The five friends had chatted for quite a while. The day was quickly fading, and no one even realized it. It was past time for dinner.
"You guys hungry?" One of the Park dads asked.
"Very!" King yelled, throwing his hands up.
"Food sounds nice right now!" Luz agreed. "What we having, Mr. P?"
"Mr. P?" The dark-skinned man questioned the name.
"Uh, sorry, probably should've asked before calling you that!" She laughed nervously.
He laughed in response. "It's quite alright. You can call me that if you'd like."
"Awesome!" Luz exclaimed with a fist pumped.
The man laughed again. "As for your question, we're going to have meatloaf."
"Sounds good." The human smiled.
Mr. P walked into the kitchen to prepare dinner.
The friends continued to talk. Boscha had eased herself out of the conversation. The smell of the meatloaf met her nose, and her stomach churned. She felt ill at the smell of food.
"I can't eat, but Mr. Park isn't going to let that slide." She sighed, causing her friends to turn to her.
"Uh, you okay, Boscha?" Amity asked her.
"I- I'm fine." She forced a smile.
All of her friends looked skeptical.
"Don't be so worried, you guys. I'm fine." She laughed nervously.
Luz went to protest, but Willow spoke up. "If you say so, but remember, we're here for you." She smiles.
A lump grows in Boscha's throat. She nodded in response, unable to speak.
"Dinners ready!" Mr. P called from the kitchen.
Everyone got up and received their food.
"This is glorious!" King yelled as he shoved meatloaf in his mouth. "I must hire you to be the chef for my army!"
"But, I thought I was going to be the chef for your army!" Luz pouted.
"Sorry, Luz, but you need to step up your game if you're to be the chef." He told her.
Mr. P chuckled. "I'll have to pass. I prefer to just cook for my family."
"Darn, Luz, you are still the future chef for my army."
"What if I don't want to be your chef now!" She huffed.
"Please, Luz! I need a chef! I'll never try to replace you again!" King begged.
"Oh, Alright. I'll still be your chef."
"Yay!" He cheered.
Luz chuckled and continued to eat.
"You know, he's right though, Mr. P! You're cooking is amazing! I wish I could eat here every day." She complimented.
"Yeah, I love the taste of this! Thank you for making it for us!" Gus smiled. It wasn't the first time he had eaten here, but the food never ceased to make his taste buds sing.
"It has a wonderful flavor to it. I appreciate you making us dinner." Amity politely smiled at him.
"Dad's cooking is always amazing, full of flavor and love." Willow giggled.
Mr. P smiled at all the compliments. "Thank you all so much for your kind words. I'm glad you kids enjoy my food."
"I agree with the kids; your food is quite delightful. Mind if I take some leftovers home?" Eda asked.
"No, not at all. Help yourself." He smiled.
Eda greedily got herself a large container of the meatloaf, taking nearly the entire meatloaf.
Boscha remained silent even as they complimented Mr. Park. She poked at her food, but she couldn't bring it up to her mouth without gagging.
"Boscha, what do you think of the food?" Luz asked, seeming the three-eyed witch was the only one that didn't compliment the chef.
"It's alright..." She cringed at herself.
"Fuck, that sounded rude." She mentally face-palmed.
"You haven't even eaten any; how do you know how it tastes?" Amity raised a questioning brow.
She stabbed part of the meatloaf with her fork and brought it up to her mouth. She forced herself not to gag as she placed the meat in her mouth and began to chew. Swallowing was another challenge. Her stomach tried to reject the food instantly, but she forced it down regardless.
She felt extremely ill now. More so than she did earlier. Her mouth felt dry, and her stomach was still trying to force the food out. She grabbed the glass of water in front of her and chugged it.
She felt even more ill now. Her hands began to shake, and she dropped the glass. It hit the floor, shattering upon impact. She got up quickly, knees weak.
She rushed to the restroom, instantly throwing up into the toilet bowl.
Mr. P turned to his husband. "When is the healer supposed to be here?" He asked.
"Tomorrow morning."
He sighed. He was worried about the girl that was currently emptying her stomach into the toilet bowl once again.
Mr. P sighed as he got a broom and dustpan, ready to clean up the glass. His husband took the items.
"I'll take care of this. You have something else that requires your attention." Mr. Park said, knowing that Boscha had been opening up to him a lot. From the morning at the market when they got Relus up to the moment in the workroom. Something he did made the girl trust him almost with her life.
Mr. P nodded as he went to the bathroom, where Boscha was currently on her knees, dry heaving over the toilet. Tears were streaming down her face, and she was shaking violently.
The girl was obviously exhausted, and the lack of food wasn't helping her.
He knocked on the wall gently to make the girl aware of his presence. She looked over at him before getting to her feet quickly and flushing the toilet.
The girl seemed paler than she should. Her breathing was ragged. It looked as if she were going to pass out any moment now. He took a step forward only for her to take a step back.
"I- I didn't m-mean t-to break it." More tears began to slip from her eyes.
It took a moment for him to understand what she was talking about. "I know you didn't. I'm not mad at you." He took another step toward her.
She didn't take a step back this time. Instead, she examined him closely. She was scared but willing to trust him until he gave her a reason to not.
He approached her carefully as to not frighten her. He knelt in front of her, and she looked down at him. He noticed her relax a bit as he no longer towered over her.
She shifted her stance slightly as if hesitating the actions she wished to do. Then, she stepped forward, wrapping her arms around Mr. P. It took a second for the man to realize what she was doing. Almost too long as she attempted to pull away in a panic, but he wrapped his arms around her gently, calming her down.
He knew that her mother and father alike had deprived her of the affection she needed. It was obvious to him now just how much that plus the abuse had done to her mentally. It became clear to him in the workroom, but the way she relaxed in his arms...
Her breathing had begun to steady. He began to rub her back gently. His hand ran over the carved word, and she stiffened. He remembered that his daughter had said something about the word carved into Boscha's back.
He placed his hand on the midsection of her back and held the girl tighter. She relaxed again. Before he knew it, the three-eyed witch had fallen asleep in his arms.
"Dad?" He heard the concerned voice of his daughter. "She's going to be okay, right?"
Mr. P lightly chuckled as he picked Boscha up. "She'll be fine, pumpkin." He told her.
Holding the sleeping witch with one arm, he hugged his daughter with the other. She hugged him back, a small smile gracing her lips. His husband then walked down the hall to them.
"Ms. Clawthorn is taking the others back home. They were very persistent about staying, but I told them they could come in the morning before school."
Mr. P smiled. "That's good. They all need a good night's sleep in their beds after all that has happened." He turned to his daughter. "That includes you. Which one of you sleeps closet to the wall?"
Willow blushed slightly despite the fact nothing should have logically made her respond that way. "Sh-she does."
He walked into Willow's room and laid Boscha down on the bed. He left the room. He hugged his daughter goodnight then went to his bedroom with his husband.
Willow went into her room and got ready for bed. Once dressed in her nightwear, she crawled into bed next to Boscha. She pulled her close, never wanting to lose this feeling again. Despite the fact, she hadn't slept in the same bed with Boscha that long, she could never go back to sleeping without her.
Luz's comment came back to her.
"I legitimately thought you two were going to kiss." Then Boscha reunited with Relus, and she had to add to the embarrassment from only moments earlier. "Aw, see, you guys already have a family!" heat rose to her face. "Luz! We're not even together!" Then her father stepped in at that comment. "Could've fooled me."
Her face heated up, butterflies danced in her stomach, and her heart pounded. She swept some hair out of Boscha's face.
"What have you done to me?" She held her even tighter.
--_-_--_-_--
Sorry again that I can't update every other day like I used to! I hope this chapter was enjoyable!
Have a wonderful day! Know you are all loved and wanted in this world!
words-1572
Published- 11/15/20