Hey! I'm still alive everyone so DON'T PANIC! I'm very sorry for the long wait! I've had a lot to do lately. Anyway, this whole chapter is in Angela's POV!
Thanks time!:
Glysdale: I did try to make the last chapter a little better. Thanks for your condolences and I'm sorry you had to wait so long for an update. Anyway, thanks for the review, I appreciate it immensely and I hope you enjoy this chapter ^-^.
BrokenBlackCat: Lol, Chase did indeed say the magic words (after 33 chapters whoopee!). HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus and it is basically a virus that causes AIDS. In other words, it is a type of STD. Sorry, I should have specified what Chase meant, but thanks for asking since you were confused. Thanks for the review and I'm sorry for making you wait for such a long time ^^".
Kageno Shuri: Heh, Chase is so cute when he's embarrassed (I can only imagine how he would look though. Maybe I'll draw a picture...hmmm). Anyway, I've heard your request and you might be slightly happy with what you find in this chapter. Thanks so much for reviewing and thanks for your patience.
Mishaay: Thank you for your condolences, it was a pretty sad funeral. Moving on! Your review also made me a little sad knowing that I would soon have to end this fanfic. It kind of feels like a child now lol (I hope that's not too weird ^^''). Of course, we won't have to worry about that for a while so let's just keep moving forward! Thanks for your review, and I hope you haven't given up hope on this story as it will not end until you see "Complete" in it's description!
BiddyAuthor: WOOT! I know, it took so long for me to put it out...and not it took even longer for this one ^^'. Thanks for reviewing as always and sorry for making you wait again xP!
LegendarypkmnNyunyu: A lot of the readers are saying the same thing. FINALLY! Lol. Yup, Chase finally told Molly, and Molly finally accepted that someone could love her...or has she? Lol jkjkjk! (Or am I...). Anyway, thanks for the review and thanks so much for your encouragement, it helped me a lot. あｒ あり あらｒちすあｒあｒありがちおうArigatou gozaimasu! (I'd type it in Japanese...but the story formatting in fanfic is being stupid right now xP).
harvestmoonforever: Thanks for the understanding! And your request has been heard, though not completely. You'll understand when you read xD. Thanks so much for reviewing and thanks for your patience. I hope you enjoy this chapter!
MidnightxMusic: Calm down calm down! Don't worry about it at all! I'm actually still waiting for you to send me what you've gotten done on the next chapter though. It's okay if you don't have it, I'll just take what we were talking about and do it. I'll get the five chaps done in no time flat so no worries k? Anyway, you're a crazy one alright (but so am I so it ALL works out xD)! Chase and Molly cannot do naughty things in bed (yet :O lolololololol *troll face* xDDD). Thanks for your funny review and don't worry about the story, I'll definitely get things done Middy!
sushi4427: That is very nice of you to say. I'm honored that you like it so much. Although, the way you said it made it sound like you though it was over. There's still more to come, sorry for making you wait so long for it, but it's definitely going to keep going until you see "Complete" by this story's name! Thanks for the review and I hope you're ready for more of this story!
StephanoAtlas: Lol, I realize that the summary is pretty suckish, but I decided to let my writing speak for itself. I'm glad you gave it a chance, and even happier that you're glad you gave it a chance. Lol, that's so amazing, I can't believe how many I fooled with Molly's "death" (which I think was everyone). It's even more of a compliment knowing that you're not easily fooled. Thank you so so much, I'll definitely take your advice about the sex appeal (it was necessary for the plot you see, I'm not one to write such things but I believe I did my best in making it enough for my fans ^^').
Mita: Thank you, thank you so much. It meant a lot to me and I'll definitely take this review to heart. I give you my condolences and hope you can get through Your Grandma's death much better than I got through my Great Grandmother's. Thanks for taking the time to review and give me that message, it meant a lot it really. And to you I say "Her soul is surely at peace". I hope you enjoy this chapter and that you didn't mind the wait too much.
Thanks all of you for the comfort, I realize this thanks is far too belated, but it must be given. Please enjoy this chapter.
~Angela's POV~
"You want me to meet you where?" I asked in a confused and almost groggy daze to my sister who was on the other end of the phone. I barely got any sleep last night as I had continued to worry about Wizard and Molly. It was crazy. First I was thinking of Molly and what happened to her, if she was okay, etc. Then, I started thinking about Wizard and his problems, his coffee deprivation, and why he suddenly shunned me after being so…close to me.
And now I'm on the phone with Molly at 5 o'clock in the morning (her farming ways have stuck to her character).
"You're still staying for the reunion?" My tone changing to something between shock and distaste. I was barely hanging onto all her words as my mind was stuck in a limbo of worry, but what I did catch was that Molly wanted to keep on with the activities of her reunion.
"Who is that?" Winry's muffled voice came from underneath the pillow she threw over her head when the phone started to ring.
"It's Molly." I responded. Then, as if she were wide awake the whole time, Winry pranced out of bed and grabbed the phone.
"Molly! Are you okay dear? Any trauma? What have those putrid sacks of men done to you?" Winry shot off one question after another.
"Calm down, calm down. Its fine; everything's taken care of." I could hear Molly say on the other end. She started to talk very quietly after that, letting us know that Chase was probably still asleep at this time.
After we had gotten the directions to where we were going, Winry and I finally got out of our bed clothes. The sun hadn't risen yet, but dawn's light was enough for us so that we didn't have to turn on any lights. We didn't feel the need to shower this morning, it would take too much energy that we didn't have at the moment.
I wore some dark denim, boot-cut jeans with a long-sleeved white shirt and black boots. Winry chose to wear black leggings with a dark pink tunic top that was adorned by a braided-black belt; she slipped on dark pink flats to complete the look.
"I miss my old clothes…" Winry sulked as she flicked at the hem of her blouse before she started to brush her hair in the mirror.
I looked at her sympathetically, but felt my heart pang as well. Maybe she wished she didn't have to live so modernly, maybe she wanted to shut herself away from us. It wouldn't be too hard to believe since Wizard seemed fine in doing so.
I decided to shake away those negative thoughts, Wizard would come around eventually…I hope. As we stepped out our designated room, we spotted Kasey coming into the suite with grocery bags. My jaw almost dropped as I saw him waltz into the kitchen and start to cook as if he were a pro…and by the looks of things he wasn't too far from it. He was mincing mushrooms into the eggs and whipping up homemade batter for pancakes (waffles maybe). Then I saw him get out the complementary mixer in the kitchen and start to mix up a juice that was predominantly made out of blackberries.
"Kasey, what're you doing?" I asked, already knowing the answer.
"Making breakfast." He said and placed a hand to his face in a very feminine way.
"I need to be ready to cook for my to-be-spouse. She's very incapable of doing it herself, you see, and I think this makes me very useful to her." He explained, blowing a much exaggerated kiss in Winry's way.
"WAH!" Winry called out in disgust as she seemingly dodged the air kiss.
"You idiot! Cut that out!" She cried and Kasey gave her a smirk that actually seemed cool.
"Don't worry, I prefer real kisses myself." He commented and, suspiciously enough, Winry blushed at the comment.
"T-Then we both agree on something." She responded as she crossed her arms in defiance.
Kasey held his spatula up and waved it a little with a boyish grin.
"Anyway, I'm making the eggs the way you like them so don't be such a grump. And your juice is almost finished." As he said this, he made a point of adding blackberries to the waffle/pancake batter. Winry seemed to appreciate this as she gave a hint of a smile.
"Well, at least you're good for something." She said and sauntered her way over into the kitchen and watched as Kasey started making waffles. The smell penetrated the air, but I more preferred the smell of coffee in the mornings.
My face suddenly dropped. Thinking of coffee made me think of Wizard.
"He's not here." Kasey piped up in a serious tone. I looked at him and realized that he must've known what I was thinking. It could either be his "Big Brother" intuition, or the fact that half of his blood is from me. Not really knowing which of the reasons to his insightfulness were, I decided to just ask him a question.
"Where is he?"
"I'm not sure. He must've woken up before me because he wasn't here when I got up. The things he brought with him are gone too." Kasey said. Winry gave a little frown at this information, as did I.
"What a pain he is." She muttered, but the usual 'I hate him so much' in her voice was gone. Instead, it was replaced by a more sympathetic sounding tone.
I can honestly say that I've never felt so hopeless before. What could Wizard be thinking right now…?
"Don't worry Angela. Wizard isn't the type to hurt you so carelessly. I'm sure he just needs some time to figure things out." Kasey explained as he prepared some plates of food. I could only give him a small nod as I made my way over for a plate of the appetizing looking breakfast. The whole time we were eating, Winry looked like her taste buds were having an orgasm.
"Oh my Goddess!" She said for probably the umpteenth time. Kasey was obviously thinking perversely since he laughed every time she would sigh that one sentence. The activity made the atmosphere seem less depressing.
After we were done with breakfast (which was pretty good seeing how the cook was a blood made man) we were ready to go meet up with Molly at the high school where her life was practically ruined. We spotted her at the school gates along with Jin and Anissa. I was surprised to see Jin with his hair down and dressed so…city-boyish.
"Where's his glasses?" I asked Kasey.
"Hell if I know." Kasey said with a smile before raising his hand in the air.
"Hey!" He called out to them with a wave and Molly turned, her features surprisingly calm.
"Glad you could make it." She said in her quiet voice that was like music to my ears.
"I don't know why you still want to be here though." I commented and Molly gave me a small smile.
"I'm the valedictorian. I feel that I should at least attend the reunion. Besides, Chase, Maya, and Yolanda still have work to do. I want to wait for them; if not for that I would be gone by now because…" Molly stopped talking as an indescribable look crossed over her face. It worried me to see her freeze up so suddenly.
"It's okay Molly. Take a deep breath, let it go. Those men cannot harm you anymore." I could faintly hear Jin tell her as he gave her forearm a squeeze. Anissa gave me a worried glance and I noticed Winry giving a hopeless look to Kasey who was troubled with all the situations at hand.
Molly finally gave a curt nod to Jin before she smiled and gave him a "thank-you". She then turned to me and finally seemed to notice the head-count.
"Where is Wizard?" She asked.
"It's a long story." I answered, tiredness surely dripping out of my words. She gave another tiny nod and gave a deep breath as she turned toward the school building.
"Well, I hope things go smoothly." She said as we started to the main building of the school.
Unfortunately, it didn't go as smooth as I'm sure Molly would have wanted. Many of her former classmates were either sending her sympathetic, pitiful, or even angry faces. It was as if they expected her to either handle it differently to where Preston and Dylan weren't in jail, or they felt bad for her bad-luck; yet they weren't going to help with it. She continued to receive the looks even after we sat down at the reserved table for Molly and her guests. A boy with blue hair and blue eyes approached us and started talking lowly with Molly. She nodded her head in understanding with his words until she gave him a thankful nod and stood up from her seat to follow him.
She saw the other people talking and giving her looks, I know she did. I could tell it was probably hurting her to have to walk past people who had no positive feelings toward her at all. I watched as she shuffled her way to the stage of the auditorium, she slowly made her way up the steps and walked over to the mike that was on stage along with the blue-haired boy. He cleared his voice to catch the attention of everyone else, and was surprisingly successful.
"We will now hear a word from our Valedictorian, Molly Withard." He announced and stepped away from the mike and off the stage as Molly adjusted the mike to her height.
"Good Morning everyone, it's…nice to see you all here today." She started, obviously having to find a word to describe the gathering. Though I'm pretty sure several other words had run through her mind before nice even reached her thoughts.
"I'm sure you all have heard multiple things about last night. Some of your ideas may or may not be accurate."
Murmurs filled the room as Molly gathered her thoughts once more.
"Due to said events last night, the reunion will be canceled until further notice, meaning today is our last day. However, today's event will still be carried out. We are sorry for the inconvenience." Molly continued.
As the room loudened with angry talk, I couldn't help but wonder why the Vice President wasn't giving the announcement. Maybe he didn't want to deal with all the loud speaking? At that moment, I heard the doors to the auditorium open and saw none other than Chase making his way toward our seats. He was wearing his hair in a pony-tail and had a waiter's outfit on.
"Hey, what did I miss?" Chase asked as he took a seat next to Jin.
"They're making Molly make an announcement…it's not going too well." Jin answered.
Chase looked toward the stage, as if just now noticing Molly up there, and I could feel that he was a little uneasy with her standing in front of all her classmates, looking so vulnerable to them.
"Also due to the events of last night…" Molly continued, seeming a little unsure about the rest of the announcement.
"Our SGA President, Dylan Sarrant, and our fellow classmate Preston Drune have been attained by the Port Town authorities and it seems that-"
"You frickin' slut! You framed Dylan!" A girl's voice shouted through the crowd.
Molly looked shocked by the outburst and I grit my teeth, hoping someone would reprimand the girl.
"Yeah, what the hell! Preston too, he was trying to be nice to you!" A boy called out, defending Molly's old offender.
"Bitch!" Another boy shouted.
Molly was trying to open her mouth to protest, but each time she did more people called out profane words to her.
Before I could even think about what to do, Kasey laid a hand on my shoulder. I turned to see him already wrapping a furious looking Winry in a somewhat headlock to keep her from screaming and, more than likely, casting any spells.
"I know you're her sister, but you standing up for Molly might make the situation even worse."
"That's it." I heard Chase growl and start to get up. Jin moved to restrain him.
"Would you all just shut up?" A girl's voice pierced the crowd, startling everyone in our group. We turned to see a girl with long brown hair and dark eyes standing up with a clenched fist. A boy (probably her boyfriend) was also standing beside her with a furious look. A few other people were casting sour looks at their fellow classmates.
"Do you really know what happened to her last night you dense minded people? Molly never showed up to the picnic at the park yesterday! She went missing!" The girl shouted.
"Even if that was true, what does it have to do with Preston and Dylan?" Someone retorted.
"We saw her being carried into the hotel by them! She was passed out!" The boy shouted back at the person.
"So? They helped her back to their room and suddenly they're trying to rape her?" A different boy called.
"No! She went missing because they took her. After they took her, two men came looking for Molly. I know because they talked to me and Vincent! Plus, we all know what Preston tried to do to Molly four years ago!" The girl with Vincent argued.
"Annie's right! You think two guys who were known for being the worse to Molly were just helping her to her room? Molly apparently didn't even have a room in our hotel!" Vincent said.
Everyone was silent now. It seemed that they were finally accepting facts and feeling bad about it.
Good, they should!
"Good, you understand then. Now, apologize to her and-" Annie began, but she stopped short as she faced the stage. Everyone turned and saw the stage empty with no signs of Molly. I felt a wave a panic flash through me but my actions weren't quite quick enough to beat Chase's. He was up and toward the stage in a matter of seconds.
"Thank you, Annie and Vincent. I'll go find her. Everyone else...have a fucking nice breakfast." Chase said, letting venom drip from his last sentence, his violet eyes set ablaze with anger so strong I swear the whole audience shivered.
As he set off the stage, the auditorium doors swung open once more and in popped Maya in a waitress' outfit. She skipped merrily from table to table with trays of dishes. When she stopped at our table she looked around worriedly.
"Where's Chase?" She asked.
"He went to look for Molly. The crowd made very harsh remarks as she gave her announcement." Jin said and Maya nodded.
"I see. Well, enjoy your breakfast!" She sang merrily as she began setting our table for us.
Now, I knew it was bad to ask her what was on my mind, but I just had to know.
"You're not upset by that?" I asked.
Anissa gave me a little glare that said 'Why would you ask that?'. Maya looked at me with a quizzical look before she understood the question.
"I've realized that Chase was never mine to really keep. As soon as Molly and him met it was kinda clear to see that she needed him more than I did." She smiled widely.
"Besides, I think being single and cute has its benefits." She seemed to laugh and skipped merrily along with her cart of food.
Great, even Maya seems to be having luck with guys.
Hours passed as everyone ate and talked. Our group wasn't very lively, probably due to the absence of three others. Not to mention the events of last night.
"Everyone." Someone on stage said into the mike. We all turned our attention to the blue haired boy.
"Since today is our last day together, it has been decided that we do the 'Port Town Look Out' event." He announced and cheers were heard all around the room.
"Port Town Look Out?" Kasey questioned us.
"Hey, don't ask me." I said and waved my hands in confusion.
I noticed that we weren't the only people who seemed confused. It was clear that many of the other former students had brought guests as well, and those few others seemed just as confused.
"Hahaha! I see some confused faces in the crowd. For everyone not native to Port Town, just follow everyone else's lead. The caterers will provide us with food so I promise it'll be worth your while." The guy said with a smile as others laughed.
Everyone began to stand up and make their way to the exit.
"What about Molly?" I asked.
"Chase has her I'm sure." Anissa reassured me.
"You don't need to worry too much right now. Just relax, sis." Kasey said, patting me on the head. I rolled my eyes at his words, but it felt nice to let the worry fall on someone else.
It wasn't ideal, but our group decided to follow the other people out onto the streets of Port Town; many left their cars at the school. We saw other people smiling as we walked past, it seemed that even in a big town like this that the community is still pretty close in a way. We trekked on in what seemed to be a parade as we made our way to the harbor where it became even colder. We neared the boats on the water. There were many, some bigger than others. They all were carrying cargo of some type and that includes passenger ships (passengers are kinda like cargo, right)?
"Thank you for all your work!" We heard a lot of the people around us start shouting.
"What's going on?" I asked since I wasn't tall enough to see over the crowd.
Kasey looked around and seemed to spot the cause.
"Everyone's thanking the sailors and the captains." He responded.
I gave an inquisitive look as we made our way to the front of the crowd.
"What a weird ritual." Winry muttered, obviously not accustomed to any human custom...no pun intended.
As we got closer, I could hear the raspy laugh of a familiar old man.
"Well thank ya." Pascal laughed as some more of our parade thanked him with smiling faces.
"Hey, Pascal!" I called and he turned to face me.
"Well, if it isn't Angela!" He said and gave me a wide grin.
"Um, I guess this is the part where I say thank you?" I laughed.
"Ha! This is why I love this town; even the youngsters appreciate the ol' seadogs." Pascal chuckled.
"Pascal, you know us in Castanet appreciate you very much." Anissa chimed and Pascal gave her a surprised look.
"Miss Anissa. What a surprise! Are you coming home finally?" He asked.
Anissa gave a nod of her head.
"Yes, Jin came to pick me up." She said and Jin gave Pascal a nod of his head.
"I see. Craig and Ruth sent ya to pick up their precious cargo. Only seems fit, ain't you two thinkin' bout marriage now?" Pascal laughed.
Jin gave Anissa a side glance and we all could clearly see her cross her arms with a stern look.
"Now, Pascal, whatever makes you think this man is marriageable? He is quite immature and still unfit to be seen as a husband!" Anissa scolded as she talked badly of Jin right in front of him. When she was done she gave a little 'hmph' and made her way towards where the rest of the crowd was headed.
Kasey was laughing like crazy, as was Winry.
"Oh…" I managed out, though I was really fighting to give a straight face.
Jin gave a little amused puff of air as Pascal let out a hearty laugh.
"It's alright to laugh Miss Angela. That young lass has always given the same answer when she was asked that question. Doctor Jin should be used to it by now." Pascal said.
"It's true. But in reality Anissa is really just flustered by the whole subject. Though she'd never tell anyone." Jin said, seemingly teasing Anissa without her knowing.
"Sounds like she's just determined to keep you at arms length." Winry said with an understanding nod.
Kasey only gave her an exasperated look.
"Sounds like someone else I know." He grumbled and Winry gave him a glare.
We continued to laugh as we caught up with Anissa who wasn't walking all that fast to begin with (probably secretly waiting for Jin).
Our parade eventually lead us to a tall lighthouse. Whoops and cheers were heard as we reached it.
"I'm still not getting the idea of this…" I muttered with a sigh.
"Oh, no! Did I miss the thanks?" I heard someone call and turned to see Molly rushing ahead of Chase toward the lighthouse. Chase was now wearing more city-boyish looks…which was very odd looking to me.
"I guess you're doing a lot better?" Chase called to her and she turned to him with a bashful look, I'm sure.
They were talking in a low tone for a moment, Chase giving her a gentle smile before he noticed us staring at them from the lighthouse's entrance.
"Hey, so you guys actually did this?" He said with a smarmy grin.
"Chase, this is actually important!" Molly scolded him with some out-of-character anger, she seemed pretty upset that she missed saying thank you to the sailors.
"Okay, okay. Sorry." Chase seemed to blow her off. Molly clenched her fists and faced the ocean.
"Fine, I guess this'll have to do." She said and clasped her hands together in a prayer. She stayed that way for a few minutes before she was actually done.
"Is it that important that you have to pray about it?" Kasey asked with his head tilted in confusion, much like a puppy.
"Well, it makes sense." Anissa began before Molly could start explaining.
"Really? Do tell." Jin teased her and she gave him a slap to the arm.
"Port Town's main income is its exports. And they wouldn't have much to live off without the imports. The sailors are in charge of both and, as such, are key essentials to their survival." Anissa pointed out and Molly nodded.
"That's exactly it." She said with a surprised look.
Jin gave a warm smile.
"You always did have a good head on your shoulders." Jin commented.
Anissa crossed her arms.
"I believe someone has to have some brains since you just have a good head." She answered.
Silence filled our group as everyone took in her sentence. Chase slapped a hand to his forehead as we saw Jin's grin change from warm to something far from what you would expect a respectable doctor to wear for a smile. Molly just held her head in her hands and shook her head rapidly in an effort to forget what she just heard.
Anissa suddenly gasped as she realized her mistake.
"Face! I-I meant face!" Anissa corrected herself, a second too late.
"Well, you would be the one to know about both." Jin commented and Kasey couldn't help himself from laughing.
"You-you…" Anissa began with a reddened face.
"You brought that one on yourself, Anissa." Chase said as he dragged Molly up the lighthouse steps.
"I'll have to agree with him." Winry commented before giving Kasey a harsh elbow to his gut to keep him quiet. I could only shake my head in amusement as we made our way up to the top of the lighthouse. I could hear Molly explain the ritual to Chase.
"After we give thanks to all the sailors, we then go to the lighthouse to watch the ships come in and out of the harbor. Back in the old days, it's said that this lighthouse used to have people from the community come up to keep a huge bonfire alight on the top of the tower. That way, ships could see the light. That's why we call it the Port Town Look Out. Because we're simulating looking out for the sailors."
"You seem to enjoy it." Chase responded to her.
"Well, Mom used to take me up here and tell me the stories." Molly answered back quietly as we reached the top.
I felt a pang in my chest. Molly had to grow up with only a mother. Unfortunately, Molly refused to be taken in by my mom, only because our dad was living with us. It was a complicated subject. But basically, Molly's mom and my mom had decided a lot of things without letting us know. I'm still not sure why my mom had chosen to keep our father around with her. Especially since he-
"Hey, Angela, can you walk any slower?" Kasey teased me. I was startled out of my reverie and back to reality. We were almost to the top and Kasey was basically trying to bum rush me out of the way. He was almost as excited as a kid in a candy store.
"Can you slow down!" Winry shouted at him and he could only laugh like an idiot as I moved over for him to get through. Winry sighed and quickened her pace after him. I could hear her muttering curses under her breath as she passed.
"Stupid frickin' potion made man." Was one sentence in particular. I gave a little laugh at her sour mood.
When I finally reached the top, the stars amazed me. They seemed just a little closer now that I was at the top of the tall tower. I stared on in awe at the marvelous lights of the world that were still so unknown to us. It was spectacular.
"Hey you gu…" I started but stopped short as I noticed finally that everyone was paired up with what seemed to be their significant other.
"Oh…" I muttered and gave a sad look back up to the sky.
"Nevermind."
It wasn't until now that I noticed how lonely I felt without Wizard here.
"He would've liked this view." I sighed as I made my way to a different part of the lighthouse's top. There was a different location with benches facing away from where the light was shining, so it was easier to see the stars. Plus, everyone else was watching for ships so I had the stars to myself.
I took in a deep breath of the cold and crisp air as I sat down to admire the stars.
"He's a jerk…" I muttered.
"Just getting up and leaving…" I rubbed my knees for a moment.
"...I still wanted to talk to him..."
The cold air started to seep through the thin material that my shirt was made of, and the chill of the night was probably worse considering how far up we were. A strong gust swept by and I could feel myself shiver horribly at the frosty feel it left me.
"Winter is definitely closing in." I said with a sour tone.
"Here." A familiar, tiny voice said from behind me. I turned with a start and saw the same little boy who had given me advice outside of Jin's hotel room last night. His light brown hair looked wind blown, obviously from all the sudden gales of wind coming toward us. His golden eyes pierced into my own brown hues and his mixed skin color gave him an exotic look.
He was holding out what looked like a cloak to me while he was wearing a thin looking jacket himself.
"You might need it more than me…" I answered him, giving him a wary look. Why was he up here?
He shook his head.
"My Mom taught me to always share." He said quietly and then gave a wide smile that made him look too adorable.
"What are you doing up here all by yourself? Where's your parents?" I asked, still not accepting the jacket.
"Don't worry, they know I'm here. I wanted to do the Port Town Look Out too." He said and nudged the cloth further toward me.
Reluctantly, I took it; it wasn't until I held it up to the starlight to find the arm holes that I realized what I was holding and gasped.
"Where did you get this?" I said in astonishment and worry as Wizard's cloak blew in the fierce wind.
"It's for you." The boy smiled, his eyes flashing with mischief.
"Did you want to take pictures?" He suddenly asked and pulled a camera out of his jacket pocket.
I could only give him a surprised expression as he placed the camera beside me.
"You know…of the stars." He kept talking.
"And, you know, you should put that jacket on. It'd be bad if you got a cold." He said the last sentence with a frown.
I looked back at the purple cloak in my hand, giving it a little smile as I slipped it on. It was very warm and smelled like coffee; even now coffee is a comforting scent to me.
"Who told you to give it to me?" I asked, already knowing the answer.
"Well, no one told me to give it to you." He answered and sat next to me on the bench.
…Okay that wasn't exactly the answer I was expecting. So I guess I didn't know the answer.
"But, it is for you. So don't worry about it." He said, seeming far more wise than his age would suggest.
"I see…" I answered and picked up the camera. This was a strange boy…but I felt like I knew him.
Before I looked through the lens at the sky, I noticed him give a small shiver, as if he were trying to hide it.
Strange as it may seem, I felt a deep concern for him…some type of closeness. So I didn't want him to just stand there and feel cold. It seemed that my mind and heart were on the same page today, because suddenly my body moved to grab gently on the boy's arm. I tugged him gently toward me.
"Don't just stand in the cold, you'll get sick." I said as I ushered him onto my lap so I could close Wizard's cloak over both of us. He didn't refuse the gesture; in fact I think he was happy by it.
We sat there together as we each took turns taking pictures with his camera. He knew a lot about constellations too, and he would point at the ones clearest to see before taking a picture of them. I took pictures of the stars that seemed to form something, like a flower or a weird looking peace sign.
"I'm not much of a star gazer…" I admitted.
"That's okay. It's fun seeing what you see…like a different view." He responded.
"Don't lie to me. I know I'm horrible at this." I deadpanned.
"Well...I wasn't lying the whole time. It is fun." He said and we giggled at our own antics.
It felt like an hour had passed when the boy finally hopped up from my lap.
"I have to go now." He said in a quiet voice. He seemed sad.
"That's right, your parents might be worried." I said and gave him a little smile.
"Probably." He was still pouting.
"Don't worry, once you meet someone it's impossible for you not to meet them again."
"Yeah, but…but we won't meet again for a long time." He said and twiddled with his fingers.
I patted his head.
"You don't know that." I tried to cheer him up.
He shook his head slowly.
"No, I do…" He said walking towards the stairs of the lighthouse.
"But it's okay. It won't be too long…maybe even sooner than we both think." He said, seeming to contemplate this sentence.
"You're a little quirky…what's your name?" I asked him as he put his hand on the rail, ready to guide himself down the stairs.
"…Beloved…" He answered.
"Eh…that's your name?" I asked, starting to pity him for his parents' name choice.
"No…that's the hint. Beloved." He said before dashing down the stairs.
"Hey wait!" I called but he was already long gone.
. . .
"What a strange little boy." I said quietly.
"Angela!" I heard my name called and saw Molly coming toward me.
"Molly? What's wrong?" I asked.
She gave me a worried look.
"I'm sorry, I didn't think about how Wizard wasn't here. You must've felt neglected. I'm sorry!" She said in a fast pace.
"Calm down, I'm okay." I answered, and I really was. Meeting with 'Beloved' made me feel much better.
"Are you sure…I heard that you and Wizard had a little conflict. Plus, since he's not here I…" She stopped short and examined me closer.
"Was…was he just here? You weren't wearing his cloak earlier." She asked.
I pulled it tighter around me and gave a chuckle.
"No, a messenger gave it to me." I said and looked at my hands, a little surprised.
"Huh, the camera's gone." I mumbled.
"Angela? You're not making any sense." Molly said with a worried tone; her face formed a little frown.
I shook my head and laughed.
"Don't worry about it. We should go back now and pack anyway." I suggested, standing up and stretching. My bottom was numb from sitting down with 'Beloved' in my lap for such a long time, and my neck stiff from looking up the whole time.
"Okay. Well, did you want some hot cocoa, or some chocolate fondue? Yolanda made it." She offered.
"Sure, let's go get some before we leave." I answered.
She nodded and started to head for the stairs where I also saw the rest of our group gathering, waiting for me to join them.
I gave a quick glance back at the sky.
"As long as I have your cloak, you have to come see me…" I said as if talking to Wizard himself. I certainly had an earful to give him, that's for sure.
Welly well well well...well. Looks like we'll be back to Castanet come next chapter! Excited to go back home everyone? Lol. Thanks again you guys, I'll take every single one of your words to heart. And my family thanks you for your words as well.
Stay cool my beauties ^3^~