Kaitlin wasn't used to this new town. If it really was a town, anyway. Some places had sidewalks and straight streets, but others just had narrow roads winding along bluffs and up hills. She hadn't really gotten a good look when she'd arrived, what with it being really late and raining and stuff. In the few days since, she'd looked out over the area from up on Arbor Hill, but never really descended from the house. Everything had seemed so distant from up there…
There were other hills and bluffs and crap, but Arbor Hill was definitely the tallest. Looking up at it as Sam drove the three of them to a local diner, Kaitlin had to admit that the house seemed to loom over the region. In the late morning light of a reasonably clear day it seemed pretty innocuous, but she could see how folks around there started thinking of it as "The Psycho House." On a dark and stormy night, the imagination could easily make it seem sinister.
Come to think of it, it had been a dark and stormy night when Kaitlin arrived, she recalled. That, and when Sam had left. At the time she'd just sort of thought of it as an inconvenience, but the crashing thunder, pouring rain, and trees shaking in the wind gave the night a certain dramatic weight, in retrospect. She could only imagine what it must have been like for Sam, driving down a dark country road late at night in the middle of a huge storm.
The drive today was a lot less hectic, though. Just Kaitlin in the back seat of Sam's car, trying to make conversation with her sister and Lonnie. Reading the diary had made Kaitlin feel like she'd had a window into the past year of Sam's life, but seeing her sister in person was making her realize that she'd actually missed a lot. Lonnie was pretty obviously the biggest development in Sam's life during Kaitlin's absence, so at least she knew about her, but there'd been other stuff, too, it turned out. For instance, Sam and Lonnie had been writing, publishing, and distributing a bimonthly zine, featuring articles, artwork, and serialized fiction by the both of them and some of their friends. She'd taken up smoking too, apparently. "Not always, just, like, socially" was how Sam described it, but Kaitlin was nevertheless concerned.
But still, Sam seemed to be happy with Lonnie, at least as far as Kaitlin could tell from her very brief interactions with the two. Sam held Lonnie's hand on and off as she drove, and the two chuckled and smiled at inside jokes as they talked. Thinking back, Kaitlin tried to remember if she'd ever felt about anyone the way Sam had described feeling about Lonnie, and she found herself drawing a blank. She'd gone on a few dates with a few boys over the years, but she'd never really loved any of them. With college had come more opportunities for more substantial romantic commitments, but Kaitlin had ended up focusing on class more than socializing.
Then there was her year in Europe. Kaitlin had had a couple boyfriends on her adventures, but nothing lasting. Her MO of traveling to a new city every couple of weeks didn't really lend itself to establishing a long-term relationship, after all, and she'd sort of gotten caught up in the romance of brief but exciting flings, especially after managing to watch Before Sunrise in a mostly empty theater one winter afternoon. If she was being honest, Kaitlin had to concede that she hadn't really been looking for anything else besides fun and exciting. Not really. The thought of settling down into something serious at twenty one just seemed ridiculous to her.
And yet here was Sam, running away with a girl at seventeen and seemingly in it for the longhaul. The idea of being that sure about anything at that age boggled Kaitlin's mind. Nevertheless, Sam seemed pretty committed, and Kaitlin sure as hell wasn't going to try and dissuade her. Not from loving Lonnie, anyway. Maybe from running away for good, if that's what she ended up wanting to do.
After a bit of time on the road, Sam pulled up to a diner, circling the lot for a few moments before sliding into a parking spot. The three of them got out of the car and made their way inside, a jingling bell signaling their arrival as they opened the door. A hostess seated them almost immediately, with the promise that their waitress would be along in a minute or two.
"I, uh, wanted to pick a place outside of town," Sam explained sheepishly, "Just to avoid anyone Mom and Dad know seeing me, y'know?" Kaitlin shrugged and nodded.
"Fair enough," she replied, "Can I at least tell them tonight that I saw you and you're safe." Sam made a face, and Lonnie scoffed a little.
"If you really want," Sam grumbled, crossing her arms, "But don't tell them where I am, okay? Please?"
"Deal," Kaitlin stated, "I just don't want them to stay worried. They are worried, Sam."
"I'm surprised they even friggin' noticed," Sam remarked, rolling her eyes and slouching in the booth, "With Dad's new book deal and Mom's promotion, they've been super oblivious to anything else going on. Even before, they only ever learned anything about how I was holding up when school called them directly."
"It did take them a moment to realize your car was gone," Kaitlin conceded, "But enough about that. Tell me more about what all you've been up to!" Much as she wanted to broker some kind of peace between Sam and their parents, Kaitlin didn't want to push. Maybe spending the summer away in Portland would cool Sam's head some, and she'd be more open to working things out in August. Or maybe not, but she sure wasn't right now, and prodding probably wasn't going to change that, it looked like.
"Eh, I wrote about the highlights in the letters I left you," Sam noted, shrugging, "And, well, the biggest development is this goofball here." She broke into a grin and snuggled up beside Lonnie, who smiled and draped an arm around her.
"I mean, I am a pretty big deal," the pink haired girl remarked, feigning nonchalant exasperation, "Certified badass, literal rock star. I'm all kinds of cool." Sam giggled and nuzzled against Lonnie's shoulder.
"I sure think so, anyway!" she agreed, snaking her arms around the other girl's waist and holding herself close. After a few seconds of playful affection, they released one another and settled back into the booth. Sam turned her attention back to Kaitlin.
"But yeah, I figure the biggest real 'news' is that me and Lonnie are a thing," Sam went on, reaching a hand up to take hold of Lonnie's, "I guess we started… When, like the beginning of November, right?" She glanced up at Lonnie, who nodded.
"Something like that," Lonnie confirmed, "It was after we went to that Halloween show, I know that much. We kissed, like, a couple days after that, and I guess that could count as the transition point from friends to…" She trailed off, waving her free hand lazily in a "you get it" sort of gesture.
"Besides my cool new girlfriend, life's been pretty blah," Sam continued, "School's kind of sucked, but what else is new? I can drive now, that's something. Oh, and there's my Reed program, too! But that hasn't actually happened yet, so I don't know if it's really something you've missed."
"I remember you writing something about that in your journal!" Kaitlin remarked, "You've been writing those 'Captain Allegra' stories since you were a little kid, so I'm glad that's paying off for you!"
"I'm pretty excited about it," Sam admitted, beaming, "And I've got a chance to win a big scholarship for my freshman year, if I decide to go there for college! Sure would be nice…" She trailed off, looking wistful. "But how was Europe?!"
"It was amazing!" Kaitlin declared, excited to share her adventures. She'd so been looking forward to telling all her stories from the trip, but the situation at home when she'd returned had kind of put a damper on that. Sam hadn't been around to hear them, after all, and Kaitlin hadn't really been in the mood to regale her parents. "There was just so much history, packed into such a small continent!"
For about an hour or so they went back and forth, Kaitlin describing her adventures in Europe, and Sam grudgingly giving little details about her life over the past year. Lonnie chimed in throughout, sometimes with details for Sam's stories, and sometimes with questions for Kaitlin. She was a little rough around the edges, Kaitlin thought, but Sam sure seemed to like her a lot, and she sure seemed to like Sam. The questions she asked about Europe were actually pretty in-depth, though, meaning she was probably more inquisitive and studious than her aloof attitude let on, which Kaitlin appreciated. She wasn't sure what all the future held for Sam, but a smart romantic partner, someone who could keep her mind engaged, seemed like a good thing to have in any case.
Once Kaitlin had settled the tab and left a tip on the table, the three of them got up and left the diner, piling back into Sam's car and heading for Arbor Hill. They kept their conversation going, but it started to feel surreal to Kaitlin as they approached her family's new home. Here they were, chatting and laughing like they used to, but once they got up to the top of that hill Sam would turn around and drive away, and Kaitlin probably wouldn't see her again for another few months. It was a relief she'd be enrolled in the Reed summer program, not just on the lam, but Kaitlin couldn't help but worry. Then again, she'd just gotten back from a solo adventure around Europe…
"Thanks for breakfast, Katie!" Sam said as she stood with Kaitlin on the porch, "And, um, thanks for dealing with Mom and Dad. I know I didn't exactly leave you with an ideal situation when I took off." Kaitlin shook her head and shrugged.
"You did what you had to," she answered, "I'll tell Mom and Dad you're okay, and to call off the search. I'm just glad you're safe!"
"Yeah, I'll be fine," Sam assured, "Like I said, I've got housing and food and stuff all lined up. I'll call the house once I'm settled in, just to tell you I've gotten there okay. And we can write to each other!"
"Sounds good," Kaitlin replied, pulling her sister into a tight hug, "Just- Just take care of yourself, alright? I want to see you home safe come mid-August." Sam sighed but squeezed Kaitlin for a moment before they released one another.
"I'll try," she said, making her way to the door off the porch, "Plus, I've got Lonnie looking out for me, and that's really all I need." She turned to leave, closing the door behind her. A second later, Kaitlin heard the car in the driveway start up again, and then she heard it drive away. Just like that, she was alone again on Arbor Hill.