by Vivien Reis
His eyelids grew heavy and his subconscious drifted quickly into a dream. He was floating atop a deep sea of crimson, something dark circling him below the surface. He treaded water, splashing at the shadowy object each time it drifted closer. His limbs grew heavy. The dark thing drew nearer, brushing against his leg. Icy cold shot through his body like an electric shock.
Ben was sitting up before he realized he was awake, cold and drenched with sweat. He threw the blanket aside and checked his leg, expecting to see a burn mark. But there was nothing. He brushed his hand over his calf, positive he could still feel the ice in his veins.
Was this how it had started with his mother?
# FOUR
As Abi shut the door to her room, something lightweight but scratchy hit her face. She flailed her arms, trying to both catch the object and guard her face from any more impending attacks. The item now lying on the ground was a duffel bag.
"We need to pack you some things. Although," Cora paused, assessing Abi's closet, "I have no idea what you could possibly wear from all this fashion faux poo clothing."
Abi picked the bag up and set it on the bed, fidgeting with the straps. "What's the plan?"
"You're spending the night. Say we're working on a project together or—oh! Say we just started my tutoring sessions." She wiggled her brows, proud of herself.
"Okay, so what time is the party?"
"We probably won't get there until around ten. Nothing much happens until then." Cora thumbed through Abi's shirts, picking out one that Cora had bought for her. "Oh, what about this one? Wait...what is this?" She held up the tag on it, turning to face Abi so fast that her blue hair fanned out and slapped into Abi's face and mouth.
"You know I have nowhere to wear that to." And Abi didn't. It was a mostly see-through black top with tiny black sequins all over it.
"Well, you're wearing it tonight. What cute bras do you have?" She started toward the dresser when realization dawned on Abi.
"I'm not wearing just a bra under this thing!" How did Cora even think that was an option?
"Do you want to look like Gram-Gram? No? Then wear something exciting, A!"
Abi stared.
"Okay, okay. You can wear a tank top under it." She threw it in the bag for Abi and they packed up the rest of her clothes.
They descended the stairs, Abi holding her backpack weighed down with books, and Cora with the duffel bag.
"Hi, Mr. Cole. Do you mind if Abi stays the night at my place? We wanted to work on an English project together." Cora had spoken before they even rounded the corner to the dining room, interrupting a conversation between Mr. Flynn and Abi’s dad.
Warmth rose to Abi's cheeks and she tried to put her mind elsewhere, to calm her nerves before her dad read her thoughts.
This is so stupid. It was a school night. What was she thinking trying to sneak around like this? She waited for the response she knew had to be coming.
"Is this necessary on a Thursday?"
"Well," Cora drew the word out, "it's not due until Monday, but we wanted to make sure we did all the research we needed to do tonight so we could write it over the weekend."
Abi was impressed. Cora was playing toward a history buff's obvious love for research.
"And you don't want to stay over here tonight? You're more than welcome to if you like, Cora."
Mr. Flynn took a swig of his beer and Abi caught a smile exchanged between him and her mom.
"I don't have any clothes, though, so I'd need to go home to get them and my English stuff. Plus my mom is baking a cake tonight, and I promised Abi she could have some."
"Abi?" Her dad's tone was harsh and Abi's throat seized up. "You're going to enjoy some of Joy's cake without bringing some over here?" There was a chuckle at the table and Abi let out a loud, coughing laugh.
"Where's Abi going?" Dread washed over Abi as her mom's eyes widened in panic, looking from Abi to her dad. This wasn't good.
"It's okay. She's going to go stay at Cora's house to study."
"Hmm…" The sound bumping rhythmically as her mom rocked a few times, hitting the back of the chair. "Nope. Not safe. Not safe. Nope."
Abi looked at Cora, wishing they could run out of the house and not have to worry about any of this.
"Mary." Her dad's voice was practiced—calm but firm. "Abi is going to stay at Cora's house. She'll be right up the road. She'll be safe."
"No, she won't!" she screamed. A glass of water fell to the hardwood floor, shattering.
"Abi, upstairs. Cora, I'm so sorry." Her dad ushered Cora toward the door as her mom grunted and swayed from one foot to the other. Abi obeyed, the excitement of the party gone.
Cora gave Abi a quick wave before the door clicked shut behind her.
Abi moved up the stairs, pausing at her bedroom door out of habit. Ben’s door was closed, no light coming from the gap at the bottom. How many times had they been sent to their rooms growing up, not because they were in trouble, but because their mom was upset about something?
She sat on the edge of her bed, listening to her dad and Mr. Flynn try to calm her mom down. It was all her fault. Her mom somehow knew she wasn't going to study and now she had ruined the entire evening for all of them.
Nearly an hour had passed when Abi heard a knock on her door, two quick taps, a pause, and another one.
Her dad.
"Hey bug," he said, stepping inside. "She's lying down right now."
"I'm sorry, Dad." Her eyes stung and she blinked rapidly.
"It's not your fault. Your mom's just tired and that happens." He checked his watch. "I think it might be a little too late for you to go to Cora's, though."
She waved, trying to quell the traitorous blush. "It's okay. We'll work on it this weekend."
He kissed the top of her head and left. No sooner had he pulled her door closed did Abi's phone buzz.
Look out your window.
Confusion gave way to horror as she pushed her curtains back. Cora was looking up at her, hands stuffed into her jacket pockets.
The window squeaked as Abi pushed it up. She cringed and waited expectantly for her dad to come barging back into her room.
Nothing happened.
"What are you doing?" she whispered.
"We're going to a party, remember? Come on, I already got your clothes down here." The duffel bag was still slung over her shoulder.
"Are you kidding me? I can't go out. Our plan kind of failed, remember?"
"Yeah," Cora whisper-shouted, "and this is plan B. There's a ladder right here, you just have to climb down."
Horrified, Abi imagined Cora sneaking into their garage to steal their ladder. Would her dad notice? Had he heard something?
"Don't worry about it, just come on, I'm freezing down here!"
Abi huffed. This was not panning out like she had imagined. Was this really worth it anymore? She wasn’t really in the party mood after setting her mom off. She had never snuck out before, and she wasn't this person.
But did she want to be?
Heat spread through her body, her blood pumping faster. Was she really about to do this? She strode to her door, turned on her bedroom fan, and flipped the lights off. After hiding a few coats underneath her comforter, she surveyed her work. It wouldn't hold up to closer inspection, but it would have to do.
She grabbed her things, slipped on her boots, and maneuvered out of the window, her boots crunching against the shingles. It was a cold night but she hardly noticed. The window squeaked closed and she climbed down the ladder, shaking but more with excitement than anything else.
They laid the ladder down beside the house for Abi to sneak back in later and jogged toward the trees. Abi's back tingled with heat, afraid her dad might peak out his window at just the right moment to catch her sneaking off.
It took nearly ten minutes for them to loop back around to Cora's car, which she had parked at Mr. Nue's summerhouse.
"You can finally breathe again, girl!"
"I can't believe I'm doing this." Abi looked at Cora and had to bottle up a small squeal. Her limbs tingled with excitement, itching to run, to move. Was what she was doing really all that bad?
Goosebumps rose on Abi's arms from the chilled air and the giddiness in her chest. The passenger side door to Cora's car was locked, and Abi bounced on the balls of her feet to keep some warmth in her body.
"Open up!" she yelled, laughing.
Cora jumped inside the vehicle and reached across to unlock Abi's door. "Your chariot, madam."
A giggle exploded from Abi's chest as she slammed the door shut behind her, breathless.
"Are you ready?" Cora gave a wicked grin and Abi tried to mimic the look, not entirely sure she'd done it right.
It had happened—Abi had officially been corrupted. She might as well have fun while she was at it.
Cora turned the car over and drove quickly to her own house.
A thousand questions flooded Abi's mind but she pushed them all down. She didn't want to ask questions tonight. She didn't want to be the responsible one.
Several turns later, they pulled into Cora's driveway. All the lights were on and Abi’s excitement grew, like a wave building inside her. Would it crash down or keep her buoyed for the rest of the night?
Most of the houses on their street looked a lot alike except Cora's. Hers had intricate trim and detailing in bold white, and so many roof levels that the house looked more like a castle. Two staircases led up to two red doors on either side of the porch. Her mom got a kick out of watching people decide which one to approach, even though they both worked.
They stepped through the door on the right and the warm scents of cinnamon and vanilla danced around them.
"Hi, Mom!"
Their foyer carried the theme of the exterior, making Abi feel like she had stepped through a portal to the 1800s. The hallway and sitting area were filled with antique furniture, polished to a shine with fragrant orange oils. They hung their jackets from two glass doorknobs that had been rescued from a condemned home before it was demolished.
"Hey, girls. I'm just starting the icing," Mrs. Robins called down the long hallway.
Cora's boots clacked loudly on the wood floors as they stepped into the bright kitchen. "We're going to go to that party with Jesse later."
"Oh okay." Cora's mom didn't take her eyes off the cake, smoothing out an unseen bump before taking a satisfied breath.
"Looks great, Mrs. Robins." Abi tried not to hover as she poured just enough caramel over the top of the smooth cake to spill over onto the sides.
"Wait until you taste it! It's caramel cinnamon cake with a crisp pastry middle layer and light buttercream frosting." Joy gave the cake an affectionate look before she came out of her trance, shooing them out of the kitchen. "Go get ready, girls. You'll have a piece before you go. You don't want Jesse to leave you again!"
They raced up the stairs and headed back toward Cora's room, passing dozens of family photos hanging on the walls. Abi spotted a new one of Jesse, Cora’s older brother. He was only two years older but Abi could count on one hand the number of times she had actually spoken more than a few words with him.
“Blegh—computer science boarding school. I officially have a nerd for an older brother.” Cora continued on, but Abi lingered. His face had lost its boyishness; his jaw and nose was sharper and his shoulders broader than they had been a year ago.
“Hey mom, I’m home!” A male voice boomed from downstairs, familiar but deeper now.
Abi scurried into Cora’s room, fighting an insane urge to hide as she closed the door.
Cora's room was actually two rooms connected with a large archway. One side had a bed and the other smaller room had a comfy Victorian seater next to the closet door.
Abi distinctly remembered the moment she realized that Cora's room was larger than hers—they were in the third grade and Abi looked around her, seeing for the first time what Cora had and what she didn't have. When Abi had asked Cora why that was, Cora had responded, "That side is yours, silly."
Before Cora was born, her dad had launched an app that Google offered an outrageous amount for. Her parents traveled the world together before settling down in the smallest town they could find and having Cora. Jesse joined the family later, when he was eight, but had spent most of his life in boarding schools.Although the house looked like an old home, it had been purposely built to look like that.
A few clicks on Cora's phone and music hummed low throughout the room. Abi changed in the closet and came out to find that Cora had already applied dark makeup to her eyes. The smoky look made the blue in them pop even brighter.
"Your turn!"
Abi did her best to put makeup on her eyes but Cora could only watch her struggle for the length of a single song.
"Oh, girl. Put me out of my misery. Please." Cora took the makeup brush from Abi and sighed dramatically, batting her lashes like she was holding back fake tears. "You don't know how long I've been waiting for this moment."
Abi laughed. "Oh yes, I do." She closed her eyes and let Cora fix whatever it was she had done so wrong.
"Open!"
The girl in the mirror looked years older and attractive. Like a woman.
The door opened and Jesse stepped halfway into the room. He wore a dark red sweater that fit well on his new frame, his black hair combed and gelled. Abi heart stuttered. She had always had a crush on him, but now…
"I told you to knock, loser!" Cora grabbed an empty handbag and threw it at Jesse, who stepped behind the door to dodge it.
He popped his head back into the room. "I'm leaving in ten." A makeup brush flew at him but the door shut just in time.
Cora huffed and strode into her closet. She and Jesse didn't have the same relationship that Abi had with Ben. When they teased each other, it seemed playful, and ended with both still in happy moods. Abi could never find the fun in getting teased by Ben and never reciprocated. Sometimes she thought it was because of her mom. The family was always so tense and serious after her mom had gotten sick, like a dark cloud loomed not just over her, but over the entire house.
"Celebratory toast." Abi spun the chair around to face Cora and her chest froze over. Cora held two small glasses with a brown liquid at the bottom of each. "I know you haven't had liquor before, so I want you to try it in a safe place first."
Abi's hand reached for the glass without her permission.
"Of course, that's not to say we won't be in a safe place later, but you know what I mean. Just hold your breath, throw it back, and exhale through your mouth. Easy. Cheers!" Cora clinked their glasses together and motioned for Abi to lift hers.
She did. Cinnamon hit her nose before the alcohol hit her belly, exploding with warmth. She didn't even have a chance to exhale before she started coughing, her eyes tearing up. Cora laughed and before she knew it, Abi was too.
"Ugh, it's awful!"
"Come on. Cake and then a party!" Cora grabbed Abi's hand, pulling her along.
Abi's face hurt from smiling so much. Her head was airy and her cheeks warm, but in a way that made her feel alive.
Mrs. Robins was doing the dishes when they came down to find two pieces of cake already cut and on plates. Abi's mouth watered. It was rich and sweet and each bite tasted even better than the last. They were nearly finished with the cake when Jesse came downstairs.
"Ready?" he called, staring at his phone as he walked into the kitchen.
"Born ready, baby," Cora answered.
Jesse glanced up and spotted Abi. "Wait, she’s actually coming? Look at you corrupting people.” He bumped knuckles with Cora and held his hand up to give Abi a high five. Adrenaline swept through her. She was embarrassingly bad at high fives but managed to make some contact with his hand.
He stole Cora's plate and popped the remaining bit of cake into his mouth.
"Help yourself," Cora grumbled.
"You kids be safe. I mean it!" Mrs. Robins kissed each of them on the forehead. "Now go ha
ve some fun."
It was so strange. An adult not only allowing them to go out, but seemingly supporting the idea. Mrs. Robins had been raised in an Amish community, where it was normal for the teenagers to be allowed to "sin" before deciding to stay with their family or leave. They would get it all out of their systems before typically choosing to be baptized within the Amish church.
Joy had chosen to leave the community but still believed in this party phase.
"It's about a thirty-minute drive," he said, glancing from Abi to Cora. "Try not to kill me with your music this time."
"Psh. He claims he doesn't like my music, but I caught him dancing in his seat last time."
He paused then unlocked his rusted and dented old car. "That wasn't dancing. That was a seizure."
"Mmhmm, sure."
Jesse climbed in behind the wheel and Abi took the back seat, expecting Cora to take the front. She slid in next to her instead. "Drive on, chauffeur!"
He gave an exaggerated sigh and Abi could feel his eyes rolling. The car roared to life, and they were on their way.
Abi had never been in Jesse's car before. It was scuffed and beat up on the outside, but the interior was spotless and smelled nice. His dash glowed with green lights that faded to red and blue around the sound system.
Cora played some fun tracks, the delicate beats layering and twisting away from one another as they left the city limits. Abi was conscious of Jesse's presence in the front seat but as she sang along with Cora, her voice grew louder the further from home she got. She was glad she’d decided to go out. This publication was an achievement she would remember for the rest of her life.
They drove east, toward Louisville and the college closest to their town. The leaves were just starting to change, light yellow spreading into orange as the headlights swept over them. A small city opened up in front of them, the buildings coming closer together until Jesse turned left. He maneuvered through the streets with ease, not bothering to reference his phone. Jesse finally turned right on to a street where girls in high heels walked beside boys with drinks in their hands. They were all headed toward the same place.