After the Matterhorn - Chapter Seven
by Cre8iveWriterX yahoo .com
Wow, it has been months.
For some reason this chapter was harder to write, I had to take a break.
Oh, and you have no idea how many bus stops and train station waiting periods went into this.
Not to mention the many handwritten, scribbled pages of my notepad.
I ended up sitting, waiting in the train station promising myself I would have this chapter finished this week.
And here it is!
Another weeks worth (or two) of waiting for buses and I will have the next chapter up.
Please let me know what you think, I answer all reviews.
.
.
.
.
*** REVIEW RESPONSE ***
Lucky 27 Mars:
Glad you enjoyed the chapter.
I spent a while getting it right, keeping the flow while still writing in the turning points.
It's one of those things you have perfectly in your mind, but you need to illustrate it for others with words.
DiceRox09:
Dave did seem harsh, but I don't blame him either. You are right, it is important.
And don't worry, things will be brightening up for the Chipettes soon enough :-)
I have the ending in mind, just need a few more chapters.
.
.
.
.
*** CHAPTER SEVEN ***
What a night! Dave was no authoritarian, he was no private life peeker who policed the lives of other people, he was just a caring and responsible parent. Dave knew that the Chipettes were not his responsibility and had no right to intrude on their lives, but a moral responsibility? That he felt. A collection of thoughts stemming from 'what-ifs' and child hardship scenarios spun through his head. And so over cups of hot chocolate in the living room, Dave and his three boys shared what truth and knowledge they had about the girls and how they pulled through life.
It was a mixture of feelings. The boys knew they weren't 'in trouble' as such, in fact one could argue that having the boys as trusted confidants helped anchor the girls in the world. Was it not at the same school as the Chipmunks that the Chipettes enrolled themselves? Would the girls have done the same if they didn't have Alvin, Simon and Theodore as friends? Most likely not. And boys being boys, the thought of living in a treehouse with no parents did at times seem very, very cool indeed. It would not be fair to criticise the boys as being people who lacked the more mature & responsibility-inclined thinking patterns of society - they were still young boys after all. And as their father, Dave knew this. And it would take a lack of empathy to lecture the boys on staying silent. The life of the Chipettes was a different world to them in a way. And acceptance of the different is a child-like trait.
Dave assured the boys that he was not about to report the girls to any authorities, so long as they were not in any danger. The boys were relieved. Within each of them, they silently scorned themselves for doubting Dave on this - thinking he couldn't be trusted. But what now? Well Dave wanted to speak to the girls, hear their side of the story of how they came to live in a house up a tree. Neither Alvin, Simon nor Theodore knew the truth behind their current situation. They never pushed their Chipette friends for those details.
Meanwhile, the Chipettes themselves were also sitting, talking, reflecting.... They were in the center of their little house, around their lone sofa. Nothing in particular was on their minds apart from their upcoming tour - but none of them were in the mood for discussing that. It was too late in the evening & they just wanted to unwind. As it was, they were talking about the Chipmunks. And Dave. Just talking the night away as girls do. But the conversation at hand had suddenly changed as Brittany realised they were missing a case. With the help of Eleanor and Jeanette she had gone through every case and bag they had brought back.
"Yes, we definitely left it behind." remarked Eleanor. "Not left behind at the airport, I remember Jeanette stacking it on top of the Chipmunks' bags.
"Well then we should call them," Jeanette stated as she stood up from the case Brittany had made her look through - twice, "Or go over and...."
"And get Dave to drop it over here?!" interjected a sharp answering Brittany. "C'mon Jeanette."
"Oh Brittany, stop thinking like that." Eleanor responded with a roll of her eyes. "We used to manage just fine without night time face cream and such."
Eleanor had just touched on the topic of their past. It wasn't a taboo topic, not at all. Just not a subject that was brought up at the drop of a hat. It was an unpleasant past. But it was a past they all shared and had kept them close. There was this.... understanding between them, the kind that only close family members could comprehend. Particularly if they all shared a common tragedy or sorrowful time in their lives.
Brittany and Jeanette knew what Eleanor meant. "We know we can do without it Ellie, but nonetheless, it is still something we have lost." Jeanette factually replied.
Brittany ceased her searching. "Well I hope the boys enjoy the face cream & mint toothpaste." she said. "They probably have discovered it by now, don't you think?" she asked no one in particular.
"They just haven't called, that's all." Eleanor answered, "If they did, Dave will no doubt offer to bring it to our, ahem, apartment."
There was a little silence as all thought about this.
Jeanette ended it by saying, "I have been thinking about what happened.... Well, I have been thinking.... do you think we could talk to Dave? Tell him the truth? I still feel unhappy about tricking Dave after all he has done for us on this trip, I just feel we should tell him."
Jeanette half expected her sisters to come down on that proposition like a jumbo jet on the runway. Although they didn't. It appeared as though they were thinking it through as though it were a reasonable suggestion. Eleanor had the next word.
"You know, I have been thinking the same thing. It's funny but over the past few weeks it seemed as though Dave has gotten to be, well.... how would you say it Brittany?"
Jeanette and Eleanor turned to Brittany who had a crinkled expression on her face. Like she was not sure of what emotion to display. And with a faraway gaze fixed on nothing in particular.
Her heart was tugging away, it knew what she wanted to say....
"Like he was the kind of person the Chipmunks always said he was", it urged her lips to speak.
Four weeks the seven of them had spent together. Dave hadn't fathered over them as such, the Chipettes always had a three bed room to themselves, as did the boys, and during the concert events and sightseeing outings Dave didn't try to act 'down-with-the-gang' or be anything more than a trusted guardian, but that is what did it – the casual acts of kindness and the everyday manner of Dave Seville. Dave would notice things that most others would not, or if they did, not give a second thought. Such as the time when the seven of them were having breakfast on their first charter plane trip within Europe.
It was during the early hours of the day and as they were pulling out the breakfast snacks each of them had packed, Eleanor realised she forgot to pack some of those single serve sachets of orange marmalade – the kind that is peeled open to reveal a delicious blob of jam perfect for a single slice of bread. Unbeknownst to Eleanor, Dave had noticed how she always seemed to go for those first in the hotel restaurant, even sneaking a couple out for those quiet concert backstage periods. So that morning while everyone was preparing to leave, Dave ducked down to the hotel restaurant and asked the kitchen staff for a handful of jam packs, 'just in case'. A thoughtful act really, which resulted in a surprised and delighted Eleanor who never expected something so small, yet so thoughtful.
To the girls, this is what made Dave more than a guardian or father of their friends.
Brittany's mind was recounting these experiences, her mind processing them as a flash of emotion. But as much as this certain something inside wanted her to agree with her sisters, there was something else. Maybe by saying how good it felt to have Dave around – not as an authority figure but as a person to fall back on – she would be admitting that their perfect, self-sufficient lives were missing something. Something that would make them a complete family. And the thought that she and her sisters did not count as a family was unthinkable!
So she flustered. Shaking her head and hands she blurted out, "Oh I don't know."
Then paused. "Dave was nice. Nicer than I thought. But he is still Dave. And, and...."
She halted again, this time looking up at Eleanor and Jeanette with a directing gaze and a slight flare of hot emotion flushing over her face.
"Well what is wrong with us the way we are!" she let out with a demanding tone.
These unexpected words took Eleanor and Jeanette off guard. As far as they knew, they were talking about Dave and how they might tell him a few unshed secrets.
What was Brittany talking about? They didn't know what was churning about inside her subconcious mind. Brittany herself probably wasn't aware. Unless she happened to be an expert in the field of self-psychoanalysis – which she wasn't. Simon maybe.
Eleanor spoke up. "Uh, Brittany? We 'are' talking about Dave, right?"
Brittany took a second to recompose herself and her thoughts.
"Well I'm just saying...," she began before placing down a large sigh.
"I just don't know if he will understand." she admitted.
"None of us do Brittany." replied Eleanor.
"But he knows us, or at least knows us better now." continued Jeanette. "And if you were Dave, could you do something that would put someone you care about in a bad place?"
A bad place. What exactly does that mean? Where does that mean? Was it figurative speech Jeanette was using or did she have a literal, physical place in mind? If so literal, then where? And with whom?
Well there was no actual place in mind but if any ordinary person would try to imagine a place where futures were uncertain, people around them unappealable, and where the freedom to live and find out who they really are and what they can be is held from them – basically a place that is bad with a captial B – that person would most likely be unable to identify such a place in the real world.
The Chipettes on the other hand would not have to imagine very hard as they had already lived in and escaped from such a place. It was unfortunate these were the only feelings they could link to their long-distant orphanage, as most other childrens' homes would never approach these levels of un-life.
Nevertheless, the girls would never let themselves go back to any sort of childrens' institution. But made to live in a home with a guardian.... or foster parents...? Funny, they had always shuddered at the thought of being told where to live and with whom, but seeing how the boys lived with Dave and experiencing a taste of that themselves had opened their eyes. Of course they would still never choose that over their current life, but somewhere in the back of their minds a seed had been planted – maybe the world was not such an unliveable place. Maybe there really did exist people such as Dave who might truly understand them.
And so in the discussion that followed, the Chipettes decided they would go to the Seville household next morning and ask Dave if he wanted to 'take a walk in the park' with them.... to help get the feeling of home-sweet-neighbourhood back, they would tell him. Then they would stop under a certain large tree that was very close to their hearts and open the door - the door to their home and their life.
But could they trust Dave? How could they be sure that Dave wouldn't make a phone call to 'the right people' afterwards? There was no way of being sure. Risk is part of friendship. You cannot grow closer to someone else if you keep up your guard. The girls could always keep to themselves, never being open with another living soul, living a safe and secure life.... But what lonesomeness. No.
They trusted Dave.
They wanted to trust Dave.
They hoped they could trust Dave.
Trust not only with the secret of their life – past and present – but with their very future.
All in the hope that he may be one of those people who might understand them.