Her dress swirled as she waltzed around the room, one of her partner's hand grasping hers and the other holding her close by her waist. They twirled and danced and shed sweat on the dance circle.
A little girl watched them from afar. The sight bewitched her eyes, but she didn't know how to dance, and even if she did, nobody around her seemed enthusiastic about dancing with her one day.
She scratched her head. The maid Dominic ordered to get her ready tied her hair back too tight. It hurt her, but the maid said that way was prettier. She also told her a certain dress she didn't like was prettier, but she insisted on dressing in a simpler dress, a beige cotton dress that actually had sleeves. She wondered what was wrong with adults fashion. Their dresses didn't look pretty one bit.
'Lea,' she heard a boy's voice behind her say.
She gasped and turned around.
His messy hair was combed neatly by his mother that morning for the party. She was there when she fought with him about his necktie, and trousers, and blazer and basically everything about his suit.
She understood him though. He looked stiffer, and even though slightly more handsome, he didn't look the same, lax Hunter she knew. She gasped when she noticed their heights matched. Her ugly high heels made their heights match.
'I'm as tall you are,' she teased.
He looked down at her feet.
'I think they're the shoes.'
She puffed her cheeks. 'They are the shoes.'
'I mean, you usually wear sandals, and my sneakers make me look taller than you. Right now you're wearing normal shoes.'
Her eyes widened. 'How dare you. These are high heels. I hate these.'
'No, they're not. They're normal shoes,' he said as if that was the most obvious thing in the whole wide world.
'Whatever!' she said and turned around.
'Wait, Lea, I'm bored. It's boring here. The only thing people are doing here is dancing and drinking.'
Lea looked again at the partners who dazzled her. 'They don't look boring.'
'Who?' Hunter asked, but when he followed her line of sight, he saw them. They were the most energetic pair in the ring. They didn't try to look calm or 'adult like'. They just took the ring and let their feet lead them in the waltz which caught the attention of a lot of the adults who danced practiced performances in the ring.
They were free.
Lea wanted to be like that.
'It looks fun, Hunter.'
He nodded.
'I want to be like that one day.'
'True...'
A Thought crossed her mind, and even though it made her blush, she felt the need to say it out loud.
She had to say it.
Lea looked down. She held her hands together and her shoulders tensed. Her face was red, but she felt she had to say it.
'I don't want to just dance like that.'
'Then what?' asked Hunter.
'I want to one day be like that with you.'
He gazed at her for a couple of seconds then shrugged. 'Why not? I can ask mum to teach us when we get home.'
Lea gasped.
'Then it's a promise? One day, we'll--'
'Wait, promise? Why would we promise? We can just waltz at home.'
'I think we'll be adults by the time we get that good. So I guess we need to get married firs--'
'I never said that!'
'But... but you said "why not".'
'I didn't think you were serious about being exactly like them!' he yelled out and pointed at the dancing couple.
'Hunter, that's rude! Don't point at people!'
They both looked up at the owner of the voice.
It was his mum.
###
She was disappointed the trip was cancelled, but there was nothing to be done. She reminded herself that the DVD would be released after 2 months anyway, so it wasn't that big of a deal. Also, since she was in this part of Kornwell, she might as well indulge herself in some fast-food restaurant.
Lea walked on the sidewalk, her school blazer tied around her waist and her backpack lazily hung over one shoulder while chewing mint flavoured gum, which she loved very much. She felt lucky she didn't invite Katherine and Sally over. It sounded like an abnormal request really, going to another city just to watch a movie which will be released in DVD format in a couple of months anyway. Now that the train was cancelled, she was delighted she got spared from the embarrassment.
She heard a ringtone from her trousers' pocket. Lea sighed as she dug inside the pocket to find her phone. There were only two people in her contacts, and one of them rarely called her.
'Hello,' she answered.
'Hi, Lea,' a young male voice replied. 'I guess from your unexcited voice that you didn't hear the news.'
It was really him.
'Which news...?' she raised her brow and stopped walking.
'Can you stop chewing that gum first? It's annoying.'
'Sure,' she replied. She found a nearby dustbin placed in the edge of the sidewalk some distance away after scanning the street. Lea skipped towards it and threw her gum. It didn't bother her. She had loads of those in her backpack.
'Anyway,' he started again, 'Dominic said it's fine.'
Lea froze on her spot. She had to reaffirm what she just heard.
'Dominic said it's fine?' she asked.
'I believe that's what I just said.'
Lea's eyes widened. 'Really...?'
'You're gonna giddy around like an excited child?'
She could imagine him smirking in her head and restrained the happy fluttering butterflies in her stomach.
'It's a nice nugget of news,' she said, trying her best to sound nonchalant and indifferent, 'so I can't say I'm not somewhat elated. He actually said that.'
'Yep...'
'That's... nice...'
'Nobody will say anything if you hop around like a grasshopper now.'
'You will!' she exclaimed and shut the line.
She lost any feeling of elation she had because of his attitude. He would never lose a chance to find her act like a child. She didn't care how she appeared in people's eyes, but he always made remarks and comments about her reactions or looks or popularity or whatever else he wanted to comment on everytime he got a chance to and it annoyed her to no end to have someone always questioning her ways.
Lea vented her frustration by stomping her feet on the paved sidewalk, and some people stopped by her and frowned on the ruckus she made.
Then she felt it...
... and ran.
###
'That was it?' asked the detective.
Mark nodded, 'Yes, sir.'
He tapped his bearded jaw with his pen. 'Really...?'
Mark wanted to leave. He did feel better after the accident, but he was still slightly nauseated, and the interview didn't help make him feel better. If he didn't drink water soon, he might as well throw up.
'No extra piece of detail at all?' the Tec asked with sharpened eyes.
Mark shook his head.
The detective took the notepad from the desk separating them and scribbled on it. 'This was kind of short.'
'We're over, then?' asked Ian.
Mark looked back at his father sitting beside him. The last thing Mark wanted was to get interviewed with his father in the same room and being told, 'Act as if we're alone, son. You don't have to worry.' Sure, Ian didn't look interested in the interview in the very least, since Mark told him everything that happened, which wasn't much, before the police spoke with him, but it's not often that you're given a test and told your parent will watch, just 'ignore him'.
Yeah, right...
Regardless, that didn't affect his testimony much. He didn't see much of importance in the scene anyway.
'Sorry, I couldn't help much,' Mark said. In the inside, though, he wanted to muscle bust him and follow by a suplex if his stomach wasn't in such a rebel phase.
The detective looked up at him from his writing and smiled. 'Don't worry about that, son. You look a bit blue though. Why didn't you take a sip?' he asked and gestured towards a water bottle placed in the corner of the table. Mark didn't notice it before, and when told, forgot all the ill feelings he had towards the detective for pestering him about the scene and reached out for the bottle to serve himself.
'If you didn't feel well, we could've always paused and let you rest. I already told you that.'
'Not like there was much to say,' Ian pointed out.
That was why Mark loved his dad.
Mark only nodded at the detective, but still felt a bit hollow and funny inside. He was lucky the police gave a care about his case.
'Do you want to see the doctor again?' the detective ignored Ian and asked.
Mark shook his head. That woman looked more interested in his abs than anything else. He would be lying if he said she didn't disturb him... a lot.
The detective kept his gaze on him for a couple of seconds as Mark stared at his knees then turned to Ian.
Mark wanted to leave as soon as possible. There was no need for them to be there.
'So, you said you're his foster parent?' he asked as he reached for some papers in the table.
'You didn't have to,' Mark thought.
He hated it when people mentioned Ian wasn't his real Dad. Mark never cared for that piece of detail. His Dad was his Dad no matter what happened. He pestered him about school and ordered him to wash the dishes and threw him at uncomfortable public gatherings when he never felt ready 'to man up' just like any normal parent would do.
'Ye... yes,' Ian replied.
'Do you have any means of contact with his biological parents? I believe they have the right to be informed.'
Ian cleared his throat. 'No, I'm afraid we don't.'
The Tec took a random notebook from the table and scribbled more notes on it. 'Well, then,' he said and cleared his throat, 'don't hesitate to give a call if you ever think you remembered something important,' he said and handed Ian a card.
Ian accepted it and took a look.
The detective stood up. 'Well, that's it. Good evening, Mr. Lakerson, Mr. Hawthorne.'
'Wait, it's already evening?'
Ian stood up and shook hands with him. 'Pleased to work with you,' he said. Ian was probably squeezing his hand for making them wait there though.
After they were done, the detective proceeded towards the door and opened it.
Ian and Mark followed him, and, when they got outside, noticed two police officers were situated by the door. The detective nodded at them, and one of the officers faced them.
'Excuse me, but someone is waiting for Mr. Hawthorne in the reception. Are you familiar with a "Dennis Cleaver"?'
'Yes!' Mark nodded and replied.
The two officers exchanged looks. Mark blinked when he saw the shoulder of one of them relax.
'He's in the reception room. You can meet him there.'
'Got that, thanks,' Mark replied.
All of a sudden, the detective remembered something. 'Mr. Lackerson, I'd like to have a word with you.'
'Aaaaah, forget that,' Mark thought.
'Dad, I'll go catch up with Dennis,' he said.
Ian's attention snapped to him from the detective. 'Ok, that's fine,' he said hastily. 'Just don wait for me, OK?'
'Got that...'
One of the officers offered Mark to accompany him to the reception, and Mark shook his head. He headed towards the reception by himself, and once he moved, he saw the lady doctor walk towards them with a serious face, yet, once she passed by him, she winked.
He grimaced.
She hurried towards one of the officers and, Mark overheard a part of their conversation.
'Haemophobia, eh...?' said one of the two officers. 'I heard of people like that, but never met one.'
'It didn't look like a mild case,' she said, 'but it will at most, cause discomfort. He can still...'
Ignore and walk away...
He marched till they were out of earshot then slowed down his pace. He hoped Dennis had a watch with him. Mark's biological clock was messed up since the accident. He could still remember the scene, but it always made him want to throw up again. Forget his Haemophobia. The scene itself was too grotesque and intolerable. It could make anyone wants to run away, but more than that, more than anything else he saw or happened. There was a feeling. It was too strong to be ignored; a feeling that someone else was watching. It was too real, but he didn't mention it to his dad or the detective, nor was he planning too. It sounded too illogical and irrelevant.
He really did find Dennis in the reception. He was yelling at the reception desk lady about knowing someone here, and she ignored him and spoke on the phone while checking her nails.
'Are you even listening to me?' he asked.
'Yeah, you see, that's what I've seen,' she said, and after waiting for some seconds, She gasped. 'Are you serious? She told you that? He actually proposed to her?' She giggled. 'Here I was worried about how can we make them do it already.'
Dennis sighed and face palmed.
Mark raised his hand. 'I'm here,' he said.
Dennis wasn't far away from the door Mark came from, so he noticed him even without him trying to make a ruckus. His eyes widened, and he dashed towards him.
'Maa¬rk!'
He was kicked in the stomach before he got near enough, and toppled backwards on the floor.
'Don't get too near, you filthy meat sack,' said Mark as he readied his fists.
'That's harsh.'
Mark said that, but in the inside, he was relieved he was reunited with Dennis. Dennis understood that, and didn't say anything as he stood up, his stomach still hurting.
They stood there in the empty reception, facing each other in silence. The only sounds were the giggles of the reception lady.
'What happened? How did you get involved with the cops?' Dennis asked at last.
'There was a body in the restroom,' Mark answered flatly.
Dennis's eyes widened. 'You saw a body?' He held Mark by the shoulder. 'Mark are you all right? I won't forget what happened when you watched that movie with me the other night.'
'To be frank, I wish I can tell you everything your heart desires, but I want to stay with myself for a bit. It's not like much happened anyway.'
Dennis just stared at his friend.
'Can you stop doing that?' Mark asked. 'It's disturbing.'
'I'm trying to figure out whether I can believe you or not,' Dennis explained. He let go of Mark's shoulders and shrugged. 'You know, you were always too chill.'
Mark raised his brow.
'Was I?'
'Tell me when you feel like it, will ya?' he asked with a faint smile.
Mark nodded after understanding what he meant. 'Sure.'
'So... you're alone here?' Dennis asked and walked to a nearby chair.
Mark shook his head. 'No, my dad's with me.'
Dennis slumped in a couch he showed a liking to. 'So, are you like waiting for him?'
The reception desks lady's giggles got higher. Mark and Dennis both stared at her, and she dried some tears in her eyes. 'Sorry,' she apologised once she noticed them. She then cleared her throat and continued on the phone.
Dennis shot her a death glare. 'Say, Mark, why don't we leave? I'm kinda choking here. Looks like they're not installing the right type of air conditioner.'
'I'm sorry,' said Mark. 'Dad said we should wait.'
Dennis grumbled.
'Did you talk to Valerie?' Mark asked quickly. He wanted to change the subject.
'Yeah,' Dennis mumbled. 'She said that her car broke down, so she'll take time.'
Mark was the good friend he was, so he decided to offer Dennis something. 'Why don't you come over at my place with Dad till Valerie fixes her car? We got Netflix.'
Dennis brightened up and raised his head. 'You're serious?'
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