Paperboy | Fillie

t h i r t y - t w o

We arrived in Iris' backyard by four AM.

That gave us two hours to find the DVD because Millie had to be home before her dad woke up. That was plenty of time. I held the shovel I had brought from home and walked to the center of the backyard. I gave Millie the flashlight before speaking.

"If I'm right, the cloud meant that the DVDs are where we used to watch the clouds."

Millie nodded. I lifted the shovel and stuck it in the ground, pressing it down more with my foot before lifting the dried dirt and grass out. I did it a couple more times before I stopped for a couple seconds to catch my breath.

"Here, I can help."

Millie reached for the shovel but I held it away from her.

"No, I got it."

She gave me a stern look before grabbing the shovel and giving me the flashlight.

"I want to help."

I sighed and let her take it. She dug a little deeper, making me wonder how far Iris had dug down, or if this was even the place she had put the DVDs. I sighed as I took the shovel and hit more dirt. We were probably a good two feet in now, yet there wasn't any sign of what we were looking for.

"Wait!"

I stopped with the shovel in mid-air as Millie squatted down and brushed away some of dirt, a small speck of red coming into view. I dropped down and started to wipe away dirt with her, the top of some sort of plastic container showing up.

"Is that it?"

"I don't think anything else would be here."

We spent a couple minutes digging the container out, and I smiled in triumph as we got it. I opened the container, Millie and I peering into it. Inside was a small black box.

I was scared to touch it. I don't know why but finding this made everything feel so much more real than it already did. I held it towards Millie and she looked at me for reassurance before grabbing the box out and opening it. She lifted up the two little DVD cases that were inside.

"They have your names."

I nodded at the two names written in sharpie. Just then, a light from above switched on, and our heads snapped up to see Sadie standing in her window next door. She looked down at us and I gave her a small wave before she closed her curtains and the light turned off. I sighed, and Millie put her hand on my back in comfort.

"Let's cover this back up and get out of here."

We covered up the hole fast before I left Millie at the door and snuck into Sadie's house. Luckily she left the door open for me, so I was able to get to her room quickly and quietly. I opened the door, my eyes landing on her in bed. Her back was to me and I could see her barely shaking shoulders. I walked over and placed the DVD on her desk before leaning down and kissing the side of her head.

"I'll be back soon."

I walked out of the room when she gave no reply. I was worried for her. This was really affecting her and I know she was hurting more than anything right now. Millie and I walked to her house in silence. Our hands were together like always and our steps were in synch the whole way. We arrived at her doorstep and she hugged me automatically. I held onto her, breathing in her comforting scent.

"If you need anything, I'll be there okay?"

I nodded at her words, an overwhelming feeling to kiss her washing over me. I leaned down, my hands still on her waist, and pressed my lips to hers. She kissed back with the same gentle touch and pulled away ever so slightly before pecking my lips once more.