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 Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 3:07 pm
The way Cindy was driving, she could've given the poor boy who sat in her passenger seat a heart attack. "Oh man, I hope Mir is doing better than I am." She yelled through her blaring music.
Aesop glanced back at her very calmly, then continued to stare out the window. The boy didn't exactly have the most appropriate clothing on for a visit to a friends house. She had draped one of her smaller shirts over him. It wasn't like she had little boy clothes just laying around her tiny apartment. "You... Should not be so nervous." He commented as he continued to watch the scenery fly by. It amused him so. Enough to make him smile in a seemingly dire situation.
As they came to a stop sign, Cindy took the opportunity to glance down at the directions she had printed off to Mir's house. Ah, the internet. What a disaster she'd be without it. "Alright. Left here." She instructed to herself, the car following her words manually. The place was somewhat out of the way, but boy... What she'd give to live in a neighborhood like this.
Her car pulled to a stop as she thought they'd found their destination. She looked at the paper again, then the mailbox. "This is it." Her fingers made their way to the volume knob, carefully turning it down to where the sound was barely audible. And with that, she pulled into the driveway. "Oh wow.."
Aesop was also in awe over the house. Surely it wasn't the biggest house in the world... But compared to what he'd seen in his short lifetime, it was indeed a beautiful one.
Cindy pulled up as far as the driveway went before parking and almost jumping out of the car. She quickly made her way over to the passenger door and opened it, allowing the little boy to hop out. Then both of them carefully made their way up to the house. Cindy gave a knock. "Mir? It's Cindy!" She tried to yell through the door.
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 3:22 pm
"Coming," Mireille called out in return, glancing back almost nervously at the little boy who'd invaded her life such a short time ago. He was clad in one of her shirts, the too-big top belted with a bit of string she had laying around the house, and was curled up in his quilt, just watching her with a smile on his face. He nodded to the door, and Mireille flushed a bit, chewing at her lower lip as she turned and opened the door. "Hello," she offered to Cindy, though her eyes were on Aesop. The resemblance to her own boy, pale skin, pale hair, startled her just a bit, and she waved them inside as she stepped out of the way.
"Hi," Julien said from where he stood, just inside the door. "It's nice to meet you." Proper manners masking genuine pleasure, he offered a hand. "Can I get you something?"
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 3:37 pm
Cindy made no hesitation as Mir invited them in. Aesop, however, was busy examining the door frame. "C'mon, Aesop." She called, immediately sensing that he wasn't at her side. The boy looked up at Mireille and quickly trotted in after.
Cindy was about as shocked as Mir was when she'd seen Aesop. They did indeed look alike. "W-wow." She whispered out. "Nice to meet you too." He may have been... Strange.. But that was no reason to be rude. "No, but thanks for the offer." She gave him a little smile as she turned back to Mir. "I'm fairly sure that you're just as shocked as me..." A great way to start off the conversation indeed. "I don't know about you... But up until this point I was pretty sure babies came from women and not from eggs." She gave a nervous laugh. Oh, who was she kidding? Her mind was blown right now.
Aesop was busy looking around the house. His eyes big orbs of curiosity. How big it was... And how small he was compared to it. His eyes then turned to the boy. Aesop was sharp enough to notice the similarities between them, but they didn't seem to bother him as much. He could sense something different between the both of them. That, however, did not stop him from interacting. "Hello." He said softly to Julien. "I am Aesop." His tone was very factual... Very calm.
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 3:45 pm
"Shocked is putting it mildly," Mireille said wryly, shaking her head as she gestured to a sitting area with big plush chairs and a matching couch. For herself, she took one of the chairs, and Julien followed to curl up in the corner of the couch nearest to Mireille. "Flabbergasted would be a bit more accurate. I feel completely lost." Given that two boys were in her house, and that though she knew neither of them, she'd just become guardian to one... she really had no issues pointing this out. "I was asleep, and he woke me to say hello. I nearly freaked."
Julien chuckled softly at Mireille's recitation, but most of his attention was on Aesop. "I like your name," he offered, patting the couch beside him. "When I asked Mireille for a name, she gave me the name Julien Michel."
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 3:59 pm
Oh.. What a lovely house... Wait, she shouldn't be thinking about the house right now. Cindy sat in one of the chairs and watched the two boys for a moment. "At least mine wasn't as surprising..." If she'd been woken up like that, her body probably would've fallen into shock. And, for that, she respected Mir more now. "I woke up, the egg hatched, and out popped a child! Magical how nature throws you curve balls, isn't it?"
Aesop climbed up on the couch next to Julien and gave the boy a nod at the comment to his name. "Yours is nice as well. It's pleasant to the ears." Two names. How interesting. And how well they complimented each other. He was paying no attention to Cindy's recollection, since she seemed to leave most of it out. No need to correct her, though. It wasn't his conversation to intrude upon. "This is a very nice house." He figured that it was best to start his own conversation with the boy who shared similar traits. He was surely nice enough. Aesop liked that about him.
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 4:12 pm
Mireille chuckled. "I'm not sure I'd find that less surprising, really," she offered, glancing over at the boys before looking at Cindy again. "I'm... not really sure what to do now, though," she admitted. "I mean, I named him. He insisted on that. And he's seemed perfectly content to get used to things at his own pace. But... I feel a bit like I'm drowning, overwhelmed by it all."
"I like it here," Julien confided with easy comfort. "It's really welcoming, and Mireille's very nice to me. How about your home? What's it like?"
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 4:32 pm
Cindy gave a sigh and leaned back in the chair, eyes seeming very unsure. "I've heard pregnant women say it happens so fast, but they don't have anything on this." If there's one thing she could do, it was find humor in the worst situations. "Honestly, I'm just as stumped. There was one thing I never wanted to do in my lifetime... And that was have children.." She paused and looked over at Aesop. "But, that's probably because I was afraid of the uncertainty that came with it..."
She gave a small pause. Her eyes on the ground. "But, I told him that I'd take care of him." Cindy's vision slowly shifted up to Mireille. "Besides, I don't think I could actually turn him away." She smiled. "Unfortunately, I'm not as heartless as I wish I was."
"My home?" Aesop gave some thought to this before actually answering. "It's... Very small." His hands gestured as he spoke. "At least, compared to this place. Not to say that I don't appreciate what I have. It's actually very cozy..." He gave a nod at the explanation. "And Cindy... She's nice too." Though, she seemed very spastic at this time. He supposed it would take her time to adjust..
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 4:58 pm
Mireille nodded, her own gaze growing distant as she looked out her window for a moment. "Yes. After... Well, I didn't think I'd have anything like a chlid to worry about once I moved," she amended thoughtfully. "But Jules is a sweet boy, and I couldn't bear the thought of leaving him with someone I don't trust." Clearly, he'd already wormed his way into her heart.
Julien nodded, watching Cindy for a moment before offering Aesop a bright smile. "She seems really nice, and it sounds like she cares about you," he offered, his voice soft enough to hopefully not catch her attention. He didn't want to embarrass her, after all. "I guess it's going to take us some time to get them used to us, right?"
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 5:25 pm
As Mir looked away, Cindy also glanced out the window. Moving, huh? It made her think of something she hadn't wanted to think about. Her family. What would her family think? Why did it matter? She never wanted to see them again...
Well... Not never. She gave a nod at the mention of the boy's sweetness. She had to admit, that smiling face would lighten up even the dullest of days. Aesop was more of an inquisitive child. But, in that sense, he was interesting to be around. And, she liked sharing the knowledge she had with him. "I agree..." She said with a smile. "In a sense... This is just what I asked for." Her eyes climbed the wall and stared up at the ceiling. "I wanted something amazing to happen to me... And at the same time, I wanted my loneliness to end. Aesop fulfilled both of those wishes." One of her hands moved to her hair. She twirled it around her fingers, as if it helped her think. "He also gives me another excuse to stay far away from my family." She mentioned it as if it was an afterthought... But really, it was at the top of her mind now.
Aesop returned the smile with one of his softer expressions. "Yes indeed, my friend. But... I look forward to it." He wanted closeness. To feel close to someone. And yet, he didn't understand why. As if it was some deep-seeded emotion. "Hm." He gave a thought out loud.
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 5:40 pm
"Don't... stay away from your family forever," Mireille said, her voice very soft as she looked away again. Dragging her mind off meandering paths, she rose, offering Cindy a smile. "Can I get you something to nibble on? We have crackers and cheese in there. It wouldn't take me long."
As she spoke, Julien reached out, just catching Mireille's hand and smiling at her. But after his smile, the woman seemed to relax a little more. Turning his attention back to Aesop, he tilted his head in curiosity. "Hm?" he echoed, voice turning it to a question.
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 5:59 pm
As the woman spoke about family, Cindy seemed to realize how empty her house was as well. This child... Must've brought an end to her loneliness as well.
Cindy watched Mir rise from her chair and blinked. Food? Oh, something to eat sounded lovely. She hadn't eaten since she woke up. Heck, she hadn't really thought of it. Her mind was too busy with other thoughts. "If it's not any trouble... Crackers and cheese sounds wonderful." She returned the smile, a little giggle escaping.
Aesop took a moment and watched Mirelle rise, his glance then turning back to the blue-eyed boy. "It's nothing.. Just... Thinking to myself." He rubbed his chin. An interesting thing for a little boy to do. "That's a very nice blanket you have, by the way." He'd been thinking about that for awhile. It was much bigger than his. But the fabric didn't appeal to him as much. Still, it did look comfortable.
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 6:10 pm
Mir nodded as she headed into the kitchen. "I'll be just a few minutes. Feel free to relax or look around," she called, already moving to dig out the different cheeses she had in the fridge and a cutting knife. She arranged all four of the cheeses - havarti, edam, gruyere, and swiss - on a plate, then dug in her pantry for the different crackers to complete the plate. As an afterthought, she added several slices from her summer sausage, rearranging the plate and adding another until she was content there was enough. Those two plates went on a tray, and she added some bottles of water to it, then got ready to go back out. "Will this do?"
Julien smiled, hugging the blanket before offering it over to Aesop. "If you want to curl up with it, you can," he said. "It's nice and warm, and cuddly." And if Julien loved anything, it was warm and cuddly... "What were you thinking about?"
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 6:42 pm
When Mir left the room, Cindy's attention went straight to the boys. She watched them quietly, a soft smile on her face.
Aesop, semi-surprised at the kind gesture, graciously accepted. He took a little of it and covered himself, his little toes wiggling under the blanket. "Thank you." He thought for a moment about how to properly phrase what had been going through his mind. "Do you have.. Unexplained feelings? Like... You want to do something, but you don't know why?"
Cindy listened as Aesop spoke. Unexplained feelings? What exactly did he mean? That was when Mir re-entered the room. Her eyes were immediately on that plate of food. "Oh Mir, that looks wonderful." It was her stomach talking now.
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 6:51 pm
"I'm glad," Mireille said, moving to set the tray down on the coffee table nearby. "Everyone, please feel free to dig in," she added, taking one of the waters and moving to sit back in her chair again.
Julien completely ignored the invitation, settling the blanket a little better around Aesop as he considered the question carefully. "I'm... not really sure. I don't think I've felt anything like that yet, but I do sometimes feel like I'm not in the right place." He took a moment before adding softly, "But when I feel Mir nearby, that feeling goes away."
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Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 7:08 pm
Cindy quietly made her way over to the tray of goodies, loading up one of the crackers with all the different cheese and a few pieces of sausage. Her eyes almost watered at the unique taste. So... Delicious. "You're a life saver, Mir.." She glanced over at the boys as the offer was made. It seemed they were both caught up in a conversation.
"I'm still curious to where they came from.." Cindy mumbled to Mir, finishing off her cracker. "So weird how they look alike, isn't it?"
Aesop tilted his head out of curiosity. "Interesting." was all he had to say. He hadn't exactly felt out of place. More like... He'd found what he was looking for. And yet, something was still missing. Something he needed to remember, but couldn't. "It doesn't matter." A phrase that had been repeated to him just that morning. "I'm quite content with where I am and, you seem to be as well."
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