Reality sunk in more after the police left. Gilly hadn't been able to stand listening to the report, so that made it mom, dad, and me hearing of the travesty while Blaze did his best to console my sister. I heard and understood every word the police said, yet at the same time I hardly listened. As soon as they offered to show us the pictures of Mirage and Tappy and I said yes, I was gone. They hadn't been strangled or tied up with rope. No, the killer had taken it to a new level. Mirage's head had been cut off and sewn on Tappy's body. Tappy's head had been cut off and sewn on Mirage's body. Then their paws had been stitched together as if holding hands. According to the report, they'd been left quite far in the woods. It took all that time and a lucky, or perhaps unlucky, pair of hikers to find them. It made the police wonder if the killer was the same as the cats usually ended up being found in much more populated areas, but the killer could also have wanted more space between the crime and time of discovery. The city had grown so alert about the situation that the murders had become more and more sparse over the past several months. The majority of the stray cats had been rounded up, and everyone watched their owned pets.
"Dia, I'm so sorry."
The tears must have come rolling down. I thought I just sat there. Motionless and heartbroken I thought I sat, but I didn't feel the wetness cascading from my eyes until dad knelt before me and gently wiped it away with his thumbs. Then he gathered me a tight embrace as mom scooted over to wrap my back and hold my hand.
"I just hope this is the last time. If something from this helps them find the killer, I could accept that." I mumbled hopelessly.
"They have to be catching the person soon." mom encouraged.
I nodded miserably, even though the whole city had been saying that for months.
Mom and dad held me for a while until the initial onslaught of crying ceased. The plan had then been to join Gilly and have us mourn together. However, she remained worse than me. We'd shared Mirage, of course, but she'd always been more of Gilly's cat than mine. My twin hardly recognized my presence, and I didn't like the downward spiral of exhaustion and grief being around her also dragged me towards. Such a sensation of losing control I detested the most. Thus, the plan changed. I texted a certain person, and I slowly meandered my way towards the park despite mom and dad's slight protest. They let me be, however, knowing I needed to find the comfort instead of being protected from a threat that wasn't there. The killer had never gone after people or even dogs. Just cats. Forcing my mind to run blank in order to forget all the memories I had of walking with Mirage along the familiar streets, it took me crossing half of the park and him being in my direct line of sight to notice someone there.
"Oh, Timber."
I spoke it to myself as if I awaited him turning to face me, but the quiet mumble wouldn't be catching anyone's attention. Even if I had spoken louder, Timber walked with his head hung lower and his shoulders hunched completely oblivious to me. Something was off with him too.
He was going for the performance area, but I shuffled in his direction fast enough for me to catch his eye. His expression softened somewhat, but something about it remained off.
"Hey." I greeted him, a false, tiny smile appearing without a command.
"Hi." he returned it, and his voice was stiff.
"I wasn't expecting to see you here this afternoon."
"Well, it's not that small of an area we live in. Obviously we'd bumped into each other from time to time." he answered tartly.
"I..." I faltered, caught off guard by his apparent and usual irritation, "Yeah, that's true. I just thought you would be off doing stuff with your dad tonight like you mentioned yesterday morning."
"The last thing I want to be doing right now is hanging around him."
"Did you get in a fight?"
"It's none of your business, and I don't want to talk about it."
"O-Oh. Sorry."
I took a step back. Honestly, I often found it hard to believe that Timber even knew what the emotion of anger was. He so rarely got in a bad mood that I could count all the incidents I knew of on one hand. Perhaps if it had been any other day I would have tried to prod him or handle the situation better, but I naturally couldn't deal with a lot of negativity in that moment. I gave him a small nod, shifted on my heel, and started to turn. Tears returned to scald my eyes. Timber instantly abandoned his bitterness then as he softly grabbed my arm to halt me.
"Dia, I'm sorry. There was no reason for me to talk like that," he apologized quickly, "Dad just got on my case today because of something I did that he didn't like, even though it was stuff he used to encourage me to do in the past. We did fight about it, and the whole thing put me in a sour mood. I was taking a walk to blow off steam."
"It's okay. It's not you that's got me upset. It's...well, they...they found Mirage and Tappy..."
"Oh." Timber said softly.
He paused as if he knew what was coming, but that was to be expected. My expression gave away the truth.
"That cat killer got them, didn't he?" he asked reluctantly.
"Mmhmm. Cut off their heads and put them on the other body. It was so disgusting, but at the same time looking at the pictures it didn't feel real either. Like it was just fake."
Despite the wetness of the oncoming crying, my face felt like it burned. My eyes were so sore, and my cheeks flushed as all the terrible, dominating emotions poorly contained in my chest raged their way up. My breathing hitched, my nose began to tingle, and I clung onto my friend before I could lose myself. Timber's hold offered familiar comfort, but I didn't want to have a fit in such a public place.
"I'm so sorry," Timber spoke kindly as he held me tight, "I was hoping it wouldn't end up like that. That guy running around all these months shouldn't have ever happened."
"I just hope they didn't suffer too much. I wish more than anything that they're the last. And at least they had two really good, really fun days before..." I whispered pitifully, desperately looking for anything positive to latch onto.
"They did have a great wedding. You and Gilly gave Mirage the best life ever, and Confetti did the same for Tappy. Those were the happiest cats in existence, I'm sure. Now they're up there with people like your grandmother and your Uncle Eden. Doodle's there too. They're going to have the best afterlife as well."
"We can have another big party when we see them again too."
"That sounds like a great plan. Maybe next time we can get Tappy a little vest and Mirage a veil."
I laughed weakly. Our family had never been religious, but we'd always talked like this as if something did still exist past death. I needed more than ever for our hopes to be right.
I cried a little and sniffled a lot. Timber luckily had a pocket pack of tissues with him, so I was able to make my face decent when I once again gained some semblance of resolve. Timber and I didn't mention the cats after that. There was nothing else to say, and distraction was a better medicine for me than consolation at the moment. We talked about all sorts of things ranging from school to summer vacation goals. Thus, I actually grew excited for a brief second when I saw Arbor heading over. He'd wasted no time replying to my text saying he'd meet me at the park. The three of us having a good chat sounded perfect.
Except, I'd forgotten that while I adored both of them that same feeling wasn't there for each other. Both stiffened as Arbor neared our location.
"Hi, Dia," he greeted me normally before glaring lightly at Timber and replying much more bitterly, "Hi."
"Lay off with the tone. Your edgy, bad-boy act isn't needed right now." Timber retorted.
"I'm not doing anything other than acting displeased that you're here because I'm displeased that you're here." Arbor chided.
Timber scoffed and narrowed his eyes. He and Arbor normally avoided each other with a passion while at school, and I'd been very careful to not make plans that included both of them being together. It'd been hard and frustrating to make sure the two boys stayed separate, but they simply had no desire to find peace with the other for reasons beyond me. Timber at least typically ignored whatever snappy comments were thrown in his direction. However, his bad mood lingered underneath the soft sympathy that'd come out for me. He wasn't backing down and walking away this time.
"That's your own damn fault then. I haven't done a single thing to you, and I'm done with you acting like I'm shit on your shoe." my friend snapped.
"If you think you're innocent, then you're a fucking idiot." Arbor quipped in return.
"I would love to know what the hell you think I'm guilty of that gives the right to talk like that."
"I can't say that I know what you've done. But I see your face, and I want to vomit. I do not trust you one bit."
"Arbor."
I tried to join in, but they ignored me.
Of course, in the various cases in which the subject they argued about now turned up I always sided with my friend. Arbor never had a valid reason to dislike Timber, and until today Timber absolutely refused to get riled up to continue to make sure he didn't have the slightest hint of evidence to say he was right. However, Timber caught me off guard with how he took a massive step forward to get in Arbor's face. Such anger wasn't like him, but I suppose anyone could be pushed too far.
"You know what? Go ahead and keep saying stupid stuff like that, because you're not fooling anyone. It's so clear you're just jealous." Timber growled.
"Jealous?" Arbor barked back in a mad scoff, "Jealous of you? You're fucking crazy."
"Am I? All I ever see in your eyes is fear when I'm around Dia. I'm the friend who's known her longer, who knows her far better than you do, and you think it'd be all too easy for me to take her away like you assume for some shit reason that I'm going to. So you get petty, possessive, and jealous to try and scare me off. The only thing it does is show that you're a miserable, pathetic piece of scum Dia would be far better off without. Who knows what your real intentions are."
"Timber."
I tried again only to be ignored again.
"You are so wrong I can't even understand it. I've never felt the least bit threatened by you, and if anyone should stay away from her it should be you!"
"Right, because I'm the one who caused a bunch of problems for her, made her so upset she had to go home from school, and dragged her into all the horrible gossip."
Arbor and Timber continued to spew angry nonsense at each other, but I couldn't stand it. I ground my heel in the dirt to hurry away after they forced me out of the conversation again when I gave it one more go to stop it all. People were staring, I worried the two might turn their words of attack into flying fists, and my tolerance for handling a fight was gone. It was, of course, only once I chose to removed myself from their proximity that the two idiots bothered to remember my existence.
"See? You're causing more problems for her!"
"And there you are acting innocent as if you had nothing to do with this!"
They squabbled over who was to blame until I managed to get halfway out the park. It took them that long to try and appease me.
"Dia, wait!" Timber called.
"No, go home! The both of you! You're fucking idiots!"
Silence followed as I kept walking. Arbor and Timber then said something to each other that I couldn't hear. Their tones remained incredibly furious, but some sort of temporary truce had to have been quickly worked out between them. I suspected Timber took the high road and agreed to be the one to leave as he walked away while Arbor easily dashed to close the distance between us.
"Dia, I'm sorr-"
"You keep saying that! You know how much I hate you hating Timber, and here you are starting a fight when I texted you that I was already really upset! Why can't you just-!"
My voice faltered. The world really was trying to make me lose it. My steps stopped as my heart plunged before bouncing around desperate to scream out, and for grief's sake only I lowered my defense to let Arbor slip his hand into mine.
"I don't trust him. I don't like him being around you, and not for jealousy's sake like he thinks. You're right though. You asked me to come here because you needed help, and I acted petty and pathetic like Timber said. I am sorry."
I caved. For just that afternoon, I let Arbor off the hook. The fight would be discussed later, and both him and Timber would get a lecture. Arbor was being irrationally hateful, and Timber was making baseless insults and hurtful assumptions. However, for right then I couldn't be bothered to stay angry when Arbor stood there with those frustrating eyes that pleaded to me so effectively. Arbor did feel sorry, he wanted to help, and he was open and waiting if I needed it. And thus, I collapsed against him once more to take a deep breath while he held me close.
"The cat killer got Mirage and Tappy," I explained again, as I hadn't told him in the text, "Took off their heads and put them on the other body. They've been gone most of the week."
"Dia..." Arbor spoke my name, my hurt now being mirrored on his expression.
He spoke an apology and words of comfort over my loss, but past that not much was said. Apologies could only go so far. Arbor let me drench his jacket when the tears returned. He kept me near either rubbing my back, petting my hair, or doing other little motions to calm me down. He didn't rush me to hurry up my grief when people walked by staring or even making comments under their breath. I was safe to vent as I needed until my heart didn't feel like it was about to shatter so greatly. The comforting session finished with a long, soft kiss before we slipped our hands back together to take a quiet walk through the park and up and down the nearby streets.
I cried a lot those first few days. Both Gilly and I skipped school on Tuesday, and we struggled to put together a funeral for our pets. Gilly definitely had it the worst out of us though. She could hardly keep it together when we buried Mirage and Tappy in the city's pet graveyard by Button and Doodle on the weekend. Even a week after that Saturday, she often burst into tears at the drop of a hat. Apple and I took her on a walk near the beach with hopes that we could help her, but the tears came from nowhere.
"I'm so sick of this. My face hurts all the time now." she whined as she tried to halt her crying after we stepped off to the side.
"We'll get there," I patted her back, "You'll get there. This is the first time you've cried today."
"I know. I just...I thought by this point I would at least feel angry or something. All I feel is sad though. Sad for myself, sad for the cats, sad for the killer having something wrong with them that is causing them to do such things, sad at the world for not being perfect..."
"I think that simply means you're a really sympathetic person, Gil. Or is it empathetic? I never remember which. Either way, you've got a really good heart. There's nothing wrong with that. The world would be better off if more people were like you." Apple encouraged.
"Well, I'm tried of having such a puffy face," Gilly mumbled, "As if my cheeks weren't pudgy enough."
"I know the pain." I smiled lightly.
Another week later, Gilly hardly cried at all. By the time the fourth week rolled around, a sense of normalcy returned to the household. There were moments where Gilly and I built a little memorial shrine to Mirage out of some of her stuff that had us upset again. However, for the most part life continued. There was nothing else to do but let it press forward. My twin and I tentatively marked it as our wish came true when the killings appeared to have stopped. We didn't hear a thing about any more cats being found even as fall shifted into winter. Berrybrook supposed it had indeed gotten too difficult for the killer to find more victims.
That provided a better atmosphere around the holidays. Due to Uncle Prism being incredibly busy filming another movie, we chose to stay in Berrybrook and have the other half of our Tinseltown family come up for Christmas instead of us heading there for the holidays like in recent years. I'd forgotten how nice it was to not have to deal with the crowded airports. Ember and Tamarix relayed when they arrived that their flights hadn't been too bad, which was good because it had been Acer's first time flying. He was their second son who had a lovely combination of red, purple, and pink going for him. Just under two-years-old, he clung to his parents like a leech. That was due to his nerves being in an unfamiliar place, but I didn't mind my nephew hanging onto my sister and brother-in-law. One of the things I enjoyed the most of their visit was seeing how much Ember and Tamarix looked like a proper couple now due to Ember being pretty much completely grown. She admitted it was a nice to not have random strangers giving them nasty stares all the time.
Flurry, of course, came along as well. Divi and Rouge added to the number of people we had crammed in the house too. With Divi, Gilly and I in particular found great amusement at how we never could have fathomed how we would become family after starting out as teacher and pupils. Some days I did wish Divi was still our teacher. Goodness, how I missed Zenith Peak.
"How's the class coming along?" I asked.
"Everyone's doing quite well. Each class was asked this year to put on some sort of performance for the end-of-the-year festival, so with Pumpkin being in ours your classmates naturally chose a play where he was front and center in the main role."
Divi always talked like that as well. Like we were still a part of his roster.
"Oh, I remember Ethie and Ephie talking about that. It was an interactive murder-mystery where the culprit was determined by the audience's interactions, right?" Gilly said, "I would have loved to see that."
"We brought along a recording. Since your play was the audience's favorite, it's number one on the listing." Rouge revealed.
Arbor scooted forward. It surprised me as he'd been incredibly quiet during the afternoon. He had been invited over as had Apple and Confetti, and I think all the extra people intimidated him. Dad had stuck to his word about getting along better with my boyfriend, as Arbor and I had decided to just go ahead and date once school went on break, but Ember and Divi had given him some looks when they saw him. Ember more so than Divi. She'd known about him, obviously, but Arbor had more of that 'bad boy' vibe when seen as a full package in person. Divi- I'm not sure he'd even known I was with someone as we didn't talk too often. Given that most people did find it strange that student council president Dianthus Vivid was dating tattooed, pierced, rough looking Arbor Thicket, the mildly worried expression on Divi's face didn't surprise me. However, as the afternoon went on he clearly recalled appearance wasn't everything. Arbor had grown much more comfortable around my family and friends, so he carried himself mostly like he was when just around me.
"I'm sorry, I'm a little confused. Why do they keep speaking as if you're a part of his class? I know you went to that school system once, but..." Arbor wondered.
"Oh, I never did explain it in depth, did I?" I realized, "Zenith Peak has an interesting system where you don't rotate for class like we do. One teacher teachers everything, and one class stays with that one teacher for all their years at each level. Divi here moved up to the high school right as his current class at the middle school moved up as well, so he's their teacher until graduation."
"It is going to be weird after this next year when they graduate and I get new students. It's the first time I've been with the same group for so long." Divi chuckled quietly.
"Because we would still have Divi as a teacher if we had stayed in Tinseltown, he still counts us as honorary students," Gilly continued to explain, "It's also partly because we became family."
"I see," Arbor said, and then turned back to Divi, "So could you move up to the college level the same way then?"
"No, the college of Zenith Peak has different professors for each class like normal. I'm qualified to teach a few if I wanted, but I like working in the lower systems instead."
"He's suuuper smart." I teased Divi, giving him a wink.
He laughed, rolled his eyes, and the proceeded to ignore the comment.
"So, speaking of college- I obviously know what she wants to do," Divi pointed at me as he spoke to Gilly, "But is there anything you've decided yet for your future?"
"Yes, I would like to know the answer to that as well." dad chimed in.
"Oh, don't you even start on me when it took you years after high school for you to decide," Gilly amusedly chided while pushing his arm, "In any case though, Confetti and I have been talking a lot. I came up with an idea that I thought was great, and she decided she'd be down for it as well."
"And what is that?" Apple prodded after Gilly paused for effect.
"We're going to become masseuses." my twin announced proudly.
"Masseuses?" mom repeated.
"Yeah. I, and Confetti to some extent, already know a lot of the anatomy we'd need to know due to being around Dia for so long, and I know I would like to move back to Tinseltown. We've looked into it, and there are some great paying places there. If that's too hard at first, Uncle Sap is also wanting to open up some more parlors in the area. He said we could work at one of them once we get our licenses. There's a few parlors in Berrybrook that offer classes and certification, so we wouldn't have to leave home. We've even been looking up what we can on the internet and practicing when we can."
"Yeah, we're doing well with that," Confetti added, and by the sudden, familiar twinkle in her eye I knew she was about to saying something ridiculous, "Gilly's gotten really good at the happy endings."
I burst out laughing as did Apple. Arbor looked lightly uncomfortable while a strange noise came out of dad's throat. Mom, Divi, and Rouge all appeared mildly embarrassed while still being amused, and the loudest laughter of all came from Ember and Tamarix preparing food in the kitchen.
"Confetti," Gilly rebuked her, her cheeks burning with a blush as she desperately turned to mom and dad, "That was all her. Not me."
"I know we let you two joke about that more than normal, but I do not need to hear that kind of stuff." dad did his best to reprimanded Confetti, but she just grinned widely and shrugged.
"I don't get it," Flurry frowned, utterly confused, "She means a happy ending like in the storybooks, right?"
"No. No, not at all." Rouge admitted with a torn smile, trying hard not to keep chuckling.
When none of us would explain, Flurry huffed and ran over to Ember and Tamarix. They told him they would tell him later. How much later they intended was anyone's guess. I know they'd given him the basic knowledge of what sex was appropriate for his age, but despite their joking they might not think him old enough for such terminology. Flurry was easily distracted though, and the topics we switched to afterwards made him forget the whole thing. I thought the brief matter was over, but I guess the incident planted some questions in mom's mind. We were getting ready in her and dad's bathroom for a party after dinner when she put them out there.
"About that happy ending joke Confetti made, it made me realize I haven't thought to ask how things are with you and Arbor."
"We're fine? You know that." I replied, perplexed.
"I know your relationship is fine. I'm talking about the sex part of it."
"Oh."
"I know you don't feel the desire for it, but have you two talked at all? Has he signified wanting to do it? That sort of thing."
"Well, it's true I don't get the urges, but I don't think I'd dislike it even if the whole thing still seems kinda gross. I think I'd simply enjoy it for reasons different than the pleasure. So, I guess I'm curious in some regards. Arbor and I haven't done anything, but I can't say that we won't. About him wanting it though...I really don't know. We actually haven't talked about being intimate at all. He's made no advances whatsoever. Arbor clearly enjoys kissing me, but whenever any kind of sex joke is made he gets uncomfortable, like today. Maybe he has no desire for it either, which is fine with me. Either way I'm good."
"I would say it's better to talk about it before you both begin to think to take it there if that's where things end up going, but in any situation just remember to be safe. If you don't think Arbor will carry condoms, have some on you instead. If you want to go on birth control, I will ask no questions. Your father will probably grumble a bit, but he can't talk. He was younger than you on his first time."
"Out of curiosity, when was the first time you were together? Before marriage or after?" I asked teasingly.
"Before." mom grinned.
"And the most recent time?" I teased harder.
Mom laughed.
"Last night."
"Eww."
"Oh, hush you. You asked." mom laughed even more.
The two of us prodded and joked back and forth the whole night. Just to make things extra fun, I had mom stand nearby when at the party I pulled dad aside for a moment to tell him I needed to go on birth control. Seeing his absolutely torn expression had me and her in stitches. He clearly wanted to get pissed off, but he did an admirable job at keeping rationally minded and understanding. I felt bad afterwards as dad did all that he could to be supportive only for me to have to say it was a lie simply to see his reaction. Thankfully, he had a good laugh too and thanked me for getting the hard part out of the way. Now if I did ever have to go him for real with such a request the initial feelings of anger and protectiveness would have worn off. Due to the silliness of topics that night, I watched Arbor closely over the holidays. I got more cuddly with him, and even then he didn't make a single move. I then meant to bring up the topic of us having sex, but, honestly, I forgot. My classes at the Twilight North branch started while Christmas break still happened. I got consumed with those, and then high school resumed. There was no longer Mr. Sunrise's hell project to worry about, Arbor and I got a 98%, but now all the teachers doubled down on preparing us for graduation and moving onto college. Considering that I rarely thought about sex to begin with, it easily slipped my mind entirely.
"So you're all set now?"
Now winter was gone and spring was back. The new year moved swiftly. Timber and I were at one of the smaller parks in the city discussing the plans for our lives.
"Yeah. Dad and I are going overseas during the summer. We're going to be doing a lot of climbing, and when we get back there's a climbing area only a half hour drive away from here. I'm a little younger than they usually take, but they're talking about offering me a position as a junior instructor. It won't make me a lot starting out, but once I get a year or so under my belt I'll able to move up and earn more. Dad says he doesn't mind me hanging around until then considering if I went to college I'd still be sticking around anyway."
"That's great to hear. It'll be sad you won't be here during the summer, but it'll be nice to have you around when most everyone heads off to farther away colleges."
"It'll be me, you, Gilly, and Confetti, right?"
"And Apple."
"Apple?"
"She's decided to take business classes online. Dad can't run the bookstore forever, and she talked to him about being interested in doing it someday. I think she's still hoping a rink will open up here at some point, but until then we'll be keeping the business in the family."
"I actually think she'll do a wonderful job of it. What does Arbor want to do, by the way?"
"I have no idea as he says he has no idea. His grades and test scores are good, but he hasn't applied to a single place as far as I know. Most everywhere has closed their deadlines by now." I revealed with a light shrug.
Arbor has so much potential academically. I heard the teachers talking about how his grades were some of the highest in our class. Still, I think all the stress and bullying had put him off education. He wanted to be done and out, but as he didn't have any particular interests or hobbies he wasn't sure what to do for a career instead. I offered to bat my eyelashes enough in order to get dad to give him at least a little something at the bookstore, but Arbor didn't want that. He didn't want me to talk to Uncle Sap either to find a spot at one of his many businesses. Mr. and Mrs. Thicket apparently didn't have any motivations to send him off too. They were more than content to let him stay. That's why I began to prod him instead. That's probably also why Arbor started to take a sudden interest in my health. I'm sure he wanted to get me off his back. He pointed out how I was in acceptable health, but that I was mostly coasting by on good genetics. I would have to try harder in the future to keep it up, and trying harder would be easier in the future if I started now. Thus, we began doing my least favorite activity all the time. Running. It wasn't like I could be lazy and reject his words when I was the one constantly going on about being healthy, but the jogging zapped all my energy for keeping on my boyfriend's back for him to be motivated as well. The only good thing to come out of it that I did get moderately alright at keeping pace with Arbor. I toned up, and each run no longer threatened to take me out. He always remained in front though.
For my eighteenth birthday, Arbor bought me a joke pedometer that counted a thousand steps only to let out a high-pitch scream that wouldn't turn off until I walked another twenty paces before it reset itself. Needless to say, I had no idea of this until I put it on the following Monday at school where it went off during the middle of class when I was called up to the board. Thankfully, it was a class where the teacher had a sense of humor, and Arbor had been smart enough to buy me an actual nice present to make up for the extreme embarrassment.
"As impressive that it is that you made such a bold joke, you must understand there will be repercussions." I told him as we drank some juice at his place after a weekend jog.
"It's been a month, Dia."
"And there will be repercussions."
"How about you go ahead and give the pedometer to your dad? You've been keeping the story pretty quiet. Wouldn't it be funny to be at the bookstore to watch when it goes off for him? Share the embarrassment." Arbor suggested instead.
"Oh, that's a brilliant idea! Except I'll have you give it to him, so when he gets pissed he'll be angry at you." I chuckled mischievously.
"Hey, he mildly likes me now. I'd like to not ruin that."
"Hmm, I suppose. How about we ditch running next Saturday to have a cheat day at Pasta Haven? Your treat. Then I'll call everything forgiven."
"I'll only have to have us run harder on Sunday then to make up the difference."
"Tch. You're so strict."
"But I'm not forcing you into anything. You're simply doing everything I say."
"Because you're right." I pouted.
"I know." Arbor grinned proudly.
Arbor teased me that he should be having us run more to make up for the sugary juice we drank, but I ignored him to go inside and throw my packet away. After that, a gentle exhaustion hit us both. We cuddled on the couch trying to find something good to watch on television, but everything sucked. I got the idea for us to read a book together. Arbor was down for that. However, we never got that far. I wandered over to the bookshelf only to be annoyed.
"How many times have I organized this? It's all a mess again."
"Blame my parents. They're constantly buying new stuff and shoving it randomly in there. You're fighting a losing battle."
"I will conquer their laziness with my stubbornness. Just you watch."
It was the fact that Arbor wasn't watching me that led to things going differently. The afternoon took off like we didn't imagine it would for the fact that Arbor actually was watching me, just in a way he never had. If I had looked back, maybe I would have seen the moment where something first triggered within him. I could have caught how he went from gazing in my direction to trailing that stare up and down. No, I was busy with my work, and due to how many times I had rearranged the shelves it took no time at all.
"They didn't move the books around too much. There's only a few new ones. Which sounds better- 'The Westward Queen's Rising' or 'The Last Battle of Aurelion'? I've heard of the first one, but I don't think I'm familiar with the second."
"You can pick. I'm good either way."
Neither did I see how Arbor shifted, perhaps dreading the moment I turned back around.
He was wise to acknowledge that I would spot the difference. As soon as I turned around I noticed something was off. Arbor couldn't meet my eye, he sat nervously, and his cheeks darkened with a blush. I left 'The Westward Queen's Rising' on top of the shelf.
"Something up?" I wondered, heading over.
"I-I...um..." he stuttered.
Blinking down at him curiously, I also wore some confusion on my expression when Arbor suddenly drew me close. The weird way he hugged me left me with plenty of questions in my mind. It was closer. Tighter. More intimate. His head lifted enough for me to see his face, and there in his eyes I noticed a familiar emotion. I saw it often enough on Gilly and Confetti. The silent question. The hopeful desire. The wanting and the wishing and the longing. I smiled when I understood.
"Were you waiting until I turned eighteen too or something?"
"Huh? W-Wha-" Arbor stammered only to realize that I'd realized what was going on in his mind, "Oh. No. I-I, um, you were just over there, and I t-thought you looked..."
"Looked what? Beautiful? Drop dead gorgeous? Sexy?"
Arbor's blush deepened immensely at that last word. It did hit something within him that increased his nerves, but the longing in his eyes didn't flinch. I had to admit I was surprised. As I had told mom, Arbor had shown the slightest interest in true intimacy. Now he wrapped his arms around me in this new way, and when I tilted his head up even more I got lost in his eyes wanting me. His lips parted without protest for mine. I didn't mind the abruptness. Maybe Arbor was simply different. Like me. Perhaps he was like grandma who needed the emotional connection first. It could be that he just had to reach a certain comfort level in our relationship.
Whatever the case, I loved when Arbor held me. I loved when we kissed. I loved being wrapped up with him. His touch wouldn't stir me the way it would other girls, but I leaned against him wishing for him all the same. My heart beat with a deepness I wondered if what I felt was the kind that lasted forever. In truth, I wished more than anything that it was.
"If you think you're innocent, then you're a fucking idiot." Arbor quipped in return.
"I would love to know what the hell you think I'm guilty of that gives the right to talk like that."
"I can't say that I know what you've done. But I see your face, and I want to vomit. I do not trust you one bit."
"Arbor."
I tried to join in, but they ignored me.
Of course, in the various cases in which the subject they argued about now turned up I always sided with my friend. Arbor never had a valid reason to dislike Timber, and until today Timber absolutely refused to get riled up to continue to make sure he didn't have the slightest hint of evidence to say he was right. However, Timber caught me off guard with how he took a massive step forward to get in Arbor's face. Such anger wasn't like him, but I suppose anyone could be pushed too far.
"You know what? Go ahead and keep saying stupid stuff like that, because you're not fooling anyone. It's so clear you're just jealous." Timber growled.
"Jealous?" Arbor barked back in a mad scoff, "Jealous of you? You're fucking crazy."
"Am I? All I ever see in your eyes is fear when I'm around Dia. I'm the friend who's known her longer, who knows her far better than you do, and you think it'd be all too easy for me to take her away like you assume for some shit reason that I'm going to. So you get petty, possessive, and jealous to try and scare me off. The only thing it does is show that you're a miserable, pathetic piece of scum Dia would be far better off without. Who knows what your real intentions are."
"Timber."
I tried again only to be ignored again.
"You are so wrong I can't even understand it. I've never felt the least bit threatened by you, and if anyone should stay away from her it should be you!"
"Right, because I'm the one who caused a bunch of problems for her, made her so upset she had to go home from school, and dragged her into all the horrible gossip."
Arbor and Timber continued to spew angry nonsense at each other, but I couldn't stand it. I ground my heel in the dirt to hurry away after they forced me out of the conversation again when I gave it one more go to stop it all. People were staring, I worried the two might turn their words of attack into flying fists, and my tolerance for handling a fight was gone. It was, of course, only once I chose to removed myself from their proximity that the two idiots bothered to remember my existence.
"See? You're causing more problems for her!"
"And there you are acting innocent as if you had nothing to do with this!"
They squabbled over who was to blame until I managed to get halfway out the park. It took them that long to try and appease me.
"Dia, wait!" Timber called.
"No, go home! The both of you! You're fucking idiots!"
Silence followed as I kept walking. Arbor and Timber then said something to each other that I couldn't hear. Their tones remained incredibly furious, but some sort of temporary truce had to have been quickly worked out between them. I suspected Timber took the high road and agreed to be the one to leave as he walked away while Arbor easily dashed to close the distance between us.
"Dia, I'm sorr-"
"You keep saying that! You know how much I hate you hating Timber, and here you are starting a fight when I texted you that I was already really upset! Why can't you just-!"
My voice faltered. The world really was trying to make me lose it. My steps stopped as my heart plunged before bouncing around desperate to scream out, and for grief's sake only I lowered my defense to let Arbor slip his hand into mine.
"I don't trust him. I don't like him being around you, and not for jealousy's sake like he thinks. You're right though. You asked me to come here because you needed help, and I acted petty and pathetic like Timber said. I am sorry."
I caved. For just that afternoon, I let Arbor off the hook. The fight would be discussed later, and both him and Timber would get a lecture. Arbor was being irrationally hateful, and Timber was making baseless insults and hurtful assumptions. However, for right then I couldn't be bothered to stay angry when Arbor stood there with those frustrating eyes that pleaded to me so effectively. Arbor did feel sorry, he wanted to help, and he was open and waiting if I needed it. And thus, I collapsed against him once more to take a deep breath while he held me close.
"The cat killer got Mirage and Tappy," I explained again, as I hadn't told him in the text, "Took off their heads and put them on the other body. They've been gone most of the week."
"Dia..." Arbor spoke my name, my hurt now being mirrored on his expression.
He spoke an apology and words of comfort over my loss, but past that not much was said. Apologies could only go so far. Arbor let me drench his jacket when the tears returned. He kept me near either rubbing my back, petting my hair, or doing other little motions to calm me down. He didn't rush me to hurry up my grief when people walked by staring or even making comments under their breath. I was safe to vent as I needed until my heart didn't feel like it was about to shatter so greatly. The comforting session finished with a long, soft kiss before we slipped our hands back together to take a quiet walk through the park and up and down the nearby streets.
I cried a lot those first few days. Both Gilly and I skipped school on Tuesday, and we struggled to put together a funeral for our pets. Gilly definitely had it the worst out of us though. She could hardly keep it together when we buried Mirage and Tappy in the city's pet graveyard by Button and Doodle on the weekend. Even a week after that Saturday, she often burst into tears at the drop of a hat. Apple and I took her on a walk near the beach with hopes that we could help her, but the tears came from nowhere.
"I'm so sick of this. My face hurts all the time now." she whined as she tried to halt her crying after we stepped off to the side.
"We'll get there," I patted her back, "You'll get there. This is the first time you've cried today."
"I know. I just...I thought by this point I would at least feel angry or something. All I feel is sad though. Sad for myself, sad for the cats, sad for the killer having something wrong with them that is causing them to do such things, sad at the world for not being perfect..."
"I think that simply means you're a really sympathetic person, Gil. Or is it empathetic? I never remember which. Either way, you've got a really good heart. There's nothing wrong with that. The world would be better off if more people were like you." Apple encouraged.
"Well, I'm tried of having such a puffy face," Gilly mumbled, "As if my cheeks weren't pudgy enough."
"I know the pain." I smiled lightly.
Another week later, Gilly hardly cried at all. By the time the fourth week rolled around, a sense of normalcy returned to the household. There were moments where Gilly and I built a little memorial shrine to Mirage out of some of her stuff that had us upset again. However, for the most part life continued. There was nothing else to do but let it press forward. My twin and I tentatively marked it as our wish came true when the killings appeared to have stopped. We didn't hear a thing about any more cats being found even as fall shifted into winter. Berrybrook supposed it had indeed gotten too difficult for the killer to find more victims.
That provided a better atmosphere around the holidays. Due to Uncle Prism being incredibly busy filming another movie, we chose to stay in Berrybrook and have the other half of our Tinseltown family come up for Christmas instead of us heading there for the holidays like in recent years. I'd forgotten how nice it was to not have to deal with the crowded airports. Ember and Tamarix relayed when they arrived that their flights hadn't been too bad, which was good because it had been Acer's first time flying. He was their second son who had a lovely combination of red, purple, and pink going for him. Just under two-years-old, he clung to his parents like a leech. That was due to his nerves being in an unfamiliar place, but I didn't mind my nephew hanging onto my sister and brother-in-law. One of the things I enjoyed the most of their visit was seeing how much Ember and Tamarix looked like a proper couple now due to Ember being pretty much completely grown. She admitted it was a nice to not have random strangers giving them nasty stares all the time.
Flurry, of course, came along as well. Divi and Rouge added to the number of people we had crammed in the house too. With Divi, Gilly and I in particular found great amusement at how we never could have fathomed how we would become family after starting out as teacher and pupils. Some days I did wish Divi was still our teacher. Goodness, how I missed Zenith Peak.
"How's the class coming along?" I asked.
"Everyone's doing quite well. Each class was asked this year to put on some sort of performance for the end-of-the-year festival, so with Pumpkin being in ours your classmates naturally chose a play where he was front and center in the main role."
Divi always talked like that as well. Like we were still a part of his roster.
"Oh, I remember Ethie and Ephie talking about that. It was an interactive murder-mystery where the culprit was determined by the audience's interactions, right?" Gilly said, "I would have loved to see that."
"We brought along a recording. Since your play was the audience's favorite, it's number one on the listing." Rouge revealed.
Arbor scooted forward. It surprised me as he'd been incredibly quiet during the afternoon. He had been invited over as had Apple and Confetti, and I think all the extra people intimidated him. Dad had stuck to his word about getting along better with my boyfriend, as Arbor and I had decided to just go ahead and date once school went on break, but Ember and Divi had given him some looks when they saw him. Ember more so than Divi. She'd known about him, obviously, but Arbor had more of that 'bad boy' vibe when seen as a full package in person. Divi- I'm not sure he'd even known I was with someone as we didn't talk too often. Given that most people did find it strange that student council president Dianthus Vivid was dating tattooed, pierced, rough looking Arbor Thicket, the mildly worried expression on Divi's face didn't surprise me. However, as the afternoon went on he clearly recalled appearance wasn't everything. Arbor had grown much more comfortable around my family and friends, so he carried himself mostly like he was when just around me.
"I'm sorry, I'm a little confused. Why do they keep speaking as if you're a part of his class? I know you went to that school system once, but..." Arbor wondered.
"Oh, I never did explain it in depth, did I?" I realized, "Zenith Peak has an interesting system where you don't rotate for class like we do. One teacher teachers everything, and one class stays with that one teacher for all their years at each level. Divi here moved up to the high school right as his current class at the middle school moved up as well, so he's their teacher until graduation."
"It is going to be weird after this next year when they graduate and I get new students. It's the first time I've been with the same group for so long." Divi chuckled quietly.
"Because we would still have Divi as a teacher if we had stayed in Tinseltown, he still counts us as honorary students," Gilly continued to explain, "It's also partly because we became family."
"I see," Arbor said, and then turned back to Divi, "So could you move up to the college level the same way then?"
"No, the college of Zenith Peak has different professors for each class like normal. I'm qualified to teach a few if I wanted, but I like working in the lower systems instead."
"He's suuuper smart." I teased Divi, giving him a wink.
He laughed, rolled his eyes, and the proceeded to ignore the comment.
"So, speaking of college- I obviously know what she wants to do," Divi pointed at me as he spoke to Gilly, "But is there anything you've decided yet for your future?"
"Yes, I would like to know the answer to that as well." dad chimed in.
"Oh, don't you even start on me when it took you years after high school for you to decide," Gilly amusedly chided while pushing his arm, "In any case though, Confetti and I have been talking a lot. I came up with an idea that I thought was great, and she decided she'd be down for it as well."
"And what is that?" Apple prodded after Gilly paused for effect.
"We're going to become masseuses." my twin announced proudly.
"Masseuses?" mom repeated.
"Yeah. I, and Confetti to some extent, already know a lot of the anatomy we'd need to know due to being around Dia for so long, and I know I would like to move back to Tinseltown. We've looked into it, and there are some great paying places there. If that's too hard at first, Uncle Sap is also wanting to open up some more parlors in the area. He said we could work at one of them once we get our licenses. There's a few parlors in Berrybrook that offer classes and certification, so we wouldn't have to leave home. We've even been looking up what we can on the internet and practicing when we can."
"Yeah, we're doing well with that," Confetti added, and by the sudden, familiar twinkle in her eye I knew she was about to saying something ridiculous, "Gilly's gotten really good at the happy endings."
I burst out laughing as did Apple. Arbor looked lightly uncomfortable while a strange noise came out of dad's throat. Mom, Divi, and Rouge all appeared mildly embarrassed while still being amused, and the loudest laughter of all came from Ember and Tamarix preparing food in the kitchen.
"Confetti," Gilly rebuked her, her cheeks burning with a blush as she desperately turned to mom and dad, "That was all her. Not me."
"I know we let you two joke about that more than normal, but I do not need to hear that kind of stuff." dad did his best to reprimanded Confetti, but she just grinned widely and shrugged.
"I don't get it," Flurry frowned, utterly confused, "She means a happy ending like in the storybooks, right?"
"No. No, not at all." Rouge admitted with a torn smile, trying hard not to keep chuckling.
When none of us would explain, Flurry huffed and ran over to Ember and Tamarix. They told him they would tell him later. How much later they intended was anyone's guess. I know they'd given him the basic knowledge of what sex was appropriate for his age, but despite their joking they might not think him old enough for such terminology. Flurry was easily distracted though, and the topics we switched to afterwards made him forget the whole thing. I thought the brief matter was over, but I guess the incident planted some questions in mom's mind. We were getting ready in her and dad's bathroom for a party after dinner when she put them out there.
"About that happy ending joke Confetti made, it made me realize I haven't thought to ask how things are with you and Arbor."
"We're fine? You know that." I replied, perplexed.
"I know your relationship is fine. I'm talking about the sex part of it."
"Oh."
"I know you don't feel the desire for it, but have you two talked at all? Has he signified wanting to do it? That sort of thing."
"Well, it's true I don't get the urges, but I don't think I'd dislike it even if the whole thing still seems kinda gross. I think I'd simply enjoy it for reasons different than the pleasure. So, I guess I'm curious in some regards. Arbor and I haven't done anything, but I can't say that we won't. About him wanting it though...I really don't know. We actually haven't talked about being intimate at all. He's made no advances whatsoever. Arbor clearly enjoys kissing me, but whenever any kind of sex joke is made he gets uncomfortable, like today. Maybe he has no desire for it either, which is fine with me. Either way I'm good."
"I would say it's better to talk about it before you both begin to think to take it there if that's where things end up going, but in any situation just remember to be safe. If you don't think Arbor will carry condoms, have some on you instead. If you want to go on birth control, I will ask no questions. Your father will probably grumble a bit, but he can't talk. He was younger than you on his first time."
"Out of curiosity, when was the first time you were together? Before marriage or after?" I asked teasingly.
"Before." mom grinned.
"And the most recent time?" I teased harder.
Mom laughed.
"Last night."
"Eww."
"Oh, hush you. You asked." mom laughed even more.
The two of us prodded and joked back and forth the whole night. Just to make things extra fun, I had mom stand nearby when at the party I pulled dad aside for a moment to tell him I needed to go on birth control. Seeing his absolutely torn expression had me and her in stitches. He clearly wanted to get pissed off, but he did an admirable job at keeping rationally minded and understanding. I felt bad afterwards as dad did all that he could to be supportive only for me to have to say it was a lie simply to see his reaction. Thankfully, he had a good laugh too and thanked me for getting the hard part out of the way. Now if I did ever have to go him for real with such a request the initial feelings of anger and protectiveness would have worn off. Due to the silliness of topics that night, I watched Arbor closely over the holidays. I got more cuddly with him, and even then he didn't make a single move. I then meant to bring up the topic of us having sex, but, honestly, I forgot. My classes at the Twilight North branch started while Christmas break still happened. I got consumed with those, and then high school resumed. There was no longer Mr. Sunrise's hell project to worry about, Arbor and I got a 98%, but now all the teachers doubled down on preparing us for graduation and moving onto college. Considering that I rarely thought about sex to begin with, it easily slipped my mind entirely.
"So you're all set now?"
Now winter was gone and spring was back. The new year moved swiftly. Timber and I were at one of the smaller parks in the city discussing the plans for our lives.
"Yeah. Dad and I are going overseas during the summer. We're going to be doing a lot of climbing, and when we get back there's a climbing area only a half hour drive away from here. I'm a little younger than they usually take, but they're talking about offering me a position as a junior instructor. It won't make me a lot starting out, but once I get a year or so under my belt I'll able to move up and earn more. Dad says he doesn't mind me hanging around until then considering if I went to college I'd still be sticking around anyway."
"That's great to hear. It'll be sad you won't be here during the summer, but it'll be nice to have you around when most everyone heads off to farther away colleges."
"It'll be me, you, Gilly, and Confetti, right?"
"And Apple."
"Apple?"
"She's decided to take business classes online. Dad can't run the bookstore forever, and she talked to him about being interested in doing it someday. I think she's still hoping a rink will open up here at some point, but until then we'll be keeping the business in the family."
"I actually think she'll do a wonderful job of it. What does Arbor want to do, by the way?"
"I have no idea as he says he has no idea. His grades and test scores are good, but he hasn't applied to a single place as far as I know. Most everywhere has closed their deadlines by now." I revealed with a light shrug.
Arbor has so much potential academically. I heard the teachers talking about how his grades were some of the highest in our class. Still, I think all the stress and bullying had put him off education. He wanted to be done and out, but as he didn't have any particular interests or hobbies he wasn't sure what to do for a career instead. I offered to bat my eyelashes enough in order to get dad to give him at least a little something at the bookstore, but Arbor didn't want that. He didn't want me to talk to Uncle Sap either to find a spot at one of his many businesses. Mr. and Mrs. Thicket apparently didn't have any motivations to send him off too. They were more than content to let him stay. That's why I began to prod him instead. That's probably also why Arbor started to take a sudden interest in my health. I'm sure he wanted to get me off his back. He pointed out how I was in acceptable health, but that I was mostly coasting by on good genetics. I would have to try harder in the future to keep it up, and trying harder would be easier in the future if I started now. Thus, we began doing my least favorite activity all the time. Running. It wasn't like I could be lazy and reject his words when I was the one constantly going on about being healthy, but the jogging zapped all my energy for keeping on my boyfriend's back for him to be motivated as well. The only good thing to come out of it that I did get moderately alright at keeping pace with Arbor. I toned up, and each run no longer threatened to take me out. He always remained in front though.
For my eighteenth birthday, Arbor bought me a joke pedometer that counted a thousand steps only to let out a high-pitch scream that wouldn't turn off until I walked another twenty paces before it reset itself. Needless to say, I had no idea of this until I put it on the following Monday at school where it went off during the middle of class when I was called up to the board. Thankfully, it was a class where the teacher had a sense of humor, and Arbor had been smart enough to buy me an actual nice present to make up for the extreme embarrassment.
"As impressive that it is that you made such a bold joke, you must understand there will be repercussions." I told him as we drank some juice at his place after a weekend jog.
"It's been a month, Dia."
"And there will be repercussions."
"How about you go ahead and give the pedometer to your dad? You've been keeping the story pretty quiet. Wouldn't it be funny to be at the bookstore to watch when it goes off for him? Share the embarrassment." Arbor suggested instead.
"Oh, that's a brilliant idea! Except I'll have you give it to him, so when he gets pissed he'll be angry at you." I chuckled mischievously.
"Hey, he mildly likes me now. I'd like to not ruin that."
"Hmm, I suppose. How about we ditch running next Saturday to have a cheat day at Pasta Haven? Your treat. Then I'll call everything forgiven."
"I'll only have to have us run harder on Sunday then to make up the difference."
"Tch. You're so strict."
"But I'm not forcing you into anything. You're simply doing everything I say."
"Because you're right." I pouted.
"I know." Arbor grinned proudly.
Arbor teased me that he should be having us run more to make up for the sugary juice we drank, but I ignored him to go inside and throw my packet away. After that, a gentle exhaustion hit us both. We cuddled on the couch trying to find something good to watch on television, but everything sucked. I got the idea for us to read a book together. Arbor was down for that. However, we never got that far. I wandered over to the bookshelf only to be annoyed.
"How many times have I organized this? It's all a mess again."
"Blame my parents. They're constantly buying new stuff and shoving it randomly in there. You're fighting a losing battle."
"I will conquer their laziness with my stubbornness. Just you watch."
It was the fact that Arbor wasn't watching me that led to things going differently. The afternoon took off like we didn't imagine it would for the fact that Arbor actually was watching me, just in a way he never had. If I had looked back, maybe I would have seen the moment where something first triggered within him. I could have caught how he went from gazing in my direction to trailing that stare up and down. No, I was busy with my work, and due to how many times I had rearranged the shelves it took no time at all.
"They didn't move the books around too much. There's only a few new ones. Which sounds better- 'The Westward Queen's Rising' or 'The Last Battle of Aurelion'? I've heard of the first one, but I don't think I'm familiar with the second."
"You can pick. I'm good either way."
Neither did I see how Arbor shifted, perhaps dreading the moment I turned back around.
He was wise to acknowledge that I would spot the difference. As soon as I turned around I noticed something was off. Arbor couldn't meet my eye, he sat nervously, and his cheeks darkened with a blush. I left 'The Westward Queen's Rising' on top of the shelf.
"Something up?" I wondered, heading over.
"I-I...um..." he stuttered.
Blinking down at him curiously, I also wore some confusion on my expression when Arbor suddenly drew me close. The weird way he hugged me left me with plenty of questions in my mind. It was closer. Tighter. More intimate. His head lifted enough for me to see his face, and there in his eyes I noticed a familiar emotion. I saw it often enough on Gilly and Confetti. The silent question. The hopeful desire. The wanting and the wishing and the longing. I smiled when I understood.
"Were you waiting until I turned eighteen too or something?"
"Huh? W-Wha-" Arbor stammered only to realize that I'd realized what was going on in his mind, "Oh. No. I-I, um, you were just over there, and I t-thought you looked..."
"Looked what? Beautiful? Drop dead gorgeous? Sexy?"
Arbor's blush deepened immensely at that last word. It did hit something within him that increased his nerves, but the longing in his eyes didn't flinch. I had to admit I was surprised. As I had told mom, Arbor had shown the slightest interest in true intimacy. Now he wrapped his arms around me in this new way, and when I tilted his head up even more I got lost in his eyes wanting me. His lips parted without protest for mine. I didn't mind the abruptness. Maybe Arbor was simply different. Like me. Perhaps he was like grandma who needed the emotional connection first. It could be that he just had to reach a certain comfort level in our relationship.
Whatever the case, I loved when Arbor held me. I loved when we kissed. I loved being wrapped up with him. His touch wouldn't stir me the way it would other girls, but I leaned against him wishing for him all the same. My heart beat with a deepness I wondered if what I felt was the kind that lasted forever. In truth, I wished more than anything that it was.
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