Aevum of Itero

Chapter 15

Regardless, he still didn't want her out of close proximity to a medic in the event that an unnoticed injury sprang up.

He questioned if Brenda would have been on that cliff if he had followed after her the moment she left.

"Hey. How's she doing?"

He followed the whisper to the long hair, poking out from under a blanket.

"What are you doing up?" he asked.

"I'm a night owl," said Val almost under her breath to avoid waking the others. "Rarely sleep. Would've stayed up all night partying with Alberta if my twins hadn't needed me. 'Course, you woulda hated me, 'cause I would've dragged Bren along for that."

"You mean to tell me you never went to sleep?"

"After all of that? No way could I sleep. I was fucking terrified I'd wake up to Bren and Bran, well...you know. You slept?"

"Sort of. I was on edge the whole time. Slept enough."

"I'm sure it helped to have Bren right next to you," said Val with her usual projected confidence.

Something told Dylan that, at this age, Val wasn't projecting.

"I'd be lying if I said it wasn't a perk, but considering how we got here, I'd almost wish she wasn't if it meant she'd never been on that cliff."

"I don't suppose you're willing to tell me why you two broke up?" Before Dylan could reply in the negative, Valerie held up a hand. "Scratch that. If sis wanted me to know, she'd tell me."

"Yeah, that isn't something either of us tell people, but I did want to talk to you about a different thing, if that's okay."

"Sure. I should probably slip into something more decent first." Valerie nodded towards the door. She must have noticed Dylan's wariness for she added, "Don't worry. We won't be far from her."

"It just seems like the second I step out that door -"

"I know. Hang on."

Valerie swung her head over the railing of her bunk. "Donna. Hey, Don! You awake?"

"Sort of," Donna yawned out. "I've woken up I don't know how many times, thinking about everything. It was tempting to check on the twins, but I didn't wanna be a creep."

"It's not being creepy if I, their lovely older sister, is asking you to watch them for us. Kit-Kat and I are gonna see about breakfast."

"We are?" asked Dylan.

"Don't you want to make sure Bren has a good, hearty meal waiting for her after all that happened last night?"

He couldn't argue with that.

Donna promised to keep an eye on both Brenda and Brandon. Valerie climbed down the bunk ladder wrapped in her blanket.

"I'm not demure by any means," she told Dylan, "but I also don't wear skimpy clothing when talking to the guy who likes my Brenda Walsh."

"What if Alberta's out there?" asked Dylan, using his amusement to try to block out what he knew of their past that Valerie didn't.

Brenda knew about his hook-ups with Val; well, the old Brenda had. Wanting to lay everything out on the table, Dylan had made sure she knew before they kicked their relationship back off.

Which meant Brenda Monaghan could share that information with her younger self at any time.

Fuck. Forget about how upset and hurt Bren's gonna be with me. How's it gonna affect things between her and Val?