Blue Sargent couldn't concentrate.
She had her first midterms in a week, but 300 Fox Way was too loud. Doors were slammed, names shouted but silence was a wish that not even the great Glendower could grant.
Orla was blasting music in the other room, but Blue felt as if a speaker was placed inside her ears. Her phone buzzed with good luck messages from Adam, selfies of Gansey in the library and stupid videos from Henry. Ronan on the other hand, was a ghost technology wise. He rarely used his phone, preferring to show up at her house expecting to be entertained. Calla described Ronan as a snake, but to Blue he was more of a housecat.
As much as she loved her Raven boys, when they messaged her, it felt as if a dull knife was pushed through her heart. After her gap year with Gansey and Henry, Blue decided to stay in Henrietta. Partly due to the fact that it was her home. Except for a choice few, everything and everyone she cared for was here. Community collage seemed daunting, the final year of high school being a roller coaster of drama, adventure and emotions. But with a little persuasion and a college fund created by everyone who visited 300 Fox Way, Blue enrolled in a distance-learning degree in environmental studies. The boys however, moved further away. Henry and Gansey both decided to enroll in degrees at the same university. Gansey in European History, Henry in engineering. Adam was in Harvard and Ronan chose to stay at the barns.
She tried reading the paragraph again, but the words seemed alien. The music seemed to become louder and her head began to pulse. Blue rested her head in her hands, frustrated at the situation. A flutter above her head brought Blue out of her daze. Chainsaw sat at the edge of the desk, pecking at an open yogurt pot. Blue ran her fingers over Chainsaws back, deep in her thoughts.
Blue just couldn't focus.
Ronan Lynch couldn't concentrate.
Opal and Chainsaw were terrorizing Gasoline the cow. The two dream-creatures had somehow painted the poor cow blue and black. Both now sat upon Gasoline as if she was a meaty throne. His phone buzzed but he ignored it. His friends always called, and his brothers visited every weekend without fail. Adam's ringtone was different, and he was busy. If it was important, they would call 300 Fox Way and Blue would show up on her beat-up bike. She had a car but preferred to cycle to the barns.
Ronan missed his Raven boys, whenever one of them called, he felt a pang in his heart. After their adventure searching for Glendower, everyone seemed to walk away from him. Adam, though he would return whenever he had time, had left to study at Harvard. Blue, Gansey and Henry went on a road trip, choosing to take a gap year from their studies. When they returned, only Blue opted to stay in Henrietta. He was grateful that Blue stayed in Henrietta. At least she didn't leave him. But studies were never a priority for Ronan. He had barely scraped through high school and was not going to willingly go through that again. The Barns was his family home, it was his future.
Declan had nearly fainted when Ronan told his that he wanted to become a farmer. From shock or relief, that was anyone's guess. Dreamers were better hidden, along with their dreams. So that's what he did. In the day, Ronan would care for his animals, nurse the plants and find a way to entertain himself. In the night, he would dream.
Opal jumped off Gasoline and threw straw into the air as if it were snow. Chainsaw was nowhere to be seen.
Ronan just couldn't concentrate.
Blue stood in front of the barns, Chainsaw flew high above her, weaving through the air. "Kerah!" Chainsaw cried. Blue followed the bird, running down the driveway and into the barn itself. Chainsaw then perched herself on a ceiling beam, crying with pride.
Ronan stood with his back to her, talking to Opal as a parent would scold their child. A cow stood nearby, covered in black and blue paint. Blue couldn't help laughing, she clasped her hands on her mouth, but it was no use. Blue lost her balance and fell to the ground giggling. Ronan whipped around, confused who had trespassed on his property, his face softened when he saw his friend.
"What are you laughing at maggot?" He asked her. Blue tried to answer but couldn't catch her breath. After multiple tries, she sat up and replied, "You look just like my mom after I painted the neighbor's dog green when I was five." A sour look crossed Ronan's face, most probably because he imagined himself in Maura Sargent's clothes. Blue started to giggle again, and Ronan threw a wet sponge at her face. "Okay dog-dyer, help me clean Gasoline, and tell me the full-story behind the green dog."
After cleaning Gasoline and finding out how Blue painted her neighbor's dog green, Opal thought it was a good idea to throw water on Ronan. This led to a full-scale water fight between Ronan, Blue and Opal. Chainsaw as also dragged into this fight, much to her displeasure. Later, Opal ran off into Lindenmere, to which Ronan stated, 'Opal is a sore loser who can help losing'. The two sat on the sofa in the living room, both wearing matching grey sweaters, though Blue's was four sizes too large. Ronan nudged Blue, confused why she was here when her mid-terms stared soon. He voiced his concern by asking her, "Don't you have your mid-terms?" Blue pushed his arm away from her and responded, "I do but have studied everything. I thought I could come and annoy you for a while." Ronan paused for a second and retorted "I'm not an entertainment machine Blue, what do you want me to do huh? Play 20 questions with you?" The last statement gave Blue an idea. A mischievous smirk grew on her face and Ronan realized his mistake.
"Okay! Final questions. I ask you Ronan Lynch, how do you feel about Ireland?" Blue cautiously prompted.
Ronan chewed on his leather bracelets, deep in thought. He sat silently for a second, not sure what to say. Ireland was a touchy subject for the Lynch brothers. It was a home they never visited, a dream that never left the back of Ronan's mind. He took a deep breath and finally spoke, "I think it is a place I want to see. Ireland is my ancestral home, it's in my blood. I mean I have never visited it but how my father described Ireland, it felt like a fairytale. Sometimes I dream of Ireland, trying to bring back a part of my heritage with me. But last time I did, all I brought back was a small clover. The coast of Galway was my father's favourite place. Full of hope, love, life and spice-bags." Blue picked at the clips in her hair and asked Ronan "What in the actual hell is a spice-bag?" He rubbed his hand over his buzzed hair and told her" A spice bag consists of deep-fried chips, chicken, red and green peppers, sliced chili peppers, fried onions, and a variety of spices. Sometimes you tub of curry sauce." Blue nodded her head and he continued "My mom used to make it for us when I was younger. When dad died, Declan made it. Now I make it whenever Declan and Matthew come to visit."
Blue was stunned that Ronan was being so open with her. She knew she was pushing a limit but is was lunch time and all she had for breakfast was a yoghurt pot so she asked" Can you cook some? I mean if you don't want to you don't have too." Ronan's stomach growled and they both knew what the answer was. While Blue chopped the vegetables, Ronan asked her his last question "Are you okay? I mean, the last time we had a proper chat it was after Gansey's-" Ronan stopped there. He wasn't sure why he did. Maybe he didn't want to push her or because he didn't want to think about that night again. Blue put the knife down and she didn't hesitate to answer, "I don't think so. I'm scared that one day that Henry will call and tell me that Gansey didn't wake up or that he collapsed in class." She turned to face him "I can't study at home because we have extra visitors now. I feel like we had this big adventure together and now I have to deal with the emotional fallout by myself." Ronan cooked all the ingredients while telling Blue, "I feel the same, they do call and visit when ever they can. But I sometimes feel that they ditched us because they can. I mean Adam is in Harvard and he has his friends. Henry and Gansey have each other at university. What do we have?" Blue coughs into her hand and Ronan continued his rant. "We have each other-" with one hand he gestures to the plates full of potatoes "-and we have these spice-bags." Blue grabs two forks while Ronan puts the plates on the table. They both dig into their food, happy that they learnt and taught each other facts they didn't know about each other.
Opal sat on a rock in Lindenmere, her skull cap drying on a tree branch. She ran her small fingers over Chainsaw's back. She was proud of both herself and Chainsaw as they both helped improve Ronan's mood. Even though Gasoline was painted on unwillingly.