'in which you go for a walk'
A groan falls from your lips as you stomp down the wet sidewalk. Each time your feet make contact with the ground, water splashes up onto your leg. The bottoms of your pants were drenched, clinging awkwardly and desperately to your skin.
The breeze whipped past your ears, followed by indignant droning coming from behind you. A sigh falls from your lips as you huddle your coat tighter around you. The siblings have been arguing nonstop since they woke up this morning, and it was driving you up the wall.
Under normal circumstances, you wouldn't have minded. Petty sibling arguments are petty sibling arguments, after all. You had left the house initially, to let them blow off some steam, without you to interfere, but, that plan didn't work very well when they followed you out the door.
You groan as Vivian lets out a cry of shock. Her footsteps stomp up next to you, splashing even more water up onto your pant leg. You glance at her with a raised brow. She stares directly ahead and you shrug your shoulders in dismissal. This was getting ridiculous.
Briefly you glance up at the sky. The clouds coat the sky in a puffy gray coat. The sun's rays peek through behind the cover dimly, casting a glow onto the surrounding cloud.
You glance at Vivian again, catching her gaze. She stares at you, anger resting beyond her intentionally placid gaze. You stop dead in your tracks, watching as she stumbles over the skirt swishing around her ankles. Justin's footsteps stop short behind you as well.
"Is there something I missed between the two of you?" You watch Vivian stare behind you. Her expression read a complicated dance of anger and confusion. When her gaze falls back to the sidewalk you sigh dejectedly. A quick glance back to Justin shows the same level of cooperation. He stood sideways, gazing out at the passing traffic, his arms crossed over his chest.
You sigh, breathing into the palms of your hands. As the condensation rests on your hands you rub the bridge of your nose with your index fingers. Dropping your hands to your sides, you turn on your heel and walk. Past Vivian, past the end of the street, you walk.
You had little idea as to where you were going. You weaved in and around on the sidewalks, unaware if Justin and Vivian were continuing to follow you, or if they still stood back as if they were deer in headlights.
Your walk has your head lost in the clouds. Just what was their deal? They had been perfectly civil the day before, and you hadn't noticed anything from the arguments that morning that would have set either of them off the way that they were. Who were you to judge though? You hadn't noticed Vivian struggling with the move until she broke down a couple of weekends ago.
Wrapping your head around the trust they put in you was something you still struggle with. Even months after you had met them, you have no clue why they didn't just leave you in a ditch. You would have left yourself in a ditch, not letting you move into an apartment and then not making you pay for rent.
A sigh falls from your lips as your pant legs get even more drenched as you accidentally step in a puddle. You shake your leg out in disgust. As small water droplets fall from the fabric footsteps approach from behind you. You realize how stupid you must look with your leg in the air so you slowly lower it to the ground, maintaining eye contact the whole time.
"Are you okay [Name]?" Vivian stares at you, amused, with her hands in the pockets of her skirt.
"Yeah..." You mumble, averting your gaze, "Just a bit wet."
"A bit?" You stare at her pointedly as Justin chuckles from behind.
"You two work things out?" They glance at each other for a moment before nodding, "That's good." You place your hands on your hips, moving your foot across the ground further to your side. You cringe at this action almost immediately. You forgot you were standing in a puddle, and now, you have water even further up your pant leg.
"You... Wanna head home?" Justin asks cautiously, examining your expression with worry. You nod. Vivian giggles at your misery. How the both of them managed to keep dry is going to end up being one of humanity's greatest mysteries.
"Let's go then," Vivan smiles devilishly, "Before you end up a drowned rat."
"Hey!" You tell after her, watching her skip off into the distance. You chase after her, smacking her gently on the head as you catch up. She gasps like she's a character from a period drama who's husband just died in an accident that she may or may not have staged. Which is to say, with great and dramatic anguish.
"How dare you."
"You are the one who ran off cackling after you called me a drowned rat."
"But you are a drowned rat." Her tone was informative as she placed her hands on her hips, "But I must say you are my favourite drowned rat."
"Thanks?" You slow your footsteps, watching her pass by in front of you with great concern. She giggles again before beckoning you to catch up with her. You race ahead, matching your pace with hers when you catch up.
With your hands firmly placed in your pockets, you walk in silence. The sound of water splashing, both from passersby cars and from your own footsteps fill the air. The wind whips by again, ruffling your hair in the wind. Vivian's hair also gets swept up in the wind, resulting in it landing directly in her mouth. You laugh as she sputters, spitting the mass out of her mouth.
"Ugh!" She rubs her hand under her mouth, "That was gross..."
"Really? I was always quite fond of the taste of hair." Vivian huffs crossing her arms as you snicker at her misery. The wind continues to whip at your clothes until you round a corner, becoming slightly sheltered by the surrounding buildings.
"Oh if only it were summer." Vivian laments, flipping her hair over her shoulder, "We could do so much more if the weather wasn't so awful!"
"Yeah?"
"Of course, we could do more!" She places her hands on her hips with authority, "Who wants to do anything in weather like this!"
"Guess you're right" She hums thoughtfully.
"Say [Name]? Have you ever learned how to swim?"
"Yup."
"You should teach me how this summer then!" She grabs your hand in excitement, stopping the both of you in the middle of the sidewalk, "I've always wanted to go swimming but there's not a lake around Roling, so I never got the opportunity to. But now that we have more freedom here!" She sighs wistfully, cutting off her own sentence. Excitement swam in her eyes.
"Sure." You smile at her, "I'd love to teach you." She claps her hands with joy.
"Oh hey!" She exclaims, suddenly distracted from the future, "This is the street with that dress store!"
"It is?" Vivian nods, grabbing your hand and dragging you off the sidewalk.
"I wonder if that dress is still there? Oh! And maybe I can convince Justin to..." She stops suddenly, staring back behind you. Her brow furrowed in confusion as she drops your hand. Turning around you see what's made her so confused so suddenly.
"Well, that's a bit embarrassing..." Vivian laughs to herself under her breath, "I didn't even realize that we lost him."
"How did we even lose him?" You raise an eyebrow at the Justin-less sidewalk, "Wouldn't he have just followed us when we left?"
"Uh... Maybe?"
"Should we...?" You point down the way you came. Catching what you meant, Vivian nods.
"Yeah. Let's go see what that weirdo is up to." You sigh as she makes her way down the street. Hadn't they been at each other's throats all morning? Now she's calling him a weirdo. Do these two let anything affect them for longer than a few minutes?
Jogging slightly, you catch up to Vivian, who had been just about to round the corner. She smiles at you when you catch up. You smile back.
Your search for Justin took a while. Significantly shorter than when you first had to look for the tall blond, but still a good half an hour of walking aimlessly on the streets. You had probably just taken a wrong turn somewhere, knocking you off the path that you had came. There was also the possibility that Justin had just taken a different route, and actually headed home, like the three of you had agreed on.
Luckily that wasn't the case. He was still exactly where you left him. Give or take a few paces. Navigation was never your strong point. That's why you ran track instead of just around the town you lived in.
As Vivian waved at him to get his attention you noticed two figures standing behind him. One of which you happened to recognize. It was the brunette you had met a couple of months ago at the park. What was his name again? Lawrence? No, not Lawrence. He didn't look like a Lawrence.
The other person looked incredibly amused at the conversation taking place. His shaggy blond hair was covered almost completely by a cowboy hat on his head. An odd fashion choice in your perspective, but who were you to judge?
"Oh!" Justin jumps back in surprise, when Vivian begins hovering over his shoulder, "You're back."
"Of course we are! You just disappeared on us."
"Really? Because from my perspective it looked like you two were the ones who disappeared." As Vivian raises her accusatory finger towards her brother, you catch it and slowly lower it back down to her side.
"No." Cowboy hat laughs at the interaction.
"So, these are the friends you were talking about [Name]?" You stare at not Lawrence like a deer in headlights.
"Uh, yeah."
"[Name] you know these guys?" Vivian asks surprised.
"Uh... No." You put your hands in your pockets awkwardly, "Just... That guy... And I only met him briefly, so..."
"'That guy', huh?" Cowboy hat elbows not Lawrence in the side, "What a title."
"Sorry." You mumble sheepishly, glancing at the damp sidewalk.
"Don't worry about it."
"So what is your name then?" Vivian asks, leaning onto her brother's shoulder.
"Lucas." So that's what it was. "And this asshole is Al." Al scoffs at the introduction he receives. Vivian nods, a satisfied look on her face.
"Well, I'm Vivian Evans." Her soft tone catches you off guard. As you stare at her awkwardly, she slides in a glare, telling you to knock off the staring. When you break eye contact with her, Al crosses his arms, still clearly amused by whatever conversation he was having with Justin only moments earlier.
"So you're Vivian? Justin here was saying you're going to school here to become a doctor."
"Uhm... Yes, that's right." She stands stiffly. Still as a board, she waits for the scrutinizingly slow response.
"Pretty impressive." You let out a breath you didn't know you were holding, "You must have worked hard for that." Vivian nods, her shoulders falling back to their rightful place as the tension leaves the air.
"Yes, I have." Al nods in response to Vivian's assurance. The air becomes awkward again, as the conversation runs idle. You stare at the cracks and divots in the sidewalk. There were plenty scattering the gray surface. Each of them holding water to some degree. You glance back up, making sudden eye contact with Lucas.
"So uh... You won the argument I see?" You ask, nervousness bridging in the back of your throat. He smiles awkwardly at you as Vivian and Justin give you odd looks at your sudden question.
"Yeah, I did. Should have seen the fit that this guy threw when it happened."
"I did not throw a fit." Al rolls his eyes, leaning his weight back. You snicker quietly at his childness.
"Keep telling yourself that."
"What argument?" Justin suddenly piped up, cutting off what could have become the hundredth argument you would have sat through that day. Maybe you should just avoid becoming friends with any more siblings.
"Pft." Al rolls his eyes in dismissal, "Nothing important."
"It was just over some business details."
"Business?" Justin asks again, as Al gives Lucas the nastiest glare you've seen in years.
"This guy wanted to play it risky with the deal we have to make, but I said it was better to play it safe." Al groans loudly, clearly still not satisfied with the outcome, "But, we should be done here soon."
"Really?" You raise a brow, putting your hands back in your pockets as the wind picks up.
"Yeah, the next couple of weeks or so."
"Could have been done months ago." He glances at you for a split second, and you stare back in confusion, "But you've decided to be such a coward with it."
"I have not!"
"Yes, you have!" Lucas sighs in annoyance at the prodding from his brother. You share a side eye with Vivian, even if your struggle to actually see her eye through the movement of her hair. The wind was picking up fast and so was the tension between Al and Lucas. You really had no desire to be around when they finally blew up.
You gesture backwards with a quick crane of your neck. Vivian nods, pulling on her brother's sleeve. He stares at her confused for a moment before she speaks.
"It's getting cold." She states flatly, "[Name] and I are going home. You can come with us if you want."
"Oh right." Justin ruffles his hair with a hand, only for the wind to ruffle it to an entirely different appearance, "Yeah, I'll come with."
"Well, see you around then." You wave at Lucas and Al, "Maybe."
"Maybe," Lucas responds to you, "See you." Al simply nods, before turning his back on you, Vivian and Justin. Waving again at Lucas you, turn on your heel before sprinting to catch up with Vivian, who had already walked halfway down the street.
"Slow down!" Justin's voice drowns itself out as it fights with the wind.
"Make us!" Vivian calls back before grabbing your wrist. She stares at you with excitement in her eyes. Laughing, the both of you take off down the street once you round the corner, intentionally leaving Justin behind in the windstorm.
Several pieces of wet trash blow around in the wind. One piece almost latched itself to Vivian's coat as it blew past. Luckily, with her masterful maneuvering skills, she managed to dodge the wet paper.
After a good few minutes of running you make it back to the front door. Vivian bends over sideways in the whipping wind, attempting to regain her breath. You wave your hand over your mouth as you yawn.
"How... How aren't you?..." She coughs suddenly, "How aren't you out of breath?"
"Dunno." You shrug your shoulders, staring at her dishevelled appearance, "Let's go inside before it starts raining or something."
"Sure." She mumbles as her heavy breathing slows. You open the door, with minor difficulty as the wind fought against the direction of the hinges attempting to swing it closed as you hold onto the the handle. Quickly you step in. Your body shivers from the heat as the door slams behind Vivian.
A grateful sigh leaves you as you slide your shoes off. As weird as your situation was, you had found a home in the past. Even despite the strain in your roommates relationship, you doubt you would trade this for anything.