," Prism said as he was the one to greet me in the kitchen when I took a seat in one of the stools, "She said she won't be getting back home until later this evening. The rest of us just had sandwiches for lunch. I'll let you whet your appetite with some chips while I put yours together."

He set the bowl of chips down in front of me before turning towards the other counter to start putting together my favorite kind of turkey sandwich. I ignored the snack he had given me and watched my brother instead. We had all started acting differently since dad never came back, but Prism's change in attitude was one of the most noticeable shifts. His boastful and aggressive manner, especially to me, was no longer there. Prism was much quieter, much more supportive, and more mature than I had ever seen him. Strange as it was, I hated the change. I preferred him how he had been. The way he was now was just another reminder that everything was wrong.

     "C'mon, you won't even touch your favorite flavor of chips?" Prism questioned in gently exasperated defeat when he was almost done with my sandwich and all I had done with the chip bowl was slowly push it away from me with my finger.

I really didn't have an appetite. Even the thought of placing food inside my stomach made me nauseated. It was just one of the things off with me. I understood that it was natural for me to be feeling down at the moment, but I was fighting against myself in a battle I didn't fully understand. It wasn't merely the fact that I didn't want to move or do anything, but that it felt physically impossible to do so. It was as if there was a giant, invisible bubble of glue around me that protested all my movements. My body was weighed down liked I had been drugged. I was in a daze that made it seem like everything I did was controlled by someone else. I didn't like it one bit, but there didn't seem to be anything I could do.

     "What do you think has happened to dad?" I asked Prism to detract him from my loss of appetite issue.
     "I...don't know what I think," he admitted with a small sigh, "Half of me believes that, yes, of course he's going to come back, but then there's the other half that thinks that if he was going to come back that he would have been able to do so already. The lack of evidence doesn't do much to help me be optimistic."

I didn't respond, but merely nodded my head. The words of the secret I wanted to share were at the tip of my tongue. If I could just talk to someone else about what I had heard, surely I would feel better. Someone could share in the painful sting that news caused with me, or my fears could be shot down. However, the words didn't come out. I knew the latter effect was unlikely to happen, and the last thing I wanted was to make someone else as miserable as me.

     "You're going to at least eat your sandwich, or mom told me to get Uncle Blaze over here to help 'encourage' you to get some food down your throat." Prism relayed the warning when I didn't speak.

He put the finishing touches on the sandwich before placing it in front of me, and I unenthusiastically began to eat. Uncle Blaze's 'encouragement' was typically him holding the food right up to our mouths, staring at us unceasingly, until we relented, or he even following us around with it if we tried to escape. I was not in the mood for such antics.

     "Pris, can you come help me with something?" Desire poked her head through the front door from outside to call her twin's attention.

Prism gave me a studious look, and I silently motioned back a promise that I would keep eating if he left. I nibbled slowly on my sandwich as I stared blankly through the window in front of me. The house was quiet. Wisp was off with Hunter, Malachite, and Cyclone as usual. Mom had taken Cerise with her on her visit over to Uncle Eden's house. Uncle Blaze was meeting with his landlords to begin finalizing the process of him moving out of his apartment. I generally liked in the past when the house emptied and went silent, but now the silence was only unnerving. I ate my sandwich faster and even managed to get a few chips down my throat just so I would be able to move about freely without being reprimanded. I placed my dishes in the dishwasher when Prism reappeared.

     "Desi needs to talk to you outside." he relayed, explaining nothing else despite the confusion that washed over my face.

What exactly had they been doing out there, and why did I need to be involved? The answers to my questions came quickly.

     "Your bike came sooner than expected, and it looks like the old owners were nice enough to take the stickers off for you. I think Pris and I adjusted it to the right height." my sister said with a big smile, giving the bike now tied to the old rack by the front door a pat on the seat.

I stared at it with an emotionless expression. I had completely forgotten about the bike dad had ordered for me. In a strange turn of events, disgust welled up with me as I kept on looking at it. I had wanted it so badly, but now I didn't want it at all. I would much rather have dad around. That was what I wanted. Not some stupid bike.

     "You should take it for a test ride." Desire pressed on, a bit more uncertain thanks to my unexpected lack of enthusiasm.
     "Am I allowed to go off on my own now?" I wondered quietly, not having the heart to protest against her.
     "Mom said we don't have to be quite so paranoid anymore. We just need to stick to decently populated areas, and not go out by ourselves once the sun begins to set."
     "Alright. I guess I'll take it to Azure's place and see if he wants to do anything."
     "Sounds good to me." Desire said optimistically.

Both reluctance and forced acceptance warred within me when Desire went inside and I ran my hand along the handlebar. I seriously would smash the bike to pieces if it gave me even the slightest chance of restoring my family to how it should be. However, the really was no way I could reject the bike. Dad had spent hours diligently searching to find something that would satisfy me, and he didn't give up despite me being an absolute brat about it sometimes. My new bike was the last gift he would ever get me, and I had to cherish it because of that.

With a heavy sigh, I double-checked the tire pressure and made sure all the chains were where they should be before I took off. Azure's house was a twenty minute walk away, but less than half that time on wheels. The bike rode effortlessly, and the trip was smooth. I daresay I started to feel better. It had been well over a month now since I had had a good ride, and I had missed the sense of freedom and exhilaration the rush of movement brought along. The day was warm without being overly hot, the wind was plentiful and rich, and the road was empty and ripe for the taking. Azure's house came upon me a little too soon.

His place used to belong to his grandparent's, but Uncle Sap had inherited the place from them when decided to move into the city after Uncle Sap and his sisters graduated college and were ready to go their own ways. I rang the doorbell and listened to its familiar tune. A small part of me wished that no one would be home so that I had a reason to go home and continue to sulk, but Uncle Sap appeared within my sights in less than ten seconds.

     "Hey, Coal. What can I do for you?" he asked cheerfully with a friendly grin.
     "I was just checking to see if Azure was around and if he wanted to do anything."
     "It's funny you say that. He's been calling around to see if your lot wanted to meet up at the park. He said everyone's said yes except for Rosemary since she's out with Deny, and that he couldn't get a hold of you."
     "Oh, I keep forgetting to turn the vibration settings up." I said in regards to my cellphone, something I had only acquired recently because mom wanted a more direct way to keep track of me with things being so shaky.

I checked my phone, and, sure enough, there were a few missed calls from Azure from the past several minutes. I fixed the vibration settings, which I had turned down because it kept shaking itself off my nightstand when the alarm went off in the morning. That was mostly my fault as I set it too close to the edge.

     "New bike?" Uncle Sap wondered when he glanced to his left to see my bike I had placed against the wall.
     "Yeah. Dad...ordered it for me a few weeks ago. It came in today." I mumbled again.
     "I see," Uncle Sap said, that sad sympathetic look I was beginning to hate spread across his face, "How are you doing?"
     "I'm managing." I responded, forcing as much confidence into my voice as I could.

That had become my default response to that question as telling the actual truth was too bothersome.

Uncle Sap let me inside, and Azure appeared from the top of the stairs mere seconds later. He was enthusiastic to see me as I might have been avoiding my friends over the past several days, and he was even happier when I said I would go along with him to meet up with Midas, Holly, and Mimosa. Azure's eyes widened when I told him of my bike and how I would be able to take him to the park with it. That led to Uncle Sap giving him a teasing lecture as Azure and Cyclone had apparently gotten into some trouble messing around on Cyclone's bike. It involved them trying to jump over a small fence or something. I really wasn't paying attention. Watching my friend interact with his dad didn't do anything to help me, and my desire to slink back to my room burned more incessantly than before.

Aunt Purity gave me a brief distraction when she passed by on her way out the door.

     "Afternoon, Coal. How is your mother doing? Is she around at all today?" she asked.
     "She's over at Uncle Eden's right now. She won't be back at our place until later."
     "Hmm, maybe I'll pop by there after my meeting then. I have a question to ask her." Aunt Purity mused, sounding suspicious towards the end and letting me know something was definitely up when she gave me a wink.

Azure and I were on our way right after Aunt Purity took off for her meeting, which I assumed dealt with one of the many businesses she and Uncle Sap ran. The bike ride to the park went a lot slower thanks to Azure's weight, but we made it there at the right moment. Uncle Frost had just dropped off Midas along with Holly and Mimosa. I forced down my annoyance when Mimosa met me with another half-tackling hug, and I was fine with her holding my hand while we watched the end of the practicing some street magicians were doing at the performance stage.

After that, I ended up isolating myself as much as I could. I had hoped at first that seeing my friends would cheer me up, but I soon found out avoiding them as I had been had been the right thing to do. Holly and Mimosa grouped up together when we reached the playground area, and Midas and Azure ran around like the little devils they could be. I took up a spot at the top of the slide, only going down every so often so as to not attract curious stares as to why I was not moving, and watched them. Unlike with my family members, seeing my friends be happy and acting normally stirred anger inside my chest. The world wasn't fair. All of them still had their complete families. All of them still had their dads. I'm sure they were upset on some level about my dad being missing, but there had been little said about it besides a few sorrys and a bit of comforting at the beginning. Otherwise, they acted as if all was right with the world, and there seemed to be some naive assumption that I would act as I always had as well.

I gave up on the slide. Really not in the mood to play with my friends, I merely walked around with my head staring straight at the ground. The best distraction I could find was picking up strangely shaped wood chips and trying to find a match for them. The match would either look incredibly similar or fit together with the original like a puzzle piece. There was something oddly satisfying about my little game, and I had just set down my fifth pair on the ground to let them be when things took a sour turn with my companions. I had barely straightened up and began to start my search again when an unexpected, sharp pain spread through my cheek as someone briefly pulled at the skin.

     "Midas! What are you doing?" I growled at him angrily, swatting him away and sending a stiff glare.
     "I was trying to help cheer you up." he answered back.
     "How in the world is being pinched supposed to cheer me up?" I snapped back, rubbing the skin lightly to help dull the ache.
     "Well, giving my cheek a little tug has been something mom has always done to me ever as far back as I can remember. It just seems to help me out for whatever reason. I thought I would try it with you." Midas explained with slight uncertainty, as it was clear he hadn't expected to set me off quite so bitterly.
     "It was a stupid idea," I rebuked, turning my head away in irritation, "That should have been obvious."
     "Sorry." Midas mumbled.

He sounded lightly annoyed now as well.

I was going to head my own way again and leave the matter at that, but Holly suddenly appeared. She must have caught wind of the short argument from the seesaw.

     "Someone's being a super brat today. I guess his idea of having fun is being a jerk." she said in such a laughingly condescending tone that it sent my blood boiling much faster.
     "I think I have a right to be in a bit of a bad mood." I retorted back.

With my glare not having ceased for a second, Holly got instantly riled up herself.

     "Don't you think we're worried too?" she fought back with a disapproving scowl.
     "The way you're upset doesn't even come close to how I feel." I pointed out tartly.
     "You don't need to take your frustration out on us. We're your friends."
     "Yeah, you are supposed to be my friend, but some friend you are. Instead of actually trying to comfort me, you laugh at me and make fun of the fact that I am in bad mood because my dad is abducted, dead, or who knows what! You don't even care that I'm stressed because my mom has had to go to the hospital a second time earlier this week because my new sister or brother who is never going to know their dad is making her super sick! What have any of you actually done to help me besides pretend that nothing has changed and think that's all you have to do?!"

Midas, who had already gone rather silent, shifted timidly. Holly was quiet for a few seconds as well, but I could tell I had set off her childish anger. She truly hated to lose, she became a lot less logical when she knew she had.

     "Just...just shut up!"

That was the comeback she found most appropriate for the situation.

     "Oh, thanks. I really felt the love from that. I don't think there is any better way to show me that you do actually care." I responded with heavy sarcasm.
     "You're full of crap, Coal!" she exclaimed with a stomp of her foot, a bit of her potty mouth beginning to show.
     "Holly, stop," an upset Mimosa rushed over to gently tug her sister back, "You're being really mean."

Holly bit her lip for a brief moment, but her mouth soon opened. I expected more harshness, but Azure literally jumped in between us and spread out his arms to get us to back away from each other.

     "You guys have gone and done it now. You've started fighting. You know what that means." he spoke brightly, his upbeat tone crashing against the tension.
     "We're not in the mood for this." Holly protested.
     "Too bad. We agreed on this rule long ago, but if you'd like to continue to refuse then you can take the position of the loser by default." Azure reminded her of the deal our group when we were little.

Holly pouted deeply, but she said nothing further.

     "Good. It's time for hide-and-seek then. Since I'm the one least involved in this, I'll be the seeker. Like normal, by fate's choice the first one I find will be judged as the most guilty one in this little argument of yours. As such, they will have to pay for a treat for the rest of us. I think a thing of ice cream is the most fitting choice this time around." Azure continued on.
     "Why did we make such stupid rules?" Holly mumbled under her breath.
     "We were four." Midas shrugged, a bit of a smile breaking onto his face.

I wanted to complain and protest against the game too, but I definitely didn't feel as if I should be the one to have to pay for everyone else. Sure, I could have been nicer to Midas, but Holly had been the one to push it when it hadn't been necessary. So, I felt bad for Midas and I felt bad for Mimosa. She merely smiled brightly at me like she always did though. I mentally took back my statement that none of my friends had done anything to help me. I had to admit that Mimosa had been the most supportive and understanding.

Azure closed his eyes, and the rest of us took off in opposite directions as soon as he started counting.

I struggled with where to hide. We all knew the park like the back of our hands. There wasn't actually a true hiding spot that no one else knew of or a place where Azure wouldn't look. There was, however, a few spots were rarely used as the park staff often told us off for being in them. I decided it was worth the risk to try one out again. I hopped over the brick railing at the eastern side of the park where I snuggled against the wall to be hidden by it, the big flower bushes, and a good angle. Azure would have a clear look at me if he came down the stairs, but he would have little reason to use them as they led right to the sidewalk and edge of the lot.

And there I sat. The brief thrill of finding a decent spot before I was found wore off in seconds. The heavy, weighed down feeling from earlier returned with a passion. It nearly made me stop caring about if I happened to be found first or not. All I did care about was making the burdensome sensation disappear. Being with my friends clearly wasn't helping, and remaining motionless and tightened up in that little corner was pointless as well. It did nothing to give me what I wanted. I craved answers. I desired action to make things right. I begged the universe to let me be able to make some sort of difference.

I didn't remain hidden for long. I didn't care about the game. An idea finally planted itself inside my mind, and that was all that mattered to me. I leapt over the wall, snuck over to where I parked my bike, and I rode off. I half-expected someone to notice and call after me, but no one did. I turned several corners, and the park was soon far behind. I took the long way around to my destination so that I wouldn't have to go past any of the places where someone else might spot me, for I'm sure this kind of going off alone wasn't what Desire meant. I had a feeling my choice of destination would be met with strong disapproval. I had to see things for myself though.

The rows of houses fell away. In the quiet, picturesque route that connected the suburbs and the city there was only me, the rush of the wind, and the gentle clicking of my bike as it rolled along. The crisp air momentarily stole away a good portion of my heavy heart once more, and steadily getting closer to my goal placed a thrilling sensation in my body. My palms grew slightly sweaty, and my heart thumped tighter and tighter. I was daring to have a little bit of hope.

My idea was stupid. I don't know what I thought I would accomplish by going into the grove by Peppy's. I suppose I just had the delusional belief that I of all people would be able to find something experienced police couldn't. I walked in with confidence, hiding my bike by some bushes about fifteen meters in. I began scouring for clues at that point. My head was set straight at the ground as I slowly walked all over, peeked through all the shrubbery, and looked in every inch where something might be hiding.

It took much longer than I expected, and it was when I hit the fifty meters in mark when the nerves started to sink in. Perhaps there was someone mysterious watching my family from the shadows. In the approximate spot where my dad had been assaulted, I now stood entirely alone where something bad could happen to me too and no one would know. A bunch of birds took off from the tree on my right, and I jumped and cried out much louder in fright than I wanted to admit. I began running around all the trees in fear as I wanted to confirm that no one was hiding around. Running made me be less of a target as well. I must have lapped around anything anyone could be lurking behind three times before I accepted my paranoia as nothing else other than that. The idea that the culprit would just be waiting around on the off chance one of us happened to wander into the grove was pretty stupid itself.

I gave up on my searching shortly after that. If there had been anything to find, the police would have found it. However, I saw no reason to leave the grove. It was strange, but, steadily, being there made me feel more at peace than I had been for pretty much the last month now. Dad and I had actually made a lot of good memories in this grove. Getting ice cream or snacks from Peppy's had been a tradition of ours for a long time now. We would often sneak into the trees to enjoy our purchase instead of going home and being teased for not getting stuff for everyone else. He and I would just talk or goof around. Dad would even steal my snack and make me chase him around for it, especially back when I was younger. It was a sad thought indeed that a place where a good helping of joy had been made was now the site where it had all be snatched away.

I had some base understanding of how much time was passing. The shadows of the shade grew darker, and I had to avoid the glare of the sun as it set. Then the wind picked up and the humidity in the air changed. It was the threat of rain. Still, I wandered about in the grove or took a break underneath one of the trees. I was too lost in my reminiscing and musings to care about trivial matters like the time or the weather. I wonder now if I would have ended up staying in that grove all night, but I was jolted back to reality by the sound of a voice.

     "You were right." it said.

My head whipped around, and then I froze momentarily. I half expected it to be the criminals involved in my dad's disappearance. The truth was that it was just my friends. I withdrew into myself and shifted sheepishly. I hadn't cared in the slightest what they would feel when it finally dawned on them that I took off, but now the guilt was sinking in.

     "You do realize your mom is freaking out right now?" Midas continued speaking, adding on that crushing extra layer of guilt, "We were too, especially when you wouldn't even answer your phone."

I cursed myself inwardly. I had forgotten about the dumb thing again, for I had turned off both the volume and vibration when I had been briefly hiding behind the brick wall. I hadn't bothered with it since.

     "Sorry," I mumbled out pitifully, "How did you know I was here of all places?"
     "Holly got the idea that you might be here. We had dad drop us off after we convinced your mom and Blaze that we would be the ones to retrieve you."
     "Why?"

Midas glanced Holly's way, and the first time she opened her mouth to speak she was silenced by a great gust of wind. The branches danced with fury, and a roll of moisture hit us. The rain had come. Relatively gentle, we ignored it, and Holly started properly.

     "I wanted at least me be the one to come get you because I felt it was my fault you ran off. The others came too because they felt responsible as well. You were right. We are worried about your dad, but we have no idea what it's like for you. You haven't been acting like yourself. You're obviously struggling with a lot of things, and we haven't even bothered to do anything about it because we weren't sure what to do. That was wrong. Even if we messed up, we should have tried instead of ignoring the problem and forcing you to keep quiet."

Holly clasped her hands together, fiddled her fingers, and stared down at the ground guiltily.

     "I'm sorry I snapped at you. I shouldn't have made fun of you in the first place, and me putting the blame on you was wrong too." she apologized quietly.

Now it was her turn to glance at the others, and they all nodded in agreement. That clicked with something within me, for my chest suddenly felt a lot lighter.

     "I'm sorry too," I spoke, becoming a little embarrassed, "I shouldn't have taken off like I did, and I shouldn't have snapped either."

I looked at Midas.

     "You were taking that step forward and trying to cheer me up, and I tore you down for doing it."

Midas smiled at me.

     "It's all good. It was a rather stupid idea like you said," he laughed gently, "Sneaking up behind you and pinching you- I really don't know why I was surprised I got the reaction I did. I would have gotten mad too. We can just forget about this all now. Well, you are going to have to face your mom and Blaze, but we can work on making things better tomorrow."
     "I'll be lucky if I'm not grounded for the rest of the summer." I chuckled hopelessly, dreading the lecture I was bound to receive.
     "Let's not get you in any more trouble by staying around here then. I don't want to be out in this rain too much longer either." Midas suggested.

The rest of us nodded when he shifted to head out of the grove. By the rate at which the sky was darkening, it would be pouring before long. There ended up being a delay before we left though. I followed my friends for several feet, but I was unexpectedly struck by a surge of overwhelming emotions. It was if the storming sea warred against the raging wind within my chest. I was spinning without moving, and I wanted to hide myself away as I could feel I was going to break.

Baffled by the rapid change, the explanation for the painful mixture of emotions soon became clear. I didn't want to leave the grove. Not without dad. The calm I felt would be replaced with that heavy, hopeless despair once more. I didn't want to go back home to have to deal with the sinking disappointment that my home was empty because it was missing what had made it so full. Dad was just one person, but he was more important than any of us had realized. The house did feel bare without him, and it was in that moment when it began to sink in that I was going to have to face the rest of my days without him.

I did take a step back when a wetness welled up in my eyes. I buried my face behind my hands and desperately attempted to keep it all together. However, the more I fought with myself the worse the sensations grew. My constricting throat pulled in on itself even tighter, and it burned with passion. It was as if there was a block in the bottom of it that staggered and shook my breathing. The tears flowed out before I was ready for them, and they broke through like a river obliterating the dam that held it back. Humiliation mixed in with everything else I was feeling. I couldn't even remember the last time I had truly cried. It must have been back when Button died when I was four. Other than that, it had been briefly wet eyes when I had fallen and scrapped a knee or when dad or Uncle Al made me laugh too hard. Nothing like the onslaught of unspeakable devastation that wracked me now.

     "Coal?" Midas' concerned voice called out.

I cringed when I heard it. I had been torn between holding perfectly still so that my friends wouldn't realize I wasn't following or silently dashing behind the nearest tree so they couldn't see me, but I had been spotted.

     "I'm sorry." I whispered out in a broken voice that didn't sound like mine.

I had no idea what I was apologizing for.

As if mirroring the tumult of my emotions, the wind gusted more strongly and the rain poured down with more fervor. The sound of my barely controlling sobbing mixed with the storm as no one moved or said anything for several seconds. Then I heard the sound of footsteps coming my way, and I knew who it was long before she wrapped her arms around me. Mimosa'a embrace was gentle but tight and comforting in a way that I needed it to be. It was the first time, probably ever, when I wanted her to never let go. As someone who faced constant intense changes in emotion, she was the one who could empathize the best with what I was going through. She just let me cry while she snuggled up against me, and she lightly pinned my arms when I tried to control my tears again.

     "It's okay, Coal. Boys can cry too." she said defensively and encouragingly.

I gave up on attempting to control my wayward emotions entirely at that. I was heartbroken. I was frustrated. I was confused, I was angry, and I didn't know what to do. Crying made everything feel a bit more bearable though. The option of revealing the secret I had heard wasn't there, but I now was understanding a bit better than I didn't have to let it out for others to realize how I was feeling. I didn't have to say the words, because I'm sure in their hearts they all sort of knew the truth too.

I think the tears were beginning to slow just a smidge when another body wrapped itself around me.

     "What are you doing?" I asked in surprise.
     "If boys can cry, then boys can hug." Azure pointed out with a kind of cheerful determination.
     "Not that," I said, and I would have rolled my eyes if I could, "Why are you hugging my head?"

Azure had wormed his arm between my head and Mimosa's to clutch at my noggin and bury my face almost in his armpit.

     "Well, Mimi's pretty much got a monopoly on the rest of you, so this was the only space left." Azure explained with a light joking air.

I sighed every so slightly, but a hint of a smile found its way back onto my face.

     "Maybe we should join in too." Midas suggested to Holly.
     "Yeah! Dog pile on Coal!" she cried out too enthusiastically for my liking.

I even heard Azure mumble a little "Oh no", but he instantly switched his position to being totally down for taking me down. And, I mean down in the literal sense. A dog pile was not a dog pile unless we ended up on the ground. I braced myself for impact when Holly half leapt onto us.

     "Make sure you don't break any legs!" Midas called the warning out.

Sensible as usual, he was the one to stand back a bit more and be the opposing force that prevented the rest of us from totally smashing onto the ground. Even with his grip, the other four of us did go down rather fast. Mimosa had the good position to pull me backwards while Azure and Holly pushed easily from the front. The soft ground thankfully cushioned the blow quite nicely, so much so that even my three friends and I being a bit tangled up together as we fell didn't hurt in the slightest. Azure and Holly were chuckling like mad idiots. I had half a mind to complain, but then I noticed that my tears had already stopped. I actually had to fight quite hard to stop myself from smiling along with them.

     "Mimosa, you can get off now, if you'd like." I told her after the other two disentangled themselves from the mess we had landed as.
     "Never!" she answered back ecstatically.
     "Looks like you fell right into her trap." Holly teased with a giggle as she glanced at her sister lying quite content across me with her arms still wrapped around my chest.
     "I didn't have much choice in that matter, did I?" I reminded her with sarcastic disapproval.

Holly shrugged impishly. Then she caught me totally off guard as she tried to join Mimosa in cuddling on top of me, but some of her sister's classic jealousy came out as she retaliated by trying to push her off. I was completely stuck under the weight of one trying to assert a claim on me while the other fought to keep hers.

     "Why does watching this make me really angry?" Azure commented with heavy sarcastic jealousy and a big grin.
     "Oh, shut up!" I frowned as I protested against a sudden heat swarming to my cheeks.

Holly burst out into more laughter, and she decided to stand back up. The mischievous smirk on her face had me wondering if embarrassing me had been her goal. I could do nothing but sigh again and once again notice how already my crying was becoming a memory. Now the only thing making my face wet was the every increasing quantities of rain. Midas got Mimosa off me by pointing out we really needed to head off before Uncle Frost was forced to collect us. After I brushed off the little bit of mud on me when I was allowed to get back on my feet, I was able to walk with my friends towards my bike with no hesitations this time. There was a lot still wrong with my life. However, just one something had been made right, and it was the best feeling in the world.