Always See Your Face
~ Love
"Won't somebody please
Help me with my miseries
Can't somebody see, yeah
What this world has done to me
And I know I know
And I say, oh, I say
That no matter where I go
I will always see your face
Won't somebody please
Help me with my memories
Can't somebody see, yeah
What this world has done to me"
CHAPTER 2: ABSOLUTELY DARLING
June, 1963
"Do you want me to come with you this time?" Eli asked from his spot next to her as she grabbed her coat, heading out the door. "No, it's okay. I'll see you at work, right?" He sighed with a small smile and nodded, sticking his hands in his pockets.
"Can you at least tell me why you go back there?" The girl stared at him for a second, holding her bag tightly in her arms. She grinned at him and shook her head as she opened the door and made her way out. "Just gonna leave me guessing?" Eli screamed out after her. "Be safe!" He added.
Nadine smiled as she walked down the gravel driveway to her bike. It had been a month since she started living with the Moores. A day didn't go by that she didn't think about the Hargreeves siblings. About Five.
"Why do you go out there anyways? Reliving trauma?" The girl gasped, her hand shooting to her chest. Billy stepped out from behind a tree in the yard, his arms crossed over his chest. "Jeez, Bill! Don't sneak up on me like that." She breathed out as he joined step with her. Their hair bounced in a similar way as they walked.
"Don't flip your lid, I was heading this way before you got outside." He explained to her, raising an eyebrow.
"I don't know, I just... I want answers, I guess." The lie had become uniform for her, slipping easily off her tongue.
He nodded, his expression becoming serious as he looked around her. "You should just stop. Stay here with us." Nadine gave him a small smile and nodded to the side.
"I want to at least try." She muttered, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. He clicked his tongue before turning around and walking away.
"As your ancestor, I have to say, he's an asshat." Nadine's lips tightened as the spirit fell into step with her, glancing behind her once. "Yeah, I know, I know. I'm only staying here until I find them, you know that."
Wren nodded, tightening her hands behind her back. "You'd have to leave Eli." Nadine sighed, her head falling to face the ground. "Yeah, I know that too. I just don't want to think about it right now." Wren gave her a sad smile and patted her back once they made it to her bike. "Be safe, I'll meet you there."
~~~~~
Nadine stood on the sidewalk, facing the alleyway she fell out onto that day. Has it really been a month already? She sighed, biting her tongue to stop herself from crying. "You've been doing this everyday for months. I'm thinking about sending you away to the sanitarium. You're driving yourself insane." Wren's voice spoke from behind her.
The hair on the back of her neck stood up. She looked around, not finding anything concerning. Or maybe she was just distracted. "Eli is waiting around the corner for you. He came to walk you to work." Nadine smiled and nodded in thanks. She picked up her bag and took one more glance around the area before she left.
"I know you're there, Eli. Don't even try to scare me." The boy groaned, walking out from his hiding spot. "How do you always know? Are you magic or something?" She scoffed as they started walking to the diner, pushing his shoulder slightly. "Yeah, totally."
He grinned at her and put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her into him. "Neat! Do you think you could show me some stuff? Maybe I can get out of the next few hours of work. Put a little hocus pocus on Dot and David." Nadine grinned and shook her head as they continued their walk to work.
When they got to work, Eli spun her around once and took off her coat for her, hanging it on the hat rack near the door. She sported the diner uniform, which was a short, green dress with a white collar. She grabbed her apron and tied it around her waist, sticking a pen and paper into the pocket. Nadine flipped her head upside down and pulled it into a high ponytail, aside from the short bangs she had in the front.
The girl smiled as she lifted up the flap and walked behind the counter. She tapped on a familiar brunettes shoulder, making her turn around.
"Sugar! I've been waiting to see you all day!" Paula hugged her tightly, giving her a full lipped smile. "And oh my god! You cut your hair. It looks-" "darling." Eli interrupted the girl, finishing her sentence for her. "It looks absolutely darling on you."
Nadine smiled and pulled on Eli's ear, shaking her head at him. "I needed a change and my hair has been too long for a while now." She responded, tugging on a part of her bangs.
"Well, it suits you good." Paula responded, pushing a piece behind the other girls ear.
"Why're you guys always bothering her when I show up?" The voice of Margie came from behind Paula, making the group turn towards her.
"My love!" She yelled and opened her arms towards Nadine, pulling her into a hug.
"Mon cherie." She responded as they pulled away.
"You guys are turning me into a hugger." She pushed Margie's shoulder lightly and grabbed another pen, sticking it in to her pocket as well.
"Okay pals, split up. Stop jibber jabbering. We have a job to do." Dorothea walked in and rolled her eyes at her son. "Put your cap on and get in the back." She patted her sons chest as she walked past him. Eli pulled his hat on with a goofy grin on his face. "Have fun, ladies." He hopped over the counter and ran into the kitchen.
"Okay, Margie you have tables 5 and 7. Paula, you have tables 1 and 4. Nadine, you get tables 8 and 3." Nadine smiled at the woman and walked towards the table, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. She looked at her feet where her new chucks were tied tightly. The Moores bought her them as a present a week ago, saying that her bowling shoes were "not in style."
She didn't have the heart to throw them away yet. It was one of the last things she had that reminded her of Five. She had yet to tell them about him, not knowing where to start. He was a beautiful puzzle to her, one that she so willingly chose to solve, and once she solved she fell in love with. Every injury, every glare, every disastrous adventure was all worth it, because she had met him.
Nadine looked up as she got closer to the table, her eyes widening. Five. She blinked and when she opened them again he was gone.
Wren's right, I'm going insane.
~~~~~
"You're off tomorrow, right?" Nadine took off her apron and jumped onto the counter. She threw it to the side and grabbed her milkshake, taking a sip. "Yeah, why? What's up?"
She watched as Eli swept around the back of the counter, setting the cup down again. "I was thinking about going to catch the showing of To Kill A Mockingbird at the drive in down the road, did you want to come?"
Nadine smiled and clapped, looking at the ceiling. "That sounds amazing! I remember watching that-" in middle school, she was going to say. She cleared her throat and smiled again. "I meant reading it. I love that book."
He smiled at her and nodded. "Then it's a date." He tilted his head, making a stressed face. "Not date as in date date, date as in um..." Nadine laughed and tapped his shoulder lightly. "You're okay, I know what you mean." Eli grinned at her, putting the broom away. "Groovy."
~~~~~
"You've been sleeping a lot. Knocking out really early, too." Wren's voice spoke from behind Nadine as she got ready for the movie. "I know. I guess I'm just comfortable here." Nadine smiled at the spirit. Wren grinned back at her, nodding.
"I'm glad you're happy here, but remember, you aren't staying here forever." Nadine pouted at her words, turning away from the mirror slowly. "Can I not just bring Eli with me? He's my best friend."
Wren smiled sadly at her and patted her shoulder. "You know it doesn't work that way. It's going to be okay, though. Hold tight until the last second." Nadine nodded as she grabbed her jacket and slipped it on overtop of her clothes.
"Now, Eli is standing outside your door waiting to scare you. Have fun." Wren gave her a thumbs up before disappearing. The girl tiptoed over to the door and crouched slightly. She put her hand out and thought of the plastic cup sitting on the small table outside her room. She heard the cup fall and knew that would be enough to distract him.
Nadine grabbed the handle and pulled the door open quick, shouting a loud "boo!" Eli screamed, falling onto his butt from his crouched position. "No seriously! How did you know!?"
She shrugged as he stood up and walked past him. "Call it a females intuition." She smirked at him, throwing a cracker into the air. She watched as he caught it in his mouth, giving himself a quick spin and fist pumping. The girl clapped with a big smile.
"Shall we?" Eli asked, grabbing onto his coat from the hanger and handing her her hat. He put his arm out after she put the hat on, letting her grab onto it. "We shall."
July, 1963
"Eli! Are you ready yet?" Nadine tapped her foot on the ground and crossed her arms as she waited for him by the front door.
"One more minute!" She heard him yell from down the hall, making her roll her eyes.
She looked down at her colorblocked corduroy shorts. The buttons went up to above her belly button. She had a black short sleeve tucked into it and her brown zip up hung over her shoulders.
She sighed at the red stain on the sleeve and closed her eyes, trying to picture what the siblings looked like all standing next to each other. Trying to remember what Five sounded like. She wondered what they were doing right now and if they were alright.
"Why do you always hang out with that little boy?" Nadine spun to face Billy, who was sitting on the couch reading a book. His feet were propped up on table in front of him and his curly hair was messy across his forehead.
"Don't call him that." She shook her head at him before turning back to facing the hallway. The boy closed the book and stood up, walking towards her.
"What should I call him then? Freak? Idiot?" He interrogated sarcastically. One of his fingers stayed tucked between the pages in the book he was on as he clutched it with one hand.
She tried to ignore him but he stood in front of her, blocking her line of view. "He's nice to me." She answered, trying to keep her eyes off of him.
"Oh, he's nice to you?" She grew uneasy at his tone of voice, her eyebrow raising. Irritation kicked at the back of her head. "Yeah, what's it to you, you twat?"
The two months she had been stuck here were peaceful, other than the random encounters with William. If there was other people around then it was fine, but when they were alone? He could be a real asshole.
The boy chuckled as he got a little closer to her. He opened his mouth to say something when he was pulled away by his brother.
"Lay back, Billy." The boy rolled his eyes at Eli's words before spinning and returning to his spot on the couch.
"Have fun, you two!" Billy's voice echoed through the hallway as they opened the door and left.
~~~~~
"Gosh, I'm real sorry Nadine. I don't know what's gotten into him lately." The girl gave him a small smile as he drove them into town to pick up dinner. "It's alright, he's not your responsibility. I swear though, if he ever tries anything, I'm beating the shit out of him."
Eli chuckled and shook his head at Nadine. "What?" She questioned, looking at him from the passenger seat. "Nothing. It's just, sometimes you talk like you're not from around here. It's tough." Nadine grinned awkwardly and nodded at the boy, trying to think of something to switch the conversation to.
"Sometimes I feel like someone is watching me." Eli looked at her in concern after her comment, shuffling in his seat. "What do you mean?" He asked.
"Like, when I'm changing. Or sleeping." Eli's eyes widened. "That's creepy as hell, Nads." She nodded, looking out the window slightly.
"If you ever feel like that, you can come to me. I know you can protect yourself but you shouldn't have to go through it alone." The boy spoke with concern in his tone, his eyes dancing between her face and the street in front of them.
She turned to face him with a smile growing on her face. "Thank you." Eli gave her a crooked grin, his eyes bright. "No thanks necessary."
~~~~~
"Okay, I know I said I would do this but I'm not so sure anymore." Nadine held a rope tightly, looking down at the lake below her. "Come on, Nadine! It's fun!" Margie yelled from her spot floating in the water below. "I don't know, I'm not the best swimmer." She shook her head, weighing her options.
"If you start to drown, I'll save you. I'm certified." Eli spoke from beside her before running and jumping in the water, creating a large splash.
"Yeah, certifiably insane." Paula commented from her spot laying on a towel behind Nadine, sunglasses over her eyes and a book in her hands.
Nadine covered her mouth as she laughed, her head tilting back slightly. "Haha, very funny Paula." The boy rolled his eyes from where he treaded in the water. Nadine giggled again but stopped quickly. The hair on the back of her neck and on her arms stood up, making her look around.
"Hey, you okay?" Eli tilted his head as he questioned. Nadine looked around one more time before sighing and rubbing her bare thigh with her free hand. "Yeah, yeah. It's nothing." She shrugged it off.
She stepped back a few steps and let out a breath through puckered lips. The girl adjusted her position on the rope and gave one more glance towards Eli, who shot her a thumbs up and an encouraging smile.
Nadine took off in a sprint and held onto the rope as she felt her feet leave the earth. The rope spun slightly as she let go, letting out a small scream while she fell into the water. "That was amazing!" She yelled as she came back up. "Knew you could do it!" Margie laughed, splashing her slightly.
Paula sat up on her towel and gave a weird glance towards the girl before turning her attention to Nadine and clapping. The water was warm and her skin felt tingles as the sun had been on it all day.
Nadine floated, staring at the blue sky above them. This was the first time she had actual friends. They were so much fun, and she adored anytime that they spent together. She just wished that Five was here to experience a normal life with her. She worried for him, constantly. It took over her emotionally, especially at night.
She had been sleeping really well since she got to the Moore house, which was a drastic change from how she used to be. The nights that her and Five would spend running around felt like years ago. It had only been two months. He'll be here soon. He'll find me.
.