Insanity Chapter 12 (Patreon)

“My parents?” I whispered to myself, confused by what they were talking about. “…Um, is there something wrong?” I asked coming out into the open. “I heard shouting.” I didn’t know what they were talking about and I felt like it would be best if I didn’t ask. I didn’t want to upset them.

“It’s fine sweety,” Xavier said. Picking me up in his arms. “Jess and I were just having a bit of a disagreement, there is nothing to worry about.” I knew that he was lying, but there was nothing that I could do. Xavier had his secrets, but they were to protect us, right?

“So did you figure out what room you wanted?” He asked walking me over to the bedrooms. I pointed over to the study and he smiled.

“You’re so much like your mother, drawn to books,” he said, reminiscing on the past. I wasn’t certain what relationship he had with my parents besides being their friend, but his words sounded like they were more than just friends.

“Sorry, but no can do,” he said walking me into the bedroom closest to the study. “Sleeping in there won’t be good for you, but at least you’ll be close by,” he said, laying me in the bed as I started to become sleepy. “I promise that everything will go back to normal soon,” he said kissing me on the forehead goodnight.

I went to sleep that night hoping that I would see my brother soon, but a month past, and Jessica and I were still stuck down here. I went to bed every night hoping that he would show up, but he never did.

In fact, no one showed up, not even Xavier. I found it strange, but Jessica told me not to worry and that everything would go back to normal in no time. I knew that she was worried as well, but I decided to remain strong just like her.

This month wasn’t all bad though. I managed to get closer to Jessica and since she knew that I was a girl I didn’t have to hide anything from her. I had always wanted her to treat me like her little sister, but because I had to disguise my appearance I never had the chance to.

She even started to teach me how to read more. While she wasn’t perfect she was leagues above where I was at. And thanks to her I was able to read several of the books in the study all by myself. There were some other books that I tried to read, but the content inside them was just too hard to understand. The most that I could make out in one of them was the word Alchemy.

That reminded me of the failed heist, where that strange man appeared. I didn’t say anything at the time, but a part of me felt sad for him. He didn’t look too good and we were just robbing him.

Some of the books I skimmed through talked about how stealing was wrong and that I would be punished by being sentenced to death if I was caught. We were just trying to survive; did that make us bad people.

As I searched around the study some more I noticed to my disappointment that I couldn’t find any books with the fairy tails that my mother told me when I was younger. Eventually, I just found a book and ended up losing track of time while reading it. In fact, I barely noticed when Jessica started calling me for dinner.

“Cal, there you are,” she said standing in the doorway of the study with her hands crossed. “Why is it that every time I make dinner you’re here reading?”

“I like reading though,” I said to her. “It’s fun.”

“Really?” Jessica said, sitting down next to me. ‘Back when I was your age Xavier dressed me up like a boy as well for my protection. In truth I probably should have just kept dressing as one. Women are a high commodity in the slums, and unfortunately the younger they are the better. Though I still took that risk anyway when I turned thirteen. Almost around the same time that you and your brother started living with us.”

“The reason that I decided to start dressing without the disguise was that I wanted nothing more than to play with other girls, play with dolls, and dress up in cute clothes. Though the cruel reality was that I git none of those.”

“Most girls my age were already forced into the “business,” and they were no toys or cute clothes for me to wear. The slums never gave me the chance to be the girl I truly wanted to be. Though if you have to ask if I regret my choice I would say that I don’t because I finally got to be me.”

“You’re young so it might be hard for you to remember what it was like to play and dress like a girl, but you can be one again if you want to. Down here no one will be able to see you. If you want I can try to see if I can’t find any dresses for you to wear.”

“It’s alright,” I said back to her, closing my book, before standing up. “My brother will be here soon, so I won’t have time for that. For now, I’m just happy that you know as well.”

While Jessica’s offer did appeal to me I knew that I couldn’t take it. Mal would definitely come for me or Xavier would come back for us. As long as I waited long enough there would be nothing for me to worry about. I pretended to be a boy for three years, at this point I accepted that as my fate.

“If that is what you really want, then I guess I can’t force you,” Jessica said back to me. “Now let’s get going,” she said, standing up. “If we don’t hurry our dinner will get cold.

Our lives weren’t perfect down here, but at least we had each other. Soon we would be back with Mal and the others again. Soon I would be able to see his face, Xavier’s, and even Malik’s grumpy face. It would only be a matter of time.

At least that was what I thought. Another month had passed and we still hadn’t heard back from anyone, and our food supplies were getting low. Jessica decided that she needed to know what was going on. She knew Xavier longer than all of us, she was taken in when she was an infant. She must have been worried about where Xavier was and why he hadn’t come back for us.

Jessica left that day to find answers, but what she came back with could only be described as pure horror.