Chapter 13

 Part II

  

 Chapter 13

 

            By the time I finished the house, the weather was warmer, and petals littered the streets. I didn’t talk to many people other then the person who helped built the house. He was real nice and all; when money became an issue somehow there was a loophole.

            A week after we started the construction, I came to his house to ask how the money was going to work out. He said I was $1,000 over! That was a lot!

            “What?! I don’t have that much!”.

            “You can pay it off slowly, but where you get the money is your problem.”

            I didn’t know what to do, but then the sweetest little angel walked in the room. She was blond, her clothes matched a pattern of multi colored poke-a-dots; whether it was the ribbon in her hair or the shoes on her feet, everything matched. She looked like one of those baby dolls I would get on Christmas as a child.  

            “Daddy, did you see the horsy outside.” She asked with shinning eyes.

            “Yes pumpkin, the horsy belongs to this young lady here.”

            She looks at me with her ice blue eyes; they seemed familiar somehow… She turned to her dad with a cold look.

            “Daddy I want a horsy too.” She wined.

            “Darling there’s not a horse in miles of Minosis except for that one there.” He gestured to my horse, sweating… in fear? Her look became colder and colder.

            “I… want… my... horsy!” Then ‘Daddy’ started sweating like a pig, and all I was doing was standing there watching.

            “Sweetheart you know you can’t keep a big pet like a horse.”

            “I… Don’t…CARE!” She threw a lamp to the floor and it shattered. “I NEED ONE!” She flipped a table over and sent a mug with coffee flying onto the carpet.

            “Jennifer, sugar, that kind of behavior is not lady like!” His voice shook and cracked. Soon Jenifer started screaming like she was being murdered as she continued to destroy things. She disappeared out of the room, then shortly returned with a long wooden stick. She held it up to a glass cabinet. Inside were what seemed to be delicate plates and wine glasses. She took a few practice swings to tease her poor father. “STOP!” She spared the life of the cabinet for a few minutes longer. The father turns to me in sweaty haste. “Courtalia, I’ll give you $100 for the horse.”

            “I don’t know, sir, I bought this one for $500.” Ok, I lied… so what? I gave a wink to Jenifer, and she teased her dad again by taking a swing at it.

            “Jenifer, please! Did I say $100, I meant $700!”  I shrugged to Jenifer. She gave him a stern look. I was starting to enjoy the situation very much.      

            “I don’t know. With that $1,000 your charging me, it’s getting more difficult to let her go.”

            “Please, I’m begging you! That cabinet contains my most prized positions!” Oh this is precious.

            “$1,000... Last offer.” I crossed my arms. He thought it over, sweating a little more… and then he cracked.

            “Alright, alright! Your free of your charges!” I looked at Jenifer and she smiled and danced like the eager little girl she was.

            “Could I have a moment with Dali before I go?”

            “Haha, yes!” Jenifer giggled still dancing around.

            I went out side. I stroked her gray hair. I could hear her breath wisp through the air of that late spring evening. She looked at me and I looked at her. Her long eyelashes flew down and up again. She blinked at me and I did the same back. Her face was warm to the touch. She sighed, and then I told her softly.

“I’ll come back for you.” She looked into my eyes like she believed what I had said, and that was comforting somehow. I went back into the house and lead Jenifer to Dali. She brought an apple with her, and we fed it to Dali. They got used to each other, and it was sweet. She knew how to ride already, so that wasn’t a problem. I shortly left after that.

My house was done. It was April 3^rd; it had been 26 day since I left. My house was my dream house. It had a tower linked by another rectangular piece. A cross over attached them. The deck that linked the two pieces was open; it was one of my favorite parts of the house. In the tower was a spiral staircase leading to my bedroom. The ceiling was transparent and rounded, like a dome. The other side had a kitchen and foyer on the first floor. In the back room on the first floor was a staircase that, of course, led to the second floor. On the second floor there was the living room, there was where you walk thought the deck to the tower which had no second floor, just more steps.

            I decided to walk thought the town and go out to eat for the first time. It was sunset, the rims of the buildings glistened and the sun slowly melted into the ground. The Leona plains, where the sky meats the earth. I was alone; I wondered the streets that were flooded with red and pink. I was taking quick glances over the delicate window displays. White lights on strings lined out the edges of roofs. The lights glowed stronger as the darkness crept from the east. I stopped by a brick building with no windows. There were vines that spread around the top. The sign said “The Zookie”. I stood there for a while just looking at the wooden door… then I went in. It was a restaurant with beautifully colored paper lanterns on the ceiling. There were red booths on one side and a red bar on the other. The stools were red too, and everything that was red was outlined in silver.

There was a woman tending the bar who was drying a glass. There was a group of adults talking; their plates were like wastelands of bones and crumpled napkins. In the distance there was a boy sitting alone, by himself. He had dark hair. I couldn’t see anymore of him because his head was down. I went over to him and said hi. He looked up. Almost frozen, he sat there. Then he finally said,

            “Hi.”

            “May I sit with you.”

            “Um, yeah, sure.” I sit across from him.

            “Who… are you?” He asks stupidly.

            “I’m Courtalia.”

            “Courtalia.” he repeats.

            “And who are you?” I asked. I had finally caught glimpse of his full face. His brows were bold. His charcoal locks framed his face. His eyes were dark brown. They were youthful and gentle.

            “Undalio.” He answered.

            “I’ve never heard such an exotic name before.”

            “Your name is different too… In a good way.”

            “You really think so?” He smiles brightly like he had transformed from the miserable to the animated.

            “Yeah and it’s beau-…” He pauses, uneasy. “Cool. It’s cool.” Hmmm.

            “So… um… I don’t want to sound dorky but…I’m kind of new here, and I was wondering if you could show me around.” I blushed I little. “I mean only if that’s ok with you…” He smiled.

            “Sure.” He stood, and put out his hand… Wait I’ve seen all of this before! What just happened?! I looked at his hand and then around the room. But-

“You ok?” I must of looked pretty stupid I guess, looking around the room like it was a torture room.

“Yes! Uh, I mean… yah.” I got up, but I didn’t take his hand, instead we just walked. The town was a big +. But there was so much to it. Undalio and I walked to every place. In the middle of Minosis there was a statue. It stood on a cube-shaped podium that was tinted green. There was a plaque mounted on the podium; it faced south, and it was a faded gold. The actual statue was also faded gold, it was of a young woman leaning forward, but it seemed like the wind was breaking her fall. She had a flowing dress on and her hair was all behind her. Her arms were out, and her eyes were closed with her lips parted slightly.

While we were walking, we passed it many times, but after we had seen everything I wanted to get a closer look.  Undalio was going on about how it was supposed to rain soon when I started running toward it. I scanned over it in curiosity. It was so beautiful. He caught up to me.

“That’s been there ever since I could remember.” We looked the statue over once more. “My dad told me a hooded woman brought it here with her wooden cart and horse and just dropped it off, weird right?” A hooded woman? Could she be the same hooded woman that dropped ME off?!  My insides started to panic. “Courtalia are you ok?”

            “Uh,” I can’t tell him! He’d think I was crazy! “Yes, I’m totally fine.” I lied.

            “My dad saw the whole thing, and she just left. He tried to get her attention, but she wouldn’t stop.” He paused. “Then my mom called his name, when he looked away she was gone, poof!  Just… gone.” He walked around the statue touching the end of her dress which flared out beautifully. “Then he went to see what my mom was going on about. Then she said ‘Gale, someone just left this child on our step, what do we do?’ They called everyone in town… Which wasn’t much. They even tried this hotel a that’s about 12miles from here or something.” Fifteen. “But no one claimed him… and now I’m here today. I still don’t know where I come from. Oh well, the last thing my dad saw was a black cape wisp by the window.” I held myself back from asking more questions, but I was so curious. Maybe my dream, this woman, this… feeling… like I’ve met him before… maybe they were all connected. “Courtalia?” Wow I must look pretty stupid dozing off all the time. I looked at him with indifference, to show him that nothing out of the normal just occurred. Even though that strange occurrence could’ve answered a lot of my questions.

            “Sorry, just deep in thought.”

It was then that I just felt like sitting down. I wanted to ask so many questions; I just needed to know.  “What day did this happen.” Ok, If it’s March 1oth I am going to freak out!…

            “October 5^th, we call it my birthday, although I highly doubt I was “born” on that day ha-ha.” I laughed along a little, but it must have been awkward because he gave me a look like he just told a terrible joke.

            “So when’s yours?”

            “March 10^th” I said with my fists on my hips. I gave my brightest smile. “Just turned 13 about a month ago.”

            “Nice.” Well guess he had nothing more to say to that. By then it was dark and the stars were easily spotted in the navy blue sky. I looked up at him. Gosh do you have to make me feel so short?!

“I should go.” I said, but it honestly, it just sounded like one long sigh.

“It’s getting dark, yah know. Do you want me to walk you home?”

“Nah, I’m fine.”

“Oh come on, its almost like pitch black. Aren’t you afraid?”

“No way! I’m not afraid of anything!”

“Oooooooh reeeeeallllly now?”

“Really! Maybe I should be the one to walk YOU home, ha-ha!” At that he just gave me a face that mumbled ‘well whatever’.

“I was just wondering, yesh.”

“Well if u want to that’s fine.”  I started walking towards my house. The lights were glowing through the windows of the second floor.

“Hold a second.” He bolted off, my first thought was to follow him, but I hesitated… but then I changed my mind and followed anyway. He disappeared behind a house. I lost sight of him, but I could hear him rumbling through the small shed behind the house. I felt like opening the door and asking him what he was looking for, but before I could he sprung out with two lit flashlights. He pointed shining lights in random directions. He was waving then around and making light-saver noises as if a protector of the galaxy. I couldn’t help but giggle.

“Catch!” He tossed one to me and I fumbled with it. It didn’t fall but it wasn’t a graceful catch either. “Ok let’s go.”

“I’ll race yah there!”

“Ok... 1... 2 HEY WAIT UP!” By two I was bolting, but somehow he caught up and took the lead. Then I was in the lead. I could hear the announcers in my mind: Courtalia the speed demon and Undalio lightning are neck and neck! It’s gonna be close! Annnnnnnnnnd….IT’S A PHOTO FINISH! UNBELIEVEABLE! Sorry folks, looks like we’ll never know!

“I… so… won.” I claimed with deep breaths in between each word.

“No… way.” I gave him the flashlight and he looked at me, both of us ready to collapse. So we did. We sat outside with our backs leaning against the house. We didn’t say anything we just waited until we caught our breath. Then, when we did, we said our good byes and that was that.

That night when I was thinking to myself, it occurred to me that his story of his adoption was a lot like mine, and I didn’t know what it was… but I felt like I had meet him before that day. In my dreams? Sure. But I mean before that… but… That was then, and back in those days, in the day of my youth, not much seemed to matter too much.

I moved my bed from the bedroom to the crossover that connected both parts of the house. I laid down in my long flowing night gown. That night I looked up at the stars, the same stars that had been up there at birth and the same stars that will be there when I die. They seemed so far away from where were. I fell asleep that night on that crossover. The night was a deep blue shade and the still winds lulled me into a deep sleep.