{ KI }
"Do you feel like you're being watched?" Aht has his hands twisting with mine, restless...
For two weeks, we visited all the attractions and beaches and other islands. Now we wait at the airport, returning to Northcote. Unfortunately, our vacation ends in a less comfortable feeling.'
My chin rests on his shoulder and I watch everywhere. "I felt it since yesterday."
"You too?"
"It comes and goes. That's why I thought it was nothing."
"I don't know where they are. I'm going to lose it if I can't find who's the culprit."
"Come on." I pull him out of the bench and move us towards a secluded corner.
We scan the environment until we get on board. Then I feel it. When we walk down the aisle. Goosebumps litter on my arms. The feeling of being watched is persistent when we take our seats and the plane lifts off.
"It isn't a wild spirit. We should've seen them if it is."
He looks at our intertwined hands on my lap, seemingly far away. "Higher spirits?"
"We don't use any powers."
"Maybe for something else."
He must've sensed my spike of fear because he quickly smiles and asks me to braid his hair. How can I ever deny it?
"Thank you."
"What for, sweetheart?" He kisses my palm. "Anyway, we can discuss this with Theodore. He had learnt about our world plenty."
Hm.
More silver hairs growing on his scalp.
Not in one spot and not a lot, although they are scattered so Aht hasn't noticed them. I did, two weeks ago. I don't know when is the right time to tell him.
"Ki, you're quiet."
"I'm always quiet."
"Not towards me. What's on your mind?"
I should tell him. He deserves to know about his body. "I found silver hairs on your scalp."
He turns around with mild shock in his eyes. "When?"
"Since two weeks ago." Looking down, he wants to say something. He isn't freaking out. Don't tell me... "What did you find about mine, Aht?" I ask.
His forefinger traces my eyelids. "Every time you smiled so merry, the corners of your eyes would crinkle. Crow's feet." We sit in silence and don't know what to do. "It's uhm... part of longevity, no?" His brows furrow.
"Possible but we would've noticed these things years ago. Perhaps they are relatively new."
"Perhaps our bodies have passed the threshold of twenties."
I nod in agreement. He is most likely correct— Huge aura. Outside!
"Ki?? What..?" He's seeing what I'm seeing.
Outside the window, far among the clouds, a humanoid is standing straight and glaring at us. Our plane passes them by. Their face gradually morphs into menacing. Aht and I share a look. We both know what it is.
He whispers, "What in the fuck."
____________________
{ AHT }
My body flinches when someone touches my elbow... Bertha.
"You're alright, big guy? Jumpy as a rabbit."
One last look outside the window, I then turn to her. "You should worry about your cake getting eaten by Mike, grandma." From the corner of my eye, Ki listens to Portia's teaching method with the rest of the group.
Bert grumbles, "You're meaner by age!"
I narrowly avoid her pinching attack, laughing. I steer her away from the window and my eyes meet with Ki's across the room. My head shakes and she lets out a breath.
Came straight from the airport and noticed silhouettes lurking in the alleyways, enforcing our rising worries. We're safe here in Theo's home with him, Michael, Bertha, Angeline, and all the ten Guthrie kids.
No, not kids anymore. It's Nathan's 40th birthday dinner tonight. They had once or twice questioned our youthful appearance. Angeline answered firmly that Ki and I are special humans, and they didn't poke the subject further.
The grandchildren are having a sleepover at one of their houses. Yes, they don't know our existence. Theodore couldn't lose us... So they want to make their father happy by planning this arrangement for certain occasions.
Bertha plods to Michael, who does, in fact, eat her piece of cake. She pinches him.
Mikey. After the incident when he wanted to sell us off, he tried his best to make it up by giving gifts and helping us during missions. Same for Theo. These two were annoyingly apologetic hence I stopped them and asked them to not mess things up. That was my only request. They helped us out over the years before they got too old.
It feels good to trust again.
It doesn't feel good, however, in a higher spirit quandary.
Angeline claps her hands. "Hurry up, my lovelies! It's time for the birthday song!"
The dinner is going well, although Sarah avoids Theodore whenever she can. She's acting out and becoming worse from what we've been told. His gift was passed on to her, and twenty years ago, she blamed him for it... Broke his heart, but he still tries to this day. Portia glares at the second youngest at times, motioning her to talk to him.
Doesn't work.
Ki and I accompany him for the entire time until everybody goes home around eleven. Except for Sarah, who sleeps upstairs, and Mike and Bertha, who are standing near the threshold.
"You shouldn't travel so much," Ki reproaches while putting a hat on Mike.
"Haha! There are many places to explore." He nudges Bert and she beams. "We remain steady!"
"Should we travel?" Theo suggests. Angeline perks up at that.
My finger points at all of them. "You four seem to forget that you are reaching seventy."
"Psh! Just a number!" Theo quips.
...A dull pain comes when I see them like this. Old. Decay. Wrinkles and grey. Slouching stature and old-fashioned clothes. Even Bert keeps wearing that stupid, worn-out bonnet. Fifty years are not enough.
When Ki watches them discussing holidays and her lips slightly quiver, I know she is thinking the same. I breathe in and out, stopping the waters.
All of us hug together, longer than usual and I don't know why. But none of us question it. Their short heights remind me of children.
...They were children when we first met.
Mike and Bertha take their leave. We go to the kitchen and take our seats. Angeline prepares us a pot of ginger tea and biscuits.
"Keep my sweet husband company, hm?" Angeline kisses Theo's forehead and he looks up at her, grinning yet tired. "The Sandman hasn't visited him, and I don't want Theo to read books in the dark."
"Insomnia?" Ki worries.
He nods and breathes out, "For a week."
Angeline bids us goodnight and enters their bedroom to sleep.
_____________________
"I don't mind if you two spend more time here. My Angel was very happy when you came for dinner because truthfully, I forgot when you were here last time."
"We were here last Easter, Theo," Ki chuckles.
"Hah! It's been ages."
My eyebrows raise. "We've been living side by side for forty-five years."
"Deduct it with constant travelling, I'd say twenty-five to thirty years."
"Wasn't enough?"
"No. I noticed you two became distant towards my family and me for years."
We both watch him, silent when he smiles in melancholy and continues drinking his tea. Why... Sarah tiptoes down the stairs? Shock swims over her features as she sees us talking in the kitchen at four a.m.
"Where are you going, dear?" Theo's forehead creases from concern.
"You should sleep by now!" she shrieks. She doesn't know Theo has insomnia. He wasn't kidding that she is ruder than before.
"Can't sleep. I'm your father, of course I want to know. I'm worried about you," he sighs.
"Tch. You didn't worry about how I'd see weird shit every now and then."
"It's a gift. I would've helped you handle it if you let me."
"I don't want to handle it, I want to get rid of it! It's all your fault." Just wait a fucking minute! Theodore gets off his seat. Sarah seems bristled. "Fuck off! I'm out of here."
YOU LITTLE UNGRATEFUL—
"SARAH." Ki abruptly stands up with contempt.
Sarah backs up, eyes bulging out from fear, and she hurries out the front door.
Theodore exhales, holding our arms. "Please let it go, Ki... Aht, I know what your face insinuates, don't hold a grudge against her."
His words do very little in dwindling my searing fury. "She— She spoke to you like— Ughh."
"Don't worry, I'm praying every day for her heart to soften." His eyes blossom with tears but he blinks them away, flashing us a watery smile. "No matter how long."
Haih. No use in getting angry. He's too tired for this. I hug his right side and Ki hugs his left.
"...I'm sorry for being distant," Ki whispers.
"I'm sorry," I mutter on his crown.
"It's fine. After you two told me about your lingering pains, I got the whole picture. I'm sorry I couldn't slow down from growing old." He chuckles weakly.
That last sentence can be a punchline for some joke. But for us, for our situation, it makes me want to break down and cry. Shutting my eyes, I reassure him, "It's okay too."
He releases us and eats the last biscuit. "Now, tell me how your latest case went?"
Ki blinks her tears away and clears her throat. "We discovered this..."
God damn it. A feeling of being watched. I look out the window near the kitchen sink. A street light, a tree, and a couple of neighbours are fighting in their living room. Nothing out of the ordinary. But I avert my look downwards, fearing if a face might show up there. I'm not one for easily spooked, albeit higher spirits—
"My dear?" Ki touches my cheek.
"Hm?"
"You're frowning down the countertop."
"The counter has offended me."
"Angel won't like that, she personally chose this one," Theo tells.
"Will she side with me or the counter?"
"She spent her money on this one," she sniggers.
He exclaims, "There's your answer!"
I pull down his earlobe, earning soft chuckles from them. That's good.
"What are you thinking about, Aht?" Of course she doesn't let it go.
"Problem."
"Which is?" He cocks an eyebrow.
Ki stares at me and glances out the window. Her brow slowly scrunches up. "A higher spirit showed themself to us. Furious. When we headed over here, we saw shadows lurking in the alleys. Felt we're being watched."
Theo frowns on his tea mug, deep in thought. "You two didn't use powers?"
"None at all." My hands rub my whole face. "Do you know any knowledge relevant to this situation?"
"I'm truly sorry. I don't have a clue."
"I thought you were learning about our world."
"I set a limit about searching for knowledge in mysticism. I'd go insane if I didn't. The religious books can only tell so much."
"What about your friends?" Ki flails her hands.
"Even they admitted to their students that they don't know everything. They can only learn and teach about what has been given to them. Which isn't a lot compared to higher spirits' knowledge."
"Oh man..."
"All I can advise is to wait and let them confront you since they are stalkers and cowards." He shakes his head, indignant. "They have to talk about their issues with you in one way or another."
Ki's back straightens. "Aht have silver hairs."
Theo gapes at us.
"Ki has crow's feet on her eyes." Nervous laughter tumbles out of me.
"Holy mother." His wide-eyed stare flits to his mug.
"Do you think it's—?"
"Longevity? Probably. You two don't look in your early twenties anymore. More to enter thirty."
"Aht, you're right." Tapping her thighs, she looks outside.
"I don't trust our bodies," I huff. "Too random."
"How about you go check-up at the hospital? Both of you. For reassurance. Also, when's the last time you went on a check-up?"
Ki and I exchange sheepish looks. Too long. She tilts her head in the front door's direction and I nod. We get up and he is stunned to see us walk towards the living room.
"Want to follow us?" I put on my jacket.
He shoots us a weird look. "Now? It's around four."
"Hospital's on for twenty-four hours and you can't sleep. Are your meds for insomnia full?"
Laughing, he puts on his jacket as well. "Way to turn it on me. Let me leave a note for Angel so she won't report me as a missing person."
Ki is driving us to the hospital, using Theo's old car. They don't trust me to drive, calling me a speed demon. Hey, other cars are generally slow. The roads are quiet, except for some shops opening up early for the day.
We talk. Theo in the backseat keeps glancing outside. I wonder...
"How Olga had treated you both?" he inquires.
"As usual, paranoid," I chuckle. "Her grandson is special."
She smirks, smug. "He called out Aht's look and made a constipated face."
Theo giggles. "I'm glad you had fun in Hawaii."
"Thanks." My eyes roll. "Ki even made a lasting impression on a local."
"Made a friend?"
"Not a friend... An acquaintance," she corrects him. "We hung out with her for a week."
He nods, understanding her complications with connections. "What impression did you make?"
"She has this problem with a boy and I'm worried about her. My advice was that everything has costs. She comforts him, she'll get heartbroken. If she leaves him, she'll feel guilty. You create art, you lose time and money. You make money, you lose time and leisure. If you leave home for something new, you'll have a harder time achieving familiarity. The bigger the advantage, the heavier the cost. If she's willing to stay with the boy, accept the cost."
Theo's quiet. And he speaks up, "Heavy. How did she take it?"
I say, "She's cool about it. Appreciated the advice and told us she will have it as a constant reminder."
"...Everything, Ki?"
"Everything," she says in a casual manner, but her eyes are downcast.
Silence. We stop at a red light.
"When will you two get married?"
We roar out and bicker in the car, laughing and justifying our reasons to Theo.
"I'm serious! It'll be a wish come true to see both of you declare your love to the world without hiding. Put your love song at your wedding, Stardust!" He bounces on his seat. "Pick a custom already!"
Relieved that this part of himself hasn't changed. A dreamy romantic sucker at heart. To be frank, Ki and I do want to get married. But the documents?? We're too lazy to think about those petty matters. Maybe in time. To imagine Stardust lyrics dancing around us as we dance in our wedding...
Damn, I'm a sucker as well.
"I ain't getting any younger," he complains.
"Clearly."
The old geezer yanks my ear! I yelp and swat his hand away. The traffic light turns green.
"Anyway, have you figured out why you're insomniac lately since the doctor said it isn't a medical condition?" I question. "It's not good for your age."
He looks at the shops. "I realised it yesterday. The cause."
My head turns his way and he is restless in his seat, frowning with worry. "Theo?" I call him.
"Huh?"
"What's wrong?"
"The cause is I subconsciously worry too much." Changing the subject, he tries to stay still.
"Bullshit."
"I do worry!"
She looks at him through the rearview mirror. "About what?? You don't tell us what."
Taking a deep breath, he then exhales. "Like an impending doom."
She watches him for a moment or two. "For a week you feel...?"
"Yes."
"Did you consult with the doctor about your body? Since it could be a symptom—"
"It's not about myself. I feel it whenever I think of you two."
...What? "How so?" I push on.
"I don't know! Losing sleep for nights."
We're reaching the hospital. I don't know what to say. My heart's beating faster, even when I don't want to think about it. Ki runs her fingers through her hair.
"Mobile spirits hover over us. Your gift is trying to tell you something," she says.
I groan, "I'm not calm about this."
"WHAT THE FU—!!"
SHIT! The car suddenly brakes. Theo holds onto my seat from behind and I look at her. She looks out the windshield and I follow suit.
...Oh God.
In the middle of the road, a man stands in front of the car. Puffing up his chest and adjusting strings of gold on him, he tries to appear regal. He's snarling and staring us down and equipped with a spear. A big freaking spear.
The aura he exudes shows he's not a man at all.