ICARUS¹ [ on hold ]

chapter twenty.

"Sorry, sorry." She apologized, smiling fondly at her daughter, glancing out the window, "Hey, is that Allison?"

The other woman quickly moved to her mother's side, looking out the window to confirm her mother's suspicions. Her eyes followed the curly haired brunette as she walked up the pathway to the house,

"Huh, looks like it." Icarus hummed, "I'll grab the door, you go finish getting ready for your hot date. He is hot right?"

"Icarus!"

"Ah! Fine!" She yelps as her mother smacks her arm, "Hey, don't hit the traumatized!"

"Go get the door." Her mother urged, pushing her towards the door as she made her way up the stairs

Icarus huffed and moved to the door, pulling it open just as Allison raised her hand to knock. Putting on a wide smile, the older McCall, grinned at the teenager as she leaned against the door frame,

"Hey, stranger!" She greeted happily, "What brings you here? It's to see me, isn't it?"

The other brunette laughed, smiling slightly, "Not this time, Icarus."

"Ooh, but one of these times it will be me? Come on, you have to know I'm cooler than my brother!" She exclaimed, pushing off the door frame and waving the girl into her home

"I know!" Allison giggled, "But I'm here to see him today, I'm sorry. Is he home?"

Icarus smiles, tilting her head, "Second door on the right."

"Thank you." The teenager nods, moving towards the stairs, "Next time I'll be visiting you, okay?"

"I can settle for that." The veteran agrees, making her smile again before she disappeared up the stairs, "That's a good kid, right there." She muttered to herself moving into the kitchen

Opening the fridge, she pulled out a pack of strawberries, popping open the lid with her thumb she used her free hand to push the door closed. Icarus hums a ballad under her breath as she hopped onto the counter, biting into one of the strawberries with a sigh of pleasure. But as she tossed the leafy top on to the lid, her two dogs came waddling in, blinking and tired. The girl sighed, scrunching up her nose.

"Sorry, boys I can't give you strawberries─ but I can grab your food." She smiled, placing the tub besides her before jumping down and kneeling before her boys

"Such pretty puppies." The girl cooed, scratching both their heads softly, "Come on, boys, let's get you some chow." She said, moving to the corner of the kitchen and unfolding the top of the dog food, she grabbed hold of the cup inside of if, digging into the dog food and plopping the food into their separate dog bowls

"There, babies, all set." Icarus smiled, as her sleepy dogs ambled forward to their bowls, both of them laying down to eat, "Such lazy things." She laughed

Standing up, she turned her back to her dogs as she stretched her arms above her head. Suddenly, the sounds of squeaking brakes reached her ears, causing her to flinch, hands flying to the sides of her head to cover them in shock. She groaned, one of her hands flying out to catch her suddenly falling self on the table besides her. Her sensitive ears heard as a cat screamed in an alley, the buzzing of a burning light bulb and her brother and Allison talking. She could hear the chewing and swallowing of her dogs behind her, the humming of the fridge, a staticky radio playing a few houses down.

Overwhelmed with the sudden wave of sounds she crashed into a chair, the sound of her own heartbeat making her head spin and knot itself up. She could hear as bugs burned up in the bug catcher on her porch and as her mother opened and closed her make up pallettes. A gasp of surprise and pain left her lips and she leaned forward, her forehead harshly connecting with the table as the wave of sounds swallowed her whole. The sudden sound of her doorbell insistently ringing made her jump, shooting straight out of her chair and sending it flying backwards.