- Part 1 -
Arrhythmia
I saw a ghost on the stairs,
And sheets on the tables and chairs.
The silverware swam with the sharks in the sink,
Even so, I don't know, what to think.
I've been longing for,
Daisies to push through the floor.
-Owl City
There is a lingering fear that comes with the events of the morning that doesn't fully set in until Aubrey is outside and trying to decide what to do with herself. Her senses feel like they've been forced into high alert as she strains to hear music or to see anything out of the ordinary. Out of all the places on the island to escape to, she settles for sitting on the steps leading up to the inn - partially because she doesn't want to be wandering around alone, but mostly because the overpowering floral scent that surrounds the building has already become familiar and it makes her feel slightly less like something bad is going to happen. But 'slightly less' is only slightly lower on a paranoia spectrum. But is it really paranoia if Inductive Reasoning is taken into account?
Someone has gone out of their way to try to scare her, therefor they will continue to go out of their way until she is visibly scared.
But Inductive Reasoning is not always logically valid because it is not always accurate to assume that a general principle is correct.
Aubrey straightens her posture and stares straight ahead at a tree, trying to think of something that will stop her from thinking in general. She felt safer with Chloe, but going back to their room is not an option. Not until this whole Beca-ordeal is forgotten about again. Beca is as much of a threat as the blood on the bathroom mirror; and the thought leaves her both furious and uncomfortable. She should not be viewing Beca Mitchell as a threat. Beca doesn't even have any promising qualities. But she's not exactly jealous of who Beca is. That would be ridiculous. She doesn't know why she's focusing on something so illogical. She shouldn't be jealous at all. Chloe might like Beca, but Beca is getting married to Jesse. And it's not as if Chloe belongs to Aubrey anymore.
She taps her fingernails against the stairs to the rhythm of I Saw The Sign - making sure not to miss a beat so that she doesn't have to start over. She shouldn't even be thinking about Beca to begin with. Compared to 'crazy' written on her bathroom mirror and Wedding of the Winds playing through her phone, Beca is irrelevant. She's nothing more than a minor irritation. But, still, Aubrey keeps thinking about her. She focuses on tapping - the lyrics becoming a mantra in her head. She wishes should could just shut her mind down for a moment and reboot. It's an all too familiar desire.
She stops tapping long enough to press her fingers against her temples then slides her hands down her cheeks. She lowers them so she's gripping the edge of the step she's sitting on. Her nails clack against the cement again - this time in just a simple, steady rhythm.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
This is pathetic. Aubrey rolls her eyes at herself and pushes herself back up onto her feet. Her problem isn't with Beca (or with anyone for that matter); it's that she's caring too much. She is the problem. She brushes her hands off on her shorts and steps down off the stairs then paces back and forth in front of them. She's making mountains out of molehills when there are more pressing matters she should be thinking about - for instance, what kind of case her boss will be placed on when she returns home. She bites her thumbnail and continues walking back and forth, thinking about all the possibilities. Not thinking about Beca or Chloe or ominous music or deer. She is not thinking about them.
She considers texting Brian, to ask if she's missing out on anything interesting - but she doesn't. She briefly wonders if he's caving under the strenuous workload without her there to handle half of it. She can't contact him when he could be busy. She could text Conrad – ask how the café is running. No, she doesn't even have his number. She chastises herself for even thinking about it and turns to walk in the other direction again. She manages to take one step before something with enough force to nearly send her toppling backward crashes into her legs. Aubrey lets out a small yelp and grabs the railing at the bottom of the steps to keep herself upright.
Before she can get a look at her assailant she looks up to see Amy half-jogging toward her, panting and sweating. "Sorry!" Amy gasps and comes to a halt a few feet away, placing her hands on her knees. "It keeps getting away." She makes a vague hand motion then bends forward and resumes trying to catch her breath.
It. Aubrey blinks then looks down, her hand still gripping the rail so tightly that her knuckles are turning white. Her heart slows back to normal when Stacie's daughter stares back up at her and grins from ear to ear. She stiffly unlatches her fingers from the rail and flexes them a few times. "You say 'excuse me' when you run into someone," she directs the little girl lightly and places a hand on her head. It's never too early to teach kids manners.
"Oopsie," Sophia offers. Close enough. She grips the hems of Aubrey's shorts then cranes her neck to glance back at Amy. A hysterical giggle escapes her lips and she circles around so she's behind Aubrey and throws her arms around one of Aubrey's legs, nearly knocking her over again.
Aubrey makes an 'oof' noise and turns in a full circle trying to keep track of her, but Sophia just laughs harder and circles around with her. Aubrey stops again and looks at Amy. "Where's Stacie?" she asks curiously.
Amy looks up. "Some scavenger hunt," she answers - still breathless. She walks over to the stairs and tosses a butterfly-patterned bag onto the ground then sits down on the step beside it. "I should've kept up on that cardio."
"Kids will keep you in shape," Aubrey agrees.
"A Mee!" Sophia frees Aubrey's leg and bounds over to Amy. She launches her upper half onto Amy's lap. "Up!"
Amy tilts her head downward and stares at Sophia in exhaustion. "You're too much for me, Kid," she denies the request. She looks up at Aubrey. "Aubrey-"
Aubrey looks down at her as she speaks, but Amy is cut off by Sophia.
"A Bee!" Sophia shrieks and spins around to face her. She thrusts her arms in the air. "Up!"
Aubrey complies. She glances behind her at the stairs then sits down on the same step as Amy. Sophia clambers over to her and Aubrey lifts her up and positions her on her lap. "How long are you babysitting for?"
"Til the bonfire." Amy leans back with her elbows on the next step and looks over at Aubrey and Sophia. "Stacie's going somewhere with Cynthia-Rose once they're done scavdnging and Donald's with Bumper."
Aubrey gives a half-nod to acknowledge the answer and looks down at Sophia.
"What dat?" Sophia asks.
"What's what?" Aubrey asks.
"Dat." Sophia points to the daisy chain around her neck and pokes at one of the flowers with her pointer finger.
Aubrey glances down to see what she's pointing at. "Those are daisies," she explains then looks at Sophia. "Can you say 'daisies'?"
Sophia stops jabbing the flowers with her finger and stares at Aubrey.
"Daisies," Aubrey repeats.
Sophia grabs the chain and lifts it up, looking under the flowers with curiosity. "Daisies!" she announces. Aubrey grins and lifts her chin with a sense of pride.
"Good job, Kid." Amy reaches over to fist bump Sophia. Sophia looks at her fist then high-fives it.
Aubrey smirks and settles back against the step behind her - resting in the same position as Amy, propping herself up with her elbows. Sophia turns and kneels on Aubrey's legs, leaning over her shoulder, and roughly tugs her hair out of the way so she can examine the flowers on the back of the daisy chain. Aubrey reaches around her head and pulls her hair over her shoulder.
Amy stares at her incredulously. "How do you do that?" she asks.
Aubrey turns her head (which unfortunately places her hair in a spot vulnerable to Sophia's fingers again) and lowers her arm back down. "Do what?" she inquires and furrows her brows in confusion. She tilts her head as Sophia accidentally yanks down on her hair. It doesn't really bother her.
Amy lifts a hand and waves toward Sophia. "Convince her to stay still for five seconds," she elaborates. "She's been on speed for the past hour."
Aubrey blinks. She looks at Sophia (who seems to be thoroughly engaged by the flowers) then returns her gaze to Amy and just looks at her. "I had siblings," she tries to explain it. They often acted the same way around her - until they became of age where they learned to hate her, of course.
"Me too." Amy sits up. "I used to run away from them because they'd pull my underwear up over my head." She pauses. "Got a little awkward when I stopped wearing underwear."
Aubrey wrinkles her nose and tries to determine how to respond to that.
Amy pushes herself to her feet. She looks behind her then down at Aubrey and Sophia. "Do you think you could...?" she lets her voice trail off.
"Could what?" Aubrey asks and frowns. She isn't a mind-reader, and it's a pet-peeve of hers when people assume that she is. Sophia yanks her hair again and Aubrey reaches behind her head and gently tries to untangle it from the little girl's fingers.
"Ehhh." Amy looks at Sophia.
Aubrey followers her gaze. "I could watch her?" she makes an assumption. It's clearly phrased as a question, but Amy apparently chooses to see it as a statement.
"You're the best." Amy points at Aubrey. She looks at Sophia. "Later, Gator."
Sophia spins around. Aubrey doesn't have time to respond to Amy. She grabs Sophia by the waist until she's situated on her lap again so she doesn't fall."A'fer while, Dile!" Sophia responds loudly enough that the entire island probably hears her.
"Amy!" Aubrey tries to get her attention as Amy turns and starts 'vertical running' away. "I have things to do today," she lies - but Amy is practically already out of earshot. Aubrey huffs and turns her attention to Sophia.
Sophia flashes a toothy grin and entangles her fingers back in Aubrey's hair. "Hi, A Bee!"
