THIRTY- SEVEN

I wanted to show the note to Ms. Lucy but she wasn't around, she was acting a series.

I waited till eight in the evening for her to come back and she did, but not in her car, or in the driver's seat.

Lucille and I went to welcome her and when we were alone, I showed her the poison note.

She looked at it intently then said,"That woman is evil incarnate."

I shrugged my shoulders and asked,"Whose car was that?"

She was quiet for a few seconds before she said,"Gerald."

"Who's Gerald?"

"...my boyfriend."

She blew up my tiny mind by just saying those two words,' my boyfriend '.

"You have a boyfriend? Since when?"

"Since last year."

I had trouble absorbing the new news.

"Then why haven't you let Lucille meet him yet? She doesn't know."

"She still has trouble accepting that her father is dead, it will take a little more time for her to recover."

"But wouldn't she get mad if she found out you've been lying to her? Like I did?"

She looked down then up again then nodded.

I waited outside Lucille's room as her mother had private time with her, letting the cat out of the bag.

Lucille seemed surprised at first and hugged her mother, saying,"I just want you to be happy, mom."

Maybe that's how I should have reacted with Mark.

Mark was lying on a luxurious bed, thinking about me, when the door to the large room opened.

He looked and saw Oleh, modelling towards him and groaned silently.

"Snookims, are you okay? You haven't come out of your room for three days."

"...and why would you care?"

"Because I dote you."

"You dote me? Then why don't you prove it?"

"How, my snookims?"

"You know what I want."

"...you know I can't take you back to Tommy."

"That's why we have a one-sided relationship."

"Oh no no, please... maybe I could take you for a visit."

He suddenly sat up, with a brighter, more vibrant and happier countenance and asked,"Y- you could do that?"

"Clark may not like the idea but I'm sure I can convince him."

Mark couldn't hold his joy anymore and he lifted her into the air and spun her, while thanking her, and she laughed.

He placed her down after three rotations and he thanked her again.

"Okay, I have to go and get your ride ready."She said and left.

Mark slumped on the bed again and smiled, then he got up to go for lunch.

I was having an I.T. lesson a few days later, then I heard the doorbell.

Lucille went to open it and a tear streamed down my cheek when I saw Mark...

I stood up, while breathing heavily and ran to him in tears of joy. If this was real, this was the best day of my life! But if it was a dream, then I never wanted to wake up.

I ran into his outstretched arms and he carried me, I realized he was crying too.

"Mark, I missed you so much!"

"I missed you too."

"But how did you escape?"

"...I didn't and I still have to go back, I'm sorry Tommy."

My mood almost changed but I suppressed it, I didn't want any anger to ruin these few moments I had with my little brother again.

Lucille dragged her mom to see Mark and when Ms. Lucy saw him, she frowned.

Mark also frowned and we the kids could tell they really despised each other.

Ms. Lucy just walked forward, with the grace of a dolphin and met him eye to eye, then said,"Welcome back."

Still with a frown on her face.

Mark said coldly,"Me being away from you is the only reason I liked being abducted."

She shrugged her shoulders and left and Lucille just joined our hug. Mark was confused, but hugged her as well.

Mark and I spent time together, talking, going places, buying stuff, playing together, yes, his bank account was thawed.

We were at the Brooklyn bridge when Mark's phone rang, he looked sad and said,"I have to go."

"No please don't go! I don't want to be separated from you again, please!"

"But us being separated is the only way I can ensure your safety."

"I don't care about my safety, I care about you!"

"Tommy, please don't say that, take care of yourself so I can have a brother to come back to."

Tears welled in my eyes as he left Ms. Lucy's house after three hours together.

Ms. Lucy and Lucille tried their best to console me, but only Mark's presence could.

I went to bed without eating supper, I didn't want to, but then I remembered Mark's request for me to take care of myself.

So I descended the stairs again, and ate all my food then went for a shower.

On the mat, I still couldn't sleep, looking at the stars with unnecessarily complicated names. And I remembered Mark when I stared at the bright star he called Rigel, it warmed my heart to think about our good memories together and not the bad.

I slept peacefully for the rest of the night.

The next morning, I was having fencing class, I had two points while Lucille's small, mobile and nimble body gave her the advantage of getting twelve points.

I knew I could have easily won, it's just, that was my first class, yet she had been doing it for years...I think.

I was walking in the garden when I heard something, a bustling in the bushes. I went closer and a strange looking creature crawled out, I had never seen anything like it before! It was hideous! I almost screamed!

Till it began to claim me.

A cat?

I picked it up and removed the leaves, twigs and some of the mud on its soft fur and shed a tear...

"Ash!"

I hugged the heavy cat as it lazily dangled and eventually started licking me.

"I thought you died in the explosion of the mansion!"

It meowed and I squeezed it to my face with my eyes closed and a big smile on my face.

"Tommy? What are you doing here?"Lucille asked.

I turned back and showed her the cat and she screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Shhhh."

"What the heck is that thing?"

"It's my old cat."

"Cat? It looks like Bigfoot got married to warthog and got a kid!"

"He's just dirty, that's all."

"Then we better wash him before he ends up in my nightmares."

I shrugged my shoulders and we washed it, it was even too lazy to resist and I loved it that way.

When we took him to show to Ms. Lucy, she sneezed...

Cat allergies...