October 25th, 2020:
It was horrible. Mom was unconscious. Three ribs: shattered. Her spine: snapped. Head injury and a few more. She was hardly even alive, based on what the doctor said. My dad was paying for treatment, and I was looking for a part-time job to help pay for it. Meanwhile, Morrowseer said he didn't have room to take us in, so I told him Deathbringer and I would stay at a friend's house for a while.
Thank goodness Thorn agreed.
She let me stay home from school for a few days to get my mind back on track after what happened to my mother. Most of the time I sat at her bedside, but recently I decided to just stay in Qibli's room under his covers.
I couldn't bear to see my mom in the state she was in. It hurt a lot, and I barely managed to stop myself from cutting–mostly because Turtle, Kinkajou, and Winter all kept calling me to make sure I wouldn't.
It helped, but I eventually just put my phone on silent.
"Hello, Moon. How are you holding up?" Thorn placed a glass of water in front of me on her dining table before sitting down beside me. I took a sip of water and shrugged.
"I guess I'm fine, but she's not doing any better," I said as I placed the cup down on the table and stared forward. "I just want her to get better, but she won't stop dying."
Thorn rested her hand on mine in a comforting way. "I understand. My mother died when I was younger than you are now. I was devastated. The difference between you and me is that your mother isn't dead yet, so you shouldn't lose hope."
She was right–Secretkeeper wasn't dead. The most I could do at that moment was stay strong.
Great. The one thing I always fail miserably at.
"I'm thankful for all that you're doing for my cousin and me–people who you barely know." I turned to her with a faint smile. "Qibli's lucky to have you."
Thorn chuckled. "I think I'm the lucky one. Qibli's amazing in everything he does for me... and for you." She caressed my hand gently. "He really likes you, Moon–not like how he liked Sunset. Qibli doesn't need to try with you–you make everything easier and effortless." She smiled. "I'm glad he found you."
I felt my heart skip a beat and then erratically speed up.
Does Qibli really feel that way?
A sheepish smile spread across my face as I ducked my head, trying to hide my red-from-blushing face. "Really?"
"Really." Thorn grinned at me before standing up. "Well, Qibli should be here in a few minutes and I need to go shopping. Call me if you need anything." With that, Thorn turned around and grabbed her car keys from the kitchen counter before heading out the front door.
Once she had left, I stood up with a sigh, made my way into the living room, and plopped down on the couch. Qibli and the others were at school at the moment. I was going to go to school this morning, but I decided against it at the last minute.
I'll go tomorrow, I promised myself.
After a few moments, the front door swung open to Qibli, Sunny, and Deathbringer.
"Hey, Moon," Deathbringer greeted. "How's Secretkeeper?"
Worse.
"She's doing fine," I lied as Sunny sent me a friendly wave.
"I'm glad she's doing okay," Sunny said, nodding. "Oh, and Qibli, don't forget to pick up Ostrich from daycare." Ostrich was Qibli's baby sister–almost a toddler.
"I won't," Qibli promised before making his way over to me. "Hey, Moon." He leaned down and pressed a kiss onto my lips. "When are you coming back to school? Everyone's worried about you."
"I will tomorrow," I said. Deathbringer headed upstairs to the guest room and Sunny went into the kitchen. "I have a lot to catch up on, though."
"Don't worry," Qibli said with a grin. "I'll help you."
I suddenly remembered what Thorn had said.
"Thank you for letting me stay at your place, by the way," I said, glancing up at him. "You didn't have to do that."
"It's no sweat–really," Qibli said as he took my hand and pulled me to my feet. "I'd do it any day. Come on–let's go to my room."
I followed Qibli to his room and we both crawled under his covers. He grabbed the remote to his TV off of his nightstand and turned the TV on.
"What do you want to watch?" he asked as he wrapped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me in closer to him.
I tried my best not to stammer at how nervous and excited I felt. "A-anything you want to watch."
"It's up to you," Qibli said with a small smile as he looked down at me.
I smiled back. "Well–" I was interrupted by the front door opening from downstairs. I frowned. "Thorn's back already?"
"She shouldn't be," Qibli murmured with the same curiosity as me. "I'll go check."
"I'll come with you," I said as I followed him back down the stairs. Standing in front of Qibli's front door was a woman, who seemed to be in her early twenties. She had piercings on her eyebrows and one of her nostrils. There was a shaved line going through one of her eyebrows and she had a bored, but desperate, expression on her face.
"Qibli!" she cried as her gaze landed on my boyfriend. Her tone suggested that she wasn't actually happy to see him, just that she needed something from him. "How's my favorite little bro doing?"
"What do you want, Onyx?" Qibli asked with an annoyed expression on his face.
That's Qibli's... sister? Well, step-sister, but still.
"Onyx?" Sunny squeaked as she poked her head out of the kitchen. "Er... You're back?"
"Yes, I'm back," Onyx snapped at her little sister. "Get me a cup of water, you little brat."
Sunny, of all people, was most definitely not a brat. She was the sweetest, kindest, most thoughtful person other than Qibli, and she did not deserve to get treated like that.
Qibli opened his mouth but I beat him to it. "Don't talk to her like that," I said fiercely. "Show some respect." Onyx's gaze landed on me with curiosity and she regarded me for a moment as if she hadn't noticed me before.
"And who are you?" Onyx demanded. Her glare flickered from me to Qibli for a long moment. A sly smile spread across her face. "Oh. You're my brother's new little pet, aren't you? Even after Sunset? Sheesh, you teenagers never learn, do you?"
"I'm nobody's pet," I bristled just as Qibli said, "She's nothing like Sunset!"
Onyx simply snorted. "Right. Anyway, I'm going to be staying here for a few days. Where's Thorn? We have some things to discuss."
"Hold on," Qibli as he stepped in front of her. "You move out to go live with your boyfriend after being horrible to Thorn, and you think you can just barge back in here like nothing happened?"
"Um, yeah," Onyx said as if that was the most obvious thing in the world. She pushed past him and shoved past Sunny into the kitchen. I frowned. I already didn't like her.
"What's her problem, anyway?" I asked as Qibli turned back to me.
"I'm not sure," Qibli said honestly, shaking his head. He reached over and entangled his fingers with mine, leading me into the kitchen.
"Why are you here?" Qibli asked, a little more fiercely.
"It's none of your business," Onyx said, not even turning around to look at him.
"Actually, it is," Qibli snapped.
She finally turned around to face him with an annoyed expression, holding a jar of cheese balls. "It's not even like you're Thorn's real son, anyway. Why do you care? You're not even a part of this family."
I saw the shock-stricken expression on Qibli's face as he stared at her in disbelief. My grip on Qibli's hands tightened as I felt anger boil inside of me.
She was really getting on my nerves now.
"Qibli's more a part of this family than you'll ever be!" Sunny piped up as her fists clenched. "He's the best brother anyone could ever have. He is the kindest, sweetest, and funniest person in the whole world, and you could never compete against that!"
Onyx merely laughed at Sunny's rant, dismissing her with a wave of her hand.
"You're horrible," I suddenly said, and I guess it only pissed off Onyx when I said something since I wasn't actually related to her and didn't know her as well as Qibli and Sunny did.
"Who invited you here anyway?" Onyx asked in disgust.
"Um, Thorn did, and I could ask you the same question," I snapped right back. Onyx searched my face for a moment, shoving a cheese ball into her mouth.
She finally scoffed. "You're weirdly annoying. And for the record, Sunset was way prettier. Sorry to tell you, Qibli, but your taste in girls has gotten worse." She shoved past me, disentangling my hand from Qibli's, and walked up the stairs, loudly crunching on cheese balls.
"What is wrong with her?" Sunny cried in outrage. "She is so rude. I'm calling my friends–and then Thorn to tell her the news."
A moment later, Deathbringer thudded down the stairs with a frown on his face. "Um, Qibli, Sunny, I'm not sure if you noticed, but there's a stranger in your house."
"No, we definitely noticed," Qibli said, sighing as he ran a hand through his hair in frustration. Sunny pulled out her phone and started calling her friends.
"Who is she?" Deathbringer asked curiously. "The next-door neighbor? Also, she's eating all the cheese balls."
"She's Onyx," I explained. "Thorn's apparent other daughter who's a jerk and a complete narcissist. Don't try forming a conversation–she won't even acknowledge you."
"Found that out the hard way," Deathbringer asked with an eye roll as he crossed his arms. "So, what's she doing here?"
"Probably wants to steal more money from Thorn and run away again only to show up a year or two later asking for more," Qibli said, summing up Onyx's entire personality. "And if Thorn says no, she'll probably just steal it again."
"Did she actually do that?" I asked in disbelief, and Qibli nodded.
"Vengeance, her boyfriend, is always spending heaps of money, and Onyx pays the bills herself in their apartment, and sometimes she can't afford the things Vengeance buys. He is horrible to her, but Onyx is too... gullible to notice he doesn't actually love her."
"I feel bad for her," Sunny said with a sigh as she hung up on her friends after quickly filling them in. "We all keep telling her to break up with him–to start fresh–but she loves him too much. I guess he kind of influenced her to become so mean."
I thought about that for a moment. But, why love someone who makes life worse for you?
I opened my mouth to say something, but my phone started ringing. I noticed it was the group chat–the one Qibli wasn't in.
"Um, I need to take this," I said, backing away from Qibli, Sunny, and Deathbringer. I noticed the suspicious look Deathbringer sent me, but I just turned around and walked into the bathroom, locking the door.
"Moon!" Kinkajou cried the second I joined. Turtle and Winter were already in. "Didn't you see all the messages and calls we sent you?"
"Yes," I replied. "I just simply didn't answer."
"You got us worried," Turtle whispered. "How is your mother? How are you?"
I knew what he was really asking.
I knew that Qibli, Sunny, and Deathbringer couldn't hear me from the kitchen, but I still lowered my voice. "No, I haven't been cutting, since that's obviously what you're trying to ask."
"Thanks for appreciating our concern for you," Winter said with an eye roll.
"But, on a serious note, how is your mother?" Kinkajou asked.
Not well.
"Um, she's doing a little bit better," I lied. I knew I could tell them the truth, but then they'd keep on hovering and asking how I feel and if I was okay–I didn't need it.
"Really?" Kinkajou asked. "I'm so happy she's doing better. She did not deserve such a terrible thing to happen to her."
No one does.
Well, maybe some people.
"Ditto that," Turtle said, agreeing with Kinkajou.
"I have to go, you guys," I said. "Qibli and the others are waiting for me."
"Will you be in school tomorrow?" Winter quickly asked before clearing his throat. "You know, since you've missed so many days."
I smiled. "Yes. I will. I promise. Alright, bye, guys."
<3