Ambiguous
II.
Candace didn't want to admit it, but she thought of Julius, that strange girl who insisted she was a boy, every single day. She could see her sneering face as she reached for a bright color, and her glaring eyes under those floppy, purple bangs every time she voiced her opinion. It had been years since she'd seen her, but those harsh remarks stayed. Luna often asked why she had put up with Julius for so long. The truth was, for all her abuse, Julius had done a lot for her. She protected Candace even though she thought she didn't know. That's why Candace put with so much, because someone who would take a beating for her every day couldn't be all that bad. She knew Julius didn't mean to be so hurtful, Candace couldn't explain how she knew, but she knew Julius was trying hard to be her friend.
Other than that, Candace had largely moved on with her life. She was enjoying her days in Waffle Town, she had even made some friends. Angela was the first friend she made, then Anissa and Jin reached out. Every day Angela would stop by at random times, but Anissa was more regular. They would have lunch together and talk almost all the time. Candace felt close to her and was overjoyed when Anissa got married. Words could not describe how amazing it felt to hold Anissa's son Van for the first time. Seeing Anissa go through all those changes made Candace wonder if she would ever find someone to love some day.
She didn't dwell on it too long, she just pushed ahead. She would watch Van a lot when Anissa wanted to shop or visit other friends. She enjoyed those days more than she cared to admit, it almost pained her to give him back. One morning she was watching Van when Angela decided to show up earlier than usual to talk about the new villager that had arrived.
"I saw him get off the boat and, ohmigod he looks like an 80's pop star! He's well dressed and pretty," she said. Candace smiled and rocked Van in the living room. Some interest in this tiny place.
"I talked to him and he seems a bit aloof. He gave me a rather backhanded compliment," Angela continued.
"I don't know about you, but I like men to look like men," Luna called from the other room.
"I'm sure Gill would be heartbroken to hear that," Angela replied.
"Don't even bring him up. He may blush whenever I'm around, but he's all but drooling whenever you walk into town hall," she said. Angela coughed and ran her hand through her hair. That didn't hide the blush that graced her cheeks.
"Anyway, he seems to be all right. Not the nicest, but he sure is something to look at," she continued.
"I'll say, he's right outside the window," Luna said. Candace shook her head and glanced up at the clock, it was about time for her to take Van to Anissa. She decided to suck up her courage to at least walk silently past him, maybe manage a nod. She heard him walk in and say something to Luna about fabric and color choices. Angela handed her Van's baby bag and put a hand on her shoulder.
"I'll take him if you want," Angela said. Candace shook her head and held Van close. The man stopped talking to Luna and stared at her. Candace didn't look, she hunched over trying to hide her face. As soon as she was outside she breathed in relief. It was over, he had seen her and allow her to fade into the background.
Lunch with Anissa was relaxing, they sat in the upstairs of the clinic and had tea and a few sandwiches. Van slept soundly as they talked and an hour went by much too quickly. Upon her return to the shop, Luna was grinning mischievously.
"The new guy couldn't take his eyes off you. He thought you were Van's mother and seemed a little crest fallen until I told him that you were just watching him for the morning," she said. Candace sighed and shook her head.
"You're too good for him. You need a real man, like Owen or Luke," Luna said.
"They don't even know I exist," Candace replied and settled to her knitting. The new guy would forget about her soon enough.
Candace didn't expect to find him waiting for her in the morning. She lowered her head and tried to walk past him, but he stepped in front of her. Her heart raced. Why couldn't he just leave her alone? She just wanted to fade away.
"You haven't changed a bit, Candace," he said. Her head shot up briefly before she looked back down at her tightly clasped hands.
"Who are you?" she asked. He was a bit familiar, but she couldn't quite place it.
"I'm Julius, we used to play together all the time," he said. "Don't you remember my fabulous hair?"
How could she forget it? Julius cut her hair short once. When she found that she missed the length she talked about how much she hated Candace's hair. Candace cut her own hair to her ears so Julius wouldn't feel bad. It had taken years for Luna to convince her it was all right to grow her hair back. Candace's shoulders hunched. Not Julius. Anyone but her. She worked so hard just to be free to express herself just a little.
"You…you were that mean girl," she said. Tears welled up in her eyes.
"You thought I was a girl? How silly of you," he said. He really was a boy, that much she gathered. That didn't change anything, she just couldn't look at him. The pain was just too much. He had helped her, this was true, but he had robbed her of so much more than he probably realized.
She turned and ran from him and Luna stepped in. She sat behind the house covering her ears and crying.
"You're than mean girl who used to call my sister ugly!" Luna shouted. "What do you have to say for yourself!"
"Well…young boys sometimes tease the girls they like," he said. Candace pressed her hands tighter against her ears. Just go away! she thought.
"That's no excuse!" Luna said. "It's because of you that she acts so withdrawn! You're nothing but a mean old hack of a drag queen!"
Candace didn't want to hear any more, she got up and ran down the path at the back of the house and headed for the Caramel River District. Angela would let her stay on the farm until she felt better. Why did Julius have to come back into her life? He said that all his harsh words were because of his crush, but there was no way that she would accept that kind of love. What more could he take from her?
I really couldn't just leave it as a one shot...