The Pink Archer: I'm sorry! Thanks for reviewing chapter thirteen though! I really appreciate it! Who is Chloe…you will find out very soon! Coffeebean: Hahaha…you guys know I like twists dangitt. It's been so clear cut and straight forward so far it was bound to happen amiright? This is true…Arthur's job is complicated and his old employers are pretty ruthless. Did they really have Greg and Sydney? Or just vague maternal and paternal figures? I don't recall mentioning them by name in any of her flashbacks. ;) I do love me some Interstellar and Mackenzie Foy/Murph (her eight year old brunette self obviously) is Chloe's face claim but no I can say that's not it. I love Arthur's dad too lol. Lauraa-x: Yeeeeeeaaaaaaah. I mean actually, she's pretty intelligent. She could do it on her own. Nope I can assure you Ari and/or the team are not involved in Chloe's shenanigans. Neverlandspirit: Aww no, don't hate her! Thank you for reviewing! And no problem about the scene! Bookwormgirl: Right? Chloe's a badass little kid. I think Arthur's too much of a softie to turn to her away for good especially after messing up with Ari and Ender but…Yay I'm glad you do! Thank you! Thanks Kellouka2 for adding me as a fave author! Sorry I forgot to thank you last chapter.
P.S. Is it evil of me to get a lot of amusement and joy from your reactions of the last chapter? Haha.
P.P.S. I think I'm about to upset you guys again.
Chapter 14: Deserve Is A Funny Word
Ariadne's crinkled, yellow lined, note had lived in Arthur's pocket since the day he booked his flight to North Carolina. His fingers brushed against it to calm his nerves and his thumb rubbed at the corners to quiet his mind. It was something like a totem to him. One better than a red dice. Who needed a tiny fixed-weight cube when the ink curved into the squiggly lines of her handwriting could be taken everywhere instead? It was almost like holding her hand, wasn't it? Or that's what he'd tell himself when something would trigger his memory, flare his anxiety, and cause waves of nostalgia to wash over him in tsunamis. She was so close he could taste it—taste the cherry chapstick coating her bottom lip and the foamy hot chocolate she drank at night.
It was incredibly early for any morning much less a Saturday. Arthur practically skipped up the steps to their townhouse, giddy to be home. Happy to run his hands along the smooth, white, railing of their porch and feel the tepid metal of their brass doorknob. He didn't bother with his suitcase or duffel bag. He left those in the car so he could carry in a huge stuffed dinosaur, a brown bag of wrapped boxes and a bouquet of flowers. Because it was barely four am and Ariadne and Ender would be sleeping, Arthur decided against knocking and let himself in as quietly as possible. Both of his loves were heavy, heavy sleepers but he still winced when his keys jingled as he hung them on the hook next to hers. He set the animal and sack of presents on their sofa so he could put some water in a vase and set Ariadne's flowers out on the breakfast table. It was a beautiful large arrangement of white, pink and peach carnations—her favorite and he couldn't wait for her to get up for coffee and notice them. He couldn't help buying a single red rose too to bring to her bedside when he crept in because it was the symbol of love and he just couldn't pass it up in the flower shop. The stems were neatly cut. Arthur meticulously arranged them just so and then tucked the rose into his inner jacket pocket.
Then filled with excitement, Arthur grabbed the other gifts and slinked down the hallway. He couldn't stand the wait. He wanted to see his son's ecstatic blue eyes light up as he ripped open presents. First, he lightly knocked on the little boy's door, "Guess who's home?" All the lights were off. Ender wasn't afraid of the dark like Ariadne was as a child. His ability to sleep comfortably in the pitch black was something he got from Arthur. "Ender," whispered the man as he leaned over and switched on one of the lamps, "Dad's got presents!"
That boy and his mother slept like the dead, Arthur chuckled. He crept towards the bed to gently shake the boy's shoulder, "Ender?" But the child wasn't there. Arthur was a full week early coming home. Sometimes while Arthur was working Ari and Ender went home to visit her parents, they may not be back yet. But Ariadne's car was still in the driveway and her keys were at the front door…So maybe Ender was sleeping in their bed. He did so when he wasn't feeling good or had a nightmare. No matter, Arthur was content to surprise them both at the same time. All dimply, Arthur cracked his bedroom door open too, "Ari? Ender?"
He didn't want to blind them by turning on the overhead light, that would cause for a rude awakening instead of a warm and pleasantly surprised one so he set the presents down, tiptoed to Ariadne's lamp and switched it on, "Psst, guess who?" Her side of the bed was empty. In fact, her side of the bed was made. Puzzled, Arthur went back and turned the overhead on. With the light, it was easy to see that some of the drawers of their dresser were open and their closet full of nothing but empty hangers on one side. He barged into the closet and looked at the overhead shelves for her sea foam green suitcase. It was gone. All of her duffels and bags and carry-ons were gone. "No, no, no, no…." muttered the Point, powerwalking back to the little boy's room and slapping at the light switch.
All the major pieces of furniture were still there, the rug, a few stray unimportant toys (like his baby blocks he told them he was too old for, some generic firefighter action figures and an activity book and some crayons) were on the floor but his toy box of favorites was cleaned out. The boy's bed looked slept in but not recently and Arthur found Ender's closet emptied out too. His small suitcase and backpacks gone too. His shoes, which were often strewn around and mix matched in the bottom of his closet, were all gone. A few of the pictures on Ender's walls were absent from the frames and his baby keepsake box…was missing.
And that's when it hit Arthur like a baseball to the stomach.
"Ariadne?" he shakily called out into the empty space. Afraid of the silence that was sure to answer. "Ender?" Frantic, Arthur paced through the house, opening doors, scanning rooms for their belongings. None of their books were on the bookshelves. Her old Architecture study books, her favorite classics, Ender's bedtime books. Too many frames were empty. Her favorite throw blanket—the one she cuddled up in every time she watched tv on the sofa—it wasn't draped where it should've been. The decorative vase her grandmother had handed down to them on their first wedding anniversary, it wasn't on the fireplace. The kitchen's pantry was still stocked but the fridge had nothing perishable in it. Water, eggs, butter. That was the extent. "No…" Arthur pleaded under his breath as his chest seized up with fear and regret. As his body became weak and tingly from the insurmountable distress, "Please, no." He broke the locks kicking their back doors open. Sprinted the perimeter of their small yard, noticing her herb garden was dry as a bone. Dead from neglect and abandonment. "Ariadne!" Noticing Ender's blue tricycle rusted to the point it looked like it was painted orange from the start. "Andrew!"
He left the French doors open. Overlooked the dirt and wet grass he tracked into the house as he ran back in. Arthur was groping, searching, for anything of hers or Ender's to show they were planning on coming back. The Point Man stumbled his way to their laundry closet in the hallway, "Ariadne?!" Opened the washer. "Answer me back, dammit!" Opened the dryer. Took the empty hamper out and slung it against the wall. "Don't do this to me!"
How could she do this? No. What had he done ? Why did he leave when she begged him not to? Oxygen was slowly being sucked out of the house. "Ariadne! ENDER!" Arthur burst into his study to find it the way he left it save for a book.
'Ender's Game.' It laid all lonesome and profound on his desk. He always cleared off his desk when he left, so he knew she'd purposely left it there for him. He felt a temporary relief when he opened the book. There was a folded piece of lined yellow paper stuck between the cover and the first page. Seeing she had left a note of their whereabouts so he wouldn't be worried, calmed his shot nerves. That is, until he actually read it:
You're free now.
Dream of me every once in a while.
-A
And just like that, they were gone.
xxxxxxx
Arthur paced the kitchen floor in the dark. His bare feet tip-toeing against the harshly cold tiles to keep from waking Chloe. She slept like a rock for the most part but it was in the most inconvenient of moments that that child awakened easily. It wasn't very late: Half past nine. Or nine thirty-eight if you want to get specific. They got one show down, the next day would bring another and then their last day together would be upon them. Arthur didn't like to dwell on it; he just liked to live in the present and enjoy the moments he was in instead of thinking about how fast they were slipping by. Call number seven, his second glass of red wine, and finally there was an answer. Albeit a biting one, "You need to stop calling or I'm going to change this number."
"Nat," He jumped at the voice. After getting used to the mundane string of phone rings and beeps of voicemails, he was expecting a dial tone or an automated message not a human. He quickly moved around the island to get to his opened laptop on the breakfast table. It's bright white and blue light made him squint while he enlarged one of the internet tabs, "I just want to know which hospital Gerry and Shannon are in. I want to pay the medical bills." He thought that would be a good gesture. Something to break the ice and demonstrate compassionate intentions. His numerous credit cards were laid neat and organized on the side of the table ready for their information to be entered.
The Architect's cousin shot him down, "Ariadne's got that covered. They don't need any money."
Was it insane that hearing her name made his heart jump? Just like it had when they met, when they first started dating? Like every morning he woke up as her husband to her beautiful mess of hair and sleep-flushed cheeks? He clung to what he could of her. And her name, no matter whose lips it fell out of, was like a raft in the middle of a shark infested ocean. His mind clawed for it, grabbed at the fray of it. Just the same, he closed the tabs related to the different hospitals he'd narrowed down to and opened the one of a centrally located florist. Arthur had to show he cared. That he was there to support her and her—their—family. "Then I want to send flowers."
"There's enough up there," clipped Natalie, hardly meaning it when she said: "Thank you."
"Let me send some to Ari at least. And I have a stuffed penguin picked out for Ender," Arthur insisted, his volume rising above her beginnings of protest, "Are they at Mission Saint Joseph's or Park Ridge?" He'd already had everything picked out. The stuffed animal for his son… He was going to send a bouquet of calla lilies to Shannon and a European dish garden to Gerard. Carnations were Ariadne's favorite but he was torn between those and roses…he opted for a customized bouquet of both white carnations (with red tips) and red roses. He was going to send her two of them. With the note:
'Freedom and love go together. Love is not a reaction. To love is not to ask anything in return, not even to feel like you are giving something—and it is only such love that can know freedom.' –Jiddu Krishnamurti
I'm here for you and the family. With all my love, still,
-A.T.
It was heartwarming and admittedly a little nerve wracking for the Point Man. He'd already typed and deleted and retyped it too many times to count. And searched google for appropriate quotes regarding love and freedom for an hour. Natalie's lack of cooperation was making him rethink the wording and possibly the arrangement in the bouquet again. Did the quote he picked sound as if he meant their love was not one that allowed freedom? Should he scratch it and say something simple like 'I'm sorry'? Or was he thinking too much on his personal motives…would she think it was selfish? Maybe he should only mention his well wishes for her parents and worry about the rest for their reunion in person. Should he just send two dozen roses? Or was that too forward after time apart? Should he send white roses as a sign of asking for forgiveness? Or should he stick with her favorites? Should he send them to the hospital? But he didn't know which one… "Perhaps I'll just send them to the house." Arthur decided he better stick with his gut, do as he'd finally decided, and place the order or he'd be up contemplating it all night.
"Arthur, you don't unders—UGH," All of a sudden, Natalie sounded furious. She was annoyed seconds earlier, sure. But Arthur sensed the shift. Sensed the protectiveness again. Sensed how she despised him for having the audacity to even want to send flowers. To even ask to, "You can't. You can't come running back to her now. Not after what's happened."
His had brushed against Ariadne's note. Made him breathe again. Kept him from jumping to conclusions. Made him close his eyes and evenly ask, "Did she say that?"
Natalie sighed, defeated, "No…she doesn't even know you've tried to contact again." But the woman was quick to bounce back and snip, "But it's useless trying."
"Until I hear those words from Ariadne's mouth, I won't believe there isn't a chance. I'm flying out to North Carolina Sunday night." The man reasoned that Ariadne was too stubborn, too determined, to flee and leave her parents just to avoid him so he was free in letting them in on his plans.
"No. Don't. There's no reason."
Arthur argued loudly, "The reason is I still love her," before remembering Chloe was snoring away a couple rooms over and reluctantly lowering his voice again, "I still love my son. You are all still my family and you're going through a difficult time. If there was ever a time I needed to be there for them, for her, for all of you it's now. And I've got to show that from now on, I WILL be there. That my family is my number one priority now. "
"It may not seem like it but I'm not just looking out for Ariadne; I'm looking out for you too. Pursuing this is just going to bring everyone heartache." The phone beeped. After checking his screen, he realized it was on Natalie's side. Call-waiting. And briefly, fleetingly, he wondered if it was his Architect on the other line. Natalie must've checked it too because she took a quick deep breath and hurried to finish their conversation. "It's going to destroy you more than you think it's going to repair you."
"Not pursuing it will destroy me," averred Arthur, "I need them. I need her."
Natalie sternly (but also pleadingly) maintained her stance, "There's nothing for you here, Arthur. Stay home."
xxxxxxx
The night before the last show was officially upon them. Arthur was setting Chloe's garment bag out so they wouldn't forget her costume the next day and the little girl was going through her paper-clipped checklist to make sure everything she needed was either laid out to put on in the morning or packed in her bag. Pink tights? One pair set out to put on, one back up pair in her backpack in case she got a rip? Check. Ballet shoes? The new ones? Check. Leg warmers for warm up? Check. Cover up? Check. She should lay that out. As super excited as she was about the last performance of Sleeping Beauty, she was also incredibly gloomy. She didn't want to leave Uncle Arthur after they'd become so close. What if she went home and he couldn't find her? Or worse, what if he never even tried to find her? Or even worser…what if he never tried to find her because he found out she'd been lying to him since the second she knocked on his door. He had a ton of secrets he kept to himself so it was only fair she had some too right? Ugh. Chloe was terrified someone was going to call him back and tell on her. And she was deathly afraid he was going to hate her when they did. Would he take back everything he'd bought her? Would he turn her room back into his study? Would he send her back and tell her he didn't want to adopt her after all? At least she'd made it all seven weeks without anything slipping through…it'd be easier to go home and never hear from him again than to have him angry with her in person. Chloe took the towel on her shoulders and wrung the ends of her wet hair with it.
Suddenly, an urgent and relentless pounding came from their front door. Chloe heard it all the way in her room over the low hum of her tv and came trotting out to the main room. They never ever had visitors. Uncle Arthur didn't allow anyone up, Mr. Max knew that. Who could it possibly be? It sounded like one fist against the door turned into two. The chain on the door rattled from the vibrations and made Chloe jump back and grab the corner of the wall at the edge of the hallway. Like the drywall was an iron shield. Her heartbeat rapidly sped up to keep time with the strikes of the wood. "Who is it?" she asked Uncle Arthur at a normal volume and was immediately hushed. It faded…the knocks. Not the noise. Because there was a low rumble of an agitated male voice. This was the one time she felt nervous because of the gun Uncle Arthur pulled from under the coffee table and hid in his waistband. She was used to him carrying it around as a precaution. She wasn't used to the idea that he might actually have to use it. Arthur crouched down like whoever it was could see through the walls and into the windows and prompted Chloe to squat down and duck her head too. "Go back to your room, Chlo, and be very quiet. Turn off the tv. Turn out the lights. If it gets loud, lock the door and hide in the closet, you understand? If you feel like you're going to cry or accidentally make noise muffle your mouth with Penny. "
The pounding was back—as if the Point Man's careful and whispered instructions weren't enough to scare the living daylights out of the child. Scrunching her face as she backed towards her door slowly, she squeaked, "Why…?"
"Because I said so," replied the man gravely. His eyes told her it was of the highest importance she get to moving and that she better not disobey, "I'll come get you when it's safe." Did that mean it wasn't safe that minute?! Wide eyed, she did as she was told and crawled down the hallway and into her room. She obediently turned everything off and grabbed Penny however her curiosity got the best of her and after she shut the door so Uncle Arthur would turn around, she cracked it back open. Listened as Uncle Arthur stealthily made his way to the front door, hand on his weapon. The fear of the unknown coursing through her was palpable. The Point Man made what was about to happen sound extremely dangerous; maybe that was why his job was so secretive. As Uncle Arthur disappeared behind the edge of the opening to the hallway, Chloe bit Penny's hoof to keep herself quiet.
Vigilantly, The Point Man looked out the peephole and saw a younger man in a beanie, dark jeans, a blue checked shirt and black blazer angrily beating his fist against the door without letup. He didn't recognize him as an affiliate of any of his former or potential clients (and he read up on them all incredibly well). It was possible the guy could've mistaken him for another Arthur Nolan. There were two in the city. The other was listed as Arthur Beck-Nolan and lived in a shabby loft apartment with his friend Matthew Strong. They had a band and were closer to this guy's age. One of the reasons Arthur chose to stick with his 'Nolan' alias was to create extra confusion for the people who looked for him. This was a reverse outcome he didn't account for. But you never know…so Arthur readily pulled out his glock and cracked the door, "Can I help you?"
It was a very young man…a teenager. Arthur realized. One of the male dancers from the studio, maybe? It wasn't the one Chloe was assigned to. The guy rudely barged his way in, shoving Arthur back with the door and demanding with hard eyes, "Where is she?"
What was he looking for his girlfriend? Then he most definitely had the wrong place. Bewildered by the disrespect and lack of basic doorstep manners the Point Man puffed up and curtly asked, "Excuse me, who are you?" He was ready to put him in a chokehold for tromping dirt inside the house much less for being impolite and having the gall to push him (and put his hands on Arthur's suit).
Chloe couldn't see the intruder, only Uncle Arthur as he'd been thrust backwards past the table he dropped his keys at every day. She didn't have to though. The girl recognized the voice immediately and knew she was in deep trouble, "Uh oh…" From the guy's tone, it was clear he was certain she was there and hiding longer would do nothing but make it worse. It was happening, things were falling apart. Chloe exchanged frowns with Penny. Then, grimacing, the little girl took a big breath and hesitantly tiptoed out of her room and into the main area, Penny's hoof comfortingly holding her hand. Chloe met eyes with the intruder and wanted to curl into a ball. The young man scolded, "You are in so much trouble…What are you doing here?"
Chloe looked to Arthur nervously but clutched Penny to her neck and answered the intruder, "How did you find me?"
"It wasn't that difficult. Did you forget I was coming in for the last show?" Actually she had. That was the part of the plan she hadn't thought through enough. Thought she'd think of something when the time came and then time crept up on her too fast. Her response was to look at her feet despondently. Suspicious, Arthur stood closer to Chloe as if he could protect her by mere proximity (which he could). Arthur eyed him threateningly as the guy spoke, "You think we haven't been tracking your purchases? I knew something was up when you bought a prepaid phone on your layover in California. I called the camp yesterday to speak with your chaperone and low and behold, I was informed that you cancelled your dorm stay. That an 'Uncle Arthur'," here his fingers bent twice to make air quotes, "was bringing you back and forth." The young man sized Arthur up and down with scrutiny then commanded harshly, "Get your stuff. You're leaving."
"I don't think so," Arthur completely and defensively stepped in front of Chloe who in turn grasped his hand and peeked out from behind him. Who begged, "Booger, please, my last show's tomorrow!"
"Chloe," Arthur looked down at her, "Who is this?" The little girl wouldn't answer him. In fact, she avoided his gaze and hugged his hand tighter. Booger. Who the hell was that? Whoever he was, he and Chloe knew each other very well and he appeared to have an authority over her.
Booger remained unmoved. His arms crossed over his chest, "I've got a hotel room. I'll take you to the theater tomorrow. You're not spending another moment with this stranger. What have the three of us taught you about strangers?"
"He's not a stranger!" Chloe yelled back spitefully. Her eyes were unnaturally rough-edged and vicious. She met Booger's ire pound for pound.
Tilting his head, Booger squinted at her like she was illiterate, "What because you've known him seven weeks?" He nodded in the direction of the Point Man, "He's not your uncle. And if he knew that, he wouldn't have kept you here and taken care of you. He would've turned you away like any kid in the system."
Not her uncle? System? Wait what? Was Chloe a foster kid? Arthur's jaw clenched before looking down at the little girl and studying her as if seeing her for the first time again. Was the boy pulling his leg? It sounded like Chloe had pulled a fast one over on him. You know, he'd never seen a birth certificate...Could it be that this little girl was an imposter posing as his niece? Were they even related at all? Was the reason she loved Annie so much because she was just like her? An orphan who'd snaked her way in and stole the heart of a rich man?
"Yes he would!" Chloe determinedly stepped out from behind Arthur with her hands on her hips, "He's nice and smart and good!" Then pulling a face which looked every bit of defiant as it could, like it was a chide at the boy, like her next sentence was as good as calling him Stupid-Head or sticking her tongue out, "He's going to adopt me."
"Adopt you?" It was like the guy was malfunctioning. Half of him was visibly upset by it, jealous even, but half of him was really amused. He guffawed at her with exaggerated confidence. An air of superiority that could thwart her with four little words: "He can't adopt you." Chloe's face fell such a drastic proportion that Booger felt bad about it. He reined back. The sardonic smile was wiped off as he sighed and tried to explain in a more compassionate way. Arthur was surprised the boy was capable of such a sympathetic gaze, "Him adopting you is impossible. You bel—"
Arthur had enough of the encrypted conversation he was listening in on. He straightened and held his hands out. He got voice got deeper and louder and it shot some fear into Chloe's toes. "Hold on. Before another word is said, I demand to know what's going on." First, he directed his attention to the small child in front of him. He took her shoulders and bore his eyes into hers; he couldn't miss her worried chewing on her bottom lip, "Either you are my niece or you're not. You've just been posing as her. Which is it?" He turned his head, "And don't you dare lie to me, Tiny."
Chloe's eyes watered, her lip quivered…she looked to Booger then back to Arthur and then her head dropped guiltily. Her chin pressed to her chest in remorse for weeks of lying to him, "Greg's daughter is Madison Rae Talesco…she's older than me."
Arthur was peeved (to say the least) he'd been deceived and by a child no less. But mostly, he was heartbroken because he'd come to care for and love this little girl, thinking this whole time that they were related. That they shared blood. And what felt worse was that in spite of the lies she told him; he felt that he still cared for and loved this tiny stranger. He had seriously thought over (and basically decided to) adopt his niece as his daughter and together they would do what it took to find Ariadne and his little boy. What a disappointment. The one person who'd brought life, love, and light back into his life—who gave hope that he could be the family man Ariadne wanted and deserved—had been lying to him. Arthur thought he'd been redeeming himself, been paying his dues to his brother, and instead he was being manipulated. "Why would you do this?" He shook his head sorrowfully down at her. "I opened up to you. I treated you like family and you've taken advantage of me. You've disrespected my brother, used his death as a part of your ruse."
"I—I'm sorry," she sucked the salty tears from her lips, "I just—"
"Was this a game to you? Was it funny?" accused the Point as Chloe timidly backed away from him, shaking her head profusely and dropping Penny as a result of her mental strain. She was now trapped between the two boys, Booger behind her and Arthur in front. "You get a kick out of seeing how much I would spend on you? How much I would confide in you?" She's always loved being the center of Unc—well, Arthur's—attention but found herself shying away from it now. Squinting her eyes like he was the sun and looking at him hurt. Her small hand reached behind her for comfort from Booger and was thankful he took it willingly and understandingly. She wasn't exactly thankful for his: "I told you it'd be like this."
Arthur thought about his plans for he and Chloe's future. More let down than he was annoyed. Would it be any different now? No…I mean, he could still do it. Chloe could still be a daughter to him and Ariadne. And still be a loving, rambunctious, big sister to Ender. But there was one obstacle this new situation created. Chloe—or whatever her name was—must've looked up rich businessmen in New York, did a little research (or a lot actually) and came to him for an escape. Booger said she couldn't be adopted. She most likely already belonged to a foster family. Was already legally adopted. Was this another kid from the foster home instructed to come snatch her back? "Who are you really?" He peered at Chloe then at the boy, "And who are you? I want the full truth from the both of you. I deserve it."
Booger raised one of his eyebrows, "Deserve is a funny word." It was like he was entertained by Arthur's confusion. He liked lording his knowledge of the truth over Arthur.
Chloe twisted to face Booger and requested, "Don't. It's just one more day until I'm supposed to leave."
"Exactly."
She tugged his arm. Used her puppy dog eyes, "Let's not tell him and just go. It'll ruin everything."
And he shrugged and apologetically softened, "I think everything's already ruined."
As hard as she worked to keep too many tears from falling, it was for nothing after that sentence. Chloe's face contorted again and her voice cracked, "Please! I've tried so hard to get him to love me! He's going to hate me!" Arthur was taken aback by that. He felt a sliver of guilt for daring to feel differently about Chloe just because she wasn't who he thought she was. That didn't mean she was a completely different kid. That didn't mean her crazy facts didn't make him laugh anymore or her sweet deeds and words were made up. It didn't take the meaning out of every 'Thank you, Uncle Arthur' and 'I love you, Arthurnaut'.
"Chloe, trust me," Booger stood firm and put his hand on her shoulder. A gesture less for her relief and more to show he was in charge and his decision was made for both of them, "this is for the best." His head angled down towards her with genuine reason in his eyes.
Infuriated, she ripped herself away from him and started yelling at the top of her lungs, at the height of her breath. Her voice all raspy and grated. "No! It's not!" Her face was redder than the cherry tomatoes Arthur had been packing in their snack boxes. Booger grabbed her fists after she pounded him in the stomach and chest with them a few times and gave her an irritated glare of warning. Her returning glare held watery pools of indignation and her fists were squeezed into fists, "You don't know what you're talking about! You—you—" she couldn't think of anything meaner to say than, "you Dummy Pirate-Head"
Booger released her hands, pointed at her and raised his voice (but not quite to her volume) "I know more than you do!"
"Tu ne comprends pas," she scowled, "Il est désole et il nous aime vraiment!" Arthur bewilderedly darted his eyes towards the young girl. Where had that come from? Chloe just spouted out French as easily as spitting out a glass of water. And her accent, her pronunciation, her inflection was all impeccable.
The young man shook his head, his facial expression copying hers. Arthur thought that Booger might be confused too but no, he fluently segued into French as well, "S'il le faisait, il nous aurait trouvé il ya longtemps. Arrete de pleurnicher!" Booger threw his hands above his head, "I have to! Especially after you've—"
Chloe huffed and made a screaming noise (with her mouth closed), hands jamming over her ears, crying the way you'd expect an eight year old to. She was having a tantrum. A full on meltdown like Arthur had never thought he'd see from her. Her face and neck scarlet, the tears flowing and collecting on her eyelashes. Her foot stomping at least once. She crouched in the floor, "I can't hear you! I'm in a parallel universe!" Why did that sound familiar?
With a roll of his eyes at her, Booger looked at Arthur and pulled off his beanie. Arthur never would've imagined he'd say, "You know, it kinda hurts that you don't recognize me—"
"No!" Chloe whined. Curling further into herself.
"Arthur-Dad."
Chloe shot up from the floor and reprimanded him, "Ender! That's not fair!" then plopped back onto the couch and quieted. Heartbrokenly sniffling and picking at her nails.
The world came screeching to a halt so unbelievably fast that Arthur felt the whiplash. In his neck, in his back. Arthur felt chills run through him and freeze his blood over. Of course…He thought the teenager's eyes were incredibly blue but it wasn't until the boy took off his beanie and he saw the jet black hair with it did he take the time to notice that they shared the same nose amongst many other things. "Ender?" asked the man breathlessly out of shock at the same moment he frantically felt inside his pocket for his totem. For Ariadne's note. "Ender? But it can't be. You're supposed to be six, seven at the most." How could it be? Was it another trick? He couldn't be a teenager.
But as Arthur was knocked upside the head with the truth, reality sunk in. He could be a teenager, couldn't he? It was true. The days since Ariadne left felt like an eternity. They crawled by. The years drug on like a piece of laffy taffy being stretched. On and on and on. But here, this second, Arthur realized that somewhere along the line he'd subconsciously decided that time stopped when Ariadne and Ender left. It was his coping mechanism: to believe that whenever he found his family it would be like nothing had changed. That he could still be a part of Ender's childhood, that he and Ariadne could still raise him together. So he used his memories he to keep Ender young. Every year he told himself the little boy was turning six or seven. Then six or seven all over again even as Arthur's own age climbed. That's why he had nervous breakdowns when he saw pictures of them, when he saw glimpses of them in people on the street: Because then that small part of his subconscious that knew the truth (that knew it'd been more than two years) was reminded of the time and love lost. All the annoyance he felt in regards to the boy was erased as immediate and simple as if it was marker on a dry erase board. Arthur deserved for the boy to tromp dirt into house. He stood there gawping at him, stunned.
Ender deadpanned, "Seven? Your mathematic capabilities have certainly diminished on your own. You haven't been in my life for years." The boy blinked, "Eight and a half to be exact."
Eight and a half years? Chloe's age…
Chloe felt the shift. She sensed the moment the puzzle pieces clicked together for Arthur. And bashful of his reaction, she zipped from her seat on the couch to behind Ender. Arthur's eyes widened, his gawk dropped down to the child in incredulity. Aghast. Amazed. Awestruck. He stared at the little girl like he'd just discovered water on Mars. Feeling that whiplash a second time. Chloe wrapped her arms around her brother's waist and hid part of her face from Arthur both sulkily and shyly. Ender confirmed it as he reach back and rubbed Chloe's shoulder in gentle, reassuring, circles "You can't adopt Chloe because she already belongs to you. She's your daughter…."
xxxxxxx
Ariadne sat on the closed lid of the toilet, her right heel anxiously bouncing. Her eyes were clamped shut. She could vaguely hear her husband and son playing around in the next room but the rush of the sink faucet and the whir of the fan drowned out the specifics. She took a deep breath. In her nose, out of her mouth. Then the Architect counted: one, two, three. Open.
Two pink lines…Pregnant. Again. That was something that would've once made Ariadne ecstatic. Now she felt a crippling dread. A nauseating swirl in the pit of her stomach that had nothing to do with morning sickness. It wasn't because she herself didn't want another baby. In fact, right after having Ender and experiencing his babyhood she was sure she wanted another somewhere in her future. But—Arthur—it couldn't have been worse timing. Their marriage was crumbling rapidly, like pillars of sand. Arthur was fixing to trot off for half a year. She wasn't sure if she could handle an (almost) five year old and a newborn all by herself. Even if she stayed with Arthur, he wouldn't be around enough to help. What, a few months while the baby was a newborn? As soon as he was confident Ariadne had the two kids under control he'd be back into dreaming. The Point Man was too busy for the child he already had and Ender suffered emotionally from it. Why would Ariadne want to subject another baby to that? Knowing the baby would be just as confused, feel just as abandoned. But there was no way she was going to get rid of it. She wanted another baby regardless if it was accidental. Why terminate a child because of the father? It would be good for Ender to have a little brother or little sister.
Should she tell Arthur? No. With how she'd been acting? What would he think? He'd think she was using that as a last ditch effort. Trying to manipulate and guilt him into staying. He might be angry with her...then again, even if he wasn't angry. Even if the idea of another child miraculously sounded exhilarating to him, would that change anything? He'd reason he'd be back by her third trimester. He'd still leave. And he'd believe that giving her another baby would pacify her, keep her at home. And he'd use that to keep going off on jobs because why would she leave him with two children to support? He wouldn't do that out of meditative, planned, will. He wouldn't purposefully use it against her, of course, she knew that. But it would happen. Another child gave him that sense of comfortableness, that subconscious safety net to believe she'd be around forever. The three of them waiting on Arthur forever. Like that Time Traveler's Wife shit. Because why would they leave? It just allowed him to keep going in circles. Intentionally or not.
Rubbing her forehead she stood and hid the pregnancy test, box and all traces of it inside another of her tampon boxes. Ensuring Arthur would never find it unless A) she told him or B) he was the first man ever to have a period. Furiously, she forced herself to get it together before she started to cry and shut the faucet off. It took another deep breath for her to be able to turn the knob and step out into their bedroom. Their drawers and closet were all opened wide, stacks of Arthur's clothes sat on the bed waiting to be stuck into one of his bags. The duffel was on the floor and his suitcase sat upright by Ariadne's nightstand. He wasn't leaving for a week but being Arthur, he liked to pack that far in advance to ensure he had everything he'd possibly need.
"Wee!" Arthur tossed Ender into the air and caught him, eliciting a ripple of giggles. He looked over at his wife to see if she appreciated the amusement in the interaction as much as he did but she wasn't paying attention. Instead, Ariadne was pressed into the frame of their bathroom door with head in hands doing her best not to let Ender see her upset. Arthur instructed the kid on his hip, "You're going to be a good boy and take care of mommy while I'm gone, right?" Ender nodded as Arthur kissed his cheek and then ran off obliviously to play with his toys down the hall when Arthur put him down. When the man was sure Ender was caught up in trains and stuffed dinosaurs (he knew from the silly voices and choo choo sounds coming from the boys' room), Arthur snaked his arms around Ariadne's waist and cajoled, "Come on, Sweetheart, don't act so distraught." She didn't push him away; She let him hold her but didn't show recognition to his gesture,
"I can't help it. You're breaking my heart."
xxxxxxx
xxxxxxxhehehe. How about that twist? That was actually kind of two in one chapter. I've been waiting on this chapter the past 14 chapters. Lol. Do you think this drastically changes the entire story? Any realizations suddenly dawning on you? And any questions? I'm always happy to re-explain. (Keep in mind some things are deliberately left to be answered in later chapters).
Soo…Ender's 'new' faceclaim in on my profile. Along with a pic of him and Chloe and Ariadne and some younger pics of the kids.