Gen Three- Chapter Twenty Six

I'd known it was inevitable, but I still dreaded its happening. Mom and dad were, needless to say, once again incredibly surprised to find me home earlier than normal. I'm sure my face looked a mess after all the crying, and there was no way I could lie to them anymore when I admitted I hadn't come home because I was sick. Dad's eyes narrowed more and more as I told my parents about my outing with Arbor, what we had done, and his actions today. My story had hardly finished before dad dove for his phone. I bet Mr. and Mrs. Thicket regretted giving him their phone number. Still, my curiosity drove me to stick around for the call. Whether to help comfort me or give me a snack for the show, mom permitted me and her free range of our ice cream. Not that I found the stomach to eat much.

     "Yeah, well that's what he said last time!" dad stomped around irately, "How many times has he had to apologize now? We keep giving him the benefit of the doubt, and every other week it's something new he's putting Dianthus through!"

I wished I could hear the other half of the conversation. Dad's protectiveness was reassuring, but not knowing completely what was going on wasn't overly satisfying.

     "If he actually cares about what he did, put him on the phone already! Those words don't mean anything from you!"

There was another pause. Dad at least let whichever one of Arbor's parents on the other end finish their sentences.

     "What nonsense! He's an adult now, right? That's what Dia told us. You hiding him behind your back is probably half the reason why he has the maturity of a five-year-old brat!"

     "Coal." mom rebuked.

He frowned, but got the message.

Truly, he did his best to tamper his harsh words and anger after that. Not that the phone call went well by any standards. Dad was pissed, he wasn't afraid to let Mr. or Mrs. Thicket know it, and by the time he finally ended the conversation it was safe to say neither party was in a good mood.

     "It's ridiculous," dad huffed as he sat down, "Apparently, Arbor is 'gravely regretting' what he did, but Cliff absolutely refused to let me speak to him. Said he wouldn't just let me berate his son. I could only talk to him if I calmed down and speak to him with courtesy, as if Arbor deserves to be coddled after being an ass!"

     "You would say the same thing though," mom pointed out with a hint of a smile, "If Cliff called to yell at Dia-"

     "I wasn't yelling." dad interrupted with a pout.

     "It was loud enough. Anyway, if he called to get on her case like you wanted to get on Arbor's, you sure as hell wouldn't just stand right there and let him do it even if she did deserve it."

     "That's different."

     "No, it's not, Vivid." mom retorted with a bigger smile, taking another spoonful of ice cream and giving him a look.

I almost laughed from how dad slumped in his seat and looked like a child as he realized he couldn't refute. Thank goodness those two never changed.

     "Whatever," he badly accepted reality, "Dia, I'm at a loss for what to do with him now. Arbor has days where he's fine, but these incidents keep happening. I understand from what you've told us that you care for him and want to believe, but I think it's clear this is not a healthy relationship for you- friendship or otherwise. I think you need to accept that he had to have stolen dad's snow globe and that Arbor's parents chose to switch to his side to protect him. No matter what goodness he has shown, there's still a lot none of us know about who he is or what he's done. Even you."

     "I know. I know you're probably right." I said quietly with a little nod.

     "How much more of your project is left?" mom asked after I didn't say more than that.

     "We're basically done with the second part. The third part is due to be presented a week before Christmas break. It doesn't need as much interaction between us as before."

     "I would limit what you can to phone calls and emails," dad suggested, "I'm sorry, but I fear what could happen when there's a person who says they care for someone and immediately turn around to hurt them in ways they never should."

That was the moment when dad's strong opinions made sense to me again. Yeah, Arbor had been terrible, but the way dad wanted to ostracize him seemed extreme until I remembered his experiences with Aunt Mimi. He'd lived through years of being told that she loved him only to nearly die at her hands. I'm sure he worried such an escalation would occur with Arbor. Not being able to agree or disagree, I merely let the topic push through onto other matters. My parents advised me not to go to my branch class that evening, which I stubbornly went to anyway. Missing an afternoon of high school classes was fine. Missing a three hour long college lecture that only happened once a week was not. I pumped out my normal homework with Gilly before getting a ride from mom into the city.

Even though I was there, sitting in the classroom right in the perfect seat that let me down down on the area Arbor and I had been meant little learning happened on my part. The reminder kept my chest aching, and the aching kept my eyes burning even as my body could only force out a bit more mist. My classmates easily accepted my lie of it being simple allergies. One kindly provided me with a package of tissues, and I went through half of it as those long hours dragged on. I couldn't get home and into an endless shower fast enough.

Waking up the next morning was slow. Gilly, who had five snooze alarms set on her phone, was up and dressed before I convinced myself to crawl out from under my covers. I didn't bother with half of my morning routine, and breakfast barely happened. Some toast managed to make it into my mouth, and that was it. My sorry state left me with extra time that I spent taking deep breaths in my room while cuddling Mirage.

     "You know you don't have to go today." Gilly said after peeking her head inside.
     "There's no reason not to. I'm not sick, and I got my break yesterday."
     "What break? The two hours of classes you missed? That's next to nothing."
     "I'm fine."
     "You say that, but everyone can see you're acting way off. You're going to wear down fast today even if you think you can handle it. Seriously, Dia, it won't hurt you to rest a little more. You've barely had a break the past two months what with your college classes, your hell project, planning homecoming, and squeezing in time for the rest of us. I'll make sure to get notes and the homework for all your classes. Indulge yourself for a day."
     "I appreciate it, but I'm good." I declined, scratching Mirage under her jaw.
     "Good, huh? You are aware of the fact that you're going to have to face Arbor then? You'll have to sit right nearby him for two classes. If he does actually feel bad like his parents said, he'll try to have a quiet moment with you alone to apologize or something. Given that you're still figuring out your feelings, are you really prepped to deal with him so soon? What if it turns out his parents were lying and he wants nothing to do with you? I will tell you rumors have indeed begun to float in the air about you two. He could say more horrible stuff in order to distance himself from that."
     "I..."

Truth be told, I hadn't thought about any of that. I hadn't been doing any kind of real thinking that morning to begin with. The auto-pilot continued to hold the main control over my body and mind. However, now that Gilly struck me with the truth, it didn't take long before more blasted tears pooled from nowhere. Several fell onto Mirage. She shook, jumped off my lap, and Gilly wrapped her arm around my shoulders.

     "Stay home today, okay, Dia? It's not just Arbor. You're exhausted too. You simply can't tell because you're constantly going and going."
     "Okay." I mumbled, rubbing back the tears.

Thankfully, I didn't even need to ask my parents if I could stay home. I'd dried my wet cheeks, but they took one look at me when I ventured downstairs to put forth the request only for them to strongly suggest I stay home as well. Thus, the last of my resistances fell apart. My pajamas were back on me before I could blink, and I'm pretty sure my sister said goodbye. I vaguely remember her saying farewell before kissing my forehead as I laid there willingly embracing the sweet delight of my bed. The next several hours didn't exist as far as I was aware. My eyes closed, I drifted off into heavy sleep, and the next time I woke it was already lunchtime. My sluggish brain, however, couldn't focus on anything other than the pictures before me. Said pictures were often a source of arguments between my twin and I. Gilly, bisexual with a rather strong preference for women, often painted quite scantily clad or seductive ladies for her enjoyment. She adamantly stated she kept the paintings on her side of the room only, but with the way everything was arranged they were more often directly in my line of sight. For me, who wanted things in the room to stay classy, waking up to have half naked women as the first thing I saw every morning often caused me to sigh. In that moment though, I contemplated them heavily. Things were working out marvelously for Gilly and Confetti. It all looked better on the other side. If only.

My head wouldn't let me stay in bed forever. The back of my skull ached from not moving from my pillow for so long, and it wasn't used to so much sleep. I dressed, got something to eat, and scrolled through my messages on my phone to give my brain the base amount of input it desired. Gilly had clearly spread the word around to my friends given all the supportive messages and texts sent my way. I found particular interest in a video Timber sent that made me laugh. It was some simple thing, but he, as always, knew the right cord to hit to cheer me up.

     "In some ways, it really is too bad I don't have any interest in Timber. This whole romance thing would be easy then, huh?" I spoke to my cat as I searched out an appropriate video to send as a response, "Make sure not to mention I said that to anyone, especially Gilly. I'll never hear the end of it otherwise."

Mirage yawned and stretched from her perch on my sister's dresser. My phone buzzed to pull my eyes back down. Expecting it to be another message from my friends, the text turned out to be from Arbor. My body instantly stiffened up.

     "I'm on lunch break. I'd really like to talk to you. Is it okay if I call?"

I read the words aloud while frowning heavily. By this point, the majority of the sadness had morphed into a bittersweet anger. An anger that rose higher at the very thought of him.

     "No. Fuck you."

That was the response my fingers typed and sent back before I could stop myself. I waited a brief moment, but no reply came back.

My extra time after that went into working on future school projects while taking a break here and there to entertain myself with video games or an episode of a television show. The afternoon flew by. Gilly returned to our room, and she'd taken it upon herself to do what she could of her homework during study hall. That meant less of my afternoon went into helping her while she was even able to assist me since she'd already done it. Gilly went ahead and gave me the information Arbor did appear incredibly downtrodden throughout the day, or as much as he could appear downtrodden with his apathetic mask. He'd gone to approach her, but backed down when she gave him a look. While I listened to what she told me, I also did my best to ignore it. Arbor and I would have to continue to interact until the project was over. I required as much time as I could get to compose myself before we faced each other once more.

     "Hey, Dia?"

Merlot slipped into the room not long after Gilly abruptly excused herself. She carried herself suspiciously, and now my brother stood there more formally dressed than normal. He helped me to ignore my predicament in a big way.

     "What's up, Merl? That's a snazzy outfit you're wearing. What's it for?"
     "Well, I was wondering...do you want to go out with me?"
     "Go out with you?" I questioned back in surprise, "That sounds like you're asking me out on a date."
     "I am. A brother-sister sort of one. Kind of how we used to have days where we'd hang out with just each other when we were little," Merlot explained before growing a tad embarrassed, "I feel really bad about what happened with Arbor. I've never seen you sad like that before, so I wanted to cheer you up. I got mom and dad's permission for us to use the car tonight if we need it. We can go wherever you want."
     "Ohh, Merl..." I cooed, the irritated corners of my eyes protesting the swelling of more tears even if they were happy ones, "Of course I'll go. Let me get changed."
     "You don't have to."
     "I want to. I can't have you out-dressing me." I teased.

I went to ruffle his hair, but hurriedly switched to giving him a side-hug instead. My brother was doing his best to stand confidently and maturely. Merlot wasn't a little kid anymore, and I had to stop treating him like one.

We didn't have need of the car. I suppose we could have taken it. However, I didn't feel like driving, and Merlot certainly couldn't get behind the wheel. The place I wanted to go to wasn't overly far anyway, just at the south end of the beach.

     "Oh, this tea shop?" Merlot asked when we approached the building.
     "Yeah, I hope you don't mind. I know you're not really one for tea unless it has a bunch of creamer and some honey."
     "I have a sweet tooth. What can I say?" Merlot shrugged.
     "I'm sure the barista will be able to accommodate your crazy taste buds. They have incredible snacks here too. I would daresay they rival Aunt Mimi's."
     "Blasphemy." Merlot scoffed sarcastically.
     "You're just going to have to try them all so you can say that for sure."
     "I might even have to try two of each to be properly convinced."
     "Sounds like we're going to have to make a trip to the dentist our second stop of the evening."
     "I'll have you know I haven't gotten a cavity in years." Merlot boasted proudly.
     "I do know," I laughed, "You're very impressive."

The tea shop wasn't overly large, but I preferred it calm and quiet. The big chain shops in the city were constantly packed, and an overabundance of people who went in to only use the wi-fi and air conditioning made it next to impossible to get a seat. This was far better even if the prices were a little more expensive.

     "So, what are you going to get?" I asked Merlot after we took our spaces at the counter, pulling out my wallet to double-check the amount I had.
     "I'm still deciding, but you don't have to worry about that." Merlot replied, reaching out to motion me to put my money away while taking out his own.
     "I can pay for myself." I said with a smile.
     "I know you can, but I want to pay today. This is my treat to you."
     "That's sweet, but you work so hard on your chores to earn that money. I can't let you pay for me too."
     "Why not?" Merlot challenged boldly, "You work hard for your money too. You're always offering to buy me snacks and stuff, and when I'm sad you and Gilly pay out of your pockets take me somewhere fun. How come I can't return the favor?"
     "I..." my voice faltered, and I caved, "You're right, Merlot. Thank you very much."
     "You're welcome." he beamed me a bright grin.

Goodness, did I want to cry again from overwhelming happiness. Make no mistake that Merlot could be the world's most annoying brat when it suited him, but more often than not I had to thank the universe for letting me have such a brother.

The worker took our order, smiling widely at the amount of sugar going into Merlot's tea, and got to putting everything together as another group of customers arrived. A few chose to sit down at the other end of the counter, but the rest took the more popular seats out front on the deck. My brother and I passed the time talking comfortably. The minutes that went showed me something Gilly's words hinted at. While I thought I spent enough time with my family, the truth was there was a lot passing me by. Merlot was twelve. That'd been the age I'd been when we moved back from Tinseltown to Berrybrook. How grown-up I'd felt then, and how young Merlot looked to me now. Yet...he looked old at the same time. Puberty was starting to hit him in subtle ways. I'd heard mom complaining recently about having to extend the hems on his pants again, and his appetite was worse than ever. However, more than the physical changes, who my brother was as a person clearly no longer matched what I assumed to be reality based on conversations in the past.

     "Hey, Merl?"
     "Hmm?"
     "It's been a while since we've really talked. I'm just curious, do you have anything in mind that you want to do when you grow up? Last I remember, you wanted to be a fireman like Aunt Ceri. Is that still true?"
     "Nah, I gave up on that a long time ago."

There it was. It had indeed been too long since Merlot and I truly had an in-depth conversation.

     "Have you switched to something else then, or is there nothing concrete?"
     "Actually, you remember that musical we watched about the circus?"
     "Yeah."
     "I thought the trapeze artists were super cool. I'd like to try that."
     "You want to be a trapeze artist?" I remarked in amazement.
     "Uh-huh. There's that big circus in Tinseltown. If I could get in there, then I can move back."
     "Still upset that we returned to Berrybrook?" I laughed.
     "I will always be."

He spoke so seriously that I laughed harder.

     "Well, let's see if I can help you remedy that. I can't say I know anything about how one goes about becoming a trapeze artist specifically, but you should ask mom and dad to about gymnastic classes. We have the trampoline at home too. You can start simple on that."
     "Oh, that's a good idea. I didn't even think of that." Merlot realized excitedly.

With that, I remedied the slight problem. Merlot and I planned out a path for him to forge for his goal, and from there on I got up to date on all the things going on in his life. I knew who his friends were, what were his favorite foods, what he liked most to do with his free time, and so on. We both ordered a second cup of tea, and it was after the fourth large brownie that our stomachs protested the amount we put in. I suggested a walk along the beach. That didn't last long enough even when we doubled back to traverse the length a second time. Our feet took us back towards our neighborhood where Merlot, still enough of a child- and a high energy one at that, zipped over to the playground like a moth to a light. I couldn't help but to join him. Merlot and I dared each other to see who could go higher on the swings, I chased him around the jungle gym after he splashed me with water from the fountain, and it was when we climbed up the slide for the dozenth time that I noticed my cheeks were hurting from smiling and laughing too much. Thoughts of Arbor came back to my mind, but only because I realized I hadn't been thinking about him at all. Merlot's plan had worked marvelously. Arbor's words continued to sting. However, by the time my brother and I returned home I could say I was happy.

Then Wednesday came around. Dread re-entered my chest, but I walked into school with my head held high. My first encounter with Arbor happened in the hallway. He gave me a glance. I spotted hope in his eyes, but when I obviously ignored him he dutifully continued on his way without pressing me. In a way, I felt glad to see him disappointed. Mr. Thicket hadn't been lying about his son genuinely regretting his actions. Seeing him in class, unfortunately, proved harder to deal with. Arbor, in front of everyone who cared to glance in our direction, flashed me a smile before he sat down. He didn't do anything past that, but the fact that he smiled in front of people who didn't think such a thing was possible was huge. I could hardly concentrate. At lunch he meandered in my direction clearly hoping I'd be more receptive. Gilly and Timber, both still pissed on my behalf, scared him off though. In our second class together his optimism had waned quite a bit. I was offered a quick wave before he took his seat, and he didn't stay turned around long enough for our eyes to even meet. I fiddled with my pencil in frustration for the rest of the afternoon. What did I want to do?

I had no clue until other people forced me to interact with my project partner.

     "Mrs. Jelly, I have something to say about Arbor."

Crossing the now more crowded walkway after classes ended had me catching the quieter conversation going on between one of my classmates and our teacher. My ears perked up instantly.

     "What about Arbor?" Mrs. Jelly asked back.
     "I'm pretty sure I just saw him smoking near the south door."
     "Pretty sure? That's a serious accusation to make if he's-"

Mrs. Jelly continued to speak, but I was already off. If there was any truth to my classmate's accusation, then I had minimal time to work with. Thankfully, I darted down the hallways without any obstacles. My work as the student council president often had me rushing about trying to get things done on time. My hurried pace wasn't anything unusual. My heart soared with relief after bursting through the south door and finding no one. However, my nose did smell cigarette smoke. I dashed down and around one of the nearby corners to find exactly what Mrs. Jelly would be coming to find. Arbor, finishing up a cigarette, jumped startled out of the melancholy expression he wore to look at me with surprise.

     "Um, hi, Dia," he spoke awkwardly, quickly putting the cigarette out, "Sorry, I know you don't like the smoking. I-"
     "Give me that."

I snatched it out of his hands to shove it into a hole I madly dug in the empty planter box next to us. Arbor barely had time to looked confused when I patted the dirt back on top before shoving my hands into his jacket pockets.

     "What are-" he squirmed and took a step back.
     "Come with me." I instructed as I found what I was looking for right away.

The box of cigarettes went from his pocket to mine, and poor, desperately confused Arbor could only follow my demands as I took his hand. The two of us scurried off. We crossed the road and took a place on the sidewalk as the south door opened. Mrs. Jelly stepped out, glanced around, and spotted us down the way. Arbor caught on then that something was going on. He fumbled taking my lead as I engaged him in fake conversation. Thankfully, we didn't have to force conversation for long. Mrs. Jelly immediately moved in our direction and was upon us in twelve seconds.

     "Hello." she greeted us with a calm but suspicious smile.
     "Hello, Mrs. Jelly. Can we help you with something?" I asked back innocently.
     "In a way. There was something brought to my attention, and it's a matter I need to check right away."
     "What's that?" I questioned.
     "Arbor, if I could have you turn out your pockets please." she went ahead and demanded politely as teachers do.
     "S-Sure." Arbor agreed softly.

He caught my eye, looked both relieved and worried, and slowly did as instructed. Nothing else sat in his jacket pockets, and the only things in his jeans were his wallet, car keys, phone, and a candy wrapper. Mrs. Jelly gave what he held out a good look over before staring studiously at his face.

     "Arbor, I was given an alert that you were smoking by the south door. Please be honest with me. Were you?"
     "No, I wasn't."

I cringed inwardly big time. Where the hell was Arbor's indifference that he could put up like a giant shield? Even if there was nothing blatantly marking him as guilty, his words and the shaky way they were spoken pegged him a liar.

    "He wasn't," I jumped to his aide, "We've been here since the last bell rang trying to figure out where we wanted to go to start the next bit of Mr. Sunrise's project."
    "Mmhmm," Mrs. Jelly replied in disbelief before glancing me up and down this time, "Miss Vivid, if I could have you turn out your pockets as well."

Arbor visibly stiffened, but I kept on smiling as I obeyed without protest. I didn't bother going for my phone or wallet as soon as the box of cigarettes came into view as I knew I'd taken out what she wanted to see. Mrs. Jelly gave me an intensely serious expression.

     "Miss Vivid, I am incredibly disappointed in you."
     "Why?" I questioned back lightheartedly, and that threw her off.
     "Underage smoking, possession of cigarettes..." she began to try and catch me.
     "Me smoking underage would be a problem if I had ever actually smoked. I haven't, right, Arbor?" I asked and he nodded, "It's not illegal for me to possess cigarettes. Not in this state. It's only illegal for me to use them, which, again, I never have."
     "Even if you are allowed to have them in general, you are not allowed to have them on the school's premises."
     "But I don't have them on school grounds. The school's property ends over there," I pointed to the other side of the road before motioning to my feet, "We're standing over here."
     "Can you prove that you didn't have them on you before coming over here?"
     "Can you prove that I did?"

Seriously, it was now a madly weird day. Arbor couldn't keep his expressions controlled whatsoever while I, who knows, maybe I should have been an actress. There I was confidently challenging a teacher even though everyone knew the real truth. There was no way we hadn't had the cigarettes on us on the school's property, and Mrs. Jelly glanced back to Arbor again and again knowing he had at least had a puff. However, I'd put too much risk in her way. There was no longer any proof. Any accusations would be mere conjecture. Perhaps if it had been just Arbor in this situation our teacher would push for assumption to be enough. However, my name was coming into play, and I knew it as well as she did. I wasn't just the student council president. I wasn't just the number one student in my grade with perfect marks that the school loved to use as their poster girl. I was Dianthus Vivid. Maybe that didn't really mean much most days, but in times like this it was my shield. Everyone in the city knew us. People from all over the country still flocked to grandma's headstone on the anniversaries of her death. If Mrs. Jelly tried to get me in trouble for something as serious as underage smoking when she had no weight behind it...

     "Smoking on school grounds is prohibited. Possessing cigarettes on school grounds is prohibited. Both have severe consequences, so I hope I never find either of you breaking either rule." she conceded slowly.
     "You won't. Don't worry, Mrs. Jelly." I assured her, still smiling.

Our teacher left us with a scrutinizing look, but she still did leave. I stood there at ease as she departed, but Arbor only dared to breath once she was back inside the building.

     "T-Thanks." he let out that massive exhale.
     "I don't know why I helped you, but you're welcome." I replied tartly, putting the box back into his pocket.
     "Dia, I'm really sorry..."
     "That hurt a lot, you know. I get that I'm not perfect either, but I've only ever done what I've done because I care about you. There was no excuse for you to have turned on me like that."

I cursed myself. All of a sudden, it was my turn to crumble. My words shook as a constricting lump scalded my throat. Arbor met my tentative glare with a saddened expression of genuine guilt, and I didn't know if I wanted to run away or collapse against him. The sensation only got worse when he reached for me and pulled me in when I didn't protest.

     "I know. You're right as always. I am sorry," he pleaded calmly yet desperately, "I know there's no excuse. You're the first person in the longest time besides my parents to say you care about me and mean it, and that was part of the problem. I don't know how to be...normal. I forgot a long time ago. I convinced myself that I could never have the things other people can take so freely, so when you offered me a chance my mind started spinning. As soon as it seemed like it could go wrong I lashed out thinking it would prevent me from falling and being buried beneath it all. I've had enough of that. Of course I realized how stupid I was as soon as I left. It scares the hell out of me to admit it, but...I care for you too. Maybe you might not give me another chance, but I hope that you will. I want to be better."
     "Arbor, I..." I mumbled, too confused to think straight let alone make a decision, so I went with the lone train of thought still chugging on, "Did you steal grandpa's snow globe?"
     "Huh? Wha...no, no I didn't. I swear that I never touched it."
     "You promise your parents didn't lie to cover for you?"
     "I promise. They do a lot, but they never lie for me." Arbor vowed.

Taking a deep inhale, I forced the tumult in my chest to quiet. How I was right then was no good. I decided that it wasn't that I just couldn't come to a decision, it wasn't the time where I should make a decision. I took Arbor's hands and held them for a moment, delighting in their warmth for a brief second before peeling his gentle embrace off.

     "Let's just keep working on the project and not bother with anything else for a bit. That's all I can do right now."
     "That's fine," Arbor accepted instantly, taking a step back, "That's fine."

Unsure of what else to say, I simply walked away. Gilly and my friends were looking for me, and had I delayed further they would've asked more questions than they did. Thankfully, my tardiness hardly caused a stir. Making an excuse was easy enough, and my sister and her girlfriend had something to distract them with. This weekend was the wedding. On Saturday, Mirage and Tappy would be happily married cats. The planning was all but done, but there were a few random things left to prepare. Gilly and Confetti insisted the we be around for it all. As Mirage's other mommy, Gilly required I have a say even as I continued to care very little for the whole affair. I supported my twin's wishes given that I knew how much the continuing though infrequent cat killings unnerved her, but the whole thing still came off as silly to me. Mostly because Mirage and Tappy were spoiled enough as it was. They did not need more toys and attention. However, there was no stopping the wedding. I made sure Apple and Timber were suffering alongside me those afternoons, which did make the week fun for everyone.

Saturday arrived before I knew it. Gilly started the morning panicking thinking the place she'd ordered the cake from was late with the delivery, but that impish side of our brother had come out. He'd snuck into our room to change the time on Gilly's phone while we slept, tricking her into thinking it was an hour later than it was. He certainly got a good laugh out of it, I had to force myself not to chuckle, and Gilly huffed and gave him the cold shoulder for half an hour. Then she became so preoccupied with the rest of the final preparations that she forgot the matter entirely. Confetti, naturally, arrived first. The decorations were put into place, the food began to be cooked, and punctual Timber became the first proper guest to show up. From then on, the house grew crowded. All of our friends came. Some of Confetti's family came. Several of Merlot's classmates had been invited as well. One would think it a holiday. For some silly reason, I kept watching the door hoping Arbor would walk through it. Part of me wanted to see conviction from him, and Gilly had extended an invitation to him before the incident happened. I was glad, on the other hand, that he didn't show. I did need my space, and I knew dad wouldn't be happy to have him over. The romance had to be left to the cats. To be fair to Gilly and Confetti, our pets certainly were crazy for each other.

Mom endlessly worked the grill outside. Dad cooked in the oven, and grandpa was a lord over the microwave. There were...twenty? Twenty-five? There were a lot of mouths to feed. Not surprisingly, the menu focused on stuff cats loved- meat. The main dish was salmon, but classic hot dogs and hamburgers rounded out the menu.

     "It's a little sad the two aren't able to have kittens," Hunter prodded the main thread of conversation going on at the table along, referring to Mirage being spayed and Tappy being neutered, "They would have made beautiful babies."
     "I know. It's a major disappointment." Gilly sighed.
     "As cute as kittens would have been, neither of you need more pets." dad joined in.
     "You know, there's a litter about to be born at the shelter. They're looking for adoptive families." Rain revealed mischievously.
     "Ohh, they can have adoptive babies! They would be so amazing!" Confetti gushed.
     "You do not need more cats." dad repeated, frowning at them ignoring him.
     "If you ask nicely enough, I could help you buy them as an early Christmas present." Hunter offered with the widest smirk I'd ever seen.
     "Hunter, don't you dare." dad scowled.
     "I wouldn't mind joining in on that." Blaze added to the joke.
     "Oh my god." dad sighed massively.

He smiled though when the rest of us laughed.

The main event started with the cake. Mirage and Tappy were allowed some normal food, yet the majority of their meal was the special cake. They devoured it with passion, eating the majority despite it being big enough for two meals for the both of them. The two collapsed in a cuddling nap after that to digest until Gilly and Confetti timed out enough of a rest to start the presents. Everyone brought something a little simple, and the toys were piled around to capture the cats attention as the proud mommies gave a speech for the couple. Mirage and Tappy pranced about playing with each other and switching from new toy to new toy in pure ecstasy. The big gifts came after the 'ceremony'. Included was a new litter box, toy box, scratching post, and tower all in pink and purple to signifying the joining of a family. I would have rolled my eyes more, but Gilly and Confetti just looked so darn happy that I couldn't help but let my heart swell at their happiness. My sister had done right by having the courage to ask her friend to that school dance. I couldn't imagine the two not being together, and I for sure couldn't imagine how much more gung-ho they were going to be about their own wedding. Heck, even birthday parties for their kids would be major events.

Sadly, the day would not end wrapped up in such happiness. I suppose there were warning signs, but none of us could have expected what happened so they all passed by without notice. At one point I did think Merlot looked strangely off, but then he yawned so loudly I assumed the day's events were merely making him exhausted. The party progressed, I stood talking with Rosey, and I hardly even heard dad's concerned call for my brother over the chatter and music. Thinking Merlot had tripped or was playing another prank, seeing him collapsed unconscious on the ground froze me solid. Dad carefully cradled him in his arms while mom rushed over in immense worry before I could process the abrupt change in atmosphere. Grandpa shut off the music as everyone peered around in cautious fright.

     "What happened?" mom asked, her voice taut and slightly shaking.
     "I don't know. I saw him wobble a bit, and then he just fell over. He doesn't seem hurt, he's breathing fine, and he doesn't have a fever, but..." dad replied, the stress lines now etching his brow aging him rapidly.

Finally, only after every single head turned towards me, I took a deep breath and unstuck myself from my state as a statue. My legs shook as I hurried to where they were. My parents' expression towards me were pleading, desperate, and hopeful, and I mentally smacked myself to get my dumb brain whirring enough to not disappoint the dozens of eyes waiting for me to have the magical answer to set everything right.