Riley's Box

Part 33

My conclusion, by the end of that school day, was that the world was spectacularly messed up. 

There was nothing that I could do to stop Jason and Susie from dating, though. I wasn't going to be the one to encroach on their happiness. 

Nevertheless, I couldn't help but feel as though I had been cheated. I was Jason's best friend! Susie was not about to take that away from me, in the way that she had taken the head girl title. The very idea of it made my heart feel as though it was going to burst from the rage. 

My blood was practically bubbling away under the surface. I was surprised by how pale my skin still looked, when I went to freshen up in the mirror. I needed to wash my face, as if by doing so I would be able to wash away the memory of Jason and Susie smiling merrily at me. They had been holding hands! Could the universe get any more antagonistic? 

Yes, apparently it could. Just as I was thinking about Jason and Susie, the sky began to grow darker outside the bathroom window, a reminder of the fact that it was now late afternoon and I really needed to leave the school. Why did I need to leave the school, you might ask? Well, I needed to go and look for literal creatures from Hell. At least my life was balanced in all aspects, now. Not only did the Jason and Susie situation make me feel as though I was in Hell. Hell made me feel as though I was in Hell. 

"Cheer up, sweetheart," Adina told me, as she greeted me outside of the bathroom. 

I really needed a hug and luckily, there were no security cameras or people around, so I went to hug Adina. 

A security guard then cleared his throat nearby. 

Alright, so perhaps I hadn't done a thorough check. 

"I was just leaving," I said. 

"Yeah. Quit looking at her. She's suffering from heartbreak!" Adina said and then stuck her tongue out at the security guard. 

I felt like chuckling at her, but I left that until I was a safe distance away from the school and any potential observers. 

"We found one!" Guttur said, as he made his way over to Adina and I with a merry smile upon his face. 

"And I caught him with my net!" Invidia said with a grin. 

"And I helped!" Ira said energetically. 

I felt myself smiling, then. I was so proud of these little weirdos. 

As I thought that, I glanced at Ira. 

Alright, so perhaps they weren't that little. 

"How many do you think are left?" I asked Avidicci, as we made our way back towards the bus stop. 

The bus arrived promptly, so we quickly boarded it. 

Thankfully, this time around, there were enough seats for all eight of us. 

"I'd estimate around three," Avidicci said. 

Three? 

"Right. Three. Well, that's not so bad, is it?" I asked him. 

Avidicci's expression became a little more serious in response to my question. 

Oh no. I had a feeling that meant that he was going to tell me that it was, in fact, serious. 

"It depends. Sometimes, the longer that shadow spirits stay here, the more dangerous they become," Prida explained. 

"Yeah. And the longer I'm here, the more lazy I become," Otius said. 

I felt my eyes flicker with some endearment, as I glanced towards him fleetingly. 

"Don't worry, you guys," I said and managed to offer them a friendly smile, as we made our way off the bus and started down the road towards my house. "That's what I'm here for, isn't it? So you can come to me, with your problems, and I can try to help you solve them! My grandmother was the last safe keeper of the box and I am determined to make sure that I help you fulfil your duties, too," I continued. 

"You are easy to talk to, I'll give you that much. I know what I hate...and I don't hate you," Ira said. 

I felt my heart warm at the sentiment. 

"Really, Ira? I think that might be the kindest thing you have ever-" I cut off, as I noticed his eyes become a little glossier with vexation. 

"Don't push it, kid," he said. 

"The point is that I care about you- all of you. I'm the only one who actually knows about you, aside from my grandmother. That means that we're in this together, now. We need to put those things back where they came from, or so help- Eh. That reference will be lost on you," I said, with a slightly sheepish smile. 

"What's a referendo?" Otius asked Prida, as they started to climb up the house and back in through the window. 

"How am I supposed to know?" Prida hissed back. 

Once all of the Sins had returned to my room, through my window, it was time for me to head back inside too. 

"Welcome home, Riley!" my mother said and then wandered over to wrap her arms around me again. "You seem happier...what happened?" she asked. 

It was good to see that she was still in her usual, sceptical mood. 

At least that much stayed the same! 

"School was alright today," I said. 

If I discounted the whole Susie and Jason thing, then it had been a perfectly reasonable day. 

The Sins had managed to send one of the shadow spirits back! That had to count for something. 

"Good," my mother said. 

I could tell from her expression that her own day hadn't been quite as good. 

"Mom- is everything alright with you? You haven't been doing your depression knitting again, have you?" I asked her. 

"I don't know, Riley. Grandma isn't doing so well," she told me. "And I don't think her hip's going to make it this time! Not to mention how expensive the surgery is going to be..." her voice faded out.