The Abandoned Lovers

-23-

"Thank you, Kingston. I want to tell you something." I say and he furrows his eyebrows as he sits up with me.

"Okay?" He asks and I give him a lopsided smile.

"I just want you to know.. that I don't want to tell you everything that happened to me. And it's not because I don't want you to know, but because I don't want you to worry about it, I don't want you to pity me. Because you're right." I start with a sigh, before looking up at him brought my eyelashes, a smile hidden on my face.

"My Plague is finally gone."

"You would've loved my mom, Darling." He says and I furrow my eyebrows, "not when she was a drug addicted but before." He clarifies.

"She was sweet. She loved to cook like you and she would take me out to walk the dog everyday. I was only three so I don't remember her then, I only remember drug-her. But I've heard stories. She would've loved you too."

"She sounds amazing, King." I say and he nods, putting on his necklace and pulling me on top of him, holding me there with a smile.

"If you could've met her I would've let you, if you could've come and lived with me instead of River my dad will love you. Everybody loves you, Baby." He says and I smile, kissing his chest.

"I could say the same about you, you're popular and perfect."

"I'm not perfect. Perfect sucks, that's why you're not perfect. I'm not perfect. Perfect is boring and bruised, we're new and improved." He says and I roll my eyes, "you take poetry huh?" I ask and he nods, "I'm gonna be a doctor with a minor in poetry."

——-

Christmas Day was great, cookies and milk, presents and surprisingly my happiness making an appearance again. All of it making me forget about my mom and how Kingston will leave me once school starts again.

I wash my hands, having just finished cleaning the kitchen for El. I finally take my hair down from the tiny ponytail it was in, my hair reaching my collarbones now, longer than it has in a while. All I want is for it to reach my waist, flow down at the sides.

I just want to be pretty.

I look down at my hands, I don't know what I'm searching for though. They're not interesting.

Suddenly I hear River's deep voice travel through the room, meeting me, "You do not have to clean so much, your taking El's job away." He jokes and I shake my head.

"Els job is to do everything around here, I want to help. Plus I'm used to it, think of it as rent since you're giving me a beautiful place to live." I say and he looks around.

"Are you done?" He asks hurriedly and I nod, "Come with me," He says, grabbing my hand and jogging somewhere in the mansion I haven't been before.

Past the stairs, down the hall, take a right, take a left, then when I look to my left I see an arch in the wall. There is another one not the other side, in the middle is a small courtyard.

Grass lines it all, at my right is a hammock, then white fluffy bean bags in the corner and a tiny fountain in the middle. It's not like anything you've ever seen.

River smiles at me from my peripherals before traveling in, still holding my hand to guide me where we're going while I'm in a trance of amazement.

Soon he lays down on a hammock next to me, signaling for me to come on with him. I reluctantly oblige, gettin into the hammock, my head on his shoulder and my arm around his torso while his is around mine.

"It's nice here." I say, looking up at the cloudy sky that travels so far above me. "I had a feeling you would like it." He says and I look up at him with a smile.