half/closer

half / 16 [2/2]

"Ummm, do you want to come in?" I gingerly asked as we finally reached the gate of my mansion.

Khloe looked unsure as she glanced at our home and I saw her gulped as if she was somewhat... scared? "Maybe another time."

I sighed sadly. "Don't worry. My parents are still at work."

"No, it's not that. I just have things to do and I'm sure Quinn is waiting," she explained, staring back at me. "We're going to cook a special dinner for my Mom. It's her birthday, actually. I would invite you but as you said, you are grounded."

I nodded. "You cook?"

"Yeah? I love making food. Well, food in general, is that weird?" Khloe asked and there was a sudden vibe in her feature that I couldn't figure out.

"No, it's amazing," I praised, moving closer to tuck her chocolate hair behind her ear. "Would you cook something for me?"

A smirk formed on her soft lips. "How about I bring you lunch tomorrow?"

I shook my head. "No, I want to watch you cook."

She chuckled. "You are so demanding."

I pouted gloomily. "Please, for me."

"Alright, I'll find a way," she grumbled and I felt excited all over again.

"Yes, thank you!"

She snorted. "I gotta go," she announced after, and to my surprise, she filled the space between us, pressing her lips to mine.

Closing my eyes, I kissed her back in the same passion——unhurriedly and in a sensual motion. This kiss was not that sizzling compared to a while go but why should I complain if there were also tongues involved?

After a couple of minutes, Khloe was the one who pulled away, resting her forehead on mine. "Talk to you later?" she breathed out.

I opened my eyes and looked at her forestry orbs. "Copy, K.S. But promise me you won't ignore me again. Talk to me first, okay?"

She drew away and then nodded. "Promise."

"Say 'hi and happy birthday to your Mom for me, alright?"

She nodded. "Will do."

After a fleeting smile, I got out of her car and I watched her drove off.

I still could feel the edges of my lips soared into happiness as I headed into my home. I was bouncing in joy the rest of the way to the front door when my Mom suddenly opened it.

"Oh, honey, why you are so early? I thought you had cheerleading practice," she asked surprised as we both stood on the mansion porch.

I was surprised myself because she was supposed to be at work. Geez! I was glad that Khloe refused me because I didn't know how Mom would welcome her. "Y-Yeah, we have practice but couch sent me home earlier because I fainted."

"W-What! What happened?" Mom was shocked and she went closer, checking me if I have damage to my body.

"I'm clearly fine, Mom. Where are you going anyway?" I asked as I noticed that she was clothed to go somewhere.

"I just came home from work. I called your driver to not pick you up because I was supposed to do that. My goodness, Hilary, who drove you here? Are you sure you're fine now? Do you want me to call a doctor?"

I looked at her, confused on why would she head home earlier from her work and why would she want to drive me home after school. She seemed worried about me though and even if we had a misunderstanding just recently, she was still my mother to be respected. "I'm fine, Mom. A friend drove me here. Why did you go home early?"

Mom let out a sigh. "Look, Hilary. I want to talk to you. I mean can I talk to you?"

I gazed at my mother skeptically and I knew this was about the rude behavior I acted towards them. Knowing I couldn't refuse, I nodded and she motioned me to go into our house.

She led me to the kitchen and I placed my bag on the kitchen island before sitting on the barstool. I watched my Mom preparing two cups of tea and a plate of cookies.

I respected my parents so much and they were the best things I could ever have. I regretted shouting at them last Saturday but I had to speak out for myself for the first time. I would always follow their wishes and I hoped that they would let me follow my own desire this time.

Once my Mom put the pair of teas and cookies on the counter in front of me, she sat on the stool beside me. I sipped my cup of tea as I waited for my Mom to speak.

"Honey, look at me," Mom spoke, forcing me to turn to her. "About what happened, I'm sincerely sorry."

I shook my head. "No, Mom. It was very rude of me so I'm sorry," I apologized genuinely. "But I won't take back what I said because that's how I feel. It was a bottled-up frustration so I didn't say it appropriately."

My Mom smiled weakly. Cassie also had that smile before and the resemblance made my heart ached. "I know, I know. But you're wrong about that. You and your father, after your sister's death, we became more protective of you because you're all we ever have. We just didn't realize that you feel that way. I thought that we're just doing the right thing for you. We became so stern upbringing you without thinking about how you would feel because we are afraid of losing you, honey."

My eyes softened at her statement and there was a prick in my heart when she started to cry again. "Mom, it's okay. I clearly knew how it feels to lose someone so I'm sorry for not seeing your intention," I said, hugging her closer to me.

Mom rested her head on my shoulder, sniffing. "We love you like our own, Hilary. Not because you're second to Cassie, it's because you are 'you', okay?"

"I love you, too, Mom," I cried out, tightening my hold on her.

Mom pulled away and stroked my golden hair softly. "And I want to tell you that I support you about applying for art school."

I gasped in happiness, embracing my kind mother again. "Thank you, thank you!"

"You're welcome, honey."

This time, I was the one who drew away. "But what about Dad?"

"Don't worry, I'll talk to him. He may be rough but I think we can convince him. Have faith in him," she uttered, kissing my head lovingly.

"I love you, Mom. You're the best," I emphasized, burying my face in the crook of her neck just like when I was a kid.

"I love you more, Hilary."

During this moment, I was thankful to be her daughter and I wished Dad would eventually understand me.

So that I could be whole again after everything.

•••••

After the heart-to-heart talk with my Mom, I began to feel good again. Although there was still a nervous air around my father once dinner came, I just convinced myself that everything would be fine as long as my Mom supported me. She said she would talk to him but I wouldn't expect it to be easy. Dad was stubborn as she said so we had to take the right timing.

As for Khloe, we talked all night using the two-way radio she gave to me. You would never get dull talking with her because she was really opinionated and not to mention, a naughty person.

We talked about weird things at most though. Like which pet is better? Or do penguins have knees? Or are academic grades really matter? Which ended up in a long-ass debate between us.

We also talked about why Dad grounded me and by the sound of her tone, she seemed suspicious about my relationship with Alec even if I'd already explained that nothing was going on.

Not that she was jealous because she suggested that we had chemistry so she felt it was a shame that we were not into each other. Seriously, Khloe may be clever but sometimes, she was dense as fück.

Thursday came and I was excited to go home already. I had to prepare things for our getaway later in the evening. Yes, I knew I wasn't allowed to go out. However, Khloe convinced me that rules are meant to be broken anyway.

She invited me to the treehouse again because I had asked her to cook for me. So when class ended, I rushed to my home like I was running out of time. Once there, I packed my stuff into a duffle bag before sliding it under my bed so my parents wouldn't find out. It was just an overnight trip so I had to come back before dawn.

After dinner, I caged myself in my room, telling my Mom that I was going to study then sleep straightaway. It wasn't a lie because I really studied and then slept after because I knew I needed my energy for later.

But once my alarm clock blared at eleven-thirty, I instantly got up and took the walkie-talkie from my nightstand. "Hi! This is H.D. I'm ready... I repeat I'm ready. Do you copy?" I announced and waited for Khloe to respond.

There was a bit of static I could hear in the speaker before Khloe responded, "Roger, K.S. is on her way. Meet me at approximately four kilometers from your current location within fifteen minutes. Copy that!"

I giggled. "Where is that?"

"It means near your estate park, do you copy?" Khloe asked to make sure I understood. Our house was near the park so it was not really a long walk.

"Affirmative," I said as I got up from the bed. "Over and Out."

I made my way to my walk-in closet and changed my clothes in a hurry. It was still an autumn night so I had to wear something that would fit with the weather which meant, sweatpants, a sweater, and a thick scarf.

All black so I could cloak myself in the dark.

There was a door in our basement leading to our backyard and I used to sneak through that way before. So far, I haven't been caught and I had a spare key to it which I duplicated from the original one.

Slipping the handle of my bag on my shoulder, I headed out of my room to the basement of our mansion. I was sure that Dad and Mom were already sleeping because I knew that they had a meeting early in the morning tomorrow. I was certain that sneaking out of the house would run smoothly.

And I was right when I finally able to creep out of our fences easily. Gripping my scarf around my neck, I ran towards the direction of the estate park.

The surrounding was discreet and cold but it was really a safe neighborhood. Most rich personalities were residing in this area so the security was very strict and severe. Although most teens knew where to go out without passing through the estate security. And Arisa and I were one of those teens who knew about that shortcut which I told Khloe about when we were planning about this.

"Got your ears on, H.D.? Where's your 20?" I heard Khloe spoke on the radio. She was asking about my location in a walkie-talkie lingo.

I chuckled. "Coming, K.S."

Turning to the other road, I stared at a distance and immediately smiled when I saw Khloe there waiting for me with her bicycle. I ran faster, closed the distance between us and I instantly embraced her in excitement.

We squeezed closer like we didn't see each other for a long time.

"Let's go, Boots," she said with a smile, pushing me away lightly and motioning me to sit at the back of her dorky bicycle.

Wrapping my arms around her waist, we rode off to the shortcut way I was talking about. I loved the feeling of her back against my cheek as the cold air swept through us. I would gladly break rules for this- for her. I was so whipped!

Sorry, Mom. I'm sorry, Dad.

Finally, we reached her car which was parked in a twenty-four hours convenience store. Khloe made sure to chain her bicycle first before we went into her car.

And then we drove off again together.

"So what are you going to cook for me?" I initiated a conversation while turning her stereo on. The sound of a familiar old classic song played, steeping a calming air around us.

"It's a secret," Khloe said with a striking smile.

I looked down at her arm resting on the middle console and gulped tensely. Then I looked at the road ahead of us and gathered some courage to myself. Clamping my lips inward, I sneakily crawled my hand between us and slowly intertwined our fingers together.

I could feel her eyes on me and I bravely locked mine with hers with a weak smile. She briefly squinted at our joined hands before focusing her attention back on the road with a toothy grin.

The heat on my cheeks intensified, my lips broke out into a joyful smile. And I couldn't help but shudder in bliss when she tightened her hold on me.

"It better be good because I didn't eat that much at dinner," I informed, making her laugh.

"Roger that," she playfully said as she kissed the back of my hand causing me to blush.

Oh, Khloe. The things you do to me...

•••••

Khloe was a great cook. She clearly knew what she was doing in the kitchen. Although the kitchen of her treehouse was small, she was freely moving around without difficulty as I watched her cook for me. She mentioned that aside from art, she also loved food. She would like to take culinary after she takes an art course if the opportunity arises.

Because of the cold weather, she prepared both of us a large bowl of wild mushroom and buttermilk soup and a plate of butter-rusted potatoes. It was a simple meal yet they were really delicious and appetizing.

"So how was it? Do you want me to be your personal chef now?" Khloe asked after we ate. We were sitting on the wooden floor while our backs were leaning against the couch.

Can you be my personal wife instead?

Damn, Ry! Erase that from your head. It was straight-up creepy of you.

"They were delicious, thank you," I beamed, shifting my body closer to her, resting my head on her shoulder.

"You're welcome," she whispered and we both stared at the burning woods in the fireplace.

"Hilary," I heard her call and I felt butterflies soaring in my stomach just from hearing her speak my name. I didn't have any idea why she rarely regarded me by my name but I knew that it was those times when she was serious.

"Mmmm," I responded, linking my arms with her as I kissed her shoulder sweetly.

"Do you still think about Cassie whenever we kiss?"

Greatly stunned at her question, I lifted my head to look at her. She gazed back at me with a lop-sided smile which earned a frown from me. "Not anymore, Klo."

Because you're all I think about now.

Khloe chuckled and then she held my hand in hers. "I'm just wondering about what you told me about her before."

"Which one?" I questioned, stroking my thumb against the back of her hand.

She cleared her throat before she spoke again, "When she told you that she wanted to go to an area between moon and earth with an equal gravitational pull. Do you want to know what are my thoughts about it?"

I nodded, confused on why she would open up a topic about my sister.

"Well, I don't exactly know what happened to your sister but I was thinking that maybe she wants to let things go. I searched all over the internet about that area she was talking about but I couldn't find anything about it. So maybe she was telling about a make-believe place- like a place after death. I just had this feeling that when she said it to you, she was clearly telling you that she wants to let go of herself already and be at the place where no difficulty and gravity were pulling her down into hardship. And she also wanted to be part of that place so she could be anyone there without labels, judgment, or anything at all. Do you get it?"

My frown deepened. "A bit, but why would she say that to me?"

Khloe hummed as she gazed at my eyes deeply. "Maybe she wanted you to know that everything is fine. She wanted to tell you that don't get sad after her death because she was certain that she would end up in that place- a place that she can be peaceful and free forever."

"You think so," I mumbled and she kissed my temple as a response.

"I think so. So don't be sad anymore, okay?"

I nodded while thinking about it some more. If Khloe was right about that, then maybe I should really move on from her death. If I still kept on feeling like this about her, I wouldn't be able to give her peace. However, it was difficult to change those feelings of loss. Even though I went against my parents when I spoke for myself, I knew that some part of my soul was still walking in the shadow of my sister.

"Don't worry, I help you until you heal," Khloe suddenly said, pulling me out of my deep thoughts.

It was like she knew what I was thinking as she stared at me with a small smile. Holding my face, she closed her eyes and placed a soft kiss on my lips. In front of the blazing fire, under the lonely night sky, and inside the woods of nightfall.

I kissed her back passionately, knowing she was the one- the one who would heal me through all of the pain in my heart.

The one who would save me from everything.

.........