Escape With Ease
Chapter Eight
By Andruindel
lilililili
After that week of botched interviews, Roger seemed to give up on getting rid of Ease. She was once again free to focus on her studies and her steadily developing friendships with Matt and Mello. Things had been awkward between her and the temperamental blond since the day he had comforted her, but somehow Ease felt that things had also suddenly become easier. With Mello now proven beyond a doubt to be a true friend, Ease and Matt found it a lot easier to get time to themselves. Mello no longer seemed to care when they spent time together—his jealousy appeared to have been soothed by Ease's frequent attempts to repair the awkwardness.
The trio spent more time together than ever. Ease felt that she could spend time with either of the boys without worrying too much that one of them would be jealous. Of course, Mello retained his attitude—his insufferable arrogance and general unpleasant personality. He continued pushing Ease's buttons in the most infuriating way, taunting her for spending so much time reading, teasing her about her figure, and generally being an ass. Ease, of course, gave back as good as she got. Their squabbling could often be heard from the game room as they fought over the rules of various board games or the semantics of some issue or another.
All in all, they were a very happy trio of children, now made all the happier by the fact that Ease's position at Wammy's House was no longer threatened by the possibility of being adopted. Ease was certainly happier for not having to worry that a strange couple would insist on taking her away, insist on making her call them mother and father, insist on forcing her into their image of what an ideal family should look like.
Her parents were dead. There was no replacing them.
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She woke one morning, months and months after that hateful week of interviews, to realize with a start that it was her birthday. She had been at Wammy's House for more than two years—two birthdays, at least. It was nearly three years since her parents had died, leaving her to find her own way in the world with nothing but a weekly allowance and the hard lessons she had learned from the divorce and the deaths. Her birthday had ceased to be a happy occasion three years ago, so rather than jump out of bed cheerfully with the expectation of gifts and attention, she sluggishly pulled the covers back over her head for another ten minutes of rest before she absolutely needed to be up.
She knew that no one besides Roger, Mello, and Matt knew that her birthday was today. Roger usually tried to make each orphan's birthday special with a little cake by their plate at breakfast, but Ease had insisted—nearly begged—that he do nothing special for her on her birthday. Mello and Matt wouldn't do much for her either, she knew. Neither of them had much money. If she wanted anything special that day she would have to do or buy it herself.
Giving up on the idea of another few minutes of sleep, she fitfully tossed the covers off and slimed her way out of the bed to the floor, where she lay for a moment, her cheek pressed against the carpet, looking at the collection of dust bunnies under her bed. With an intense effort, she pushed herself up onto her hands and knees and—taking a moment to stuff Rufus, her stuffed bear, under the bed—pulled herself to her feet to stand swaying slightly. She went about her morning routine painfully slowly, taking her time in the shower and then carelessly throwing on the first shirt and jeans that her fingers touched. Without even bothering to glance in the mirror, she stepped out of her bedroom in a pair of baggy jeans and a tank-top, an outfit far below her usual standard.
Almost the instant she stepped out into the corridor, Mello and Matt fell into step beside her.
"Morning Ease." Matt said casually.
"Trying to hide your curves again, I see." Mello only half-sneered at her, glancing meaningfully at the baggy pants.
Almost—but not quite—wishing they hadn't chosen to be quite so cheerful this morning, Ease sighed. "Good morning, Matt. Mello. Had breakfast yet?"
The two boys laughed, and Ease managed to chuckle, at the idea that Mello and Matt had somehow managed to not only be up and dressed before Ease but had already eaten something as well. It was a feat in and of itself for the two boys to be walking down the hallway with her toward the main dining room at a reasonable time, instead of rushing to the kitchen at the last minute to scarf down some bread and milk before rushing off to class. Ease was vaguely curious as to why they were awake and accompanying her to breakfast—walking on either side of her and grinning, no less. But she couldn't be bothered to investigate, and she let it go in favor of silently brooding to herself, arms crossed in an attempt to ward off conversation.
It didn't work.
Both boys were being unusually chatty this morning. Even Matt said more than a few words here and there, giving Ease enough reason to look curiously at him and wonder why he was being so talkative for once in his life.
When she couldn't ignore their uncharacteristic chattering any more, she looked up at Matt again. "What's wrong with you two?"
Matt smiled and Mello smirked, and Ease felt suddenly as though they were up to some mischief. Fortunately, they were very forthcoming with information about said mischief.
"Roger's going to be gone tonight." Mello said in a very matter-of-fact tone. He sounded as though he thought Ease ought to know right away what this meant, and when she looked at him and shrugged, he sighed dramatically. "He doesn't go away often. Clearly, he's never been gone the whole time you've been here. But when he does, the older kids get together in the game room and all hang out. We're the older kids now." He smirked in a very self-satisfied manner, and Ease thought she may have gotten his meaning. She glanced at Matt to make sure, and he too was smirking in a way she'd never seen him smirk before.
Looking from one to the other, Ease felt herself get a bit excited despite herself. "What are we going to do?" She wanted to know. She could sense that Mello and Matt had a lot planned, and if Roger was not going to be around then she was willing to bet whatever they had planned would be a lot of mischief and shenanigans of the variety they couldn't get away with when Roger was present. A little uneasy, she went down to breakfast with her two friends, both of whom still refused to tell her exactly what they had planned.
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Mello and Matt's mischief couldn't be put into motion until later that night. After dinner, when most of the younger kids had already gone up to their rooms to do homework or prepare for bed, a group of older kids gathered in the game room. Apparently it was general knowledge that when Roger went away, the older kids participated in some highly questionable pastimes. Ease could understand this mind-set. Roger maintained a very strict set of rules and regulations at the orphanage. Everyone must be in bed by nine o'clock, and even the older kids had to be in bed with lights out no later than midnight (they were given some lee-way to finish the progressively bigger amounts of homework). All children must be polite, on time to their studies, never turn in any late assignments, and of course, there was the infamous "no pets" rule that Ease still deeply resented. It made sense that Roger's absence would lead to the older children abusing their freedom a bit.
Ease followed the two boys into the game room after dinner, still vaguely curious what they would be getting into. She couldn't summon more than a passing interest in the matter, as she would rather have gone straight to bed after dinner and finished her moping in peace and quiet. Mello and Matt had refused to leave her alone however, a fact she had not failed to notice and wonder about. Now she walked between the two boys again, and they entered the game room together to find that several of the other kids had already gathered there.
One of the older boys, a boy who was already nearly old enough to strike out into the world on his own, stood up as they entered. "Hey, come on in, we're just about to start a game of seven minutes in heaven."
Ease faltered at that. She paused in the doorway long enough to look around. Someone, most likely one of the older kids, had managed to sneak some beer into the orphanage. Ease didn't even want to question where they had gotten it, nor did she want to drink it. She was by no means a typical "goodie goodie" but the idea of drinking and doing stupid things while Roger was out didn't appeal to her. She hesitated for a moment, watching as Mello and Matt made themselves comfortable in the room, Mello lounging in one of the arm-chairs and Matt making himself comfortable at Mello's feet. Mello instantly accepted and took a swig from the bottle someone passed to him, and Ease caught the challenge in his eyes as he glanced in her direction. Straightening her shoulders, she marched into the room and sat down beside Matt, legs crossed Indian style and deeply uncomfortable but trying not to show it.
The game started once everyone had arrived in the game room. Ease managed to avoid the booze being passed around, but she couldn't avoid the game without everyone thinking she was some sort of wimp. The last thing she wanted was Mello making fun of her for wimping out and going to bed instead of playing along with the other delinquents. So she watched, uneasily twirling a lock of hair, as the older kids figured out a way of choosing two people to go into the closet where they kept the board games.
Ease had never really played a game like this before. She and her little "friends" from school had played truth or dare during slumber parties before, but this game, where she would be caught in a closet with someone for seven minutes to do whatever they wanted (and Ease knew that "whatever they wanted" was encouraged to mean "something sexy and tabboo") gave her a deep sense of disquiet. She didn't want to go into a closet with a boy and be expected to kiss him. The whole idea made her feel a little sick.
When she looked around the room, no one else seemed to be nervous. They were all starting to have a good time, carelessly passing the bottles of booze around and start the game. The names of all the boys were put into a hat someone volunteered, and this hat was passed to one of the older girls. She rummaged inside for a moment and pulled out one of the names.
"Mello." She read, smirking a little bit. She was older than Mello by a year or so, but that didn't seem to bother either of them. Ease shifted aside to let Mello stand up, and she watched as Mello and the older girl were good-naturedly jostled into the closet.
"Seven minutes," The older boy who had first greeted Mello, Matt, and Ease reminded them. "Have fun,"
There was nothing else for Ease to look at once the door had been closed on Mello and his female friend, so she turned to Matt. So far the gamer had said nothing. He'd taken one quick drink from one of the bottles and then settled back against the chair Mello had been sitting in. He didn't look particularly keen to be there—he actually looked quite bored. Leaning against him, Ease allowed herself a moment to wonder if the two of them would be able to get away without anyone noticing or calling them out on it. Matt didn't react when she leaned her head on his shoulder, other than to shift slightly and rest his head against hers. They sat that way while the others all drank, talked, and laughed around them for seven minutes. Ease wondered what Mello was up to in the closet.
When the seven minutes were up, the older boy opened the closet. Mello looked even more satisfied with himself than usual, if that were possible, while the girl just looked quietly amused. They exited the closet to cat-calls and laughter, and the hat was passed to the next girl to choose.
Ease sat up again to let Mello take his seat, and when he had made himself comfortable, she leaned against his legs and looked up at him. "Have fun?" She teased, noting the smear of lipstick that he hadn't noticed on his mouth. She considered telling him about it, but decided against pointing it out.
With that infuriating smirk, Mello shrugged and leaned back in the chair, clearly very pleased with himself. "None of your business, nosy. You're just jealous, because no guy in his right mind would want to kiss you in that closet."
Ease brushed his insult away. It was nothing out of the ordinary.
When the next seven minutes were up, someone shoved the hat at Ease. She barely even looked to see who it was. Shaking, she rummaged in the hat, grasping at the various slips of paper and wondering who on earth she was going to have to go into the closet with. She could feel her heart-rate accelerating, and she was acutely aware of all the pairs of eyes on her, even Mello's on the back of her head. Finally she grasped at a slip of paper and carefully unfolded it, holding her breath.
Her heart gave a leap, and she couldn't help grinning. "Matt." She read aloud, looking up to see how Matt would react.
Instead of looking happy about it, Matt looked fairly expressionless. He always looked expressionless, but there was something very delicately careful about his lack of expression that made Ease's heart pound with anxiety.
"Hurry up then," The older boy said, nudging Ease to her feet while Matt hefted himself up as well. "Seven minutes, go on."
They were shoved into the closet together, and before Ease could even blink the door had been closed behind them and she was left in the darkness beside Matt. She didn't know what to say. She blinked in the darkness, hoping her eyes would adjust, and reached out carefully until her fingers made contact with the fur-lined vest he always wore without fail, even in the summer months.
"Hey..." She said quietly, not knowing what else to do.
"Hi." Matt said back, just as quietly.
And then it was quiet. Ease's heart beat in her ears, while her fingers curled into Matt's vest. She unconsciously pulled him closer, wanting to be near him. The combination of darkness and being in a small space made her heart speed up and her breath come in quick gasps as she struggled to keep herself calm.
"What should we do?" She asked, half to distract herself and half because she really wanted to know. She looked up, hoping to catch a glimpse of his face through the darkness, but she couldn't see much. She felt it when Matt shifted slightly, surprised when he moved away rather than toward her.
"Nothing." He said shortly. Ease pushed out her bottom lip—even though the effect was lost in the darkness—and let go of his vest so that he could freely step away from her. "I don't play games like this." He went on as though to explain himself even though she hadn't asked. "They're just stupid, who wants to make out with some girl in a closet just because everyone else told them to? Besides I'm only here because Mello wants me to be. You understand, I know you're only here because you're too scared to go against Mello."
His words hurt for a reason Ease couldn't quite explain. She flinched back as though he had physically struck her instead of just spoken in a soft, calm tone. For a brief moment she considered slapping him, but the darkness deterred her. Instead, she turned, groped toward the door, turned the knob, and left the closet. Ignoring the protests that it had barely even been two minutes yet, she lifted a hand, middle finger extended, in the general direction of the group of older kids, and stalked out of the room. She didn't even spare a glance toward Mello, irrationally placing all the blame for Matt's hurtful words on the blond, instead of on the gamer.
Rather than go to her room, where she knew only her books and Rufus awaited her, she turned her steps toward the huge main doors and, pushing them open, flung herself down on the front steps. She rested her chin in her hand, not quite pouting, but feeling intensely displeased with how events had progressed on what was supposed to be a fun, Roger-free night. The thought that it was her birthday crossed her mind, but she mainly avoided it. She had stopped expecting fun on her birthday years ago; this was hardly the worst birthday she'd ever had. Her eleventh birthday far surpassed this one in utter horrible-ness. Heaving a heavy sigh, she closed her eyes and rested her arms on her knees, and her head on her arms, utterly defeated by the horrible day.
When the door creaked open again, she didn't even respond other than to open her eyes and hope that whoever had opened it would see her and go away. The heavy footsteps that approached her said otherwise, and she finally lifted her head to look up at who turned out to be Matt. Her heart gave a little jump, despite her every attempt to keep calm, and she looked away again almost immediately. She didn't want to see him any more than he had wanted to kiss her in the closet.
"Ease." He said her name in an apologetic tone. She tried to ignore him, and when she turned her back to him he just sat down on the steps a little way away from her and said nothing more.
She sat for a long moment, listening intently to him to try and guess what he may be doing. She heard a few clicks, but she couldn't begin to guess what the noise was, and finally she could not stand the silence any more. She turned around.
Matt was sitting quietly on the steps, a lighted cigarette hanging almost lazily from two fingers. As she watched, he lifted it to his lips and took a long drag from it, slowly exhaling the smoke so that it floated up and away. The smell made her want to gag, but she resisted, instead speaking. "I didn't know you smoked."
He glanced sideways at her. "Most people don't."
When she looked at him with raised eyebrows, he shrugged. "I mean, I don't do it often. I can't, with Roger always around. I take advantage of the chances I get, but otherwise I just deal with not being able to. I can stop if it bothers you." He took a moment to push his ever-present goggles up onto his head, giving Ease the rare chance to actually look into his eyes.
She shook her head at his offer to stop, and then carefully turned away again. She couldn't just stop being mad at him, and his words had hurt her—she wasn't going to just forget that.
"Ease." He said her name again, and she shivered. "You know we've somehow managed to never have a fight before tonight?"
The way he said it made Ease laugh despite herself. It was true. While she and Mello squabbled and argued all the time, she and Matt rarely, if ever disagreed, and they had never found any occasion to fight.
He proceeded cautiously as though afraid of setting her off again. "You know it's... sort of unnecessary, right?" He carefully put a gloved hand on her forearm and she glanced down at his fingers before turning again to look up at him. "I don't want to fight with you. And I didn't mean to offend you or whatever I did..."
Ease suddenly didn't want to be mad at him any more. She turned to face him fully, taking his hand in hers and looked up into his face. He reached back to put his cigarette out on the step and then he cupped her face gently with that hand, meeting her eyes.
"I don't play those games." He said again. "And I didn't want to kiss you just because someone else told me to."
Breathless, wishing she had had something to drink to lower her inhibitions, she forced herself to say something she never would have dreamed saying on any other night. "No one's telling you to right now."
He looked a bit taken aback as though this was the last thing he had expected her to say. But his look shifted to one of mixed fondness and consternation, and he slowly leaned toward her while she expectantly tipped her face up to meet him. Their lips connected in a short, soft kiss. It was over in seconds. Matt pulled away, and Ease looked up at him, flushed, breathless, thinking with what little mental capacities she had left that she couldn't even remember if she had kissed him back.
"Wow." She said, and inwardly cringed at the cliché of it.
Matt grinned and pulled further away, clearly embarrassed but pleased nonetheless.
What he said next caught her completely off guard. "Happy birthday, Ease."
They sat together for a long time after that. Matt lit up another cigarette, and Ease leaned her head against his shoulder as she had many times in the past. This time though, she rested with her fingers interlocked with his and the soft taste of tobacco still lingering on her lips.
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A/N: Hey guys, I'm sorry this was late. I got distracted, and I've been having some writer's block. Plus, I was afraid this chapter wouldn't come out right unless I gave it the proper thought and effort. I hope it wasn't too horrible. Thanks for reading, leave some reviews, and I'll update hopefully on schedule this week.
