The Calling (DrTrollinski & Zhai)

[DrTrollinski]

"Let's." Carl agreed with her and began walking. He didn't know what to think, but he didn't put his hood up. In his opinion, hoods always looked suspicious - He felt more inconspicuous if he was walking out in the open, providing whoever he was trying to avoid wasn't right in front of him. He just walked casually, as if nothing was out of the ordinary and they'd been in town the whole time. Christ, he couldn't wait to get home for many reasons.


Well, he didn't have Missus Greene's cooking to look forward to, but they could find a way around that:


He was going to have his own home, his own bedroom, his own bed, his own bathroom, his own shower, and his own toilet - Finally, he wouldn't have to shit in some disgusting motel room or poorly-cleaned public restroom. He'd be able to shower in perfect privacy, and he'd be able to do whatever he wanted in his own home, just as long as no one noticed that they were back. That was going to be hard to notice, to be honest. I mean, who cared, right? No one was going to come knocking, because everyone was gone. Their parents, the pervy kid from next door, the people who owned the dog, Mrs Parker's husband and daughter, and the stressed woman's husband. Eh, you know, it happens.


On the way back, he sort of froze half way. He saw a car drive by, and he was sure that he saw someone in it that he recognized - if he saw them, then they saw him. He didn't know who it was, though, so he was just going to have to wait and see who came knocking (if the said person actually knew him, that is), but even if they did, it would't really be a problem. Mia and Carl would just have to trust them. After all, they wouldn't exactly have any evidence that they were in town, not one bit. It was one person's word against another, so there was no one that the police would really side with if they were reported. But still, Carl hoped that it would be someone they knew and trusted if they did come knocking.


After the long walk, they finally arrived at the doorstep. The lights were out, and the house itself felt really cold, even from the outside. Carl was going to go in there, whack on the central heating, and then kick back for a while. They both needed a good few days of rest, that was for sure, Carl just prayed that they were going to get it. He wondered what the next few days would bring, but that was all to be decided later. He didn't know when he'd do the research on their dad's computer. It could wait, at least for a few hours while he had some lunch and got settled down. They were only gone for a couple of days, so most (if not all) of the food in the cupboards and in the fridge would still be fresh.


"Home sweet home." He grinned.

 

[Zhai]

When they'red reach more familiar and personal surroundings, Mia couldn't help flinching, cringing, and turning at nearly every sound. Cars that drove by made her pinch the corner of her hood and hug it closer to her face. Sounds coming from homes made her fold in on herself, her head hung so far over it looked like she was probably sleep walking. And even people passing by made her head twist the opposite of them, even if they were or weren't looking at her face.


To say the least the rest of the walk into the cul de sac was highly unnerving and she was shivering more from the fear of being caught than the rain soaking through the fabric and onto her skin beneath. The thought of them being so close to their end point was reason enough as to why the thought of them not making it there was that much more realistic. It was like how it was in the movies sometimes; making it to the goal - well, almost - and then being thrown several paces off course. Or just never making it at all.


When they passed the Parker's residence, the door was still wide open and the house dark. There wasn't the old crazy woman lingering outside in the yard or on the porch but only the eerie quiet that emphasized the lack of her loud presence. Their cat, however, was perched firmly on the railing of the porch and squinting against the heavy rain hitting it's face.


The home with the woman and the baby was quiet, except for the dull humming of a television and soft lights flickering behind the other side of the sheer curtain. Car was still in the drive with a flat tire, weeds had overrun the garden and were creeping up the porch, and there was a combined weeks worth of mail and newspapers between the doorstep and the mail box.


Closer to their house she saw the Button's front yard gate was open but the little dog was gone; house was still empty, dark, and silent, too. The gate on the side of the house was closed despite the front gate being wide open. Across the cul de sac, Mia continued searching the faces of each house and it seemed that the result was the same for each; either it was completely forsaken or barely alive inside. Few lights on here and there but that was it as far as life existing within the walls of the foundation.


Looking at their house she knew they'd have to be as the other completely empty houses were - quiet, dark, and presumed empty. If the police did make a habit of regularly driving through here to make sure houses that were closed and empty remained as that, then they'd have to make sure it didn't look lived in.


Mia kept surveying around the outside of the house from beneath the porch, peeling the soaked hood from her equally wet head and waiting for Carl to get into the house. She didn't have her house key and she didn't think he'd have his one him either. They were rushed out of the house in pretty much their pajamas and she didn't remember grabbing a key on the way out - and she knew for sure she hadn't grabbed one.


"Hurry before someone drives by or something." Mia hissed impatiently, shifting her weight from foot to foot to avoid standing still and cooling down faster. She was wet - soaked, more like it - and wanted to get out of plain sight.

 

[DrTrollinski]

"Don't panic." He said, and then slammed the door over once he got inside. "I'm pretty sure I met eyes with someone I recognized, but I don't know... It's only the afternoon, and look at the weather. It could have been anyone, I don't know. Just don't panic, okay?" He said. "We're fine here." He added, taking a few quick glances around the house. It didn't look like it had been touched all that much - a couple of doors were open, which was quite eerie, but that was probably because someone did come and poke around in here while they were gone to see if they'd came straight back here, and upon finding nothing, they evidently left the house again and didn't bother shutting all the doors.


Oh well.


"This place is so quiet... If anyone's been poking around, it's been done already." He said. "We should be safe here for a few days. I highly doubt people will find it irregular if there's a few lights on here and there - as long as we don't make it obvious that we in particular are here, we'll be fine. Don't worry, I've got all of this under control, and there's nothing to panic about." He sighed and then slipped his hooded sweatshirt off and then hung it up on the coat rack. It was soaked, and so was he. He didn't like this. He wanted to change his clothes, that was for sure. He could always go and do that now. After all, it wasn't like they had anything better to do yet, and he wanted to have a couple of hours rest before he went to their father's computer.


"Also... If we stick to lamps, keep the blinds and curtains closed, we'll be fine. Out front, the shrubs and all of that shit will stop the light from getting through, and you'd need to be pretty much right in front of the house to be able to see it. Let's just play it safe, don't turn up the TV too loud, don't make a crazy mess, and we'll be fine, I assure you." He reached up and ruffled his soaking-wet hair with both hands. ".. I could honestly use a hot bath right now, though. I need to warm up, but you can go first, if you want." He offered.

 

[Zhai]

"I don't want to touch too much stuff..." Mia, still unsure if being in the house was the right thing to do, pulled her feet out of her shoes directly by the front door and crept through the foyer into the dining room and kitchen area. It was still...the same. Plates that had been set out for breakfast but never having been eaten off of, still sitting on the table in front of chairs they never made it to. Pot on the stove; she rushed over hoping the police were at least kind enough to turn the stove fire off, and she sighed in relief at the cold surface. The cartoon of eggs was still sitting on the counter, open and with one crookedly sat in there. Mrs. Greene must have been going to use that one. Mia straightened the egg, closed the carton and picked it up. The drawer with the cooking utensils was ajar, a spatula and whisk sat on the counter above the open drawer; as well as a mixing bowl. The kitchen was still frozen in that scene from that day, and it was unnerving to say the least. It was like pausing the movie and the characters disappearing from the scene you paused it on. What happens when you click 'play'? What characters take their places?


After circling the kitchen feeling bizarre and anxious for several reasons, she cracked open the fridge door enough to slide the carton of possibly spoiled eggs on a free space on the shelf. "This is...all so weird." Weird was another understatement, aside from her thoughts about the kitchen, and she went back to the dining room table and gingerly stacked the plates, leaving them in the middle of the table. It felt more than strange being in this house - their house - when they weren't supposed to be. Mia still fretted over a police officer getting curious, walking in here, and finding two kids living in the home. They'd be arrested on the spot if they didn't run fast enough and then what? Back to Lydia?


Geez, it's hard not to think about Lydia. She was like the bottom of the hole; they were climbing this wet and unstable ladder out of the hole but one wrong step or one broken piece and they were back to the bottom of the hole.


Leaving the kitchen area entirely and standing at the foot of the stairs that curved up to the next level, she forced out some air and pressed her hands on her hips. "Well, I guess it's good we made it in one piece, right?" That was one positive thing she could count on. No one had come running out from another yard, having been hiding there waiting to catch them. Their weren't police officers already posted through the neighborhood where people had gone missing like spare change in a sofa. The alarm to the house wasn't activated either, and Mia nonchalantly glanced at the red light that signaled 'deactivated'.


At Carl's offering for her to shower first, she shrugged thoughtlessly and started slowly creeping up the stairs. "What are you going to do in the mean time?" She said, stopping on the stairs and angling herself to see him.

 

[DrTrollinski]

"It's weird, yeah. Don't say that you don't want to touch too much stuff, that's just ridiculous." He sighed and walked around the house, slowly, and then went into the kitchen and turned a dial on the wall to turn on the central heating. There we go, now the house would start to warm up a little. He looked over at Mia and watched her go about, cleaning up the plates and dishes - he set his head down in his crossed arms on the table and simply sat still for a while. He didn't even want to comment on it anymore - Sure, getting things cleaned up would be nice, but right away? For Christ's sake. It wasn't even necessary - Throwing away the rotten egg, sure, why not, but this was going to get out of hand so much.


"We made it in one piece, yeah, so let's just relax. We don't need to rush around thinking that someone's going to come in - This isn't like an episode of CSI - Touch whatever you want. We've already stepped in the house, so it doesn't matter if we touch everything or nothing - they'll know we've been here." He explained, and then got up and went over to the coffee pot, nonchalantly putting some on brew while he got out a cup from the cupboard and placed that beside it. He poured some, added some cream and plenty of sugar, and then gave it a good stir before picking it up and following Mia out of the room.


He watched her walk up the stairs halfway, and then shrugged when she turned and asked him her question. "I haven't got the faintest fucking idea." He chuckled. "Sit around, watch TV, daydream, I don't know." He shrugged again and sipped on his coffee, and then wiped his lips with his opposite hand. "I honestly just don't have a clue, Mia... I'll figure something out, alright?" He smiled at her, and then walked over to the window that was beside the front door and looked out of it, mindlessly, watching some of the cars come and go.


Once Mia disappeared upstairs, something happened.


A car pulled onto the bottom of the Cul De Sac. It was a car he'd seen, he was sure. It looked like the one they saw after getting off of the bus, when he met eyes with someone who he thought he knew, but wasn't sure.


Who the fuck was it?


Shit. He just hoped it was a coincidence.

 

[Zhai]

Instead of jumping right in the shower, she did a spur of the moment walk through of the upstairs, starting with their parents' room.


She squeezed the door handle but didn't press down to open it yet, standing outside in the hall and staring at the white painted wood for several seconds. Just..go in. "Okay..." She replied to her thoughts quietly, pushing the handle down and letting the door open slightly on it's own before she pushed her shoulder against the door and gingerly opened it until she could fit through the space and into the room. It was cold in the room, even more than the rest of the house, and her skin prickled at the eerie chilliness of the empty space. With fresh goosebumps all over and a stiff spine, Mia nervously continued into her parent's room.


Everything looked neat and in place, as it would have usually been if Mrs. Greene had come in here and cleaned it. The bed was made, the floor was clear, every surface was dusted and polished. The curtains of the large window on the other side of the room had been pulled together, and Mia opened the heavy drapes to allow the dull light from outside to enter. She hesitated turning around, fearing that outside light would somehow reveal blood hidden in the white of the carpet; and to her relief when she did turn around, nothing. No blood. No bodies. Still just...nothing. It was still worse having nothing than having something and she caught herself in the middle of thinking she'd rather find them dead than not at all.


Moving from the window and keeping out of the sliver of light from the window, her eyes kept bouncing around to study the room's interior. Closet was open next to their door, and all of the clothes were neatly folded on the shelf or hung on the rack. In the bathroom, it was also clean and in place; mother's vanity space was arranged neatly, not even a make up brush laid out. The seat was also pushed underneath the vanity and out of the way. The double counter space was clear, tooth brushes placed in the holders and that was all on top. Mia pulled open the three drawers under the counter and surveyed the contents - everything you'd expect to find on a counter, including toothpaste and even razors, were neatly tucked between the three drawers and out of the way.


Everything was so in...place.


Mrs. Greene said she hadn't seen their parents leave that morning. Carl nor herself had seen them leave. They never made their bed or cleaned their room so..who did? That question was what forced Mia out of the room, her exit so hasty she almost forgot to close the door and suffered going back to pull the curtain's closed and shut the door behind his this time. She was panting and leaning her back against the closed door of her parent's room, swearing to herself she was never going back in there. Ever. Not even wh-..if.. if they came back.


Shower. She could use the shower now; and once again paraded quickly to the other side of the house, into her room, and into the shower. Mia turned on the shower, stripped down, and got in before the water was even out of cold.

 

[DrTrollinski]

Carl was standing there glaring at the car, and when he saw one of the back doors flying open, he quickly spun around and stood against the wall, and then slowly slid down it and sat on the floor, shakily sipping his coffee a few times. Christ, who was it that had showed up? Did they know that Carl and Mia were back in town? Were they even here for Carl and Mia, or was it just some huge coincidence that the car was here? It was a family car, so it was kind of hard to determine who it was. Dozens of Carl's friends' parents owned family vehicles like this one, so it wasn't exactly anyone that stood out to him - Hell, even his parents had a family car that they used whenever they went travelling or on road trips, or anything like that.


He just sat there like a scared puppy, his tail between his legs. (Metaphorically speaking, of course) He could only wait. If they were going to come here, then so be it. He wasn't going to move, and for a couple of minutes, he felt alright. He thought that they were going to be left alone in the house - and then he heard the gate out front squeak as it opened. No. He couldn't risk it. Mia was upstairs, alone, he needed to just take a peek and see who it was. He was praying that it wasn't going to be some sort of secret agent that had come to take them and--


He saw who it was, and his jaw dropped.


The person who he'd met eyes with, it was Jenna.


He couldn't let her knock, because that would alert Mia - He had all the evidence that he hadn't called her. His call history on his phone dated back to before their parents went missing, and the home phone hadn't even been picked up in case it had been tapped. Quite simple, really - The home phone wasn't going to be answered. He made sure that that wasn't risked, or, at least he was going to make sure. Now was the main thing, though - He had to let her in.


He slowly walked to the door, and right as her hand was about to come down and knock on it, he pulled it open.


They met eyes again, and Carl felt a shiver go down his spine.


There was something wrong. There was something really really wrong with her. He could see heartbreak and sadness in his eyes, he could see how weak and crushed that she was. He was about to hug her, but then he saw something else. She wasn't alone. She had a little boy at her side - It was the one that she'd shown him the night she came over for cookies and a chat. It was her little five-year-old brother, who was only a few months away from turning six. He was a sweet-faced little kid, and he didn't cling to Jen's side when the door opened. He just loosely held her hand and smiled at Carl.


Carl forced a smile back.


"Jenna... I--.. I have some explaining to do." He gulped. He just hoped she wouldn't turn him down.


"I knew something was wrong, don't worry." She whispered, her voice shaky. Her voice was just the perfect portrayal of devastation - the rain was still coming down, and he could see that the car she'd arrived in had driven off. How odd. Thankfully, Jen and her brother - Connor - were in their coats, so they were out of the rain for the most part. Carl simply nodded at what she said, and then slowly creaked the door open.


"You--.. You better come in... You'll get a chill out there." He said. He let them in, and then quietly closed the door over. He was glad that Mia was in the shower, though - If she was here right now, she'd be freaking out. Well, not freaking out, but panicking on the inside. Carl knew Mia too well, but that look in Jen's eyes was something that he just couldn't turn down and send away, especially when she had her young brother at her side. Speaking of which, he crouched down in front of him and held out a hand. "You must be Connor..." He smiled. ".. I'm Carl." He whispered to him, Connor joyfully released Jen's hand and childishly shook Carl's own.


"Uh-huh." He said, grinning. ".. Nice to meet you, Carl..." He said, linking his hands together in shyness. Carl simply smiled back at him and reached forward, ruffling his hair. "Jen said I gotta' watch TV so she can talk to you." He said. Jen let out a sigh - Obviously she didn't want him to say that. It made her seem rude, but Carl could understand. He loved kids, so the innocence behind them never really fazed him that much.


"Of course, buddy... I... Um..." He looked up at Jen. "I need to go and tell Mia you're here... We weren't really expecting visitors, so I don't want her to freak out." He played it off with a fake smile. "Would you mind getting the TV on for him? Don't have it too loud, if you don't mind." He said, and then rose up. Connor had already happily found the living room, leaving the two alone. Jen walked up to Carl, and out of nowhere, quickly went into a kiss with him for a few seconds, and then pulled away. She gave him a sad smile and blinked away some tears, and Carl simply rubbed the back of his head. Something wasn't right. Something had upset her, and judging by that, he knew that it wasn't him - If it was him, she wouldn't have brought her little brother along.


Carl pretty much rocketed up the stairs and into Mia's room, and then sat down on the edge of her bed. He got up and locked the door, and then went back to the bed again. He sat down, and he waited. The first words he would say to her when she exited the bathroom were--


No.


He went back out. If she walked out completely naked, that would be awkward. He went outside her room and leaned against the wall - The first words he'd say when he saw her were. "We need to talk about something, like, right now."

 

[Zhai]

Mia lingered in the shower for...whoa, how long had it been? She flinched back to life, looking around the shower space and trying to pick up a train of thought. What was she thinking about? Probably nothing. She couldn't even remember feeling like she was even thinking about something and giving up on thinking about what she was previously thinking about, she carefully stepped out of the shower. Turning off the water and drawing the curtain back so water didn't stain the surface, she stood naked in the middle of the bathroom.


"Damn it.." She whispered to herself, frantically staring around the bathroom for a towel. Anything to dry and cover herself. Mia had stood there so long that the water beaded up on her skin and wasn't dripping uncontrollably on the carpet beneath her. If she ran, she'd make it into her room and to a towel before the water from her hair made it down her back and on the floor. Right. She rushed to the door, pulled it open enough to peek out, and saw her door close. Must have been Carl. Wondered what he wanted. Mia makes the dash out of the bathroom, leaping quietly across the room, and into the closet - snatching a towel off the shelf and tucking it around herself.


Dried and dressed, she folded the towel on the door and brushed through her hair before starting a braid. Carl said not to worry about homework because they weren't going to be going to school anyways, but...the moment she saw the notebook she left behind laid on her desk, she couldn't stop herself from sitting in front or it and thumbing through the pages. It was her agenda, the do-to list with dates, times, and names. The paper she had due for Humanities was overdue by two or three days, and she'd left half her books on Lydia's floor and the other half in her locker. Giving up on the school thing and closing the agenda, she rose out of her chair and went to her door.


Mia opened it and immediately tuned in to listen for something. Soft droning of the television; so maybe Carl was watching TV or... when she stepped further out of her room and looked outside the door, she saw him. Or maybe Carl was standing outside her door. She smiled and folded her arms across her chest. "Carl...you're not going to catch my masturbating in the shower and moaning like a porn star." She laughed softly to herself at the reoccurring banter about his shower adventures, and started walking down the hall towards the steps.

 

[DrTrollinski]

Carl couldn't help but smile, but he also looked unnerved. The wait outside the room was far longer than he would have hoped it to be, but he was happy that she was here now. He slowly turned to look at her and looked straight into her eyes, and then rubbed the sides of his heads with his hands. He was really stressed about this, and he didn't know how he was going to start this off. He needed to do it, though, or Mia was going to be in for even more of a surprise than she already was.


"Mia... I don't want you to panic, and I swear on my life that I had absolutely nothing to do with this, but..." He gulped and then took a deep breath. "Shit, something's wrong." He muttered to himself, rubbing the sides of his head again. He started tapping his foot on the ground for a while whilst counting to ten in his head, and then looked straight back up at her and placed a hand down on her shoulder. He took a sigh, and then looked in her eyes again.


"Jenna saw us." He gulped. "She saw us, and she's here with her little brother, but... Before you say anything, please, let's hear her out. She needs to talk about something, apparently, and... She--.. She looks really upset and just generally terrible, Mia... Something's wrong, and I need you to promise me that you're not going to freak out, or say anything out of place... I mean, I know you wouldn't do that, but... You know, this is really unnerving me, too, and I just need your help here. Her brother's only five, and... Christ, if there wasn't something wrong, she wouldn't have brought him with her - Even you know that." He took another shaky deep breath and ran a hand through his hair.


"I saw a car pull up at the bottom of the Cul De Sac... It was the same one I saw when we were walking back... I... I just hid, because I thought it was a coincidence, and then I heard the gate creak and it was pouring with rain - they were stood outside the door, and the car had driven off... I couldn't send them away, Mia." He said, the last part said in a tone that almost sounded like he wanted her to understand where he was coming from. She came here because something was wrong - Would it really be right to slam the door in her face and make her walk home in the rain with a five-year-old at her side?


No, of course it wouldn't.


"Let's--.. Let's just explain things to her, okay? For all we know, things might not be as bad as they sound, and she might not have said anything to anyone. I need you to help me, though... Please." He said.

 

[Zhai]

Oh shit. Carl said not to panic but the beginnings of panic were already, well...beginning. There was an anxious stirring in her stomach, her spine stiffened, my lips pursed tightly, and her eyes were wider than normal. Mia's hands absently wiped several times against her pants until she hand to link them together in front of her to keep from wiping the skin off her hands. There was more panicking starting and she felt like she was going to pass out from the overwhelming anticipation for whatever Carl had to say.


What would he say?


The police are here and they've come to arrest us.


Lydia has been following us all this time and found us.


Mom and Dad's bodies are chopped up, wrapped up, and stashed in the coat closet.


That strange car I saw earlier is parked outside. It could be a killer.


There were a hundred other outlandish scenarios that developed in her head, and she tried her best not to blurt one of them out. Especially since Carl's face betrayed him and the urgency of whatever he had to say was too important for Mia to interrupt him. Then again, it felt like he was taking so long to just get to the damn point and he was sort of...beating around the bush it seemed like. Mia was about to shake Carl and tell him to just say whatever he had to say, until he actually started his spill.


The entire time he spoke she was silent, rigid, and it felt like all the hair on her head was erected into spikes and her stomach was churning some awful. Jen was here..with her brother. Some car dropped her off and Carl let her in. There was a part of her that didn't believe he didn't plan it but she once again bit into her tongue - literally - and continued listening to him pour his heart out with that plea.


When he was done - or when she thought he was done, at least - her hands unlocked from in front of her and rubbed together nervously. Okay, what to say? Mia didn't want Jen there, and definitely not her brother, and it felt like they'd been invaded upon. On the other hand, here was Carl about to fall onto his knees for Jen and whatever problem she had.


Mia sucked in quiet, ragged breath between a small space between her lips. "Okay..." She managed to say that, though her voice was slightly cracked and she immediately cleared her throat after she spoke.

 

[DrTrollinski]

"We need to..." He took a deep breath. "Shit, we need to figure something out." He gulped a few times and then quickly wiped some cold sweat that had developed on his forehead. He was nervous about this, too. He was worried that she suspected something, but he wasn't going to say anything about that until she accused him. The last thing he needed was to start some sort of huge argument - Her brother may have been young, but he seemed quiet enough, and he didn't appear to be one of those kids that would do nothing but cry and shout until he got what he wanted.


"Her brother--.. He's not a brat, or anything. He's alright. Quiet, but good." He said. "Jenna--.. Look, Jenna's really upset about something, Mia..." He shook his head a few times. "I've got a really bad feeling about this. What if--.. She said on the night she came here that her dad was really sick. What if it's something to do with him, I mean... Jesus..." He sucked in some air really quickly and put his hands on the back of his head again. He didn't know what to do, and he wasn't sure if there was even anything they could do. No. No, there was definitely something.


"Okay... Okay, here's what we'll do..." He sighed. "I'll go and get Jen in the kitchen, because she wants to be away from her brother while talking to us, so... It has to be something serious." He sighed. "Look, I'll get her in the kitchen... Do you want to make the drinks while I sit her down and get her talking?" He asked. "Yeah, let's do that. You can take a drink into her brother and meet him... It'd be better if he was distracted and had everything he needed for now - He's watching TV, so... Let's do that, please?" He asked, and then quickly turned away and made his way down the stairs. He was still rubbing his head in nervousness - he was really getting stressed out now.

 

[Zhai]

Once again, Mia didn't interrupt - not even in thought - while Carl's mouth moved a hundred miles a minute and he spelled out his plan. She was still stuck on the part that Jen and her brother were sitting downstairs casually watching television like it was a normal mid-day visit. Hell, all they were missing was a fresh plate of cookies and milk to offer them while they waited for their hosts to stop freaking out upstairs! When she assumed Carl was done - well, knew he was done when he passed her and stressed himself down the stairs - Mia exhaled and didn't feel the immediate relief she expected after holding her breath for so long.


Standing there in the hallway, leaned against the railing and mentally wrapping up everything Carl had said was...exhausting to say the least. If she wasn't tired before, then she'd probably fall asleep standing in the next couple of seconds. Mia took in a few breaths to pacify the overwhelming stress she was feeling, and finally turned around to walk down the stairs.


Make drinks. Serve drinks to brother. Then what? Mia didn't want to wait around with some two year old while Carl and Jen talked in the kitchen like adults. She would make whatever drinks Carl was expecting - juice...she'd put juice in a tumbler - and give one to the brother, and stay out of this. For one, she didn't want Jen here and for two, she didn't want her brother here, either. Carl was probably having a heart attack inside not only because Jen was here but because she was upset, too. Mia didn't want to get in the middle of whatever they'd be talking about, and decided to stay out of it before she even reached the kitchen.

 

[DrTrollinski]

Carl was just walking Jen into the kitchen when Mia arrived. He gave her a simple nod, and Jenna gave her a smile as a greeting. She wasn't saying as much as she usually was, and that concerned Carl. Seriously, he didn't know what to do, so he just sat her at the table and then sat down beside her. She spun the chair around to face him, and then looked down at the floor - Carl wasn't sure now, so he just put a hand down on her knee and gently rubbed it; he did his best to smile at her, but he wasn't sure if it had an effect on her.


"Would you like a drink?" He asked, she simply nodded.


"Coffee, please." She choked, Carl quickly shot a look off at Mia and gave her a nod to just tell her to make that for Jenna. Jenna needed a drink - she'd been out in the cold for a little while, and she looked like she was about to burst into tears. He didn't need her to cry now. No, that would be horrible, because he'd probably end up crying, too. He didn't want her to cry - He looked at Mia, and then back at Jen again.


"Jen... What drink will your brother have?"


"Juice... Any--.." She quickly cleared her throat. "Any juice." She said. Carl looked at Mia again and then took a deep breath, but then looked back to Jenna and stared down at the table for a few moments. ".. He's five years old, if Carl hasn't told you already." She said, and then quickly wiped her eyes. "He won't give you any trouble... He's good, I promise." She said, and then turned away and wiped her eyes again. Carl was actually hoping that Mia would come back and sit down with him - He was going to need support, too. Not her brother, but himself - He knew this was going to get heavy, and he just needed her to be there for him.


But no, Mia was too stubborn to be around Jen - He'd learned that already.


Okay. Nice and easy start. He'd wait for Mia to set the drinks down for them, say hello to Jen's brother, and then he'd start talking to Jen. He just needed to stay calm, and then listen to what Jen had to say. He knew that things were going to get tough.

 

[Zhai]

There they go, and she watched Carl usher Jen towards the kitchen area and disappear behind the corner of the wall; but, of course, not without one of his looks and signals. She was used to those from, well, living with the guy. They were siblings and he's always used some kind of signal for something. Anything. Mia knew this time it was for coffee, and as reluctant as she was and nearly on the edge of retiring in her room, she continued down the rest of the stairs to the bottom floor. There was the chant in her mind that was saying she was doing this for Carl; it's for Carl so just do it, Mia. You like Jen but do it for Carl mostly.


Fair enough.


Mia could already hear them speaking before she'd fully rounded the corner, and she only looked at Carl long enough to see that he was supplying her with another one of his signals. It was tough not to tell Carl to stop giving her the eye signal and nod, and she settled with just not looking at him. So far so good; and she began starting the coffee, quietly opening the pantry, measuring out the grounds, filling the water pot, and finally starting the coffee.


Assuming it would take awhile she moved onto the juice for the brother. What juice did they have?; she stared into the fridge through a partially open door, finding that juice was...rare. There was just one tumbler on the bottom shelf of the door, half filled with what she could only assume was lemonade. Mrs. Greene made an awesome lemonade and even Mia was tempted to pour herself a glass in the vacant Nan's honor.


Mia snatched the tumbler, searched for a smallish glass, and poured. Christ, it was tempting not to sip the juice and she constantly reminded herself it was for someone else. Overcoming the urge to drink the glass, she replaced the tumbler and checked the coffee. It was done quicker than she thought so that would probably be a moment that if she would have looked in Carl's direction, he would have been nodding and giving her a signal.


Coffee was poured into two mugs and she put them on a serving tray, along with a small cup of cream and the tray of sugar cubes. Carefully she carried it to the table, slid it on the top, walked away, grabbed the juice, and was out the kitchen before she'd even released her held breath.

 

[DrTrollinski]

"Thank you." Jen sniffled, and then took her coffee and sipped on it. Carl reached over and put a hand down on Jen's free hand, gently rubbing it. She looked him in the eyes and smiled weakly, but then looked away again. She hooked her hand around his own and squeezed it tightly. Boy, she had some bad news that she wasn't looking forward to talking about. It was really, really, really bad. Carl wasn't sure that he wanted to hear it, either, because he'd seen that look in her eyes, so he knew that he wasn't going to like what he heard.


Once Mia left the room, she found a young boy sitting there on the couch, his eyes glued to the TV. He looked up at her as soon as he saw her and then gave her a little shy smile. He looked at the drink in her hands, and he could only assume that it was for him - he didn't hold a hand out, though. Mia might have seen how the kid was a lot like Carl, just much more quiet - he was only similar because of his slightly pale face and his shaggy dark brown hair, though.


"Hi." He said, shyly. ".. My name's Connor." He added, and then looked her up and down. He could see the resemblance between her and Carl, but he was too young to really put his finger on it. He wasn't going to start questioning it, because he'd only met Carl very briefly, so he wasn't sure if this was his sister or someone completely different. "What's your name?" He asked, and then curled up on the couch a little. He seemed to be quite a good kid - his sneakers had been taken off and put over in the corner of the room where they weren't in the way.


But, while Mia was in there, Carl heard words that he'd never forget.


".. My dad's going to die of terminal cancer."

 

[Zhai]

Mia was personally counting her blessings that their parents never had children after then, and that their Mother had committed herself to just being a crazed, worrisome trophy wife and not a baby machine. Just being in the room with Jenna's younger brother was to say the very least uncomfortable, and she stood there staring at the smaller child.


Not knowing what to say or how to interact with him aside from giving him the juice and quietly watching his turn the cup in his hand several times before even taking a sip. In that moment she decided she didn't know how she felt about smaller children. Of course, she didn't hate him and wasn't passing judgement on Connor; he seemed adjustable, he wasn't running around the house and tearing down stuff, and he wasn't annoying. At least not yet.


Even though Connor had made himself comfortable on the couch, shoes off, jacket hung across the back of the couch, and the juice comfortably rested between his hands - she continued standing. Watching him from a just behind and off the side of the couch, being able to see the profile of his face and enough of his head over the arm chair. Mia kept watching him, her arms crossed over her body and her weight shifting from foot to foot. Ugh, she wasn't a baby sitter; she wasn't cut out for watching children.


This just solidified her settlement to not have children.


Carl could have all the children he wanted but Mia was going to have a small dog that was out of the way, or maybe even a cat that didn't really need to depend on her for anything. That kind of pet was even more out of the way, or even a fish; but not children. Definitely not.


Connor's head switched around so abruptly that Mia actually flinched, and as casually as possible regained her composure. When he spoke his voice was high, smooth, and wasn't as childless as she expected, "What's your name?" He held onto the word 'name' as if he were about to start singing it, and her eyebrow rose slightly. Wonder of Carl was ever like that.


"Mia."


"My name is..is longer than your name." Connor starts talking immediately after I've said my name, and she starts counting on his fingers and spelling his name.


"You look like C-Carl."


What? Both of her eyebrows shot up in question and surprise at his accusation, and she had to remember he was just a child and he wasn't implying Mia looked like boy Carl with long hair and boobs...because even though she did, she prided their sexual differences. Masculine and feminine.


"He's my brother."


Connor's face lit up and the grin that spread across his face looked painful. His voice was a little loud when he spoke."Jenna is my sister!" Again a proud mask was on his face and he sipped the juice again.


Mia didn't bother responding to that fact only because she knew that already and she wasn't going to insult his intelligence repeating what he'd already said. Instead she leaned against the wall, still watching Connor and the hallway behind her.


What was taking them so long?

 

[DrTrollinski]

"I'm--.. I'm so sorry." Carl said, his voice shaking softly. He quickly shuffled over and hugged her as tight as she could. She was hugging. Like, really sobbing. Carl had to swallow down the sadness to stop himself from crying - he couldn't break down in front of her, no way. He just hugged her and then ran his hand through her hair. "Shh... Shh..." He said softly, rocking her from side to side. He didn't know what else to say. He couldn't exactly say that everything was going to be alright, because it wasn't. Her father was going to die. He didn't know if he felt more sorry for Jenna or for Connor. Connor, because he was a young boy that was going to have to grow up without a father, or Jenna, because she'd be an older sister who would now have to help out with near enough everything.





"We're gonna' be alone! We're gonna' have nothing left!" She bawled into his chest. "Nothing!" She cried out, Carl hushed her again and gulped once more, swallowing down a little more of the sadness. He had to hold it in. He couldn't cry. No. He couldn't. So many questions were going through his head, though - So many. How long was their father going to live? Would they all be okay? Would everything end a lot better once things started to straighten out?


"No, no... You'll have something... You'll have each other, you'll have your mom and the rest of your family... And you'll have me, okay?" He said, rubbing her back. "Does Connor know?" He asked, gulping again. His heart sunk when Jenna shook her head. "Okay... How--.. How long did the doctors say?" He asked. Jenna instantly started sobbing again, and she did that for a couple of minutes before she actually replied.


"One month."


Her voice was a mere choke.


He didn't know what to say.


Their dad wasn't even going to make it to Connor's sixth Birthday.


Connor had heard all the crying, though, and he instantly stopped drinking his lemonade and looked towards where the kitchen was. He gave a bit of a worried frown and then shuffled uncomfortably in his seat. He looked up at Mia and continued to circle the glass with his hands. ".. Mia...?" He called out, quietly. ".. Why is Jenna crying?" He asked, his eyes going wide. He was worried now. The crying was really bad.

 

[Zhai]

Mia was expecting Connor to say something about the drama unfolding in the other room and making it way across the entirety of the house. If she could hear it then Connor could hear it, too; and what do you say to a child who has a family member losing her shit in the next room? Mia surely didn't know what to say and instead had a silent staring contest with Connor, and she could feel his glossy eyes searching for face for a giveaway that something bad was happening over there.


What to say? What to say?!


In her mind she had already planned to curse out Carl for leaving her alone with Connor and was about to starting bitching Jenna out for not only dropping by unannounced but bringing her brother along. This wasn't a community center!


"Wait..." Connor was preparing to get out of the couch when Mia stepped forward and said something, and the little boy paused half out of the couch. "..They're just watching a movie." That was the quickest lie she could muster up, and Connor looked like he didn't buy it at first because he continue leaning off the edge of the couch before finally leaning back. He didn't say anything and she suspected he was content with what he heard. Sure, she didn't suspect that the he was stupid or anything but he definitely was a little smarter than the average five year old.


Connor spent several more minutes looking between Mia, the TV and the lemonade, probably still deciding if the howling from the other room was really a movie or not. Mia continued watching Connor until it seemed like he was resolved with the movie lie, and she relaxed against the wall.


What the hell are they doing over there?

 

[DrTrollinski]

Yeah, Connor really didn't like that lie, not one bit. He didn't believe it in the slightest, but he had to give it a chance. Mia wouldn't lie to him... right? No, of course she wouldn't. Carl and Mia were his new friends, they wouldn't lie to him. Of course not. He was decently content with that thought - Why would they lie to him? They wouldn't, of course!


He leaned back, and started sipping as his lemonade whilst watching the TV.


"I love you." Carl said, out of the blue. He curled his arms further around her a little more, and then gently kissed her cheek. She hugged him back, and simply started sobbing more quietly into his chest, but she still managed to spit out a response.


"I love you, too."


He gently pulled away and then lifted her head up with his hand. ".. I'm always going to be here for you, okay?"


"Please... I need to ask something of you." She quickly took hold of his hands. ".. I--.. My dad needs to have more tests, and... He doesn't want Connor to be there." She sniffled. "Would it be too much trouble for you to care for him, just for tonight? I can pick him up first thing in the morning, I just--.. He doesn't need to be there for all of that. He won't understand." She said. Carl thought for a moment and then took a deep breath. He didn't know, but he had to - It was the only right thing to do. Mia and Carl were here for a few more days, they could do that, right?


".. I--.. We're not in town for long." He gulped.


"Please, Carl. I promise. I can be here as early as you need to be."


"I--.. Let me talk to Mia, okay?" He asked, and then went into the living room and approached Mia. ".. Mia. I need a word." He gulped, and then look over his shoulder at Connor. "In private." He said.

 

[Zhai]

What could they be talking about over there? Mia couldn't even figure out what kind of movie would have that much dramatic howling and crying, and she found herself in turmoil over the lie she told Connor. It was easy for him to believe it but she was still trying to figure out what kind of movie that kind of noise would be in. It sounded more like murder than a chick flick.


Connor was continuously shifting in the sofa, finishing the rest of his lemonade and only moving enough to sit the glass on the floor right in front of the couch. Mia winced at the sight and imagined Mrs. Greene having a fit, sensing the glass hitting the floor and scrambling from wherever she was in the house to catch the culprit. She hated glasses being sat on the wood and was convinced it ruined the wood floors or something.


Mia stopped fretting over the glass in time enough to see Carl quickly coming her way, everything about him said business.


Again she didn't get a word in before Carl's mouth opened and his words came flying out. Talk in private; got it. Mia looked at Connor just the same as Carl looked at the boy, and luckily Connor didn't jump out of his seat to follow them. He didn't even turn around to look at them and was too engrossed in the show to even notice Carl had walked in.


Mia followed Carl out of the room Connor was in just enough so that Connor couldn't eavesdrop on whatever they were about to talk about. Now was her chance to get her own words in, since last time she got suckered into making coffee and babysitting without even getting her opinion in. "H-Hold on, Carl. Seriously...what's going on?"

 

[DrTrollinski]

Carl dragged her as far away from the living room as he could manage, and then put both of his hands on her shoulders and took a deep breath. He had tears in his eyes that were on the verge of rolling down his cheeks. "Their dad's got terminal cancer and's been given one month to live." He choked out, and then released her shoulders and looked away, quickly blinking away the tears and wiping his eyes. He didn't know how to deal with this. He didn't know what to do, but they had to do something. They didn't have a choice here. They had to do this, especially in this situation.


"Mia. She's asked us to have Connor for the night while she goes with her mom and dad so that her dad can have more tests, so they can decide if they can treat him at all." He sighed. "Mia... He's not even going to live for Connor's Sixth Birthday... I don't mind. We're here for a few days. I'll take care of him by myself if you need me to, I'll watch him, I'll cook for him, I'll do whatever you need me to, but please. Just this one night." He said, wiping his eyes again.


"Connor doesn't know. I guess that he knows his dad's sick, but... He doesn't know the real news. He's five years old, Mia. Please. He doesn't deserve to be around that sort of thing - He can know when the time's right, but not tonight..." He sighed, and then quickly covered his face with both hands and started rubbing it. Shit, he was crying now. Fuck, fuck, fuck.

 

[Zhai]

Mia was treading a line between two emotions she couldn't quite put her finger on just yet, so she decided to try and work it out in her head. On one hand she was actually kind of heated that not only was Jenna in the house when they weren't even supposed to be in the house, and now he was asking for the little boy to stay the night in the house. Right, so she chalked her one emotion up to being frankly...angry.


On the other hand, hearing that Jenna's father was dying of cancer was devastating, it really was and a hot knot developed in her throat so fast she didn't have time to swallow first. There wasn't a burning sensation around the rim of her eyes and she felt like shit for not having tears to go with how she felt. So, now she knew her other emotion was grief for Jen's family.


Carl's face was overwhelmed with all kind of emotion and when he started crying, her hands reached forward and pulled him into a tight hug. There wasn't a whole lot of ways Mia knew to console Carl but hugging him always seems to do the trick. It wasn't like the words 'it will all be okay' would help him or Jen or the girls' father, so she didn't say anything. She let Carl cry it out on her shoulder for several moments, and once again she felt that familiar soaked feeling in her shoulder from his tears and the heat of his deep breaths.


What do you do, Mia?


This was all very...well it was a lot. It was a whole lot, and she wasn't ready to try and deal with someone else's grief when there was still her own unanswered turmoil. At least Jenna knew where her parents were, and she had a body to bury. Where was her compassion for Carl's parents? The body he didn't have to bury or the time he didn't have to mourn. Mia felt maybe her thinking was all messed up or something, and she leaned away from Carl.


"Do whatever you have to do, Carl. Tell Jenna I'm sorry about her dad." Damn, tonight she felt like she was the woman of few words or something. Mia patted her brother's shoulder, walked quietly but quickly towards the sliding backdoor, pushed it aside and went into the backyard. She slid the door closed behind her and walked several paces from the house, nearly towards Mrs. Greene's spare house and stopped just short of walking up the vacant steps.


She picked a chair on the edge of the pool, made herself comfortable, and hissed through clenched teeth for as long as she could hold it. It didn't take long until her lungs burned, her cheeks ached, and she had to start inhaling deep breaths so she didn't pass out. This was all a lot to take in, and she just needed a moment to let it sink in. Jenna's father is dying. They need to keep her brother. Their parents were still missing. And what else? What did she leave out?


Damn, she couldn't even remember that. Mia sat outside in the lawn chair, staring into the pool's depth and watching stray leaves, grass, and unfortunate bugs float on its surface.

 

[DrTrollinski]

Carl just let her walk off and stayed there against the wall for a moment, and then took a few deep breaths. He didn't want to upset Mia, but this was the only right thing to do - they needed to be considerate for other people, too, because they'd expect the same thing if they found out the same sort of news. Oh well, he could go and tell the other two about it. First stop, he went to the living room and crouched down in front of Connor, clicking his fingers in front of his face a few times to attract him away from the TV.


"Hey, buddy." Carl sniffled, quickly wiping some tears that had built up in his eyes. Connor looked at him and tilted his head a little.


"Hi, Carl." He grinned shyly. ".. Why are you crying? Was the movie sad? I heard Jenna crying, too." He said, Carl's face just dropped and he looked down at the floor, and then reached up and set a hand down on Connor's knee with a shaky sigh.


"Yeah... Really sad, buddy." He gulped. "Look... I've got some news for you, okay...? You're going to be staying here with me and Mia tonight, okay?"


"Why?" He asked, his eyebrows furrowing.


"Just because, okay?"


"Is... Is it because my daddy's sick?" He asked, one eyebrow raising. Carl sighed and slowly rose up, and then sat down on the couch beside him and ruffled his hair with one hand. God, this kid was very smart for a five-year-old - He definitely wasn't stupid, not at all. Carl didn't want to be the one to explain it to him, though. He patted his head and then nodded.


"Yeah, they just want to get some things in order, okay? They just want you stay here."


"Okay, Carl..." He shrugged and then looked back at the TV. He quickly looked back to him, though. "Can we do something fun soon? I don't wanna' stay here if we ain't gonna' do somethin' fun." He said. Carl couldn't help but roll his head back and laugh, patting his head once again.


"Sure, kiddo... You just watch TV for a while, alright? It's only early... We have plenty of time today, so I'll figure out something to do." He said, and then stood back up and went out to Jenna in the kitchen again - She was a little calmer, but not much. He got one last huge kiss from her when he confirmed what was going on, and she promised that she'd bring him some clothes for tomorrow and his PJ's, toothbrush, and teddy bear soon enough. That was better than nothing. She also promised that she wouldn't mention anything about Carl and Mia.


Carl went outside after she left and took a seat down beside Mia.


".. Are you okay?" He asked, gulping. He wished that he was okay himself, but there wasn't going to be much chance of that happening any time soon.

 

[Zhai]

"I'm..." She started but stopped, pausing before she'd even reached the middle of her sentence, still staring into the bottom of the pool. Who left the pool lights on? For some reason she couldn't recall if they'd always turned on at night by themselves or maybe Mrs. Greene turned them on, but she wasn't here recently. They must be automatic. Before she knew it her pause turned into longer than she expected as she started counting the lights at the bottom of the pool. Ten lights placed around the bottom perimeter that made a nice ring of light that lit up the mass of the pool.


Drawing out of her thoughts and inhaling as calmly as she could, her lips pursed together firmly and she nodded her head slowly. Once. Twice. Three times. Her hands squeezed around the thin arm rest handle of the lawn chair, and she stretched her legs out in front of her, crossing her ankles.


Mia continued staring into the pool when she spoke again, her sentence starting low but she gradually spoke loud enough for Carl to hear. "I'm fine, it's just...y'know, I'm just fine." She didn't feel fine but she told Carl she felt as such, and still she didn't look at him. It was weird not looking into Carl's face and talking but she managed for that particular situation, and kept staring at other things in the backyard.


Like Mrs. Greene's guest house.


It was like the unveiling in a television show when Father called Mrs. Greene into the backyard, pulled off a heavy cover that hid the house, and revealed the house built specifically for the old woman. Everyone was outside and watched Mrs. Greene unfold on the spot, kneeling slowly until her knees touched the ground, and praying heavily as everyone gathered around her. Mia could tell Nan was more than overwhelmed that day and if she was losing herself on the outside of the house, it was even better inside. Her own kitchen, living space, bedroom, bathroom, closet, patio. Everything. Everything anyone could want in their own miniature home.


Mia smiled small to herself and turned her gaze away from the house, back to the pool. Eventually she did glance at Carl and saw his eyes were red and they were slightly puffy from his crying earlier. "I'm fine. I just needed...need some air."


Leaning further back into her chair, she decided to get as comfortable as she could in a plastic seat and slouched down far enough until she could comfortably rest her head on the chair's back. "Don't worry about me, Carl. You handle things in there...I'm just getting some air."

 

[DrTrollinski]

He shuffled over and dropped an arm around her shoulders and gave her a gentle hug with the one arm, and then looked down into the pool as well. Christ, being back here was really depressing, but really made him feel happy on the inside. He set his head down against Mia's own and then took a quick glance around the back yard. He was thinking a lot about him and Jenna - Where would things go from now? He was more than happy to help out and do what he could, because he knew it was going to be really hard on the family. Jenna, maybe Jenna would get over it, but what about Connor? He was going to be so confused about why his daddy left him behind like that.


No, Carl couldn't let that happen.


"Mia." He said, sighing. He took hold of her hand and squeezed it. "I know that all of this is very... stressful." He took a deep breath. "Look... It's not easy, but... I mean, fuck me..." He closed his eyes for a few moments. ".. I want you to help me. I mean... I know that you don't necessarily--.. Y'know, want to be friends with her, but... I'd appreciate it if you could just help me out with it if the opportunity rises, y'know? Be nice to Connor, too... He ain't too bad, I need to find a way to entertain him soon, though." He explained, and then gave a chuckle. "Jenna's going to bring over some PJ's, clothes, all the other stuff... Should be soon, y'know." He slumped back in his chair.


"This is so stressful, but... Hopefully the night will be a little more calmer from now on... Any ideas what you want to have for dinner tonight? I was thinking about getting something that Connor would like. Y'know, like, maybe order a pizza, or something." He shrugged, and then took a quick glance around. Honestly, he was still a bit worried, but Connor was quite happily watching TV in the house, so for now, they didn't have too much to worry about. Well, they did, but things could be calmer.


"Dinner ideas. Go." He said, and then lied back, waiting for Mia to give some sort of suggestion.