SCYTHE

10.𝑩𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔

I sat in the living room, watching another cheesy rom-com with Grandma. She was curled up next to me on the couch, laughing and smiling as the movie played out on the screen with its predictable plot and cliché love story, but I couldn't help but enjoy it with Grandma by my side. Who knows how much time we have left to spend together? The thought of Death coming here to take her soul sent shivers down my spine.

When the least interesting part of the movie started, I opened my contact list on my phone, staring at Madeline's name. The smile I had a second ago slowly turned into a straight line.

Why couldn't I make myself click on the phone icon? Why was making the first move so difficult for me?

"Are you not enjoying the movie, Lily?" Grandma wondered as she saw me staring at the phone screen.

I shook my head. "I do enjoy it! I was just..." I wasn't able to finish the sentence.

"If something is on your mind, you can count on me. I know that what happened with Alec shook us a bit; however, don't forget that we're family. You're my daughter." Grandma smiled at me.

I reached out for her hand and gently squeezed it. "It's about my friend, Madeline. Friend is most likely a strong word since we didn't talk for weeks." I confessed. "I know you've been angry with me because I didn't tell you about her."

Grandma furrowed her eyebrows. "When was I angry about it?" She looked like she had no clue about what I was talking about.

"Alec told me you weren't happy; I didn't tell you about her," I explained.

Grandma looked confused for a moment. "We never talked about you with Alec. Or, better to say, we didn't talk at all. Sometimes I think I lost parts of my time spent with him." She laughed.

My heartbeat fastened. If Grandma never said those words to him, how come she stood by his side when I asked him to leave?

Nothing made sense.

Grandma looked back at the TV screen, and a smile appeared on her face again. As much as I didn't want to question her anymore, I had to.

"Why did you want him to stay, Grandma?" I asked.

She kept focusing on the plotline of the movie, as something unexpected would happen. "I don't even know." She replied. The way she said it sounded like she had no idea she stood by his side.

That's all I had to know. He both mind-tricked us. And the worst about it wasn't the loss of the memories, but how he managed to do so. Once Alec left our house, Grandma acted herself again and even forgot about Alec if I didn't mention him.

Grandma suddenly got up from the couch and walked into the kitchen. When she returned, she held two bottles of beer in her hands.

"I would send you to buy more beer, but when I did so the last time, you didn't bring any and looked like you saw the devil." Grandma laughed loudly. "I should go by myself and buy at least two cases, if not more. Beer in our household disappears out of nowhere." She added.

I chuckled and grabbed the beer she held in front of me when she sat next to me. No matter how much I don't want to go outside, I can't send her there by herself with her barely moving leg.

"Don't bother. I'll go buy it for us, and this time, I'll bring it home." I laughed, placing the beer on the table.

"You better do, Vivienne." Grandma joked with her index finger pointed up.

I chose the grocery store that is farther away from our house than the one I've been going to. Since the last incident, I didn't want to run into Death or other foolish boys.