Chapter 7
Seth
is legally staying with Rie now. They agreed on signs that Rie can
use when Seth has to shut his mouth or when he has to get out of the
way.
But he keeps walking right behind her, not leaving her side
and when they double checked if nobody is around, they talk to each
other.
And Rie finds it very comfortable to have somebody to talk
to now, since Seth is really open to every subject and looks at
things from a different view then Rie does.
The lonely feeling
Rie always used to have has floated away a little.
But she
ignores other people a lot more then she already did. Even at home,
she doesn't speak a word to her parents and brother, because she
doesn't feel she has anything usefull to say. She can't remember
having a good conversation with them, so what's the point of trying
when she has Seth now? He listens and talks with her whenever she
wants and about everything she wants.
Rie sits in her room,
making her homework.
Her window is open, a warm breeze enters the
room.
Seth is laying on her bed, his arms stretched to the
ceiling. ,How would it be like to fly?" he asks.
,Dunno, try
it out." Rie mumbles, focusing on her math.
,If I tried I
would drop dead for sure." Seth says.
,You have to begin by
jumping of a… table or something. And then get a little bit higher
everything, until you can fly of a building."
,I don't think
humans are build to fly."
Seth lets his arms fall down next to
him.
,Pity though." Rie admits. ,It would be a blast to fly in this warm weather."
Seth
lifts up his head. ,Warm?"
,Yeah it's hot outside, I think
flying would be great to cool off."
,Is it warm outside?"
Seth asks, now sitting right up, gazing out of the window.
Rie
now turns around to face him. ,Like duh! Can't you feel it?"
,No…
not really." Seth says. ,I don't know what I feel, but it's
always the same."
Deciding not to show any pity to him, since being invisible must be a murder already, she says,,Well, can't you see I'm sweating like a pig?"
,So
that's warm?" Seth says.
,Yeah!" Rie turns to her homework
again.
Just
a few sconds later her mother is calling her for dinner.
,Dinner
already?" Rie mutters, leaving her books open on her desk and
moving her chair back. She stretches out and walks to the door. ,I
hope we don't have any food I hate."
Seth
quickly follows Rie out of the room, upstairs to the kitchen.
Rie
sits down at the table and Seth sits down in his safe corner.
,Hello
Rie." Her dad is apparently cooking. But it's thursday, he always
cooks on thursdays. ,Did you have a good day?"
Rie doesn't
answers, but plays with her knife and fork, while eyeing Seth, who is
making faces, trying to make her laugh. But Rie keep sher face
straight. Though it uses up all her energy to do that.
,Do you
need help with your homework? Oh, how did that catch up test go?"
her dad still tries to hold up a conversation.
,Diego, let her be." Her mother whispers to him.
,Why?
I wanna know. " Her dad says. ,She's my girl."
He looks at
Rie, who is shoving little disks of cucumber from a cup on her plate
now.
,What has gotten into her? She isn't the same anymore."
He whispers to his wife.
,She's a girl in puberty, don't ask
so many questions." She whispers back and she lifts a pan of the
stove and puts it on the table.
Rie didn't catch a word from
her mom and dad's conversation, but Seth did.
And she notice
him looking up at her parents. She frowns.
,They were talking
about you." Seth says.
Rie eyes her father. About her? What's
there to talk about her?
But
she decides almost immediately that she doesn't care at all.
She
stuffs the cucumbers in her mouth and swallows them down in a few
chews.
When every member of the family sat down at last and
filled up their plates with food, her father asks her again how
school was.
Rie doesn't react, but just pokes the meatball on
her plate.
Why does she have to eat at the table? She doesn't
want to sit here. It's a total waste of time. She can eat it in her
room too, right?
She likes it more in her room and she can talk
to Seth in the mean time.
She feels a little guilty to admit to
herself, but she doesn't like being around her family. Sitting
alone is a better option. Well, alone, aside from Seth.
,Can I
finish my dinner in my room?" Rie says.
,So you can speak,
huh?" Her father says, sounding a little irritated.
Rie doesn't
react on this, but looks at her parents, waiting for an answer on her
question.
,Why?" does her mother ask, without even looking up.
,I want to eat in my room." Rie says.
,Why do you want to
eat in your room?" Her mother says.
,I just want to!" Rie
stands up now, her plate in her hands and she leaves the kitchen.
,No! Come back, young lady!" Her father got up his feet now.
,I don't know what has gotten into you, Rie, but dinner is a
familyoccasion! You sit down and eat with us!"
Rie doesn't
turn around to face her dad.
,This is why I don't want to eat
here." She says with a very clear voice. ,I want to be alone."
And she continues her walk back to her room.
Her father doesn't
say anything, lets her go.
A small part in Rie wishes he had
called her back and forced her to eat with them, without taking no
for an answer. That he had pushed her back in her chair if he had to,
no matter how hard she would call him names.
But he doesn't and
Rie closes the door of her room.
,You
know, your father loves you." Seth says later that night, while
laying on Rie's bed again, staring at her demontaging a radio.
,I
doubt that." Rie mumbles, trying to unscrew a screw. , I bet they
are more then happy when I leave the house or… when I drop dead or
something."
,Don't say that!" Seth cries out. ,They worry
a lot about you!"
,No
they don't. All they care about it sweet, innocent,
flushing-my-screws-down-the-drain-brother Aye!" Rie throws her
screwdriver on the floor in frustration. ,I'm the bitch, happen to
be their daughter."
She grabs another screwdriver and continues
her work, carefully not looking at Seth, who is looking really close
at her face now.
,Why did you leave the table?" he asks.
,Why
do you even bother asking me that." Rie's reply is from under her
long hair hanging in front of her face.
Seth sits up and moves
closer to Rie. ,Your dad told you not to go. And still you
did."
,Yeah, and he didn't bother trying harder to keep my in
the room, now did he?" Rie bites, looking furious at Seth now.
,Only more proof they don't give a damn about what I do and who I
am."
,He didn't bother trying harder, because he is afraid!"
,Why would he be afraid of me!"
,Afraid of losing you,
if he is too strict on you!"
,He oughta be more strict, he is
losing me!"
,He can't! He can't be strict! Can't you see,
Rie!"
Seth now got of the bed and put his hands around Rie's
arms, shaking her in frustration. ,He sees you as you are! A fragile
girl, a misunderstood girl and he wants to be involved with you and
your life, Rie! Can't you see that!"
,How do you know!"
Tears are streaming down her face, as she looks away from Seth, just
because she can't bare to stare into those skyblue eyes.
The
grip around her arms relaxes. ,You can see it… in his face and
when he looks at you…. His attempts to make you talk… He is
afraid you might shatter, might really lock him out of your life, if
he acts too strict on you…"
,You're wrong, he doesn't
give a damn about me." Rie whispers. ,Nobody in this family does,
okay? So shut up about it."
She turns around on her seat, facing
her father peeking through the door.
When he catches her watching
him, he quickly closes it, dissapearing out of sight.
Then she
hears a knock on the door.
,What?" Rie can't help to snatch.
,Rie…" There is a pause. ,It's me."
,Ofcourse it's
you! You were peeking through the door!"
A pause again, before
her father starts talking again, a little insecure now.
,Rie…
is everything okay?… You were talking to… to…"
Rie jumps
up. ,What! You think I'm crazy now too, huh? Cuz everybody in
school thinks so! So if we add you, along with mom, the whole list is
complete, right!"
,I don't think you're crazy, Rie. You're
not crazy! You hear me!" Her father now says, his voice a lot
louder. ,I want to know what's happening! Why are you so
distant!"
,Go away! Let me be!" Rie shouts at the door. Her
chest is hurting from the yelling and she wished everything would go
quiet. From the other hand she wants her dad to keep yelling at her
like this.
,I won't go away!"
,Go be happy with your
wife and son! Leave me alone!"
,What happened with you! You
are ignoring us all, Rie! You didn't use to ignore us like this!
What's wrong!"
,I'M WRONG! OKAY! I'M CRAZY! NOW
SCRAM!" Without thinking, she launches the light on her nightstand
into the door. ,DIE FOR ALL I CARE! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!"
The
voice behind the door doesn't reply anymore.
He has given up,
Rie thinks. He didn't continue his fight for her. He doesn't
care.
But then the door flies open now with great force.
,No!
You're NOT crazy! And I won't leave you alone!" Her father now
marches up to her and Rie is too shocked to move.
Just as he is
right in front of her, ready to swing his arms around her to hold her
down, she slips away and faster then she thought she was able to go,
she climbs through the little window of her room.
But she is a
little bit to slow and her father catches ahold of her legs.
,No!
Stay here! Stay here!" He pulls her back in.
,Let me go! LET
ME GO!" Rie screams, kicking and wriggling around as hard as she
can, in an attempt to get loose.
Seth is watching the two in
silence, not able to do anything, not wanting to do anything.
,I
won't let you ignore me! I won't, Rie!" He gets knocked down,
but takes Rie with him on the floor. ,Something's wrong and I want
to know what!"
,YOU ARE WHAT'S WRONG! LET ME GO!" Rie
shrieks, almost running out of breath.
Her father now manages to
cling his around around her body and holds her tight against his
body, not thinking about letting go.
Rie is twisting and turning
and screaming. She wants him to let go, she wants him to continue,
not to give in to her. Tears of confusion and sadness are streaming
down her face like waterfalls.
Then her mother's voice cries
out,,Diego! Diego what are you doing!"
Father looks up and
nods his head to the door. ,Get out, Essence! I'm dealing with
her! I won't stop until she gives in! Until she calms down!"
He
is having trouble holding Rie down, who can't hear anything because
of her own screaming, yelling and crying.
,Diego! Let her go
now!" Her mother's voice is overflowing in panick. ,You can't
hold her down like that! You have to let her go!"
,I DON'T
WANT TO LET HER GO, DAMMIT!" He screams, he is crying now too. His
red cheeks are wet with tears. ,I DON'T WANT TO LOOSE HER!"
Now
Rie finally stops her screaming and looks up at her dad, sobbing and
shivering.
She doesn't know what to say and she feels like a
little kid. She feels stupid.
Rie lets out another sob. Then she
hides her face in his arms and starts to cry again. Crying so hard,
she can't controle it anymore. She just can't control herself.
The only thing she wants now is to stop the everlasting battle
and arguments she causes and to stay in her father's arms like
this.
When she opens her eyes, she is laying in her bed and
she can't remember being asleep. But she slept, because her alarm
tells her it's already 2 in the night.
Around her are 2 arms and
when she turns around in them she sees her father, sleeping. His warm
breathe in her face.
She looks at him, brushes the air out of his
eyes.
Then she carefully sits up, looking around for Seth, who is
sitting on her desk now, staring up out of the window. He is quietly
muttering to himself. He doesn't even notice her being awake and
looking at him.
,Seth." She whispers, not wanting to wake up
her dad.
Seth turns his head and looks at Rie. He smiles. ,Hey."
Suddenly embarrasment hits her. She blushes furiously. ,I'm
sorry."
,For what?" Seth asks.
Rie shrugs. She doesn't
know. Not a clue, but she is sorry.
,Rie…?" Her father
mumbles, waking up now. Looking a little puzzled his eyes finally
manage to focus on her. ,Who… who are you talking to?"
Rie
looks at him and raises her shoulders.
,You said… you said:
Seth… I'm sorry." He says, it's like he has troubles
believing himself. It's like he doesn't think what he heard was
right.
,Ehm… I did say that." Rie says.
,Why?" Her
father now looks awak and sits up too.
,Because… I was talking
to him." Rie looks down at her hands.
Seth is watching them
with great care.
,But….to who?" His eyes look puzzled.
,Seth."
,Who's Seth?" He now looks around in the
room.
,You won't believe me and think I'm crazy… or…
shizophrenic or something." Rie mumbles, now turning a quatre and
staring at the wall without really seeying anything.
,Can… can
you see somebody?" His arms slips around her shoulders. ,Is that
what you mean? Is somebody around here?"
,And I am the only
one who can see him." Rie turns her face away another quatre, her
face not showing to her father at all.
,Are you serious? I mean…
for how long can you see him?" She can sense from his voice that he
want to treat this moment with extra care. He don't want to mess it
up.
,You think I'm crazy huh? You think I'm losing my mind,
aren't you?" Rie can't help the trembling in her voice.
,No,
no I will never think that! I will never think that." And with
these words, he wraps his arms around her. ,I promise you that I
believe you Rie. I really do! Just give me a chance to
realise."
Rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand she now
points at Seth. ,He's sitting right there. He's sitting there
since we fell asleep, talking to himself, because he… because he
doesn't need sleep and is bored."
Her father looks at the
point Rie is pointing and Seth has frozen in his body, waiting for
what is coming. Her father stares a feet away from where Seth is
sitting.
,Seth's there?" He asks, sounding really insecure.
,You don't believe me! You think… you think I'm crazy
huh?" Panicky Rie tries to unwrap her father's arms from her.
,You think I'm making this up! That I'm shizophrenic with an own
world!"
,No! No I want to believe you! I will!" His arms
tighter around her, rocking her back and forth, hussing comforting.
,Don't go into conclusions. I think you are the sanest girl in the
world, I don't think you are losing it. I believe you, I believe
Seth's here."
Rie lets out a sob. She hopes he does.
,Is
he nice?" He asks.
,Well, he was annoying at first." She
quietly admits. ,But it's nice to have… a friend."
,Yeah
it is." He hushes. ,Now, please, give me a chance to get used to
Seth too. This is new to me, just like it must have been new to you
when you met him."
,If you… promise not to tell anyone. And
especially mom or the school!" Rie says.
Her father hugs her
tight and pulls her back into her bed. ,I promise that, Rie. Please
never ignore me again." His voice sounds scared.
Rie blinks and
turns around to hug her father. ,I promise. I won't ignore
you."
