PA 3.5: End of a Tail

Chapter X Part IV

There was the sound of the front door opening as each cat and dog in the living room called out with goodbyes, and the duo took the moment to respond in kind. When the door shut, Brownie whipped her head around to an unnatural angle like something out of a horror movie.

Whisk got done wiping bits of burnt fur and soot off of his pants. He had stopped caring about the dog's glare and rubbed his shoulder in thought. "So... Who even told you about it?"

"It?"

"My... thing for him," Whisk said, on the verge of looking flustered.

"Oh, Angel did. He said you reminded him of Paaaa..." Brownie raised her eyebrows in recognition of her mistake, and she droned on with the name, getting stuck on the 'a'. Soon, she let her voice lower and stared at Whisk in recognition of how she had screwed up.

"Heh... So, that's why he killed Angel?" Whisk asked, sighing to himself.

"Well, no, that- I-" Brownie sighed. "Screw it, I'm a terrible liar. Just, please promise you won't tell anyone I told you?"

"Sure. It doesn't matter anyways, Holly just mentioned it on the phone as well..." He sighed. "Please tell me I'm making assumptions, and that they weren't with one another."

"Haha! Of course not, no!" Brownie said, her mouth crooked as the words stumbled out her mouth.

"I appreciate the effort..." Whisk said.

Brownie looked at Coco's door, observing the trio of locks while she spoke, "Yeah, sorry... I don't think he's going to want anything to do with you in that way. So, uh, please don't try and force him to."

"I won't," Whisk said, his energy and confidence sapped from his body. "But... I'd like to tell him I'm sorry for being such an ass, okay?"

Brownie was silent for a good while. The creaking of floorboards under Whisk's nervous shifting was the only company either of the teens had while she processed the whole situation in her head.

"Go ahead," she said plainly, returning to her solitude at Coco's door.

Whisk nodded gratefully. He turned to face the bathroom door, clutching his right paw closed. He brought his arm up, gulping down saliva before finally rapping at the door with his knuckles.

"Occupied..." came the shy voice of Angel from behind the door.

"Hey, Angel, I just wanted-"

"Whisk?! Please- not right now..." He sounded equal parts irritated and disappointed.

"I'm sorry. I'll be out of your hair, I just wanted to know if you and Patches really were-"

Angel slammed a paw on the door, shocking Whisk out of his stupor. "STOP... Please, just leave me alone..."

Whisk shut his eyes and leaned against the door, resting his head on a paw. He gave the siberian a moment to recuperate, letting his eyes catch the different bumps and lumps of grain in the wooden door's imperfections.

The siamese spoke with a soft, melancholic tone, "... Okay. I'm sorry for how I've acted towards you. I had no idea what had happened, but that's no excuse for how I've been at school..." Whisk wasn't on the verge of tears, but he could feel the welling of sadness in his core, making his body radiate fatigue. "I'd still really like to talk with you, and be friends, but I understand if that's not okay with you."

Angel didn't respond.

There was a pause before Whisk added another thought, "I... just didn't realize I was digging up bad memories."