HEYO.
PLEASE READ!- I have re-written the bottom of this chapter since it seemed to sudden. I will update the next one by tomorrow, so pardon me!
Please review you guys! Criticism is welcome!
"Tintin, look at this pattern. I remember it from somewhere! I swear! Something relating to science… Or history. Or mathematics…" Winter trailed off her sentence as she leapt into deep thought. "Three letters… codon… CODON! Tintin, do you know what codons are?"
She jumped in excitement, and Tintin rubbed his chin. "I've… never heard of them, actually. What are they?"
She looked at him, astonished by his answer. "Well… a codon is the three-code sequence for DNA. You do know what DNA is, right?" Winter said, raising an eyebrow. He frowned, and faint creases rippled across his forehead.
"Never heard of that either… what subject are those related to?" He asked, looking at Winter with a confused expression. She stared, eyes wide open.
'Does that mean this year is when they didn't discover DNA yet? Oh goodness, then the codons don't work…' She thought. Her happiness began to subside, and she shrugged her shoulders.
"Nevermind. False alarm. Do you have any idea of what this code is though?" She said, giving him the scrap of paper. He reached out an arm to grab it, and studied the contents.
"I have no clue… yet. I know someone who probably knows a little about this. But we need to go to the library first to find Betty-" He was cut off midsentence by a soft tug at his pants. Milou barked and turned his body towards a building.
"Ah, and here we are!"
It was a huge three story. The front had a bronze statue of an angel in which was blindfolded, and was curiously feeling its way towards a feathered arrow. The windows were fancily structured, with multiple colors splattered on. The doors were grand, too. The handles were neatly carved, each telling its own story.
"Winter, let's go in. Milou, up!" The snow-white terrier leapt into Tintin's arms, and once again, he held the door for Winter. "The library is a beauty, huh?"
She was still mesmerized by the wonderful colors of the windows, and was unknowingly gaping her mouth. A small smile faintly appeared on Tintin's face, and he shook his head. He walked up to her and grabbed her by the arm, dragging her away.
"We don't have all day, Winter! You can stare all you like when we figure out this stupid thing." He said, waving the paper. Winter sighed in defeat, and followed him in.
Meanwhile, Betty Davis was cleaning up her desk. It was cluttered with all sorts of books and papers, and some of them escaped to the ground.
"UGH! I knew I shouldn't have taken this job- Oh! Bonjour, Tintin!" Betty noticed him walking in, and she brightened up. But as soon as she saw him holding an unfamiliar girl's arm, she ran over to him.
Winter was looking at them with confusion. They were talking in French, and she was left out. She suddenly felt like she was a ten-year old again, and squirmed out of Tintin's grasp, walking towards the never-ending lanes of books.
"Hey! Winter, where are you going? I need to introduce you!" He said.
She stopped walking and turned around, giving him a death-glare. He stepped back in surprise, and she stomped back, fuming.
"I thought you were perfectly fine on your own, Tintin!" She faced the other girl, and gave a warm smile. "Hello. My name is Winter Rose Brimnings. And you are…?"
Winter studied the girl. She was exactly Tintin's height, and had a posture of a ballerina. Auburn hair tumbled down her shoulders and to her waist in rich, curly locks. She wore a pencil skirt, which was a bit higher and revealing than Winter expected it to be. She was crossing her arms, hinting at her fair bosom. Her face had an elegant touch; high, aristocratic cheeks, a tall nose, piercing emerald eyes, red-as-a-rose- and thin lips… She was an ideal beauty.
"My name is Betty Davis. How old are you?" She replied with a strong accent, raising her head. She began to clutch to Tintin's arm.
Winter looked at both of them. They were, of course, an ideal couple. "I'm sixteen."
She laughed gracefully, and lowering her hand to pinch Winter's cheek. Betty was indeed tall.
"You're still a bud compared to us. We're already seventeen, darling! Now, what did you come here for, Tintin?" Betty said, batting her eyelashes.
Winter glared at her in disgust. 'Was she trying to mock me? Goddamn, that mother fucking bitch…' she thought, balling her fists.
"Um, we're here because we need you to pick out a skirt for her. I don't know where to go to get one, and Winter's new here. Do you mind?" He said, trying to wriggle out of her grasp.
Betty's eyes lit up, hearing about fashion. "Of course I don't mind! Now let's go, I know exactly where to go…"
He broke into a big smile, and dimples formed on either side of his face. "That's great! Allons, Milou!"
He ran out the door, leaving Winter and Betty alone. Betty's smile turned to a frown, and she looked down at Winter. Winter looked back, giving a 'what do you want now?' stare.
"Winter Rose. What an unusual name, hmm?" Betty said, folding her arms.
"Erm… sure?" Winter replied, scratching her head. Betty bent down to Winter's ear, and whispered in a deathly tone.
"If you ever think of taking away my dear Tintin, you will not have a grand ending. Do you hear me, Ms. Winter Rose?"
Betty recoiled back, and gave a serious glare. She began to walk away until Winter spoke up.
"Don't bitch around with me Betty. I don't give a single damn if you like Tintin to that extent. Go ahead, you can have him. I didn't have any intention of falling in love with him." She said angrily.
Betty just stood there, and didn't turn around or say a single word. She just began to walk again. The tap, tap, tap of her heels echoed around the quiet library, and Winter followed her out.
"Here. This dress fits you. And wear this 'sloppy Joe'." Betty said, throwing them to Winter. She caught them alarmingly, and looked at them. It was a plain but cute mint-colored dress, reaching down to her knees. The sleeves were puffed and ended at her elbows, tightened with two pearl buttons. Betty then threw a white blouse, which had a rounded and ruffled peter pan collar. She picked up the 'sloppy Joe' from the chair next to her. It was a vintage cream color, and had puffed sleeves and ended at the elbow, matching the dress.
"Thank you, Betty. These are cute!" Winter said, giving a small smile. Betty was looking through a bin filled with shoes, and grunted in response.
Winter was escorted to a fitting room by an employee, and she put on the blouse. She then wore her dress. The color complimented her, and she was happy. She decided to just let the oversized cardigan lay on her shoulders, and refused to slip on the sleeves.
"Winter Rose, are you in there?"
Winter heard Betty, and pulled back the curtains. Betty looked at Winter in surprise. "You look nice in that dress. Now, wear these, and you're done." She handed over a pair of brown Oxford shoes and white bobby socks. She slipped the ankle socks on, and then the shoes. They didn't have high heels, and Winter was glad. She never once had balanced in those awful heels.
"Do you want me to curl your hair too? Perhaps a braid will make you look better." Betty said. Winter shook her head and gave a polite "no thanks."
"Goodbye. Tell Tintin that I want to stay back here to talk with my friend. Oh, and I threw away your old clothes; they look disgusting."
Winter waved back and walked out of the store, holding her phone.
"Whew! I almost forgot about it…" She mumbled, slipping it in her cardigan pocket. She suddenly remembered that Betty threw away Tintin's sweater.
'Oh well, too lazy to come back and get it…' She thought, unconcerned. Winter spotted Tintin sitting outside of a coffee shop, reading a newspaper. She jogged towards him, and tapped him lightly on the shoulder. He turned around, and looked at Winter in astonishment.
"You look nice, Winter! Betty does have nice style… And here, I bought a cup of coffee for you. It'll warm you up." He said. He noticed she was still shivering, so he took off his coat and draped it over her shoulders. She looked at him in surprise and was about to take it off, but Tintin raised a hand and shook his head. "I'm not cold."
She looked at him suspiciously, thinking that he was going to freeze, but shrugged her shoulders and snuggled into the coat.
'Smells like cinnamon…' She thought, taking a huge whiff. She then drank a portion of the coffee, and scrunched her nose because of the bitter taste.
"Taxi! Taxi! C'mon Winter, let's go." He said, grabbing Milou. A yellow taxi came along, and they both climbed in. "Moulinsart, s'il vous plait!" Tintin yelled. There was a thick glass window separating the taxi driver and the passenger seat. The man nodded, and the car started to move.
It began to become silent in the car, with the only sounds of the roaring engine and Milou's panting. Winter was looking out her window until she turned over to Tintin to talk. But as soon as she laid her eyes on him, she noticed how peaceful he looked. She mentally told herself of how Tintin's eyes were actually a soft grey-green instead of blue if she looked closely. His cheeks were permanently rosy, which was unusual for a boy. He had the faintest splash of freckles that spotted on his cheekbones and nose; barely noticeable. As she was staring at him, Tintin felt eyes on his face and tore his own away from the taxi driver, turning to Winter.
"Do you want something, Winter?" He asked monotonously. She stiffened and perked her head up, realizing what she had done.
"Oh! Erm, sorry. I just wanted to talk to you, but you looked so... well, peaceful." She said, playing with the ruffles of her dress. "...Sorry."
He saw how helpless she looked and smiled, the dimples kicking in. Tintin welcomed Milou on his lap, and spontaneously petted the small terrier. "It's alright."
He looked at Winter, who was still fiddling with her dress. "I always wondered what the future would be like." She glanced at him, and stopped moving her hands. "Well... It's just like now. Except the technology's better and stuff. See, I have this thing with me..." She fumbled through her cardigan and pulled out her phone. She handed it over to Tintin, who had an expression of curiosity written all over his face. He slid the phone open, causing the light to turn on. Winter just stared at it, remembering about her life in the present. She felt homesick now, and was on the verge of tears but held it back.
"Wow... These devices are small!" He started to play with the touch screen, and pressed on the 'Games' button. Confused, Tintin was trying to play 'Diner Dash'. He licked his lips in concentration and furrowed his eyebrows. Winter softened her eyes at this sight, noting at how childish Tintin could be at times, and how mature he could be also. An unexpected "What?" sounded, and he thumped his hands on the seats and pouted.
"Seems like you lost the game, huh?" Winter said, crossing her arms in amusement. Tintin widened his eyes and turned red. He quickly gave the phone back to her and went back to pet Milou, attempting to cover his face by facing down. She bursted out laughing, clutching her stomach in agony. "Oh my god... You," She stopped to take a breath. "You look so cute-"
Silence. Tintin looked at her weirdly and tilted his head.
"UH, I MEAN, UM, YOU LOOKED FUNNY-"
"Winter, shush." Tintin looked outside, and felt that something was wrong. Winter shut her mouth, clamping Milou's as well. They seemed to be going to an unfamiliar direction, so he knocked on the window to notify the driver. Suddenly, metal plates began to close all of the windows.
"Hey! HEY! Darn it… Winter, I think we just jumped into our enemy's car…" Tintin said, feeling his way towards the handle of the door. It was pitch black, and he finally touched the metal bar. Locked. "You don't say!" Winter retorted. A 'ssshhhhh' sound appeared, and Winter held on to Tintin's arm.
"Shit! It's gas, Winter! Get down!" He yelled. He pushed her down and laid on top of her, covering her face. Winter held her breath, clutching onto Tintin's hand. A few minutes passed, and the sound started to subside. Tintin spoke up. "Don't… smell it…" He trailed off, and the hand on her face went limp.
"Tintin? Tintin! Oh god, Tintin… Wake up!" She said, shaking him. "Don't faint on me! C'mon!"
The gas began to reach her, and she couldn't hold her breath any longer. Winter's vision began to blur, and she was enveloped into darkness.
A throbbing pain ensued, and Winter groaned loudly, trying to bring her hand up to her head. Wide awake now, she began to struggle and realized that her hands were tied together, as well as her feet. The room she was in was dark, and it took a while for her eyes to adjust. "Tintin... Are you there?" She saw a lump on her right side, and another smaller lump on her left. The one she took for Tintin began to stir and moan. "Ugh... Is that you, Winter?" She brightened up, hearing the familiar voice. "Yup. Do you have a plan of getting out here?"
He whistled softly, and the smaller lump began to whimper. "Milou, are you tied up?" The dog slowly crawled on all fours, showing that he was free. "Good. Come over here and chew through these ropes."
Milou obediently trotted to his owner and worked on the ropes, chewing it until Tintin quickly lifted his hands and massaged them. He crouched over to Winter and took out a pocket knife hidden in his shoes.
"How does Milou know what you're saying?" Winter asked, while he was cutting through her ropes.
"Dunno, really. We're just really close, and this happened to us before countless of times." She nodded in agreement, but still did not quite understand. But, one will never understand the meaning of true friendship fully.
"Done." He said in triumph, and Winter stretched her legs and arms. He then cut the ropes that were tightly bound to his legs, and Winter assisted him in getting up. "Winter, look around to find any weapon, like a gun or something. And hurry."
She ran around the room, and found a couple of guns strewn on the floor. "Tintin! There's guns over here." He pace over to Winter, and picked them up. There's only three that have bullets. Here, take one just in case." She carefully picked it up from Tintin's hands, and admired it as this was her first time seeing and touching a real gun. When she looked up, he was already across the room aiming the gun towards the door. A 'BANG' was heard, and Winter covered her ears. "Winter, come here! We have to go before someone comes-"
"Why hello! Going somewhere?"
A gentleman was at the entrance, and Tintin fell back and stood in front of Winter protectively. The man chuckled and thumped his cane lightly.
"My name is Lanav. How are you today?"
Thank you for the reviews! I hope you guys review more.
See you on chapter five! ;)