13

You’ve never had to sneak out of your room so this was a new move for you. Admittedly it wasn’t too hard slipping over tangled limbs, Emmy Lee and Ren contesting each other on which could snore the loudest. Your place was filled quickly, the girls working themselves into an even row bookended by the noisemakers. It was sun up when you stepped out of your love shack, nearly tripping over tiny Wafer stretched across your doormat. You caught yourself before stumbling completely to the ground, he was still asleep. You looked around for Oreo or the three headed monster but no dogs in sight. You picked up the fuzzy bubbled mass and cradled him in your arms as you walked over the tiny hills in the lawn into the back of the house. The pudgy sharpie between awake and sleep yawning droopy eyed in your arms before settling into a comfortable position looking up at you in thanks of the transportation. You slid open the back door into the dry pantry and walked into the kitchen. At the refrigerator you took out a few eggs, no left overs to warm up, you put Wafer down on the table and cracked the eggs into a bowl for him to eat along with a few strips of raw bacon. You went back to the pantry for bread for toast. No wheat, no white bread, no sour dough, a couple pieces of artisan bread and something with flax that Jenny cooked up that was hard as a brick. You worked your way over to the cereals hot and cold. It was too much to boil water, your body hit by the first wave. You were pulled from your self. The disconnect was complete. You watched yourself turn where your ghost would have been. You stood remotely viewing, long hair mussed over your head, your makeup still on, eyes lazy, half smile on your lips with pencil thin mustache from last night. You came back into yourself, snagged a bowl of something frosted and sugary and joined Wafer at the breakfast table. You woofed down the first bowl before returning to the fridge for your second helping of milk when it hit again. You were quicker this time, still unsure if this was waking dream or otherwise, you watched yourself until you returned to your physical body. Wafers tiny tail wagged frantically back and forth when you returned. You ran your fingers over his silky fur and shared from your bowl. As the two of you sipped from the dish. You vacated your physical form a third time. This time you waited. There wasn’t a pull back to yourself, your sleepy eyes a bit more awake now; you tracked your ethereal self floating above.

“I need a haircut, eh, f**k it, I dig it.” You spoke, your body. You floated around your head, tried to adjust your gaze, instead falling back into your body again.

“F**k the what?” You fluffed your hair into more tangles trying to work out exactly what just happened. You shook it out of your head, dropped your dishes in the sink and retrieved Wafer’s squirming lumps from the table. You were almost knocked over a sprinting Richard coming through the hallway on your way towards Boo’s chamber. “Dick.” You patted Wafer and put him down on the floor for the rest of the walk. You listened up stairs, no movement coming from Jenny’s loft; you broke the seal on Boo’s room. It was cold, the hairs of your body at attention immediately, your breath highly visible blooms escaping your lips. There was frost on the hardwood, you tip toed over to her bed Wafer already burrowing beneath the mass of black blankets. You stood on the edge of the raised wooden platform waiting for the nose to rustle out where Boo Bear was hibernating. The nuzzling stopped around the lower two thirds. On your hands and knees you reached into the bed. It was deeper than you remember, up to your shoulders and you still couldn’t feel the mattress. You switched positions, your feet hitting unstable ground you sank down under the covers, it was at least four feet from the rim to the base of this cave. You felt through the blankets for skin or hair. There was a warm mass at the center; you dug through until you could curl against satiny fabric. You moved your hand along spinal ridge, coming into a white mass. She writhed; soft snores, and rolled over to face you. She kept her eyes closed as you wrapped your arms around her and kissed her on the forehead. She cooed, snuggling her face close to your breast, you shooshed her mews and rocked her in your arms. You felt the flickering of eyelashes on your chest when you started to doze off.

“Barty” Boo

“Yeah Boo?”

“I love you,” She gave you a little kiss

“I love you too sister.” She came to in your arms, rolling back over arching her butt into your stomach.

“How was the party?” Boo

“I was on drugs, but it was pretty good.”

“Ha what else is new, what did you take?” Boo

“Boo, you make me sound like a junkie, stop it.”

“Aw sister.” Boo

“It was f*****g out of this world though.”

“Wow, you’d make a great PSA.” Boo

“Shut up.” You tugged her hair, she farted into your stomach, you pushed her away laughing and cupping your hand over your face.

“It’s the ultimate Dutch oven sucka. Too bad I don’t have smelly farts.” She scampered away into the covers. “You like my fish tank?” You stood up, your head above the fluffy sea.

“Where did you come from?”

“Roar!” She pounced on you from underneath the pile taking you down into the abyss. She was slippery, easing out of your grip and around to your back holding on for dear life as you thrashed to break free. She held on as you rolled over onto your back. She dodged your pin, wrapping you in blankets before moving past your field of vision. In blindness, you felt movement trying to untangle yourself and pounced. It was wafer. You stood up in the wash, the little dog licking your face, Boo sat on the edge of the bed, her feet in the sink. She laughed at her big sister behind the curve. “Fish out of water?” You trudged through the dense blankets to the edge and handed over her pet. “Put him down,” she commanded, “Wafer do your trick.” You did as you were told, plopping the dog down on top of the blankets. You watched Wafer burrow down into the sheets and disappear only to reappear at Boo’s side moments later. “There’s a trap door for doggy and me built into the floor.”

“You’re amazing, you know that?” She threw herself into your arms from the ledge, you body slammed her into the dogpile, kissing and biting vigorously at her cheeks, your fingers tickling her sides as she tried to escape from your grips. You were much too strong for her to get away under these conditions, you buried her; she was getting tougher to hold but still not strong enough. Her laughter was manic shaking the sheets, her whole body vibrating, you placed a pillow over her face and left it for her to shake off while you sat on her thighs and poked at her belly, her struggles cooling down as you planted yourself and eased off of the funny games.

“This is fun, I thought I was going to pee on myself,” Boo rolled beneath you onto her stomach, “ Rub my back and tell me how your night was.” She moved her hair out of the way while you slid up her gown; she pulled it over her head the rest of the way. You squeezed her traps between your fingers, the muscle was tender, and as you worked your hand down her back she breathed deep the rippling like firecrackers.

“They’re dead.” It came out easier this time, no want to shoosh, it felt good, “I cut Stewart’s head off, people cheered, I felt like a f*****g gladiator, it was f*****g epic.” Your knuckles ground into her back, you were careful and controlled, she sighed, all the tension sinking into the bed. “ I also disemboweled someone. Jane lit a guy on fire.”

“You’re a real villain, Barty, just like the movies.” Boo
“I’m chaotic neutral if anything. The m***********s had it coming.”

“Undoubtedly,” Boo snored slipping into sleep a little bit at your recount over the gore.

“Are you still sad about the Reds? I know you liked them it’ll be okay there are more fish in the sea.” You laughed a bit, a quick flash of the bodies belly up in the boiling water.

“Not too much actually, I was up all night.” Boo

“That’s nothing new, doing what?”

“F*****g myself” Boo. You stifled a laugh

“I slept with Ren, Kaite, Emmy, and Jane last night,” you dismounted and snuggled up next to your sister.

“Slept with or?” Boo

“Fucked. I think I know why you like girls.”

“Yes, I do have an affinity for a good c**t. How were they?” Boo

“I’m the man, what can I say,” you laughed.

“It runs in the family.” Boo

“I kinda dig being the center of attention.”

“Feeling a little like him?” Boo

“We’ll they are still all passed out, so I guess I got that kind of swag.”

“Yeah he would come visit me too post coitus,” Boo. “What?”

“Just kidding, we would have breakfast sometimes though. He could cook a mean omelet, none of the intimate details though.” You were quiet, some of your spunk sucked out from the topic at hand. You held her close and hummed her to sleep like you used to do.