Best Friends (a millardxOC story)

🐝Chapter Seven🐝

Today was when all of the trouble started. Millard and I were sitting in the library reading Tales of The Peculiar together, when a knock came at the door. Now, I had forgotten all about Horace’s dream at this point because I was having such a lovely time with Millard. There was another knock on the door. “Come in.” I said. The door burst open and that ugly man from Horace's dream walked into the room, holding Jacob tightly by the arm. Millard and I gasped, remembering the dream. In the man’s other hand, he held a large bird cage, the contents seeming to be a beautiful black bird. Miss Peregrine. “Is this her, Jacob? Is this Katerina Di Angelo?” He inquired. “No. I believe Kat is playing in the garden.” Jacob replied. Wait? Did he just say no? Millard and I looked at each other, confused. In the dream Jacob had told the man who I was. “Well then, we shall go find Kat.” The man said my name with such distaste. What was he going to do with me? “That's a Wight!” Millard whispered into my ear. “He must have come to take Miss Peregrine.” I was becoming more and more freaked out. “Why is he looking for me then?” I asked Millard. “I have no idea, but it can't be good.” He looked scared. “You two!” The man yelled. Millard quickly stood in front of me, in a protective stance, and glared at the man. I found this to be quite adorable, and very sweet. I love this boy with all of my heart. Plus I was invisible at the time being so I was able to see Millard. “Get over here. You are both coming with me. Help me find Katerina Di Angelo.” He growled. I gave Millard a look, implying “we must do as he says”and we walked over to the man, who was walking out the door at an increasingly fast pace. The four of us, and Miss Peregrine, all walked into the garden.
We reached the parlor, and I took a peek inside. Miss Averset, an ymbryne who came into our loop a few days earlier, was staring at the door, guarding the other children. Everyone seemed to be in the parlor, except me, Millard, Jacob, and Miss Peregrine. The wight had somehow gotten Miss Averset in bird form, and she was soon in the cage along with our beloved Miss Peregrine.I quickly ran into the parlor, with Millard close behind me. The man, who I have come to know was named Mr. Barron, had let go of Jacob. We all reached the parlor, while Mr. Barron watched us go. He smiled at us and closed the door to the parlor. “Goodbye, I hope the hollow finds a suitable snack.” He chuckled, and walked away.
“Horace! Hugh! Enoch! Fiona!” I ran to my best friends and hugged them. I then ran to each person and gave them a quick hug, making sure no one had been injured. Everyone was fine, and we all gathered weapons. “We need to kill the hollow.” I said, staring directly at Jacob, who was now known as a hollow slayer. He nodded, and him and Emma ran to kill the hollow. I turned to Bronwyn, telling her to keep the younger ones safe. “We will make sure the house is safe. I took Millard and Horace's hands, and ran. Enoch had followed us, saying it wasn't safe for us to just go looking for trouble. “Oh no!” I quickly realized, with both ymbrynes gone, who would reset the loop! Our home is going to be bombed, and there is nothing any of us can do to stop it. “We're doomed!” Horace cried. “Shut up, Horace! Everything will be just fine.” He didn't seem to convinced. I tried to calm him down, and figure out a plan. We didn't have much time before the bomb hits our house.
The four of us ran back to where Bronwyn, Fiona, Claire, Olive, and Hugh had been standing. Claire and Olive had been crying, and Fiona was huddled against Hugh. It was getting cold out and I ran inside to grab a jacket.
Once I came back out, Emma and Jacob were there, talking to everyone. “Listen up!” I called out. “We all need to go inside, pack up the items of utmost importance, and we will all meet at the front door in fifteen minutes! Do you all understand?” Everyone nodded. “Help each other as much as you can.” I beckoned Bronwyn over to discuss something. “Wyn, I don't want to leave Victor here.” She nodded. “We should bury him before we leave.” I agreed, and she went to go help the others, pack her things, and get Victor.
I was in my room packing when there was a knock on my door. Millard walked in without an okay from me, and before I knew it he had me in a tight embrace. “I'm all packed up. Do you need any help?” He asked me. “I'm finished. I just need to go get The Map of Days before I forget!” “Don't worry. I've already got it in my bag. Are you alright?” His voice was laced with worry and concern. “I'm scared, Mil. But I can't let the others know. What is going to happen to us?” I wasn't just scared. I was absolutely terrified, but I can't let anyone know that. “Look at me.” He lifted my chin up so I was looking directly into his beautiful brown eyes. “We are all going to be just fine. We'll find another loop, get miss peregrine back, and live happily ever after, together.” He sounded absolutely convinced that was going be the only thing to happen. Millard was special in my eyes. Not just because he was invisible, but because he was my best friend, and cared about me more than anyone else does. “What if something happens. What if I lose you, Mil?” He leaned down to whisper in my ear. “That won't happen, Kat. I won't let it. You're stuck with me, whether you like it or not.” I let out a small laugh. “Good. I'm so glad we're friends.” He smiled. “Me too.” He leaned back down and before I could even think a single word, his lips brushed against mine. He smiled. “I love you. More than anything.” I didn't know what to say. “I've liked you for a while, ya know.” He told me, breaking the silence. I had just been standing there smiling. “So have I.” I told him. His eyes lit up. “Really? I thought you liked Horace! That's the only reason I've never told you.” “Well I like you. We should get going though. We are all going to bury Victor before we leave.” Millard gave me a quick hug before grabbing my hand. “One more thing.” “Yeah, Mil?” He smiled down at me, with him being a couple of inches taller than me. “Will you be my girlfriend, Katerina?” I untangled my hand from his, slinging my arms around his neck, almost knocking him down from surprise, all while I smiled from ear to ear. “Is that a yes?” He asked, unsure. “Of course dummy!” I laughed. I gave him a quick peck on the cheek as I grabbed my bag, and laced my fingers with his.
We get to the front door, and I become visible again. Everyone looks at Millard and I, seeing as our hands are intertwined, even though we are almost always holding hands or something. Bronwyn is holding Victor is her arms and I have to hold back a sob. Millard squeezes my hand I'm a comforting manor, to let me know it will be okay. We walk outside, and it began to rain. That means we have minutes until the loop closes, and everything we've ever known, and held dear, will be destroyed.
Wyn carefully lowers Victor into the grave Hugh had dug, and Hugh and I began to set the dirt back on top of him. I looked up, only to be greeted with the awful sight of a bomb, headed straight for us. We had to leave. Everyone said their goodbyes to Victor,  and proceeded to make their way to the boats. BOOM! The two young girls shrieked and wailed, crying about our lost home. We were all in the boats, heading to safety. We had discussed the plan earlier, and began to head to the nearest loop.
It was raining. We were in the middle of the ocean during a rainstorm. I was curled up against Millard for warmth, because our blankets had since blown away, reading The Map of Days with him, trying to find a loop. “I'm so cold.” I cried, hiding my face in the flap of his jacket. “I know, love, but at least you still have us.” He yelled against the howling winds. Suddenly Horace scooted closer to us, and put his jacket over my shoulders. I smiled at him and put it on. It was a bit big but otherwise very warm. I looked over to the other two boats to see Fiona and Jacob, along with Hugh and Fiona on one boat, then Bronwyn, Olive, and Claire, plus most of our stuff, on another boat, leaving Enoch, me, Millard, and Horace on the last boat.
Lightning stuck. I heard a scream. It was Olive, who was buried into Bronwyn's side, and Claire was nestled into wyn's other side, crying. The poor girls were terrified. A storm started, causing the sea to become rough, and difficult for our small, overcrowded boats. Each boat was only meant to hold two people, not four. More shrieks from Olive had filled the void of silence, when I realized Emma's boat was missing, along with everyone on it. I frantically searched the water, using my power over water to bring anything living up into the air. Nothing came up. I was about to jump into the water to look for them, when Enoch grabbed my waist, holding me back. He pulled me onto his lap and wouldn't let go. “You're not risking yer  life to try to save anybody! Ya hear?” He yelled. I was silent. “NO! The map!” Millard had screamed. A gust of wind rocked our boat, causing the book to fall into the water. “Kat! Kat you need to try to bring it up!” He screamed over the storm. “I'll try! Enoch let me go!” “Don't you dare jump into the water,  Katerina. It won't end well.” I promised him I wouldn't, and went to the edge of our tiny boat. Nothing. Nothing had come up. I did however see Emma, and the others back on their boat, not to far from where I was. “HUGH! LOOK! LAND. TRY TO GET TO THE LAND, AND WE WILL MEET YOU THERE!” I cried. I looked to see Bronwyn paddling her boat in the same direction. The storm had started to fade, and we used our small oar to get to the shore. One of the oars had been lost at sea during the storm.
Most of our stuff was gone. I had my backpack, and wyn still had her large trunk. She had very little inside of it, and had agreed to let me put my bag in it. Millard wandered off, sitting by a palm tree, sulking. I walked over to him. “Mil-” I was cut off by his soft, invisible lips locking themselves onto mine. He smiled into the kiss, and we separated. “Sorry. I needed to remind myself that everything is going to be fine. I've still got you, and that is all that matters to me.” I smiled and hugged him. “Thanks Mil. That was very sweet of you. I'm so sorry about the Map of Days, though. I know how much you loved it.” I quickly became invisible, just in time to see him frown. “It's alright. I know you loved it, too.” I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, to let him know that I still have hope, even though we have no clue where in the world we are going. “I love you.” He said. I was stunned at first, even though it is about the hundredth time I've heard those little three words come out of his mouth, but it was the first time he said that to me since he told me he really liked me. We have always said “I love you” to each other as best friends but it seemed to mean even more to me now. “I love you, too.”