SCARLETT. fear street (1994, 1978, 1666 )

strange

"Faster, not harder," Niki repeated, slightly leaning down on her knees to get the perfect angle. She looks at the blonde boy one more time for affirmation, and when he nods at her, she spins it as hard as she can with a quick snap of her wrist.

It skips on the water. Once. Twice. And it falls.

"I did it!"

The sight of her beaming, eyes wide with excitement, brings a smile to his face. "You did it," he repeats, getting caught off guard when the girl wraps her hands around him out of sheer joy.

"Cardan," a warm voice suddenly calls out. The two of them let go of each other, turning around to see Nurse Lane with an unreasonable expression on her face.

"Yes, Nurse Lane?" he questions, feeling his neck heat up. Cardan immediately keeps a hand covering the blushing spot, not wanting the nurse to see how much Niki actually affected him.

"I have a bunch of boxes outside my cabin. Would you be a dear and help me out with them?"

He looks at Nurse Lane, then at Niki, who was urging him through her eyes to go help the old woman.

Nurse Lane was a nice person, occasionally helping him and his unlikely companion whenever they would get small scratches, so Cardan didn't see the harm in helping her. Sure, he wanted to stay with the cheery girl, but he had a lot more time for that. "Sure, Nurse Lane."

"I'll go help him," Niki offered, dusting her white dress despite there being no dirt in it— but Nurse Lane shakes her head, placing a gentle hand on her arm to stop the girl from moving.

"I'll keep you company till your friend comes back."

While Niki grins, enthralled at the idea of spending time with the Nurse, Cardan only stares at the two of them. There was something off with the way that Nurse Lane moved— or maybe he was just imagining things?

"I'll be back," Cardan called out, still not keeping his eyes away from the two. Nurse Lane is harmless, he tried reminding himself, reminiscing about how the women helped him and Niki countless times. Nurse Lane is harmless.

Niki waves him goodbye despite knowing that he'd be back in a matter of minutes, and sits down beside the Nurse. The woman in front of her had always been kind to her and Ziggy, especially whenever Shiela decides to mess with them, but she came to a realization that there was nothing she knew about Nurse Lane— nothing except the fact that her daughter went on a killing spree.

When she was about to ask the woman about her day, Nurse Lane interrupts her, a smile dancing on her slightly aged features. "You know, Niki... you remind me a lot of my daughter."

Despite knowing that Ruby Lane was a mass murderer who snapped and killed her boyfriend and friends, the girl broke out into a smile. Nurse Lane was her mother— they must've had this connection that no one else knew, so to Niki, it was a big compliment. "Really?"

Nurse Lane nods, eyes set on the lake as if she was busy recalling those memories. "She was so sweet like you... and she loved to sing too."

Niki smiles, instantly forgetting the dilemma around the girl. "Ruby sounds like she was a sweetheart."

"Oh, she was..." Nurse Lane smiles, remembering her daughter. Remembering how Niki was scarily so much like her— the mannerisms, the personality, the vibe; it scared her.