( crossfire! )¹ ─ ᵗʷᶤˡᶤᵍʰᵗ ✓

chapter three.

( CHAPTER THREE )
THE WRONG FOOT

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

26 SEPTEMBER 2007

WHEN CARTER AND THE BOY PULLED UP TO THE HOUSE, Carter realized that Robyn had moved to a different house not too far away from her old one. It was bigger―that much was obvious―and it was on the nicer side of Forks. She had upgraded from a one-story home to a two-story. The house was white with black shutters and a black roof. The front door was dark red; a dark red that resembled the color of blood. It was rustic and modern and, to Carter, a bit intimidating. She hadn't been in an actual house for many years, let alone lived in one. It was a transition that she knew would be hard to make. She so used to living in a psychiatric hospital that she wasn't sure how to act in a real home anymore.

The clearing of somebody's throat startled her.

Next to her still sat the young boy she had formed an acquaintanceship with. She then realized that she had been staring at the house ever since they had pulled up to it five minutes ago. She felt her face heat up in embarrassment. Carter awkwardly grabbed the straps of her bag and pulled it to her, brushing a strand of hair out of her face.

"This is the moment where I exit the vehicle, isn't it?" she asked, a weary smile on her face. He laughed and jumped out of the vehicle, walking around and opening her door for her. She silently thanked him and climbed out slowly, glancing at the house in front of her. "I haven't lived in a house for a long time now. This is so weird..."

"I wouldn't know the feeling," he sheepishly said, not really knowing how to respond. He knew why she hadn't lived in a house for a long time. He just didn't know if it was appropriate to bring up her past. He opted to stay silent on the matter.

"Good," replied Carter. "It can really suck."

After that, he grabbed two of Carter's suitcases out of the bed of his truck while Carter grabbed the third. Then they walked up the sidewalk to the house until they reached the dark red door. Much to her surprise, the boy pulled out a set of keys and unlocked the door for the two of them before picking the suitcases back up and walking inside. Carter was hesitant to enter. Her body turned without command and her eyes roamed the street. She could easily run if she wanted to, but what would she do then? She closed her eyes and breathed out heavily, turning back to the open doorway. Opening her eyes, she quickly stepped inside, instantly smelling a mix of mint and freshly baked cookies.

She sat her bags down next to the stairs as she looked around. She could see into the kitchen, which looked fairly small, but big enough for two people. The living room stood to her right; the way the furniture was arranged and the natural light flowing into the room through the windows made it look more open. The floors looked like they were made out of mahogany, sleek and new. It wasn't something she expected from Robyn. She remembered Robyn being really fun and happy, but her house looked dull and lifeless. It didn't scream Robyn at all.

"Are you okay?" Carter suddenly heard. She turned to the boy and nodded quickly.

"Yeah, why?" she replied in a rushed tone.

"Well, um― It's just that, uh―" he stumbled over his words, rubbing the back of his head.

"It's just what?" Carter demanded, putting her hands on her hips.

"It's just― You're crying," he finally blurted out. Carter's eyes widened as she raised a hand to her face, gently touching her cheek, feeling the wetness of tears. She cleared her throat and wiped the rest of the tears away. Without warning, he hugged her tightly. Carter awkwardly patted his back but didn't return the hug. After a few long moments, he pulled back and faked a cough. "S-sorry."