The Girl Next Door
By caramelapples
Chapter 8
"Run faster Laura! Run faster!" Bill yelled over his shoulder as the slight raindrops began to make known their presence. The wind blew as though it was trying with all its might to prevent them from going back inside. "There's going to be a storm!" He looked back to see the dried leaves swept off the ground, following the strong currents of the wind. "Hurry Laura!" Bill looked ahead of him to see the small form of Harris barking from the steps.
"I'm hurrying!" she called back, blinking furiously. Something had caught in her eye and she stopped a moment to rub the irritant off. Laura looked upwards; the skies were of a solid grey hue. It was barely noon but the darkness was overwhelming. A large raindrop plopped onto her forehead and she looked back down, eyes searching for Bill. He was running back towards her.
"I told you to hurry!" he told her urgently. "We're going to be caught in the rain if you don't!"
"I was but then-" Laura began to explain but was cut of by him tugging on her hand.
"Come on!" he cried and started to run as the rain fell in larger and heavier drops. He pulled Laura along, although she was running as fast, if not faster, as him. Bill felt the need to hold her hand despite not knowing why. It was as though he was keeping her safe, without knowing how.
They finally made it to the porch, seeking the shelter it provided. Large spots of water adorned their clothes but they were generally dry. Harris barked and proceeded to lick both children, as though he was happy that they escaped from the pouring rain.
"Let's go inside. It'll get cold soon," Bill said knowingly.
Laura followed wordlessly and welcomed the pleasant scent of baking bread.
"I was afraid I would have had to go out to get you both," Bill's mother commented when she saw both children come inside. "There's going to be a terrible storm. It's already raining so heavily. Come have some milk." She dried her hands on her apron and grabbed the jug of milk on the countertop. "I'm going to call your mother, Laura dear. I doubt she would be able to come and pick you up in the rain."
Laura nodded and took the empty glass that Bill offered her gratefully. She held out the glass as Evelyn poured her some milk. "Do I sleep here tonight?" she asked, wide-eyed.
"I think so," the older woman replied, setting down the jug of milk. Laura looked to Bill who grinned widely at her. Her heart did a somersault and she almost gasped out loud. She grinned back at him, all the while feeling a little annoyed at herself.
Why did he affect her so strongly?
Laura squeezed her eyes shut as a loud crack signified the beginnings of more thunder. Rain lashed upon the windows as though there was no tomorrow. She winced when the loud boom of thunder shook the atmosphere and the sky streaked bright white from the lightning. Laura clutched the edge of the comforter, eyes wide open. She looked to her right to see Bill resting quietly on his side. Wasn't he afraid of the thunder? Of course not. He's a boy.
She sniffed. Should she move closer to him? Thunder boomed again, louder and more vicious this time. Laura gasped, sitting up involuntarily. She looked around the room, the light from the window throwing a slightly eerie stance against the furnishings of Bill's bedroom. She shivered. If she was back home, she would go to her mother and crawl into bed with her. But Laura wasn't in her own room, or house. And there was a boy sleeping beside her. Perhaps if Bill realized that she was afraid, he would think less of her.
Another bolt of thunder vibrated through the room and Laura pulled the sheets over her head, succeeding at the same time, in pulling the covers off Bill.
He jolted up, the sudden cold hitting him hard. "Hey!" Laura was nowhere in sight and looking more closely, Bill deduced that Laura made up a hefty part of the lump beside him. "Give me some!" he whispered, pulling at the corners of the sheets. "It's cold!"
"No!" It was a cross between a whimper and a squeal.
"Come on! It's cold!" he repeated, pulling harder.
"No!"
Bill crossed his arms, frowning deeply. Finally, he felt around for the switch and turned on his night light, the warm glow of the light making the room more comforting and pleasant. Laura sensing the light poked her head through the bottom of the sheets, looking up at him.
"Don't be selfish," Bill demanded, lifting the sheets higher so he could have a better view of her head.
"I'm not!" Laura defended, holding onto the sheets. She wasn't selfish, not really. She was just scared. Should she tell Bill she was scared?
"Then let me have some! It's cold!"
"Imafraidofthethunder."
"Huh?"
"Imafraidofthethunder!" Laura told him from her position under the covers.
"I can't hear you," he told her, frowning. Laura was acting weird.
Finally after some silence, Laura pulled the covers off her head. "I said I'm afraid of the thunder," she mumbled, not able to look into his eyes.
"Don't be such a scaredy-cat," he huffed, annoyed that his blanket was stolen from him and refused to be returned.
"I'm not!" Laura's eyes flashed dangerously as she glared at him.
"Then don't be a baby! It's just thunder. It can't hurt you," he tried to reason. Negotiation might just work.
"I'm not a baby! I just don't like loud noises like that!"
"It's nothing. It's justthunder. You're just a scaredy-cat," Bill taunted, taking hold of his blanket and giving it a hard tug.Finally… He sighed in relief and he snuggled under the covers. "Go to sleep," Bill told her offhandedly and switched off his night light. Laura hugged her knees to her chest as she looked around the room wearily.
Moments later, Bill's eyes flew open when he heard the distinct sound of sniffling. Blindly, he reached out and flipped his night light on again. "What now?" he mumbled as he turned himself around, careful not to pull the covers askew. Bill found himself staring at Laura, who was in the same sitting position, hugging her knees to her chest.
And she was crying.
Bill's heart sank. He had made her cry. A small part of him hoped it was the thunder and not him. He hated it when Laura would cry because of him. He sat up slowly, afraid that movement might send her howling.
"Laura?"
"Go away," she sniffled, pretending that he wasn't there.
"I'm sorry," Bill tried, not knowing if he should touch her in any way and if he would lose any part of his body if he should attempt consoling her. "Don't cry…"
Silence.
"Are you afraid of the thunder?" he tried again, more gently this time.
Laura nodded slightly. As if on cue, another loud bolt of thunder boomed, propelling Laura to flinch and throw her arms around Bill. He froze, panic rising like bile in his throat.
Whatever did one do with a crying and frightened girl? Especially one who so rarely cried in front of him - not even when she fell and scraped her knee - and was never afraid of anything. She was even braver than him, sometimes, although he would rather die than admit that. Bill had never been put into a situation like this one before. He shot a glance out of the window. The rain showed no signs of stopping. Awkwardly, Bill stayed as still as possible until Laura pulled away from him. She glanced at him sheepishly, obviously embarrassed at having act the way she did.
"Don't worry. It's outside and it can't get us in here," he soothed, feeling quite proud of himself.
Laura nodded, still embarrassed. She watched as Bill made a move to turn off his night light and wasn't particularly pleased to have the dark settled over the room again. "Don't."
Bill looked over his shoulder. "Don't what?"
"Turn off the lights."
"Well, okay then. I'll leave the lights on. Better?"
"Uh huh." Laura beamed at him, thankful that he was being understanding. She hated showing that she was scared and it was already bad enough that she had made a fool out of herself just now.
"Okay," Bill nodded at sighed. Now, he would have to keep her company.
Laura leaned back against the head board and pulled the sheets up to her chin. Bill followed suit and the both settled comfortably in the warm glow of the room. The thunder outside didn't seem so bad now that there was light.
"Gee… It's kinda quiet in here," Bill muttered, looking around awkwardly. "You sure you don't want to sleep yet?"
"No."
Bill sighed. "I'm bored," he said to no one in particular. Then, with a determined look on his face, he pulled the covers away and leaped out of bed.
"What are you doing?" Laura asked, suddenly aware.
"You ever listen to the radio?" Bill asked her, raising his eyebrows.
Laura nodded. "Yeah."
"Usually, when my Pa is around, I hear the radio on downstairs," Bill told her, taking a step closer. "And when I hear my Ma start to laugh, I would creep down the stairs really quietly and watch my Ma and Pa dancing. They would be so happy. The music at this time of the night would be the bestest music that they would play. Because it's during the night that the grown ups have fun!" Bill went to the small wireless radio that he kept near the box where he kept his forgotten trinkets and treasures. He turned on the old radio and turned the knob, tuning it. It crackled to life. "My Pa found this at a yard sale," Bill explained to Laura. She smiled at him.
"It works," Bill told her, still adjusting the knob. There were garbled noises that made up the frequency until the distinct music made by saxophones floated through the room, followed by other musical accompaniments. "There!" Bill exclaimed and set the radio down. "Listen!"
Laura beamed, listening to the jazzy vocals of the tune. "It's lovely," she commented.
Bill grinned at went up to her. "Watch," he told her, placing his hands on his hips. He tapped his foot to the rhythm of the music, and then proceeded to lightly tap dance to the music, his feet as light as could be. Laura watched, entranced by Bill's feet and the most charming smile he flashed at her.
"How do you move your feet so fast?" Her voice held wonderment.
"My Pa thought me how. I just practice." Bill dropped his stance and slowed his movements. "You can dance any way you want to. Just follow the music," he told her, holding out a hand for Laura to take. "May I have this dance?" he asked, bowing in the process.
Laura giggled. It was terribly sweet and handsome of him. But she shook her head shyly. "I don't know how."
"There are no rules to dancing," Bill told her knowingly. "My Pa said so. He told me that when the music plays, you sway your body to the music and let it sway you! That's how I do it." Laura bit her lip, wondering if she should take his hand or not. Her thoughts didn't matter at the end anyway, as Bill grabbed her hand and pulled her up from the bed. Laura giggled as she followed Bill's fluid movements.
"I like this," she mentioned, a bit breathless. Bill grabbed both her small hands in his and pulled her in.
"This is called the swing," he announced proudly.
"The swing?" Laura asked, bewildered. "What kind of name is that?" The only swings she knew were the ones at playgrounds or the way monkeys moved from tree to tree.
Bill shrugged. "Pa said so."
Laura giggled as Bill spun her around.
There was a storm outside but it was the last thing that was on Laura's mind now. The warm feeling which blanketed her heart kept her safe and warm. And it was only Bill Adama who could make her feel the way she did now.
To be continued…
End Notes:
There's the end of the chapter. Reviews would really be awesome! I'll love you guys forever if you review! Make Little Bill and Little Laura happy with your reviews. ;o)
