Freaks

21- Nobody

꧁☀︎︎꧂

Time: 8:00-ish

Harper and Luka wait around at his house still waiting for a response from Aster. Harper sits at the edge of his bed, ending a call with her mother.

"Why do you want to stay longer? Aren't you bored yet?" Her mother says tiredly on the phone.

"Not any more bored than I'd be at home."

"Fine..." She sighs, "But I want you home in the next hour or two, please. Don't keep me up again."

"Promise I won't. Thanks."

She hangs up and looks down at Luka who's below her, his back on the ground and his legs up on the bed. He slams his phone against his chest and huffs, "It's been four hours since we texted her and left the park. She still hasn't even opened the text."

"Maybe she's just sleeping," Harper says.

He looks at her, "Or maybe she's being stupid."

Just as silence begins to take up the room, his phone goes off. He picks it up quickly and soon his face is confused.

Sorry, busy.

"Busy?" He questions. He struggles to get up from the floor, one of his ankles hits the table beside him and he winces. Eventually, both legs function correctly and he sits up quickly on the bed next to Harper.

"What?" She says quietly as he shows her the message, "Does she even text like that?"

"No. And why would she be busy? Busy with what? Cleaning her house? I don't think she'd be cleaning after her friend just died."

Harper looks at him strangely, "Why are you so worried about this?"

"I don't think what Alice wrote was real. It wasn't last time...I think it was another trap. And I think Aster was crazy enough to fall for it."

"I don't know what to believe anymore." Her eyes travel down to the collar of his shirt, "Daniel wasn't trying to promise anything maybe that's for a reason. What if he's not alive?" She looks back to him, her brows cornered, "What's the reason for getting our hopes up? We know they're both liars."

She feels his hand grip hers, "Don't think like that. I'm just saying it's dangerous, Alice wants us to think she's on our side. But I have a feeling she wasn't lying about Kai."

"How are you so sure about that?"

"It's Kai. People like him don't just die randomly. Not like that."

"And what if they do? What does that mean for us?"

He pauses, looking her down, "I can't imagine what you're feeling, Harper."

She removes her hand with a mystified look, "No, you can't."

His face grows scared, and he easily grabs her wrist back, "I'm trying to say that I understand. I understand what you saw. You saw him die."

She blinks slowly as her lips are trying not to frown, she swallows dry air.

"It doesn't matter where he's at right now. What matters is Aster, you know she's not doing good, I know she isn't. We need to go see her. I'll drop you off after if you want."

She coughs the strange feeling away and nods.

She flings her backpack onto the floor of the passenger seat in Malakai's car. She pinches her nose once she's inside, his smell still goes through her head. Luka rolls down the window and it helps, somewhat.

They drive past junkie houses, ones with trash all in the yards and dangerous-looking dogs behind chain-linked faces. Or the other ones that are cute and old with fresh growing flowers in the garden beds and colorfully painted walls.

They reach Aster's house. They both walk up to her door and press the doorbell. They stand and wait for a few yawns and growling stomachs.

The door finally opens and Aster's mom stands before them.

"Hey." Luka starts, "Sorry for bothering you. We needed to talk to Aster."

Her frowny eyes start to widen, "She isn't with you guys?"

Luka's head suddenly drops backward and he sighs. Harper stares at her.

"I thought she went somewhere with Kai. She told me by note that she was gonna be gone. I guessed it was because she was mad at me this morning...she needs to come back anyways. I got her Pepto"

Luka looks back down and his hand scratches the back of his head, "Wonderful."

She looks at him with fear, "Where do you think she went?"

He doesn't give himself the time to explain, "Just call the cops." He starts back down the stairs from the door, "Tell them to go to 190 on Rogue Street. Now please."

Harper quickly follows and Aster's mother shuffles, you can hear the panic in her breath miles away.

"What?!" She gets to the last step as Luka gets to the truck, "Luka! Where is she?!"

"I'm gonna handle it!" He yells across the yard in a hurry, "Just call them!"

She disappears into the dimness of her house as they both jump into the truck, slamming the doors. The truck starts up and is instantly gassed, making an ear-deafening squeal from the tires.

"You don't want to go home right now, do you?" Luka asks Harper.

"No." She says defensively. She won't let her go too.

...

Aster breathes in chilling air. She wakes up to Alice yelling again, it doesn't seem to bother her too much now but it wakes her brain up. Malakai's head is plunged under her chin, and the right side of his face is squished against her chest. He sleeps peacefully with his arms hanging across her waist. She tries not to laugh at him to keep him sleeping.

She plays with his hair, wrapping the waves around her fingers. She's blocked out the yelling for a minute, she almost starts to go back to sleep, but then a familiar voice triggers her brain again.

"Luka?" She whispers to herself. She hears him yell back at Alice. She turns her head to listen closer.

Then the sound of a gun goes off. Uh oh. It startles them both awake more than ever, it has them to their feet, scrambling for their clothes on the ground.

Malakai fights for his shirt twisted under the blanket, "What's going on?"

"They're here." She says, wrestling on pants.

"Who's they?"

"Luka. And...Harper. Maybe. I don't know."

"Dammit."

They almost hit heads and stub toes just to not be naked anymore. Then they race like Olympians to the door. Malakai bangs his knuckles on it so hard you'd think he's punched a hole in it already. They both yell every name behind that door until their throats dry out and their hands hurt.

Suddenly it swings open and Harper stands with a face of fear, also with relief when she sees both of them still alive.

Malakai hugs her first and looks around the room as he does. Everyone looks toward the three of them. Paul, Raymond, and Alice with a gun in her hand...pointed at Luka.

...