Dolls With Souls

Safe Until Sundown

It had been a year now, and Dara was Acacius's first and best friend.

She was the only thing that made him feel normal, feel safe.

In the long hours of the night, some he couldn't even remember for some reason... when terrible, confusing things would happen in his mother's quaint little home in Grevena Valley... memories of the two playing tricks on the rooster, riding into Mr. Jones's orchard, sitting on the ropeswing together... knowing that he would see her the next day... it was something for him to hold on to.

Everything about Dara's home was so different than his own.

He didn't understand his mother... he always told her they should runaway, to get away from the bad people... but she doesn't want to, even though he knows they hurt her too!

But when he saw one lady pay his mother money, before he was locked in a room with the stranger... well, his mother confused him even more.

Dara's mother was nothing like his own.

She would make them fluffy pancakes, she would ruffle his hair, and she would get him fixed up when he fell off the gate in the fields and scraped his elbow.

Sometimes, he was jealous of Dara because of this.

Wondering what he did to deserve the life he has, when he could have been born with a mother as kind and understanding as Dara's.

But it never led him to feel negatively towards Dara... how could he?

She was his best friend!

She was everything to him.

She would catch him when he tripped, she would make him laugh, she would always ask for his consent if she were to do anything to him.

He knew he was easily spooked, but he couldn't really control it... it was a reflex, a force of habit.

Yet, Dara was patient with him, she didn't seem to think twice about it.

Dara made him feel like a kid is supposed to feel.

——

It was a warm summer day when it happened, they were walking down the dirt path, talking about where they thought the moon came from.

"Well, it only comes out at night... right? Or do you think it's always there but we can only see it at night?" Acacius asked curiously, cocking his head back to stare at the expanse of periwinkle above him as if it had all the answers.

"Good idea! But if that's true how could we ever know?" Dara wondered.

"Hmm..." Acacius brought his head back down, rubbing at his chin in thought.

"Which god do you think controls the moon? Like does it do something or is it just supposed to look cool or whatever?" Dara asked back, a thoughtful knot in her brow.

They were walking so close, their hands brushing eachother.

"No idea..." Acacius mumbled, right as he grabbed her hand in his own.

This seemed to startle the girl as she snapped her head to look at him.

Acacius was surprised by the strong reaction and quickly dropped her hand, "S-Sorry, was that wrong?"

Dara's heated glare slowly softened, and she shook her head, "No... sorry."

And with that, she grabbed his hand this time, though unable to look him in the eyes, staring straight ahead.

Acacius looked at her curiously for a moment, but decided to move on, swinging their hands between them as he continued, "So... if you had to guess what the moon controls, what would you guess? I mean, if it controls anything."

After that, the two commonly held hands, and Acacius couldn't help but notice how each and every time, the contact still managed to affect Dara in a strange way, though not for very long.

He found it amusing.

Dara had always been so cool and collected, seeing her out of her element was new to him.

——

Hugging her goodbye on his way home became harder and harder each day, as each day he felt himself growing closer and closer to her.

It was hard to distinguish what the boundaries were of his relationship with her, as his understanding of relationships in general wasn't very good.

Dara was his only real friend here, and his mother and her... "friends" only ever messed with his head.

He felt so strongly for Dara, and he couldn't tell if what he was feeling was friendship, or something more.

He was scared for anything to change, and so he tried to be careful.

He once told his mom he would runaway, that he would go to Dara's and not come back... But she had threatened him.

She told him she would send her friends there, and that had scared Acacius into submission.

She hadn't said what they would do, if they would harm Dara & her family or just him, but either way, the idea was too painful.

The idea of Dara even knowing how... how screwed up he was... it hurt.

He didn't want her to see him any differently— he liked feeling normal.

So he didn't do it... no matter how tempted he was.

But he was breaking.

He'd fallen into bouts of tears without explanation several times, and Dara had truly looked scared.

It might've been funny if not for the mounting hopelessness seeping into what was supposed to be his happy place.

She held him, and tried to take his mind off of whatever he was feeling.

He would never tell her why he cried.

He appreciated the distractions, the friendship, the hugs... but they weren't enough.

Up on the rooftop one night, he had started crying again, and he had told her...

"What's wrong with me?" He asked softly, tears blurring his glassy, green eyes.

Dara had put her arm around him, as she always did.

"What do you mean?" She asked in confusion.

"I'm sorry, Dara, I don't mean to cry..." He hiccuped.

She shook her head, "It's okay. Just... what's wrong? Why are you always so sad?"

Acacius put his head in his hands sighing, "I don't think my mom loves me..." he admitted gently.

Dara barely caught it, "Your mom?"

He nodded, peeking up at her behind delicate fingers.

"Why would you say that?" She says, her eyes trained on the small boy.

"She hurts me... She doesn't protect me." He sighed, looking at his muddy sandals as he dangled his feet over the roof, "She's not like your mother."

Dara frowned, moving her arm to around his waist, "I'm sorry, Caci..." she whispered.

He turned to her, her dark brown hair messy from climbing the fig tree earlier.

"I love you." She said softly, like a promise.

Acacius's vision swam as his bottom lip trembled and he found himself pulling her into a tight, bone-crushing hug.