To Cut Blood Ties

Chapter 3: Tom

May 8, 2016

Phoenix, Arizona

2:00pm

Alice walked forward as the light gave the go ahead for her to cross the street. A car rumbled impatiently to her left, as the driver wanted to turn. She ignored this, her steps sure as the heat rose up from the concrete and into her skin. She reflected on what transpired only twenty minutes earlier, right before she left the house. George had stopped her, as she was about to leave. He had smiled affectionately at her, a notion that he never did in front of others and told her how good of a job she did. But warned that while it may have superseded the other trainees, it wasn't good enough for her last name. When asked if she was still doing research to aid her even further, Alice admitted that that was what she was doing now.

And as she came up on to the sprawling apartment complex of Vaseo, she hoped that that was true. It was a risk, as was everything, but with this she was stepping on to the line that her family had drawn. Alice glanced at her phone before looking up at the numbers on the side of the building. Finding that it was the correct one, she began the task of finding the correct door. It took five minutes before she finally succeeded. Her fists clenched before she hesitantly knocked. There was a pause and the door opened.

Tom Tarr was revealed, a smile already blossoming on his young face, "Alice!"

"Hey," she smiled back, feeling a blush already burning her cheeks for no reason.

"I'm surprised you found the place, this complex is outrageously large and everyone usually gets lost," Tom turned from the door, and she followed him inside. Closing the door she cast a look around. It was small, not horribly so, but only a few hundred square feet. The walls not really white, more cream.

They had gone to the same high school together, and while they hadn't been the best of friends, they had known each other and gotten along well. Alice had hidden her true last name so that she could blend in easier with the other students, and everyone seemed to fall for it. Tom hadn't vocally revealed that he was different, but Alice had seen the signs and connected them together. Always went home earlier from school the day before the full moon and was absent the next day or two. Sometimes he would have bruises, sometimes scratches. And occasionally he would have violent mood swings. But Alice accepted this, never commenting on it. After graduation they parted but had recently ran into one another at Barnes and Noble. It was revealed that they still got along well and had exchanged numbers. They had met twice before this, though this was the first time Alice had been invited to his apartment.

"You wouldn't believe how busy it was at In and Out last night. Jesus, I don't remember being so rude or demanding when I was a teenager" Tom muttered, moving some books that littered the coffee table out of the way. He had a couch, a table, and in the bedroom, just a bed. Everything else was bookcases, most of them entirely full.

"Tom," Alice walked along, her eyes raking the titles, "You do realize that you were their age not even six months ago."

"I'm an old soul, people say. So, I wasn't their age when I was their age, I was more mature," Tom walked into the kitchen to grab a couple glasses of water and yelling, "Do you want tea or coffee or anything?"

Alice rolled her eyes, "Old soul, my ass. What about all the stupid crap you did in junior year? And I'll take just the water for now."

She settled on his couch as he opened the microwave, starting it. The distinct popping of popcorn reaching her ears and solving that question. Tom came to stand next to the couch and smiled down at her, "I was their age when I was a junior."

"You're an idiot," Alice teased and he laughed, walking back into the kitchen.

Tom finished up grabbing the popcorn and they settle down on the couch. He started his TV, selecting Mario Kart for them to play. They settled into competing against one another, while snacking on the popcorn. After a little while, without taking his eyes off of the TV as he released bananas to trip Alice up, Tom said, "I think I'm going to drop down to one job next semester. It was so stressful for the first year of college, and there's just...so much more than there was in high school."

"Will you be able to get by?" Alice had learned of Tom being kicked out of his family home only days after graduating high school. He had been struggling ever since, but he didn't express it. Simply kept the smile upon his face and let it appear that he did not have any weight on his shoulders.

"I'll be fine," they raced passed the finish line, with Tom being the winner. "Hey, what about you? Didn't you say something about some sort of summer school?"

"Yeah, it's like a boot camp and summer school, I guess you could say," Alice smiled, though she didn't offer any more details as she selected a new game.

Tom didn't push her but his eyes lit up and he paused the game. Alice swore at him in surprise. Tom ignored her and got off the couch, grabbing something from the bookshelf and coming back to sit next to her. In his hand is a card that he passes to her. Stamped on it was a title Fantasia Crystals and next to the phone and fax number, along with the address is a name. Marjorie Luc. Alice looked at Tom curiously. "She's one of the managers at this shop. I remember how you were looking at a bunch of books on different types of crystals and rocks, and tucked under your arm was a book about ancient symbols. I figured if you wanted to get more research, you could go to her. I've known her since I was a kid, and she is really knowledgeable."

Alice thanked him and they continue to game, competing against one another with an even number of wins and losses. Finally, feeling overly full from the two bags of popcorn that they had consumed, they decide to go for a walk. Alice ran her fingers through her unruly chocolate hair and tied it back at the nape of her neck. It wasn't yet too hot. The Arizona sun hovering delicately, struggling to stay up for a few hours more. In a couple weeks, the sun would rise and linger for extra hours. And the asphalt and concrete would grab on to the heat, and let it steam across the city. And a month after that, the rains would come, bringing with them a heaviness that caused the heat to be even more unbearable. For now, it was decent and Alice was able to fully enjoy the beauty of the sunset.

Tom came to a halt as he saw a pure white cat sitting on the wall. Alice leaned against the tree, also watching the little animal. A gentle breeze kissed their cheeks and the cat yawned before deciding to lie down. Tom's gentle voice came up, "I know we are just getting back to knowing one another, but I do hope that we will get to know each other better than when we were in school together. Remember, if you ever need to talk. I'm here."

"Thank you, Tom," Alice bit the inside of her cheek. She kept her eyes on that white cat. "I hope that we can be closer too."

"Do you think we will be open up to each other fully, one day?"

Alice let a small, hopeful smile touch her lips. "Maybe, maybe one day."

But, a small voice whispered in the back of her head, how could you become closer when you don't know what he is? And when he doesn't know who you are?