Mallory Is Medusa

Chapter Fifteen

Mallory realized that when Fitz said that Alisa and Noah were always hanging out at the house, he literally meant that Alisa and Noah were always hanging out at the house. They arrived a little before dinner. Alisa was dressed in some clothes that she'd snatched up from a store while they walked to Papa Fornisce, and took no time in asking Mallory how they looked. Mallory couldn't help but seemed shocked by the question at first, before grinning and honestly saying "They look amazing."

"How was your day, Mallory?" Noah asked. They'd all taken seats on the couches in the living room. Ben was on one of the chairs, Noah was on the first couch, and Alisa and Mallory were sitting on the second couch.

"You can call her Mal." Alisa said. She then smiled sheepishly at Mallory. "At least, if she says so. Sorry, us girls forgot to ask if that was okay."

Mallory couldn't believe what was happening. Every time something happened, it was falling right into her dream world like puzzle pieces that fit perfectly together. "Of course. You can call me whatever you want."

"Anyways, Mal," Noah said, shooting Alisa a look. "How was your day?"

"It was great. We had a great time." Mallory said. "The girls were so much fun to hang out with."

"You guys went to Papa Fornisce, right?" Noah asked.

"Yeah. I liked it." she said.

"Did you get the ravioli?" Noah asked.

"Yes, I did. It was really good." she said. Noah grinned, nodding.

"I thought that you were a good person, and I guess I was right." he said.

It was a comfortable silence that followed. Silence was not a new thing to Mallory, but this type was. To be able to sit with friends without having to talk to each other was something she'd never dreamed of. Yet, it was so enjoyable that she hoped that this calm quiet would never stop.

Fitz burst into the room, flinging himself over the back of the couch Mallory and Alisa were sitting on, and landing in a seated position in between them. "Dinner is ready. Mom made hot dogs and hamburgers."

"Sweet! I love your mom's hamburgers." Noah said, getting up. He looked over at Mallory, winking. "The secret is half beef half turkey. She told me herself."

"Shush. Her hot dogs are the best." Alisa said, grabbing Mallory by the arm and dragging her up and to the kitchen. "You have to put ketchup and onions on it and that's it."

"Please don't do that Mallory." Fitz said. "That is actually nasty."

Mallory laughed, nodding. "I won't."

Alisa ended up falling asleep on the couch after dinner. Her head was leaning on Mallory's shoulder. Mallory hadn't even noticed considering she was in the middle of a book Fitz loaned her. She only realized once she finished it, hearing Alisa's soft snores and feeling the thin string of Alisa's drool dripping onto her shoulder.

Noah picked Alisa up, sending Mallory a sorry, yet slightly amused, look. "Good night." he mouthed, waving to Ben, who had a sleeping Fitz resting on his lap, and leaving.

Ben smiled across the room at Mallory. She smiled back, getting up. "I'm thinking that I'm going to bed now. I want to be ready for the actual ceremony tomorrow."

"Sounds good." Ben said. "Good night."

"Good night."

Mallory headed up the stairs and into the bathroom. She brushed her teeth, and her hair, and went into her room to change into her pajamas. The room looked a little more like she'd always wanted, though half of these things she'd never heard of, and she'd definitely be able to fall asleep easier.

Maybe it was because it was more cluttered so there weren't any empty spaces. She didn't really like empty spaces. They reminded her of dark nights alone.

Inside, it was almost like she heard something whisper. It said "You always had me." and it made Mallory feel a little sick. She was almost worried that there had actually been a voice, but that was stupid. There were no voices in her head and, after tomorrow night, there wouldn't even be Medusa in her body.

Mallory nodded to herself. It sounded good, it sounded right. She flicked off the light and snuggled into bed with Paul and Jez.