I sighed as I leaned against the cool red brick building. It was Thursday in late February and I was waiting for Miles to come out of his class. I hadn't been able to talk to him, except in class and whatever precious time we had between classes. We hadn't been able to figure out a good schedule to walk to school together, since Mr. Gavin deemed it necessary to drive Miles to school himself. Our classes were let out early today and Miles had said something about meeting him afterward, since his ride wouldn't be at the school for quite a while.
I was about to get the answers to all my questions as Miles walked to me, looking deep in thought.
"Hey," I said when he stopped in front of me, mumbling something and counting on his hand, as if he was remembering something. "Whatcha thinkin' about?"
"I was thinking that we've known each other for over a year and we've never really gone anywhere with each other." Miles commented.
"What do you mean?" I asked as we started walking toward the playground.
"Well, we always go to each others houses, or come here to the playground, but we've never been outside our neighborhood." Miles paused and tapped a finger to his lips thoughtfully. "The Gavins are leaving tomorrow, and we are going to be alone with the nanny until Von Karma comes back from where ever he may be. I'll ask if you can stay over this weekend, maybe Elsinore will take us to the boardwalks or..." His eyes lit up like it was Christmas again. It had been such a longtime since I had last seen that sparkle in his eyes, and in fact, I had never seen it ever since the day his father died. That's when I realized how much I missed it from him. 'Wait a minute, there's something strange with what Miles just said...' I thought. 'Who is this Elsinor? And did he say the Gavins were leaving?'
"Did you hear me, Phoenix?" I realized I dazed off when I saw Miles's hand waving in front of me.
"I certainly did!" We turned in the direction of the voice. Larry Butz was kicking rocks as he made his way toward us. "Did someone say they were going to Disneyland?!"
"What? Disneyland!" I could feel my eyes bulging. "I mean, you want to go to Disneyland, Miles?"
"Well, yeah, kinda..." He said tentatively, and then suddenly ducked his head. It looked like the ground had become the most interesting thing in Mile's world. I looked more carefully at his face, and saw a small patch of pink had appeared across his cheeks. I smiled at him.
"Well, I guess that would be okay. Every single day, my mom has been bugging me about you, asking how you're doing and everything. I think she would probably be more than happy to let me spend the weekend with you."
"Hey!" Larry waved his hands frantically. "Larry, here, guys! Remember me!? I'm not a rock you know. Even if I were, I'm pretty sure rocks would like to go to Disneyland!"
"Yes, Larry, you can come over as well," Miles sighed. I chuckled and sat on the swing that we had wandered toward. Larry and Miles took the other two.
"So, who's Elsinore?" I asked.
"Hm? Oh, she is Franziska's older sister. She is fourteen and very smart and very pretty. She's very motherly too. Watches Franny and I with an eagle eye." Miles tapped his finger on his temple near his eye.
"Ooo, Edgey, you're gonna have to introduce us, man!" Larry swooned. "The older chicks dig me!"
"Larry you are ten for crying out loud!" Miles chided him. "There's just no way she would ever be interested in you! You're going to see her tomorrow, so you'd better be on your best behaviour, I tell you."
"You're ten too! Stop acting as if you're thirty, man! You'll get your face covered in wrinkles even before you become an adult!" Larry crossed his arms, looking a little frustrated. I chuckled at first, then noticed that Larry wasn't chuckling with me. That sure was an odd thing to witness.
"Larry, you're pouting. You never pout. What's wrong?"
"I-I feel left out! So much has happened with Miles over the past few months and I have no idea what's going on!"
"I'm sorry, Larry. Yeah, I guess you're right. We really haven't seen you much in the last couple months." Miles reached over to pat Larry on the shoulder.
"S'alright, I'm sorry 'bout your father. I dunno what I would do without my pops."
I was anxiously watching Mile's reaction, ready for him to sprint or just completely break down and cry. I was quite surprised when I saw he did neither, especially since we hadn't really talked about what happened.
"I...thanks, Larry. It's been hard." Miles took a deep breath as he brushed his bangs back off his face. "Having Kristoph at the house helps a little. But Mr. Gavin is kinda tyrannical and I guess Mr. Von Karma is worse, from what I hear from Kristoph and Elsinore."
"Didn't you say that the Gavins were leaving tomorrow?" I asked.
"Yes, they are going back to Germany. I guess Mrs. Gavin is expecting." Miles chuckled. "Kristoph doesn't seem quite happy about it, and I think two-year-old Franny gave him a taste of what's to come. He seems worse for wear."
I shook my head and thought about how much the incident with his father had really matured Miles. I also thought about the ineffable amount of pain he must have been holding inside. We sat and chatted in the warm California sun, until Mr Gavin arrived and Miles waved at us as he ran to the car.
I was so restless and excited at the prospect of actually spending some quality time with my friends that I rushed back home the next day. My mom laughed at me and ruffled my hair when she greeted me at our front door. We picked up Larry on our way to the Von Karma estate and we punched and laughed at each other until we arrived. The gray stone gate and fence loomed in front of us as Larry and I gaped at it with bug-eyes.
"Holy crap Phoenix," Larry whispered. "I didn't realize that Miles was adopted into money."
"I guess I never realized it either." I blinked as the gate opened and a massive lawn was revealed. It was a dark green that was in contrast with the dark gray of the large estate at the end of the long drive. The estate was lined with pine trees that softly moved under the tender caresses of the slight breeze. I couldn't help but gawk at everything. I looked over and Larry was almost hanging out of his window, getting whiplash at trying to look at everything.
"Wow, that's quite the limo!" My mom exclaimed as we got closer to the mansion. The limo in question was sleek and black and shiny. There was a small, silver "G" on the side close to the small window that was located near the rear of the limo. A lime green Volkswagen Bug was parked behind it with the personalized plates "Miney". Why does that seem familiar, I thought as I jumped out of the car. Larry and I grabbed our backpacks and sleeping bags from the trunk and followed my mom to the large expansive house. We heard stern, loud words coming from the house, when suddenly the front doors were flung open and Kristoph came running out. He paused for a moment and looked at us with watery eyes. He had such a sad look on his face that I was on the verge of saying something, but nothing came out. After a few seconds, he took off again and got into the limo. We looked at each other briefly as the voices became louder and all of a sudden Mr. Gavin appeared at the door, almost running into my mom as she yelped.
"Get out of my way..." He huffed as he started to shove her, but then grabbed her arm. "Who the hell is this rubbish?"
"Mr. Gavin!" An unfamiliar voice yelled from inside the house. I couldn't see who was its owner, since I was too busy glaring at the tall blonde.
"Sir, let go of me before I force you off!" My mom cried.
"Let go of her!" I yelled at the same time. Mr Gavin's eyes narrowed as he glared at my mom then turned his menacing gaze on me, like an hawk about to strike.
"You!" He cried, shoving my mom out of the way. "You're the insolent little boy that was at the hospital with Miles. I'll let you know he will have to learn to take care of himself and not rely on his friends after Manfred comes back. Keep that in mind little boy, because he will make Miles into the greatest prosecutor, just like himself. In other words, perfect. And you will never see or hear from your little... friend anymore. Never again. Do you understand?"
I shivered as Mr. Gavin's icy blue eyes bore into my soul. All I could do was blink as I heard voices and Mr. Gavin walking to the limo.
"Are you alright, Phoenix?" I was suddenly staring into my moms worried brown eyes and nodded slowly at her. She ran her hand through my hair then stood up. That's when I saw Mariah, the pretty blond nurse from the hospital. Miles was standing behind her and a raven haired pretty young girl was standing behind him with a hand on his shoulder. I was so stunned by the elder Gavin's words that I remained frozen to my spot, staring at Miles. I didn't even notice everyone had moved into the house as I just kept on staring at Miles. I just couldn't picture a world without Miles... That was... simply impossible. Yes, that was never going to happen, never. I knew he would never leave me.
"C'mon, Phoenix..." Larry was tugging on my hand and I stumbled forward. "Let's get this sugar-induced, Disneyland filled, cheesy-puff eatin' weekend started!"
"Yeah..." I said distractedly.
"Hi Phoenix!" Mariah smiled her pretty smile and Larry suddenly dropped my arm.
"Hello, miss..." Larry bowed and everyone chuckled. I gave a half grin. "I didn't catch your name, but I am Larry, Sir Larry Butz, at your service madam!"
"Why, thank you Larry!" A small patch of pink covered Mariah's cheeks and Miles and Elsinore showed us to where we would be hanging out that night.
I found out during dinner that Mariah was in fact the new nanny. Mr. Gavin had reported her at the hospital, and because of their policies, they had to let her go. It was amicable, but she was sad to leave nonetheless. She went on to explain that it was actually her former employer that had set her up with the nanny placement because of the superb way she had with all children in general. They had timed her placement with the departure of the Gavins, but unfortunately she had arrived too early and Mr. Gavin was running late...
That was the fight that Larry and my mom and I walked into. Mariah also mentioned that she had two daughters that were about our age, and that we should all get together at some point. Larry was ecstatic about that and asked where they were staying now. She explained that they stayed with their father on the weekends.
***
It was well after midnight before Larry, Miles and I settled into our sleeping bags and finally fell asleep shortly after.
Two hours later, I was abruptly pulled out of sleep by the sound of a blood curdling scream. I sat straight up and looked around, trying to get my bearings, and forgetting for a moment that I wasn't at my own place. Brushing the matted hair from my face, I looked over and saw that Larry was propped on one elbow, but still half-asleep. Miles however was missing from his spot between us.
"What the heck was that, dude?" Larry asked in a scratchy voice.
"I dunno," I answered as I rubbed my eyes. "I'm going to try to find Miles."
"Huh, he is gone isn't he?" Larry plopped back down onto his back. "Let me know when you find him..." he said, before falling asleep once again.
I shook my head at my sleepy friend and leaned forward to feel around for my backpack. I opened it as soon as I found it, and dug inside for my flashlight. I stood and tested it by sweeping the large bedroom one time. Nothing. But then, I heard heavy breathing and whimpering coming from the closet. I scratched my head in confusion, and two thoughts occurred to me: why hasn't anyone come to check on us? The scream was pretty loud and disturbing though. Also, why on earth was Miles was doing in the closet? I opened the door carefully and saw him curled in a tight ball on top of his shoes in the corner of the closet. I shined the light on him, and saw that he was shaking, but still asleep.
"Miles..." I whispered loudly as I knelt next to him and laid my tiny hand on his shoulder.
"Miles." I said louder and firmer. All of a sudden he gasped, and his eyes abruptly flew open. He stared at me like I wasn't there. "Miles? It's me Phoenix."
He drew in a shaky breath and whimpered. I softly squeezed his shoulder.
"Miles, you were dreaming. But you're okay now." I paused and still no sign of comprehension from him. I was starting to get scared and I shook him gently.
"Ph-Phoenix..." he said, and then, I was suddenly caught in a tight bear hug. Unsure of what else to do, I started rubbing his back.
"It's okay, Miles, it was just a dream," I mumbled into his ear and made shushing noises, like my mom did whenever she was calming me down.
"I-I'm so s-scared, Phoenix."
"Miles..." He let go of me suddenly. I could see his eyes shining in the glow of the flashlight that was now on the floor of the closet. I brushed the hair from his face and he started sobbing. "Miles, please, what's wrong?"
"S-So much..." His words started to be incomprehensible as he buried his head in his hands.
"Miles," I said softly as I wrapped my arms around him and we sat in the closet until his sobs subsided. I helped him back to the sleeping bags in his half asleep state. I vowed not to say anything about this until he was ready to talk.