Calvin woke early the morning after Halloween, in a great mood.
His folks were already at work, so he tuned the radio in the kitchen and found the old soul station. Calvin smiled and started snapping his fingers along to "My Girl" by The Temptations, as he headed to the fridge and pulled out some ingredients and made himself some breakfast. He made himself a stack of waffles, with blueberries in them, and poured himself a large glass of orange juice. He then made himself some bacon and toast, then set his breakfast platter down on the table and sat down, prepared to eat. As Calvin stuck his napkin in his shirt collar, he took a deep breath. Yes. It was a good morning. And then before he could start eating, there was a knock at the door. Calvin groaned, stood up and walked to the living room. Twisting the front door open, he was surprised to find Rachel standing on the porch. "Oh," he said, "hey, good morning. What are you doing here?" "I need help," Rachel said. "Okay...with what?" "My friend needs a bomb," Rachel said, jerking her thumb over her shoulder at the car. Calvin leaned to the side and looked, surprised to see none other than Wyatt Bloom sitting in the passenger seat. Calvin scratched his head and sighed. *** "I had no idea it would do...well...that," Wyatt said as he and Rachel sat at a nearby diner that morning before heading to Calvin's. They had just ordered a large basket of fries and were sharing them, but Wyatt wasn't too hungry, so Rachel was the one actually eating them. "Why'd you do this in the first place?" Rachel asked. "Cause I...I wanted to make a difference," Wyatt said, "I've spent my life in an industry dedicated to the destruction of our planet and its natural resources, and then when my daughter was diagnosed with ASD, I just...I realized how much worse I was making the world for her specifically, and I wanted to leave her a better world than that. We just...we didn't really think things through. We didn't mean to destroy any kind of buildings or anything, we just wanted to do a little sabotage." "And now?" "Now I need to find a way to cover it up," Wyatt said, "In some way, in some capacity." "I mean, you know they're going to discover it before you can erase any evidence, right? There's no way we're getting a bomb in there before they get there today," Rachel said, grasping a handful of seasoned chili friends and shoving them into her mouth; "besides," she continued while chewing, "all that's gonna do is create an even more intense investigation." "Who said anything about a bomb? Where'd you get bomb from? Who do you know that even makes bombs?" Rachel wanted to slap herself. Wyatt reached across the table and grabbed the basket of fries, pulling them away from her. "Hey!" she said loudly, mouth still half full of fry, making Wyatt chuckle. "Rachel, tell me...who do you know that makes bombs?" he asked, his voice low. "...I got a guy," she said. "You got a guy?" "I always wanted to say that," she said, shrugging. *** Wyatt and Rachel entered Calvin's kitchen, as Calvin sat back down at the table to finish eating his breakfast. Wyatt looked around the kitchen, hands in his coat pocket, as Rachel sat down with Calvin and nervously watched Wyatt before turning her attention back to Calvin, lowering her voice so as not to alert Wyatt. "I'm sorry, I know this is sudden and weird, but he's in a nasty situation and his wife is my friend and...you gotta help me, man," Rachel said. "I got no qualms helping you, Rachel, you know that," Calvin said, making her smile until he added, pointing his fork at Wyatt, "it's him I got a problem helping." "Why? What'd Wyatt do to you?" Rachel asked, furrowing her brow. "It's not about what he did to me, it's about what he did to my sister," Calvin said, "even if it wasn't intentional, she still suffered as a result, and that's just something I can't forgive." "Do it for me, please," Rachel said, pleading, "Scarlett's my friend, and she doesn't deserve to deal with this if he gets arrested or something. Come on, Cal. I helped you." Calvin chewed his lip, then tossed his fork down on his plate and groaned. Just then he looked to the side and saw Wyatt coming up to the table. Calvin folded his arms and leaned back in his chair, watching Wyatt as he looked around the kitchen, then took a piece of bacon from the breakfast plate and bit into it. "Sorry," he said, chewing, "I didn't eat breakfast." "...so you want a bomb, huh?" Calvin asked, "follow me to my shed." Calvin slid his chair away from the table and opened the glass door that led to the backyard. Wyatt followed, Rachel behind him shutting the door as they exited the house. The three of them walked briskly across the backyard and Calvin unlocked the shed. He flung the door open and let Rachel and Wyatt enter. Calvin then came in behind them and shut the door, locking it once more. Wyatt looked around the shed, noticing the photo on the table beside all the mechanical pieces. "...this your family?" he asked. "Was," Calvin replied, "They're dead." "Jesus, I'm so sorry," Wyatt said, "I couldn't imagine losing my daughter or wife." "Yeah, it kinda destroys a person," Calvin said, "So...you do realize that if I help you with this, you can never - if caught - bring it back to me, right? I have important things to finish, and I can't have my goals hampered by whatever it is you're dealing with. Also, they likely will trace it back to you and then connect you with the prior situation as well, so be prepared for that." "Thankfully I have a lawyer on my side already," Wyatt said, "but yes, I'm fully aware of the possible outcomes. I stand by what I did. Morgana is a horrible corporation and what they're about to do is deplorable, and somebody had to take a stand." "Did you say Morgana?" Calvin asked as he turned away from the workbench, now facing Wyatt and Rachel once more. "Y...yes?" Wyatt asked, "Why?" "...Robert Grudin supports Morgana," Calvin said, "he's the one who said he'd sign off on their plans if he was elected into office. Turns out he isn't just interested in destroying families, but also the environment, good to know. Well then, if that's who we're dealing with, I'll gladly help you take him down another notch or two." Wyatt got a funny look on his face and chuckled nervously. "Why...why do you hate Robert Grudin? Who even IS Robert Grudin?" he asked. "He's a local politician," Rachel said. "And he killed my wife and daughter," Calvin said, taking Wyatt by surprise. *** That night, after going home and having dinner with his family, Wyatt Bloom couldn't sleep. He just felt nervous. Instead, he got up, walked downstairs and paced mindlessly back and forth for what seemed like hours. He wanted to scream, he wanted to cry, he wanted to laugh. The entire spectrum of human emotion flushed through him seemingly all at once, and he felt overwhelmed. How could he really do this? Celia didn't even know that he'd gotten the bomb; in fact, all he'd told her was that he'd take care of the mess they'd made, he never said how. Now that he had the answer, he found he was terrified to take the action. Wyatt sat in the living room, staring at the blank television screen, looking at his reflection. He looked haggard, worn out and sad. His hair was messy, his eyes were red and overall he looked like a former shell of the man he usually was. He thought back to Calvin, and what he'd said in the shed. As soon as Grudin's name came up, Calvin seemed all the more interested to help, but Wyatt felt bad dragging him further into a crime hole than he already was. He heard someone walking behind him and he looked to see Mona standing by the couch, holding her stuffed giraffe. "Hey little peach, what are you doing up?" he asked as she sauntered into the room, yawing, wiping her eyes. "My tummy hurts," she said. "Let's get you some hot chocolate," Wyatt said, "That always makes you feel better." He stood up, took Mona by the hand and led her to the kitchen. She hopped up onto the stool at the kitchen island and watched as her father made a cup of hot chocolate. He hummed to himself, allowing himself to get lost in this moment of pure domestic bliss, not thinking about the bomb sitting in his car or the 2nd crime he was about to commit to cover up the first. He finished making the drink and slid the mug across the island to Mona, who picked it up - both hands around the mug - and sipped it cautiously. "That better?" Wyatt asked, leaning on the island, smiling at her as she nodded and smiled; he said, "good, I'm glad." Wyatt watched his daughter finish her drink, then he carried her back to her bedroom, turned on her comfort night light, read her a story and rubbed her back until she fell asleep. Afterwards he stood up, headed to his own bedroom and crawled into bed. He felt Scarlett pull him towards her, then climb on top of him, kissing his throat. "Right now?" he asked, surprised. "We're both up, why not," she whispered. Wyatt smiled. Maybe she was right. Maybe this would be the thing to take his mind off his troubles. Unfortunately for Wyatt, and everyone else, their troubles would be threefold by the morning. *** Rachel opened the shop that morning, expecting herself to be the only one there. Honestly, she was happy for the solitude, and for the chance to get back to some kind of normalcy after the last few days. As she headed into the back, to the staff break room, she found Sun sitting at the table, her presence taking Rachel by surprise. Rachel jumped back at the sight of her, putting her hand to her chest. "Jesus!" she shouted, making Sun laugh as she asked, "god damn woman, why are you even here this early?" "Couldn't deal with the parental pressure this morning," Sun said, "also I wanted to talk to you." "Oh, everything okay?" Rachel asked as she walked further into the room and started pouring herself a cup of coffee, then tearing open a complimentary pack of biscottis. She sat down at the table as Sun turned her chair towards Rachel. "...ever since I started working here, I've been so thankful to have a friend," Sun said, "like, I was so worried that, coming back to this town, it would make me feel so lonely, but you've been here and it's been really comforting. But I also feel uncomfortable around you." "...is it because I'm gay?" Rachel asked. "It is," Sun said, "but...not...I don't mean that the way it sounds. I don't mean it like I don't like queer people, I mean it like...it makes me uncomfortable because it's made me think about myself, and...fuck this is weird and hard." Rachel stopped chewing her cookie and swallowed. She was nervous as hell all of a sudden, and unsure not only of what was coming next but whether or not she wanted to hear it. "I think I like you," Sun finally said, "in a romantic kind of way and that makes me feel weird cause I've never liked another woman before and now I feel weird for admitting all this and now I feel weird for admitting that. I'm just one big messy weirdo, but I like you and I-" "I waited so long for you to come back," Rachel said, "I...I know that sounds, like, super stalkerish but I was so bummed when you didn't show up at the reunion and...and happy as I am to hear this I...I don't know that I can be involved with someone again." The words, even as they left her mouth, surprised Rachel, but they also made sense. After what she'd been through, after nearly being assaulted, she was terrified of intimacy and had a hard time trusting people again, especially in a romantic fashion, and yet...yet this was what she'd wanted for so many years. Over a decade, actually, and now she was gonna wuss out? Rachel suddenly felt sick to her stomach. "I need to go, I'm gonna throw up," she said, suddenly rising from her chair and rushing out the door, leaving behind a very bewildered Sun Rai. *** "Dad, do horses have feelings?" Mona asked as Wyatt drove her to school the next morning. He chuckled at her question and bit his lip. "I...have no idea, honestly," he said, "I would imagine though, I mean, everything has feelings, right?" "So horses get crushes and stuff?" Mona asked, "Like one horse can like another horse?" "Sure, why not? It's only natural after all to want to have babies and keep the species going," Wyatt said as he rolled up to a red light. He sighed and looked around at the outdoors. It was a gorgeous day, honestly, even if it was the start of November. He like this late fall air, and the colors of the leaves, especially early in the mornings and especially when he got to share these quieter moments with his daughter, even if they were talking about something absolutely ridiculous. Just then he noticed a car pulling up beside him, and he glanced over to notice it was Celia. She wasn't smiling. Instead, she furiously motioned for him to roll down his window, something he gladly did. "Mornin'," he said. "Follow me, it's an emergency," she said coldly, and then she sped off as soon as the light turned green. Wyatt shrugged, started the car back up and did as he was told. After a few minutes driving, they pulled into a nearby parking lot attached to a bar, and Wyatt unbuckled his seat belt. "Sweetheart, I'll be right back, okay?" he asked, and Mona nodded, continuing to brush her toy horses hair. Wyatt locked the car and walked around to the other side, finding Celia; he threw his arms up and asked, "what's the big deal now?" but she wouldn't answer, and instead she headed inside. Wyatt didn't question, he just followed. Once inside, she stopped at the bar, snapped her fingers and asked for the remote control to the TV, which she was quickly given. "Hey! Earth to Celia! What's the big damn deal?" Wyatt asked, but she snapped her fingers in his face and then pointed at the television. Wyatt's gaze slowly moved towards the television, which was on a breaking news report. A lovely little home in a quiet little suburb was on the television, surrounded by cop cars. Wyatt didn't recognize the place, but he had an awful feeling in the pit of his stomach. "-if you're just joining us," the announcer said as Celia turned the sound up, "then allow me to reiterate this breaking news. Local resident Oliver Brighton, safety inspector for the Morgana landscaping and construction company, is dead. It's speculated that Brighton, after a recent incident at their latest work site cost him his job, came home wherein he killed his wife and both daughters before taking his own life. As of this moment, there's not a lot of information about-" Celia muted the TV and looked at Wyatt, his jaw hanging. He slowly looked at her, and their eyes locked. "...what the fuck did we do?" she whispered. From the parking lot, a car horn beeped, and Wyatt could hear Mona shouting. "Daddy! I'm gonna be late for school!"
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A group of former high school classmates reunite at their 10 year reunion, and discover they each want something different, many with someone else there. What ensues is a labyrinthian relationship amongst them involving crime, murder, romance and, in one particular case, terrorism. Archives
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