Circumstellar

by J. W. Lolite

  I decided to jog to Lesia’s house. The cool breeze washing over my face and extra exertion helped to siphon away some of my frustration. If my life was going to continue on this track, I might need to take up running full time.

  Now that my mind was starting to clear, I allowed myself to think back to what my aunt spoke of. From the way she went about storytelling, she might as well have been drunk. If anything, the whole thing just brought up even more questions. I had confirmed that my father was indeed a different sort of . . . being. So much so that my aunt and uncle had done everything to prevent my mother from seeing him. But who was this other woman she kept going on about? My father died protecting Mom and me from some jealous ex-girlfriend? Okay, I’ll be the first to say that was a bit anticlimactic for my tastes. Shaking my head, I decided not to dwell on the recount for the rest of the evening. But – “I never understood why father always insisted we learn to fight. I mean, there was no point in it. It had been lost so long ago.” My aunt’s words kept coming back to me. Stubborn as I was, I refused to admit what my aunt had told me had anything to do with Meissa’s senile illusions. Even if they were kind of similar. Only a bit!

  Coming to Lesia’s house, I leaned over to catch my breath. I really needed to work out more. The scent of what promised to be a delicious dinner floated to me, and all thoughts of insane women’s tales drifted to the back of my mind. My stomach wouldn’t let anything interfere with this new task.

  I didn’t bother knocking and just entered the house. Mrs. Delaney had long since told me I was welcome to come and go as I pleased. Following my nose, I made my way to the kitchen. A woman with short, curly brown hair was peering into the oven, while Lesia sat at the kitchen table reading a book. One of her silly romances probably.

  “Hi, Lesia. Mrs. Delaney,” I greeted, setting my bag on the floor and taking a seat next to Lesia. She looked up from her book, smiled at me, and then went straight back to reading.

  “How are you today, Ingrid?” Mrs. Delaney asked while coming over to set out plates on the table. Looked like only four tonight.

  “I’m doing well. Dinner smells great, as usual. Is Mr. Delaney not here?”

  “No, Oliver is out of town on business, and Eden insisted on going with him. It’s just us girls tonight.” She winked. “Oh, and Ty,” she added.

  “Nah, he pretty much counts as one of the girls,” I said, prompting a giggle from Lesia. A smirk crept onto my face when a voice rang out from the hallway.

  “Just who is a girl?” Ty entered and took his place at the table. Like me, he had freedom of entrance. I was relieved to see he looked to be in a much better mood than he was this afternoon. A part of me was afraid he would still be trying to avoid us and skip dinner, but another part of me was confident he would show up. Like me, this was the one home-cooked meal he got every week.

  “Oh, no one in particular,” I waved off innocently, “or important.” He kicked at me under the table, and I wasted no time in launching my counterattack. Laughing and kicking, we entered into battle.

  “Ouch!” Lysia yelped, dropping her book. “Glad to see you two are back to normal,” she said, rubbing her shin.

  “Sorry!” Ty and I apologized at the same time before breaking into more laughter. Lesia spent a few futile seconds trying to continue her book before tossing it to the side and shaking her head at us. Ty gave her a sympathetic look and then turned his attention to Mrs. Delaney.

  “That smells delicious, Miss Celia. I can’t wait to see what amazing dishes you’ve prepared for us tonight,” he complimented, turning on the charm. I rolled my eyes, and he gave me one last sly jab under the table. I was about to retaliate again when Mrs. Delaney came over with her arms full of serving dishes. After helping her set the load down, we eyed the feast. Roast beef, mashed potatoes, corn, and fresh buttered rolls. Simply marvelous. My mouth began salivating in anticipation, but I willed patience into my body, waiting for my hostess to give the okay.

  Taking her seat, Mrs. Delaney smiled at all of us. Her soft brown eyes were the very picture of her daughter’s. Gentle and kind, it was easy to see where Lesia got her traits from. “You know you don’t have to wait for me. Please, help yourselves,” she indicated to the bowls.

  Taking the initiative, I grabbed a spoon and heaved a load of food onto my plate. Ty showed restraint I could only dream of possessing and insisted on waiting until all the women had been served. By the end of the evening, there wasn’t a single scrap left; Ty and I saw to that. We helped Mrs. Delaney clean up, and Ty thanked her for the meal before heading to the door. The Delaneys didn’t have a problem with me spending the night, but since Ty was a boy, it was kind of frowned upon. So, it was customary for him to leave after dinner. At least, that’s what Lesia’s parents thought. He really just left out the front door and snuck around to Lesia’s window.

  “Wait, Ty,” Mrs. Delaney called after him. “Since Eden’s not here, you can use his room if that’s all right with your father.”

  “Don’t worry. He doesn’t care,” Ty said, his voice as dry as a desert. Smiling at Mrs. Delaney, he accepted, “But thank you, Miss Celia. I would love to stay the night.”

  “It’s settled then. I’ll put some fresh sheets on the bed,” she said, walking towards to door. “I’ll be in my room if you need anything. Don’t stay up too late.”

  “Wow,” Ty commented once Mrs. Delaney was out of earshot. “She actually trusts us enough to leave us unsupervised.”

  “No. She knows we aren’t stupid enough to get up to anything while she’s in the house,” Lesia replied with a casual air.

  “Or the majority of us anyway,” I said, shooting an accusing look at Ty.

  “I know. It’s so hard to keep you under control.” He sighed.

  “Oh, that reminds me,” Lesia burst out at the comment. I felt mildly offended that a statement about my lack of control could remind her of something. “Let’s go back to my room.”

  We followed her through the house to her bedroom. Lesia’s room was much nicer than mine. It was cleaner for one thing. All of her things were arranged and put away, while my floor was littered with clothes and my meager belongings. A desk covered in school notebooks stood in the corner. Her big, full-size bed rested against the wall by the window allowing for a great view of the sky. Lesia and I sat on the bed, and Ty pulled up the chair from the desk. We both looked at her expectantly. She didn’t say anything, but instead made a motion towards me. When I just gave her a bewildered stare in return, she opened her mouth.

  “You said you’d tell us what happened,” she clarified.

  Realization dawned on me, and I knew there was no way I was going to get out of this. Gathering my thoughts, I spoke, “Yes, I did. But before I start, you have to promise not to overreact.”

  My friends looked startled for a few moments before glancing at each other and then nodding. I knew full well there was no way they were going to sit through this and remain calm, but I felt I needed to give them fair warning. I wanted to keep this as quiet as possible.

  I told them everything that had happened after I left Clive’s. Sure enough, the bombardment of questions and concerns came. “Are you sure you’re okay?” “Why didn’t you say anything?” “I knew I should have gone with you!” Shushing my friends, I continued on with my visit to Meissa. I recounted the story she told me as best I could remember. Finally, I told them about what my aunt said about my father – the important parts, anyway. After I finished all I could recall, I looked at each of my friends. Both of them were silent, lost in thought. I guess they were trying to piece together the puzzle as well.

  “So,” Lesia began, “are you going to go back and see her? The woman at the temple . . .”

  “I don’t see what the point would be. She’s obviously off her meds,” I said, stubborn defiance shining through. There was no way I was going back. I couldn’t believe Lesia even suggested that I do.

  “Even if she is just a witch on the mountain,” Ty mused, “
she may have something useful to say.” Not him, too!

  “Get real,” I argued, crossing my arms. “I’m not going!”

  “Okay, okay,” he said, raising his hands in defense. “I’m just saying she seemed to know a lot about the, um, Ankida. You’d be surprised at what crazy people can tell you,” he tossed in, trying to lighten the situation. It didn’t work.

  “Whatever,” I grumbled. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him shake his head.

  We sat in silence again until Lesia let out a yawn. “Maybe it would be better if we all slept on this,” she said. “It’s getting late, and this is a lot to think about.” She got up and grabbed her pajamas before heading to the bathroom.

  “That’s probably a good idea,” Ty agreed, standing up and walking over to me. “Hey, Ingrid, will you help me walk down the hall? It’s pretty dark.”

  I continued glaring at the bed for a few seconds before giving in. “Fine.” I stood up and made my way out of the room. Ty followed and closed the door behind him. I had to admit, it really was pretty dark. With Ty close behind, I made my way to Lesia’s older brother’s room. When Ty opened the door, I turned to leave.

  “Wait.” He reached out and grabbed my arm. “I want to talk to you.”

  Irritated, I turned back to him. “What?”

  “I just wanted to apologize for earlier. At lunch, I mean. I didn’t mean to blow up at you like that. It’s just that,” he started, walking into the room and pulling me with him, “it’s been eight years.” He sat on Eden’s bed, and I joined him, all of my previous anger washing out of me. “She just left us,” he whispered.

  I looked deep into his forlorn eyes, and my heart ached for him. I knew exactly what he was talking about. Two years before I moved here, Ty’s mother just up and left one day: no goodbye, no note, nothing. Ty and his father had gone to the park one morning, and when they returned, she was gone. A few of her clothes, some pictures, and an old suitcase were the only things she had taken. She left everything else, including two broken hearts.

  My aunt liked to literally drown her sorrows in alcohol. Ty’s dad, on the other hand, had a different vice: work. Ever since his wife left, he buried himself in his work, escaping home at the crack of dawn and not returning until the moon was high in the sky. It was his way of coping – shutting himself off from the world, including his own son. But I knew he still cared in his own way. He always made sure Ty had some money for the week. And as for Ty –

  “Why are you smiling?” he asked. He sounded so lost.

  “I was just thinking about when we were kids. You remember when I first moved here?” The fond memory filled me.

  “Yeah, I remember,” he said with a small smile of his own.

  “You used to be such a bully. All the other kids were scared of you.” I laughed. “They all warned me stay away. And then, when we went out for recess, you came right up to me and grabbed my arm. Do you remember what you said?”

  “I remember,” he replied, his voice filling with mirth. “I marched you in front of all the other kids and told them that you were mine and that no one else could play with you.”

  “That’s right!” I giggled. “And you kept it that way, too. Right until Lesia tapped you on the shoulder one day and said she wanted to play with me. And what did you say?”

  “Well, I guess so.” We were rolling on the bed at that point, trying to stifle as much of our laughter as possible. It had been too long since we had goofed around like this. Gasping for air, I sat up and wiped my eyes.

  “Must not have been able to resist that pink bow,” I joked, nudging him with my elbow.

  “It was too cute,” he admitted, sitting up beside me. “Thanks, Ingrid. You always know just what I need to feel better.”

  “Well, obviously.” I smirked at him. “We’ve been friends for how many years now?”

  “A lot,” he replied, smirking back and meeting my eyes. As we gazed at each other, I could feel the atmosphere in the room shift into something completely different – new, but wonderful. The moon shone through the bedroom window, striking his eyes and making the deep cobalt orbs shimmer with a light almost as intense as mine. I was slowly drowning in them, sinking deeper into his very being. Let me be consumed. His breath was warm on my face, and I vaguely wondered if Lesia’s mom was a heavy sleep – Lesia!

  Bolting up, I offered a hasty “good night” and made a beeline straight for the door. I didn’t even turn around or wait for a reply. When I opened the door to Lesia’s room, I saw that she was already in bed. As quietly as I could, I retrieved my things and entered the bathroom. Bright red blotted my pale face, and I set about dousing myself with cold water from the sink. Trying to settle myself down, I started brushing my teeth and preparing for bed. Once finished, I crept out of the bathroom and eased into the bed beside Lesia, hoping my heart wasn’t pounding as loudly as I thought it was.

  “Good night, Ingrid,” she mumbled in a sleepy voice.

  I swallowed a couple of times before finally whispering, “‘Night.”

  “Oh, and Ingrid?”

  “Yes?” Shut up, stupid heart!

  “You really should go visit that Meissa woman, again.”

  I glanced at her from the corner of my eye and saw that she was gazing up at the stars. “Okay, I will,” I promised, hoping she would fall asleep. She rolled over and sighed into her pillow. I also turned and tried to will myself to sleep. I lay there listening to Lesia’s soft, even breaths. Eventually, I relaxed and the world began to fade away.

  Chapter 12

  Retrograde

  The sound of running water filled my ears, and I stirred awake. Blinking a few times, I looked around the unfamiliar room. Memories of last night came back to me, and I sat up, shielding my eyes. Lesia’s room was way too bright during the day. Plopping down on the floor, I grabbed my bag and pulled out my clothes for today: a pair of ratty, old jeans and a plain blue T-shirt. Since Lesia was already in the shower, I decided to go ahead and get dressed. I sat back down on the floor when I was clothed and thought back to what my friends had to say about my predicament. I didn’t get to dwell too deep, though. The scent of sausage caught my attention, and I came to the conclusion it would be a crime to think about such serious matters while a plate of perfectly good food went cold.

  I made my way to the kitchen and saw Mrs. Delaney fixing three plates. Sitting down at the table, I greeted, “Good morning.”

  “Good morning, Ingrid,” she returned with a cheerful smile. “I hope you’re ready for breakfast.”

  “I’m always ready for breakfast,” I said, eyeing the plates.

  “That’s what I thought,” she said, setting one down in front of me. The plate barely hit the table when I started digging in. She put one beside me and then sat down with the last. I raised my eyebrow, unable to ask with my mouth full of eggs.

  “Ty already left,” she answered my unspoken question. “He was up pretty early this morning. He said he needed to get home and talk to his father.”

  Doubt washed over me, and I wondered if that was the real reason. We had just managed to patch things up, and I went and screwed it up. We were laughing and having such a good time and then bam!, out the door I go. But in that one moment, I could almost swear . . . Get real, Ingrid. He was probably just being a good friend. In fact, he probably didn’t even mean for anything weird to happen at all. I longed to be close to him for so long that I just saw what I wanted to see, felt what I wanted to feel. Now he was home wondering what the hell my problem was.

  “Oh, I’m sure it was nothing you did,” Mrs. Delaney spoke as though reading my thoughts. At my startled look, she laughed. “The walls are so thin in these old houses, and Eden’s room is so close to mine.”

  A furious blush lit across my face, and I sputtered for a few seconds, trying to come up with any sort of excuse.

  “No need to be so embarrassed,” she said, patting my hand. “I’m actually rather relieved. I thought I might have to go in there.”<
br />
  I didn’t say anything as I focused on devouring my food, hoping the effort would hide my flustered state. I barely managed to avoid chocking when I heard the chair beside me scrape across the floor.

  “Slow down, Ingrid. I wouldn’t want to have to rescue you so early in the morning. You need to breathe a little,” Lesia said, grabbing my shoulder. “Look, your face is all red.”

  “Did you girls sleep well?” Mrs. Delaney asked, changing the subject. I was so grateful I almost forgot she was the cause of my discomfort in the first place.

  “Yes, I was so tired,” Lesia replied.

  “That’s good to hear. Your father called me this morning. He wants us to meet him so we can go out for dinner tonight. We’ll leave after breakfast. Ingrid, I’m sorry to have to leave like this.”

  “No, that’s okay.” I said, picking the crumbles off my plate. “I’ll just get my things and head out.”

  “Mom, I want to stay with Ingrid,” Lesia announced. I couldn’t help but smile at her fondly. It was nice to have such a good friend. One who thought you were important enough to want to spend time with, even away from family. But family was important, too. It was the foundation of our lives – a source of warmth, stability, and care that people like Ty and me could only dream of. It was something I knew Lesia, unknowingly, took for granted. I didn’t want that for her. I wanted her to go through life without regrets. I wanted her to appreciate all the great memories her home could give.

  “No, Lesia, you should spend the weekend with your family,” I said. She looked like she wanted to press the issue, so I continued, “I’ll be fine. I have a knack for finding things to do.”

  She still looked concerned but agreed with reluctance. Mrs. Delaney smiled at me, and I stood to take my plate to the sink. After cleaning it up, I turned and said my goodbyes before retrieving my things. I exited the house and started walking aimlessly down the street. Now what? I really had no destination in mind. There was no way I was going home, yet. I was still too hurt to make amends with Auntie. She would have to pick herself off the floor.