Chapter Text
Ava slowly opens her eyelids and stares at the white ceiling above her.
She sits upright in the bed, fluttering her eyelashes to blink away the sleep.
She feels something wet on her cheeks.
Her hand comes into contact with her left cheek, and her fingers are glistening with her tears.
She was crying in her sleep because of that dream.
But that wasn’t a dream.
No…
She remembered that day, still fresh in her mind.
It was a couple of days before her mother p-passed away.
That night, in their old treehouse.
She will forever cherish that memory of Hayley.
Ava immediately takes out her necklace, which was tucked inside her shirt, and grasps the feathers that Hayley perfectly plucked out.
She closes her eyes and lets the delicate texture calm her.
She remembered when the black cord would glow around her neck, letting her know that Hayley was nearby or that she could communicate with her that she was there.
There is no glow.
It is absent, nothing but a normal necklace.
But Ava can still feel her presence.
It isn’t as strong as the glow Hayley gives out before, but she can still feel… her.
She slowly takes a couple of deep breaths, wishing Hayley were here right now.
But she’s not.
And it hurts knowing that.
After all, it was her fault that she is—
Ava inhales sharply, shaking her head.
She doesn’t want to think about that.
She doesn’t want to think about that at all.
It is too much for her.
With a shaky breath, Ava gives the feather a single, loving kiss and releases it, letting it hang on her chest.
As she slowly removes the blanket from her body, she realizes something.
“W-Wait, how long have I been asleep?” Ava asks, no one in particular.
She glances at the curtain-covered window and notices that it is still dark outside, which doesn’t help her since it is already night.
Still, she remembers seeing the time on the microwave right before she drank the pill, something close to 8:10 if she remembered correctly.
Time works very differently here than at the Demon Realm, but she is slowly getting the hang of it.
Ava climbs out of her bed and tries to find her phone, confused about where it is.
She spins around the room in search of the device until she realizes that it is in her jeans, which are neatly folded and placed in the corner of the room along with her flannel and tank top.
Ava blinks, her head tilting.
She definitely doesn’t remember placing it there.
But she shrugs off and pulls out her phone from the pocket.
She checks the time, and her eyes go wide.
It is currently 9:45 PM.
She lets out a small yelp.
She has been asleep for a good hour and a half, which means she definitely slept through dinner time.
Quickly, Ava stuffs her phone in her pajama pocket and cleans any leftover tears so that Luz and Amity wouldn’t notice why she looks absolutely distraught.
She exits the room with rushed steps and stops at the doorway of the living room with tense shoulders.
She has no idea if they will get after her for missing dinner.
So Ava braces herself and slowly walks into the living room to see…
Her whole body relaxes once she sees the sight in front of her, her head tilting again.
But this time, it is one of curiosity.
On the couch are Luz and Amity, sleeping soundly and cuddling with each other.
And that makes Ava even more confused.
Luz has stated that Amity is her best friend/roommate.
But that doesn’t look like that.
They are super, super close to each other.
Maybe it is a little more than that.
…Okay, maybe Ava is reading this whole wrong, and that this could be platonic cuddling.
That’s a thing, right?
Still, Ava is amused, smiling softly.
Just imagine if they actually get together.
Ava’s heart flutters after that thought.
She wouldn’t mind that, Luz and Amity as a couple.
One that she wouldn’t mind calling them her…
Ava stops herself from saying it.
Let’s not go that far, Ava.
They probably would feel uncomfortable if I called them… M-Mom.
So, for now, Ava will leave it like that.
Still, she’s holding on to it.
“Meow!”
Ava sees a white feline cozily lying down on Amity’s side, standing up to stretch out her tired bones.
“Ghost!” Ava softly greets with a small smile.
Then, the cat proceeds to walk across Amity and Luz’s thighs, blatantly disturbing them as she drops down to the floor and rubs Ava’s legs.
This causes Amity to stir in her position, groaning as she slowly flutters her eyes open.
This also causes Luz to abruptly wake up, her head slowly falling as she was resting on Amity’s lavender hair.
“Hmm, what time is it?” Luz mumbles, rubbing her drowsy eyes. “Ugh… Oh, Ava!”
Luz and Amity are now fully awake as they stare at the young teen with wide eyes, the blanket still on their shoulders, and noticeably close to each other.
“I uhm… I’m not interrupting anything, ain’t I?” Ava asks shyly, looking between the two.
That sparks something inside Luz and Amity as they glance at each other and notice just how close they are.
Luz and Amity suddenly stand up at the same time, the blanket brushing off, and both their faces flushed with a red hue on their cheeks.
“A-Ah, n-no! Y-You’re good! W-We were just uhm…” Luz trails off.
“Watching Azura!” Amity blurts out, red as a tomato.
“Y-Yeah! Azura and all that good stuff!” Luz awkwardly chuckles, sweating.
Ava stares at a flustered Luz and Amity, glancing between them. “…Okay?”
Oh no, yeah. They are totally into each other.
And it is painfully obvious.
“A-Anyways!” Luz exclaims, clearing her throat a little too loud and approaching Ava. “How’s your knee? Better or is it still hurting?”
“O-Oh, uhm…”
Now that she thinks about it, she hasn’t thought about her knee since she was so focused on her memory with Hayley.
And right now, she notices that her knee isn’t screaming at her, just a slight pulse.
She feels… fine.
“N-No, it doesn’t hurt anymore,” Ava replies, bending her knee to test if she feels a sharp pain, but none whatsoever. “I feel okay.”
“Hey, that’s good! I’m glad the pills are helping you.”
“Y-Yeah. But I-I missed dinner.” Ava murmurs, staring at the ground. “I-I’m sorry.”
“No, no, no. Don’t apologize for that, Ava,” Luz says gently. “You absolutely needed that nap after what you’ve been through today.”
Ava’s breath hitches, slightly lifting her head and locking eyes with Luz.
Her face conceals the words gentle and worried underneath.
“Yeah, Amity filled me in on what happened. The plaza and the woods.”
“I… I-I-I’m so…”
“Don’t say sorry again!” Luz interrupts gently, chuckling. “It wasn’t your fault, okay?”
“A-Ah uhm… I-I don’t know what to say then,” Ava utters.
“You don’t have to say anything, sweetie,” Luz says, offering reassurance and comfort. “Just know that it is okay to be scared, and I am really glad that Amity and your friend found you in time.”
Ava can feel her eyes watering after hearing that, reminiscing on the saying that Hayley has said over and over again to her.
And it is something she will never forget.
Ava shyly nods, sniffing.
She is trying her hardest not to cry since she has already shed some tears before.
But it looks like Luz notices the slow formation of her tears, frowning. “Aww, come here…” She offers, spreading her arms.
Ava immediately dives into Luz's warm embrace, wrapping her arms in a soft hug.
She rests her head against Luz’s chest and lets out a sigh, weary and relieved.
“I promise everything will be okay…” Luz whispers, stroking her messy hair thoroughly.
Ava nods slowly on her tank top and digs further into Luz‘s neck.
She can’t help but let out a low vibration through her throat, purring softly.
She hears Luz lightly gasping, but Ava pays no attention to that, squeezing even tighter.
A couple of minutes have gone by with Ava hugging her warm presence and Luz slowly raking her fingers through her curls.
Eventually, Ava pulls out of the embrace and quickly cleans up her face.
“Alright! I saved some quesadillas for you, Ava. Wanna eat them now or save them for tomorrow?” Luz asks, thumb pointing towards the kitchen.
Just the mention of this strange food makes Ava’s stomach rumble lowly, hiding her tummy with her hand.
“Uhm, r-right now if that is okay?”
Luz smacks her lips playfully, already walking inside the kitchen. “Of course it is okay! Here, I’ll heat it up.”
With a small smile, Ava finds herself stepping into the kitchen area and watching Luz turn on the stove.
But right before she takes a seat, she notices that Amity is quickly throwing away something in the trash and slowly leaving the living room.
Ava frowns. “W-Wait, Amity.”
Amity stops near the doorway and turns around to look at the young teen with a raised eyebrow. “Yes, Ava?”
“U-Uhm…” Ava stutters, her hands clamping and sweaty.
She doesn’t know why she called out her name.
But she needs to know that Amity is not left out.
So, Ava proceeds to do the first thing that comes to mind.
She slowly approaches her with careful steps and gives Amity a quick hug.
Ava feels Amity’s body tense up, her arms unmoving and unexpected.
But slowly, she relaxes upon Ava’s embrace and finally wraps her arms around the girl’s back.
Ava sighs in relief and snuggles further into her neck, closing her eyes.
But eventually, the young witch slowly pulls out of the hug and nervously shuffles on the spot, “I uhm… I-I just wanted to hug you. I hope I didn’t make you uncomfort—”
“Hey, no, no. It’s okay,” Amity whispers with a soft smile, placing a reassuring hand on Ava’s shoulder. “I don’t mind your hugs. And Luz’s, of course.”
Ava and Amity share a small chuckle. Because, well, Ava enjoys Luz’s hug.
She feels like she is being wrapped by a warm ghostmallow, soft and cozy on the inside and outside.
She doesn’t know about Amity.
But judging by the cuddling section, she probably feels the same way.
“Alright, I’m heading off to bed…” Amity calls out, letting out a yawn and stretching her arms out. “You girls have fun. Come on, Ghost. Let’s go.”
The feline meows a small goodbye to Ava and follows her owner out of the living room, yawning and ready for bed.
Ava stares at the doorway for a moment, already missing Amity’s warmth.
She heads back to the kitchen with a freshly heated quesadilla on the table courtesy of Luz.
She slowly takes a bite of the food, and her eyes go wide when she feels the stringy consistency known as cheese pulling out of the tortilla.
She wasn’t expecting that.
But what she was expecting was that this was a delicious meal.
It is creamy, toasty, and savory with a hint of saltiness.
It doesn’t beat spaghetti nor pizza, but it is really, really good, and she won’t mind having this again.
After some small talk about her possible new friend, Rowan, and finishing her late dinner, Luz suggests that they should head to bed as it is already 10:20 PM.
But Luz also adds that if she isn’t feeling particularly tired or sleepy, she can just lie down in her bed and continue reading her book.
Ava is still feeling a little sleepy from her nap, but it isn’t enough to hop back to the realms of sleep.
So, she quickly does her business in the restroom and brushes her teeth, doing her regular night routine.
Once she is done, Ava slowly enters the room and crawls onto her bed, wrapping herself with the blanket until it is underneath her chin.
She debates reading a couple of pages of Eternity.
But she decides against that as she doesn’t want to continue what happened after Athena gets…
Ava blinks away that specific scene in her mind and shifts in the bed to make herself more comfortable.
She gently rests her head on her pillows, lying on her back on the bed.
She lets out a sigh and stares at the ceiling above.
Even though her nightlight is still on and gently spreading its muted yellow luminescence across the dark room, Ava can see the trace of the white moonlight peeking through the curtains and hitting the ceiling.
She tries resting her eyes for a bit, closing them without the intention of sleeping.
But that memory comes creeping up, showing little trace of Ava and Hayley in the treehouse within a blur, faded vignette in her closed vision.
Ava promptly opens her eyes, and her breath picks up.
Slowly, she pushes herself up to where she is sitting up straight, positioning her pillow against the wall so she can rest her back on it.
Ava looks down to get a glimpse at her necklace, gently touching the feathers with her fingers.
As she studies her necklace, Ava realizes that she hasn’t talked to Hayley in a while.
She has been doing this ever since she…
A-Anyways, Ava has started to talk to Hayley if she ever feels scared, lost, sad, or needs her help.
But right now, she just wants to talk to her sister.
She isn’t scared nor lost.
She just wants her to know how she is doing.
Ava takes a deep breath in and grips the necklace, feeling it within her palm.
“Hey, Hayley…” She begins, murmuring. “It’s uhm… It’s been a while since I last talked to you, cause you know, I was stuck in an abandoned house and slowly dying.”
She chuckles weakly, mostly at herself. “I-I know I said my goodbyes to you… I just, I didn’t know if I was going to…”
Ava bites her lips hard and shakes her head, getting sidetracked. “B-But I want you to know that I am safe right now. Someone actually found me in that house. Her name was Luz. And I was scared of her, Hayley.”
She swallows a nervous gulp, feeling the tear slowly building up in her eyelids. But Ava holds it back. “I was so scared that she was going to hurt me. B-But she was so… nice and patient and understanding. And I don’t know why, but that also scared me too.”
Ava pauses, formulating her thoughts and taking another breath. “Eventually, she took me somewhere to eat, which thank the Titan. We went to this place called… uhm, Sweet Loring? I think that was the name b-but the food was so good there, Hayley. You should’ve tried their p-pizza. I know you would have loved it and stolen a slice right away.” She chuckles lightly, chewing on her inner cheek.
“After that, Luz took me to her home, and that is where I met Amity, her roommate. I was a little intimidated by her. But she was sweet and patient i-in a reserved way. I don’t know… Luz gave me a room to sleep in and here we are… Safe, in m-my room,” Ava whispers, looking around her surroundings.
“U-Uhm, what else do I say?” She mutters, pausing for a moment to think about something to talk to Hayley.
“Hmm… Oh! I-I gotta tell you something that happened t-today! S-So remember how I said that Amity is Luz’s roommate.” Ava recalls excitedly, definitely not telling her what happened in the plaza and woods. “W-Well, guess what? I saw them cuddling together on the couch, cozy and super, super close to each other. And they were flustered once they woke up.”
She lets out a soft chuckle. However, she quickly mutes herself with her hand, “S-Sorry, I shouldn’t be loud. Luz and Amity are probably sleeping. B-But, you should’ve seen them, Hayley. It is super obvious that they like each other. Just like you and…”
Ava stops what she is about to say, her animated expression slowly fading into sorrow with a deep frown.
“J-Just like you a-and Lynn…” Ava whispers with a trembling voice, fidgeting with the feathers. “I remembered how red your face would get whenever they waved at you and said hi. You even panicked when they asked you for your scroll number, and I swear, I thought you were gonna pass out. You were so bad.”
Ava pauses and slowly glances at the necklace again, swallowing. “Remember when you found me in the treehouse and you made me a PB&J sandwich because D—” She stops herself from saying that name. “B-Because h-he removed me from dinner. Yeah, well. I dreamt about that. A-And I remember asking you to sleep with me in that bed… And you did.”
She completely loses her voice after that sentence, shaky and on the brink of sobbing her eyes out.
In fact, a single teardrop falls straight down at Hayley’s initials, gently wiping it with her thumb.
“I-I miss you…” Ava murmurs ever so softly, like it was only meant for Hayley. “A lot a-and the last couple of days have been really, really hard, and I didn’t know if I could do this without you.”
She lets a few tears escape through her eyelids, covering her mouth to hide her soft sobs and clutching onto the necklace hard.
She tries her best to stay silent.
But even the silence here is very quiet.
Ava inhales a huge, shaky breath and steadies herself, wiping away her wet and red-stained cheeks with her sleeves.
“But I-I know I am going to be fine…” Ava says with low confidence, swallowing some saliva that has collected inside her mouth. “Luz and Amity are helping me s-so you don’t have to worry about me. I trust them and I-I know you would have loved them…”
Ava pauses her words again, slowly dying out. Because of this, there is a lingering silence, filled with emptiness and loss.
But at the same time, Ava is happy to be talking to Hayley.
Ava opens her mouth to say something, but then she closes it, hesitantly.
She swallows a gulp and interrupts the drained-out silence, whispering softly, “I love you, Hayley.”
Ava pauses briefly, closing her eyes. “A-And I hope you, Mom, and Aunt Iris are doing okay.”
She flutters her eyes back open and gives the necklace a long kiss, a tradition she always does whenever she reminisces about her sister and her mom.
Ava pulls away and slowly gets herself ready for sleep.
All the tears she had shed had made her body heavier and numb, slowly feeling herself drowsy with every second.
Once the blanket is up to her shoulders, Ava shifts to lie on her side, facing directly at the curtains with the moonlight still peeking out.
“Goodnight, H-Hayley…” Ava whispers out, her voice cracks at her sister’s name, her bottom lip quivering.
But Ava grabs the necklace with her left hand and squeezes it three times, letting it stay upon her palm.
She takes another deep breath and releases it, focusing on her soft feathers and snuggling with her pillow.
After what must have been an hour, Ava finally feels her body relax within the bedsheets, snoring softly as she quickly falls asleep with her hand slacking off the necklace.
Hayley may not be here anymore. But all she has to do is keep moving forward and slowly heal from her wounds.
It is going to be hard, but Ava thinks she is going to be okay…