Lost In Purple
Chapter 35: Driving Back & Moving In
Johnny's POV
"Alright you two, ready to go back to school?" Evelyn asks from the front seat of her Trolloyta.
"No, but we'll manage," Melanie sighs while putting her seatbelt on. I laugh and do the same, making sure I don't tear a hole in Evelyn's car with my horns.
Evelyn adjusts the rear view mirror, and shifting into gear once she finishes. "Oh it won't be that bad. I mean, you've got Jonathan with you."
Melanie smiles when I wink at her, and we watch as the neighborhood begins passing us by. All the time I spent here these past few weeks will be nothing but a distant memory… at least for another year. I'm fairly certain I'll be coming back next winter break to do the exact same thing all over again. It will be nice to go back to what I know though, I feel like I've been trying too hard to not come off as the worst person in history which has proven successful during both Christmas and Christmas Eve.
This drive back is also fairly reminiscent of a camping trip, or some rod trip for that matter. I can remember the times when my grandfather would take me out to the Monstropolitan Mountains and have fun with me during the weekends that my parents couldn't watch me. Evelyn has forced Melanie to take almost all of her belongings to the ROR house since she'll be living there now, so the entire car is packed to the brim with boxes of clothes, school supplies, and home decorations that I gladly spent the time shoving into the car for them. Everything I got her for Christmas is also in here, so there was even more than they were expecting. I remember how I felt when I traveled down here for the first time, feeling unsafe and creeped out about the neighborhood, but now I feel like I'm leaving my second home which is somewhat sorrowful. The many buildings with amazing amounts of character soon pass us by and we're greeted with the sight of the Monstropolitan skyscrapers that paint the sky with modernity, along with many faces maneuvering down the sidewalks and walkways. The traffic is also abysmal, causing us to slow down quite a bit when we start tailing the 400 people ahead of us. It could of been worse though, it could have been rush hour and we would not move for a solid three hours.
The view of the city dissipates after a while and we see the usual rich suburbia that Monsters University lies within. The many trees that once fluttered in many different colors, now have no color or life and show the bare bone skeletons that twist into the air like art pieces. Everyone seems to be a little tired and or down in the dumps around here, probably because the holidays are over and everyone's about to go back to school/work for the next few months without a break. Hopefully things will become a little more positive next week when school does start up, because I myself am excited to finish my last semester of college as well as the Scare Games, but not excited to deal with all of this drama that has come up recently.
The times comes for Evelyn to ask where she must drive to get to Frat Row, and I guide her towards the eastern side of campus where we turn into the abandoned looking road that winds all the way down to the cul-de-sac. I'm shocked to see that nobody has come back yet. Everyone in every fraternity and sorority, excluding the JOX, have left for the break and they usually come back as soon as New Years Day, but the street is still as quiet as it was just two weeks ago. This happened to be the first time all the JOX have stayed for winter break too, which was beyond concerning since that gave them the opportunity to prank everyone and or throw parties without worry. I'm going to have to tell all the presidents about possible issues aren't I? I also can't believe it's already been an hour, it's only felt like 15 minutes to me but that might be because I'm with these two.
"Oh my! Jonathan! This is where you and your friends live?!" Evelyn gasps in bewilderment, snapping me out of my thoughts.
"Yeah. Can't say it's as cozy as your place though," I answer.
"Oh that doesn't matter, what matters is how big the kitchen is! I bet it's humongous!" Evelyn infers.
It figures that that's what she considers to be the most important. I don't blame her though, food is kind of a necessity in terms of life. "You can come inside if you'd like. I'm sure the guys would like to see you one more time before school starts," I offer.
Evelyn pulls up to the sidewalk, right in front of the ROR house and puts the car in park. "I'd love to! I'd might as well see Melanie's room too, I'd bet it's huge isn't it Mel?"
Melanie opens the passenger side door, stretching out her locked up muscles. "Yeah, they're bigger than the dorms."
Evelyn and I hop out of the car as well, and venture to the trunk to start unloading everything. I'm able to stack quite a bit of things into my arms all at once so there won't have to be that many trips back to the car. I have Melanie open the front door for me, and I enter the house cautiously, taking note of everyone's location in the house so that I don't bump into them. Luckily, everyone is mostly sitting in the main living room.
"Bienvenido a casa, Miss Everett!" Javier shouts from the couches near the fireplace.
Melanie sets down a bunch of her boxes and struts further in to greet Javier, Chip, and Bruiser. Evelyn follows behind her, and surprises them all when she springs towards them so she can shower them with love. Since I don't want to do all this work by myself, I double check to make sure the car is all locked up with a quick glance, set down all of Melanie's belongings, and shut the front door so that we can keep the cold air out. I'm feeling a little thirsty anyways, so maybe this is the best time to quench it.
Melanie's POV
I watch my Mom assault Bruiser with loads of kisses to his eyeballs, while Javier and Chip laugh at him. It doesn't seem like Bruiser cares though so that's good. He blathers like a child and laughs like a dummy, but it's cute nonetheless.
"I don't think your Madre wants to leave you here," Javier whispers.
I wouldn't doubt it. She is one of those mothers whose entire life is based upon her family, so watching them leave hits her harder than you would think. "While that might be true, I know she'll be alright. She's told me that she won't cry or anything since she already did that last semester," I reply, "And I trusted her when she said that."
Mom finally lets go of Bruiser, leaving him a little bit dazed and about to fall over. "Are you boys ready for school to start?"
All of them shake their heads. "Nope," Chip answers.
"Aww, is it really that bad? I'm sure you're all excited to at least scare some more," Mom asks.
Javier chuckles. "No, it's not really that bad. We're just tired of sitting in class doing nothing for months. The only reason we'll be able to get through this second semester is the Scare Games which start the first week of school."
"The Scare Games? What is that?" Mom asks.
"It's a competition specifically made for the Scaring fraternities and sororities. It's made up of several different challenges that end up proving who's the best of the best in terms of the Scaring Program," Chip explains.
"Yes, unfortunately the Scare Games are pretty dangerous and tend to send people to the hospital every year," Javier adds.
Mom gasps and points to all four of us. "You had all better be careful, I will be so angry with you all if I learn that one of you are on life support!"
Javier and Chip lift their hands up, almost backing away from her even though their smiling. "Don't worry, we've been trained for it," Chip elucidates.
"Mmmm, why do I not believe you two?" Mom counters.
"No really, there hasn't been a ROR who has been sent to the hospital in over a decade. Johnny makes sure that none of us even come close to being injured as well," Chip continues.
I hear a couple of thuds come from upstairs and to my left, and see Johnny enter the room right next to his. I'm assuming that's the room I'll be inhabiting and is in between his and Javier's. I leave my Mom to continue having fun with the three boys, and find my way upstairs to check on the enormous purple rich boy. When I enter the room, I'm met with the same layout as Johnny's room. There a bed up against the right wall, a window along the back wall, and a bathroom to the left. "This good enough for you princess?" Johnny asks after setting down the boxes in his hands.
"Oh yeah, this is more than enough," I reply while staring out the window and seeing the Scaring School still standing tall and proud. It's much more pretty looking at it from afar, because I don't think I've ever appreciated the light blue dome on top of it like this before.
"I ended up bringing every last thing up here while your were busy blabbing with those idiots, so you should be all set," Johnny states with a smirk.
"Wh- don't talk about them like that," I growl.
"I'm jokiiiing!" Johnny groans while shutting his eyes and putting his hands on his hips.
"Well it's not funny," I add.
"Well I'm just glad that I now have someone else here that isn't a child in disguise…you," He says pointing to me.
While that is flattering, I still can't believe that he talks to his brothers like that. "Oh my god, you're soooo charming," I jab.
Johnny walks towards me and engulfs me with his monumental physique. "You know it," He winks.
I can't help but let him hug me like this because he really is just one big teddy bear. No matter how sad I might be, all my emotions would just melt away by just relaxing into his acts of love. Johnny pulls me up from behind my thighs and puts his head in my chest. "I really do think things are going to be a lot better with you around."
I put my arms around his head. "We'll see. I just hope you all won't get sick of me after a few weeks. I've been told that I'm pretty high maintenance."
"Who said that?!" Johnny growls while looking up to me, with furrowed brows and almost baring his teeth.
"N-no one… I just over exaggerated," I reply out of shock.
Johnny sighs and pulls his head away slightly. "One thing you've got to learn to do around here is that you don't take that kind of bullshit from anyone. ROR's are able to stand their ground and keep others from telling us that we're worthless."
"I-I'll try," I add.
Johnny puts his head back into my chest and closes his eyes this time. I hear a couple of creaks coming from the hallway, and I hope that it isn't one of the boys who will then make fun of us. However, I can tell that it's my Mom when I hear the light thumps turn into the room which sound similar to when she walks down the hallways at home. "Aww, aren't you two adorable," Mom announces.
Johnny opens his eyes instantly and lets me land on my feet with ease. "S-sorry Ms. Everett, I somehow forgot you were still downstairs," He admits.
"Oh don't worry about me, I got to see the kitchen with Mr. Rios anyways so there's no reason for me to be angry," Mom remarks, "Now I get to see Melanie's new room which looks incredible already!"
Considering that she's the one that's all about interior design, cooking, and home life, I'm astounded to hear her say that when the room is basically empty. Usually she would criticize every little detail like the thickness of the paint on the wall and the symmetry of the furniture that is in the room.
"I'll help her get comfortable these next few days, so you can be sure that she's in good hands for the rest of the year" Johnny adds.
"Oh you're such a good boy Jonathan, thank you," Mom says giving him a hug. "I guess this is where I leave you two then."
I feel my heart become somewhat heavy hearing her say that. I also vividly remember how she was before last semester started, which subsequently caused me to not leave my dorm room because of how much I missed her. That same feeling engulfs my heart. "Do you really have to?" I ask as she comes over to hug me, "You can stay for a little while longer if you'd like to."
Mom shakes her head. "It's probably for the best. You two have a lot of work to do, and I don't think I should be here distracting you," Mom replies.
"How would you distract us?" I scoff.
Mom shrugs as she lets me go and places her hands on the sides of my head. "I don't know, I just know you're a grown up now and want to do things on your own."
As much as growing up is considered to be an essential part of life, I really wish I wasn't one. Everything has become so difficult within a mental and an emotional standpoint, and I don't even want to begin thinking about life when I actually have a job. My worst nightmare would be working as much as my Dad does, and things so far aren't looking very good. I feel slightly better when she kisses my nose and scratches my head for a few seconds, sending my tail into overdrive.
"She'll always be there for you Mel," Johnny says quietly.
"And I'll be there for you too Jonathan. Here…" Mom adds before taking out a piece of paper with some writing on it, "Call me if ever need to, I'll always answer."
Johnny doesn't hesitate to grab the paper and places it into the pocket inside his sweater with a grin. "Thank you."
Mom takes a few steps back while placing her hands behind her back. She looks around and smiles brightly, but I can tell she's a little upset behind that façade. "Would you two walk me out?" She asks.
With two quick nods, we follow her out to the car and give each other our final hugs. Johnny opens the driver side door for her and helps her into the car as if he were some sort of butler. When she closes the door, she puts on her seatbelt and turns the key to make the engine come to life. Johnny and I watch her as she turns her head and blows us a kiss before turning the wheel and disappearing down the street. Just like that, it already feels like an eternity without her.
"We can visit her from time to time if you want. I myself feel a little upset seeing her go," Johnny offers while feeling downhearted.
At that moment, music blares from the JOX house, implying that they'll be partying all night.
I put my hand up to my temple, already tired of the music they're playing. "Yeah, I might need to do that to get away from all of…this."