Puppets in Uniform ~~ An Apply Fic

𝔸𝕟𝕕𝕪

5 months later...

My suitcase was starting to bulge a little, making my frown deepen. I didn't have that many clothes to begin with, how did I get that much stuff?!

Anya giggled, setting the rest of her plants in a box to ship them home. She looked over at me, raising a brow.

"You're doing a horrible job of packing." She smiled, handing over another one of my empty duffel bags. Val huffed, slamming the door shut and throwing herself on her empty bed.

"What got your panties in a twist?" I snicker, finishing the placing the rest of my clothes into the duffel bag. Val flipped me off, adding her second hand after a few beats.

"Val! No flipping off in the room!" Zay called from the bathroom, clinking the rest of her toiletries into the bag.

"But Andy put my panties in a twist!" She whined, smacking the bed and bouncing around. I wheezed, collapsing onto the floor before laughing.

"Huh?!" Zay exclaimed, throwing herself out of the bathroom to see what we meant. Anya was just dying on the floor. She sighed, rolling her eyes at us, "You're so lucky Lia isn't here."

"Yeah, she's probably busy flirting with Adam while delivering our packages!" I grumbled, still inwardly annoyed at the way she acted around him when we first saw him. Anya laughed some more, checking the time on her phone.

"Oh please, knowing her, she's probably gotten into some petty argument and is not leaving it alone till she's had the last word."

We all laughed, I looked around the barren room, sneezing from the amount of dust that came up from all the moving of things.

"Anya, we have to leave now!" Zay announced, putting all her bags on the cart. Val and I both poured, running over to hug them. Anya sighed too, hugging all of us.

"We'll call you when we get to my parents' house. Wanna try to plan a meet up? I haven't gone to America yet, but it may be fun to see China town!" Anya suggested, looking over at me with her dumb smile. I shrugged, turning my phone ringer back on.

"It's an option. Zay, are you going to do okay there?" I asked, putting my attention on her. She had a falling out with her parents during spring break. She had told them about her doctor's appointment, her concerns about having autism. They immediately brushed her off and it erupted into a fight. Ultimately, Zay chose to go with Anya till she felt better about being with her parents.

"Mhm. I've talked with Mrs. Lukin over the phone about my stay with them and she's been very kind about it. If that changes, I'll let you know." Zay smiled, hugging me tightly. I sighed, breathing in her smell of caramel.

"Okay. You two get outta here. Val and I will catch up." I say, watching them get their bags down the hall and hearing the slight thumps of the cart on the stairs.

"You and Lia need to be safe." Val states, making me groan.

"Of course, we are! Just because we've agreed to leave our feelings alone at school and she's coming to stay with me for a few weeks while her dads on a business trip- yeah no that does sounds like something naughty could happen." I admit, feeling my face go a little red. My hair tightened around my finger as I twirled it at the thought of us doing anything like that. Val snickered, giving me a pat on the shoulder.

"Cmon, I have to get all four of you to the airport." She rolled her eyes, like the journey as a whole was not worth her time.

"Yeah, yeah. Tell Kylie I said Hi." I replied, waving Val's phone in her face before running off with my bags. She gasped, running after me and shouting angrily in Irish Gaelic.

~~~

The airport smelt like the ocean and fresh flowers. Sweat was clinging to the back of my neck and lower back. Pink hair tickled at my back, the tips feeling like little pricks in my back. Lia was holding my hand, squeezing it as we watched Zay and Anya leave for their gate.

I wish it didn't feel so final. I regretted it almost.

"This feels so final..." I murmured, feeling little tears blur the sides of my vision. Lia snorted, looking over at me with a silly grin.

"Oh please. It's about as final as when we almost kissed three times." She smiled, laughing a little at my confusion.

"We've only almost kissed twice. Ireland and when I attacked some boys." I corrected, adjusting my bag. Lia smiled like an idiot, grabbing me by the hand and pulling me closer.

"Yeah, and just now." She whispered, giving me a quick peck on the lips. It felt like my brain shut down. Lia waltzed away, proud of herself for my flustered reaction.

"God damn it Val. You jinxed it!" I hissed mostly to Val. I hoped she could hear me even as she took her train ride up to Moher.