The Moon Is Beautiful

Chapter 26

I stare down at the pool of soup in my bowl.

After stopping at the beach to think, the first and only place I could think of coming to since I was in no space to go home was Ms. Anderson's shop. She greeted me warmly when I came walking in, and as if she could sense that I was not okay, she pulled me into her tight embrace.

Thankfully, after the hug, I felt a little relaxed, however, the anxiety still lingers in my chest. She then proceeded to specially cook me some soup even though it's not on the shop's menu.

"What is it, my beautiful rose?" Ms. Anderson asks, her voice soft as it pulls me away from my thoughts. My eyes move to hers, hesitant.

What do I say to Ms. Anderson? Is there even anything that I can tell her, besides a lie that I conjured up in my mind? I'm not too sure if she will judge me if I decide to tell her everything, however, I don't want to take that chance.

Ms. Anderson is one of old fashioned people who believes that things should be done a certain way. She believes in sex only after marriage and that you'll go to hell if you dare touch another intimately before then. She'll no doubt make me pray for my sin after this.

"Nothing. I'm just tired and stressed from school." I lie, deciding that its better for me if she doesn't know. Ms. Anderson doesn't look convinced, her eyes narrowing slightly before she releases a breath, accepting my answer.

"Alright then. Just know, you are my child, and whatever it may be, you can always tell me." she says and I nod, swallowing uncomfortably. It feels as though she is saying this because she can see right through my lie. She probably can, but as long as she doesn't pressure me to tell the truth, I'm not telling her a thing.

I don't want to risk ruining this great relationship we have.

And now that she calls me her child, I can't help but think about Kaden. She called him her child too, and the thought of him takes me back to last night. I'm still unsure as to what really happened last night, but the thing tugging at my mind the most is the way he changed, and so suddenly.

One moment he was blushing, and the next he was teasing me, staring at me as if he wanted to devour me. The mere memory of how dark his eyes became makes me shiver.

I need to know whether that really meant something or not.

"Ms. Anderson, can I ask you something? About Kaden." I ask.

"Of course. What is it?"

"Does he perhaps have...dissociative identity disorder?" I cautiously ask, unsure if this is sensitive waters to tread on. Honestly, that was the first thing that came to mind when he changed to drastically. But I didn't want to ask him because it may offend him in case he doesn't have it. I think that it's safer to ask someone else, and if there is one person to ask, it's definitely Ms. Anderson.

She pauses for a moment, her tongue flicking across her lips. "...Yes, he does."

I don't say anything, allowing her words to sink in. I'm a bit taken aback, because even though I suspected it, deep down, I didn't think that he really has it. I've never met anyone with dissociative identity disorder before. I'm not sure how to react. It doesn't affect me directly, or at all, yet I still feel a little strange inside, almost as though he's someone important to me.

Perhaps it's because I can sympathize with those close to him. I can't even begin to imagine what it must be like for him. Not only is he blind, but he also has a mental illness. It almost makes me think that the universe is trying to punish him.

"Was he born with it?" I can't help but ignorantly ask. I don't know anything about this illness besides what it's called. Ms. Anderson shakes her head.

"He didn't always have it. It only started after..." she trails off, hesitating, and I understand why. Even though we are close, this isn't Ms. Anderson's story that she can just tell anyone if she wants to.

"It's alright. You don't have to tell me." I say, leaning back in my chair.

She nods. "I think that it's best if you ask Kaden directly. I don't feel too great about talking about him behind his back."

I completely understand, although, I doubt I'll ever ask Kaden, and I doubt that he'll tell me if I do. We aren't close, and so he has no reason to share his life story with me.

"But, can I ask you a favour?" Ms. Anderson softly asks, interlocking her frail hands on the table before her. I immediately nod. I'll do anything for her. "Can you please just look out for him? Help him if he needs it, and if it's not too much to ask, be his friend. He doesn't have any friends that are close to his age here. He only has the middle aged and elderly as company, so he must get lonely at times."

I nod. I was going to help him if he needs it anyway, and I doubt it'll be hard to befriend him, not when he's such a nice person. I just hope his other personalities are as nice as he is.

"If I may ask, how many personalities does he have?" I question, feeling the need to know if I'm going to do what Ms. Anderson wants me to.

"Oh. I can assume it must be weighing on your mind," she says with a light chuckle. "Contrary to what you may think, he only has two personalities."

Ms. Anderson is right. It might just be my unhealthy assumption, but whenever I hear or read of people with this illness, they always have multiple different personalities, ranging from sweet to psychopathic, even sometimes being a different gender to the holder of it.

I can't say I'm not relieved that Kaden only has two. That means that I met his other personality last night, albeit briefly, but at least I got a glimpse of the other him. From what I remember, he liked teasing me and wasn't afraid to speak his mind without any kind of filter, the conplete opposite to Kaden.

"Does his eyes change when his other personality takes over?" I question when I remember how the colour of his eyes changed the moment his attitude did. His eyes are usually so bright, but last night, they became dark, almost dull in a way.

"Yes it does," Ms. Anderson confirms. "But, may I ask how you found out?"

"Oh. We were hanging out last night and then out of nowhere, his demeanor and attitude completely changed, and this was the only thing I could think of." I say and Ms. Anderson hums, nodding in understanding.

"Anyway, I'll look out for him." I say and Ms. Anderson smiles, her eyes softening.

"You should finish your soup and then go home. I'm sure your mother must be worried about where you are." she says, standing up from her seat and walking back to the kitchen.

Sighing, I twirl my spoon around in the soup, not wanting to return home just yet. If I go home now, I'll have to face Raine. Am I ready to do that? The obvious is no, no I'm not. But I have to face him at some time, and I guess the universe wants that to be today.

Quickly finishing my soup, I bid goodbye to Ms. Anderson and head home. The moment I step into the house, my mother and Eliza is by my side, their eyes filled with worry as they ask me where I went, and whether I'm okay.

I assure them that I'm okay, blaming my outburst on stress from school. And when they let me walk into the house properly, my eyes immediately land on Raine who stands at the kitchen island, leaning against it with crossed arms.

Here we go.