When Things Turn Dark

Chapter 6

As the sun started to rise, Nat woke up to find Nerezza awake looking out the window, staring in the direction of her house.
"Is something up, Nerezza?"
"Worried about Lamby, that's all. Sorry if I woke you."
"Not at all, it was the sun. Or at least I'm pretty sure it was anyway."
Nerezza nodded and turned herself to face Nat, ready to start the day.
"So... Nerezza... twins thing?"
"Oh... well... my dad and mom were up late the other night, and they mentioned someone named Necra. When I asked my dad about her the next day he..."
"He...?"
"He said she was my twin sister..."
As Nerezza brushed back her pitch black hair, Nat looked into Nerezza's purple eyes, and saw how much this fact seemed to bother her.
"That's not too uncommon, why does it bother you so much?" Nat asked.
"Well, for one thing they never told me and, had I not asked, I don't think they would've ever told me. Plus, she didn't really die at the hospital, she just disappeared after the doctor told them she would have to be tested to see if she was healthy. The doctor came back and just told them they had lost the baby but no one looked for her, they just pronounced her dead."
"Oh...."
This didn't make sense to Nat, babies don't disappear without mass panic of some kind, plus it sounded straight out of a ghost novel or something similar. The girls sat in silence for a while, letting the peace of dawn settle with them, becoming one with them.

Nat made her way next to Nerezza. She smiled and hugged her friend. Nat was a big hugger when it came to friends. Nerezza giggled and hugged her back. It was a cooler summer morning (plus the blasting A/C wasn't helping) but it was warm when they were huddled up together. Nat reached for her blanket and wrapped it around them. They sat there for half an hour before Laura brought up a tray of breakfast foods, french toast and pancakes with warm syrup lay fresh on the tray. It was their all time favorite, to make up for the lackluster dinner the night before. It was obvious Nat's father had cooked it though, indicating that he finally fixed the damn lock. Both ate their breakfast underneath the blanket, occasionally smiling at the other, generally having a nice and peaceful morning.
"Are you really worried about your lamb?"
"Of course, my mother is... Already distant as it is, how the hell would she be able to take care of an animal alone?" Nerezza said looking down with a sigh. Nat let out a breath that she didn't know she was holding.
"I'm so sorry, Nerezza," Nat said, turning her gaze to the ground, "You know, you can come and stay here or just grab food here whenever you need to..."

Nerezza let out a sigh and said "I know" before taking another bite of the fluffy french toast. Nerezza's mind was stuck on something that had happened last night, it had been haunting her all night.
"Did Alex really see me in the changing room?"
"Ya, but you were only changing shirts, plus you wear a brace so he didn't see anything you wouldn't want him to see."
"That's a relief."
"Yeah, I suppose it would be."
Nerezza and Nat continued eating till the french toast was completely gone and a third of the pancakes lay cold Nat decided that going to Nerezza's house was on the agenda today since she wanted to see Lamby and reassure Nerezza.

Nat grabbed her knapsack, quickly shoving her toothbrush and a change of clothes in there, just in case. With a skip forwards she smiled down at Nerezza, holding out a hand for her to take. Nerezza looked at Nat's freckled hand, quickly grasping it as if it was a lifeline to the world of the sane. Nat felt the pressure her friend put on her own hand, knowing this meant today was going to be a very long day. Nat was up to this challenge, hoping her friend would be too. They both instinctively shared a smile and another hand squeeze before heading down the stairs to the unknown.