Tentative Truce

Faith smiled and handed the phone back to Miss Rita with a 'thank you', then wandered the house looking for her cousin.

She found him on the deck, staring at the sea, and approached cautiously. There was still a 'water war' going on between them and they were both jumpy from almost constantly chasing each other around her uncle's property.

Quietly, she withdrew the water gun from its place in the waistband of her shorts. Keeping it there since she found it, she had become a quick draw the last few days. She was never without it now, not while her cousin was armed and dangerous as well. A bucket containing ice cold water balloons dripped condensation at his feet, while he stood at the deck railing watching the waves.

"Ryan."

He spun suddenly throwing a water balloon he had in his hand. She dodged just in time, feeling some of the icy spray as it exploded on the railing behind her. Dashing for a deck chair, she fired as she ducked behind it, but her shot went wide.

Crouching behind cover, her heart racing, she had to remind herself why she had been looking for him in the first place.

"Ryan! Truce! I need your help!" She could hear his feet thumping along the wood of the deck, as he tried to get into a better position to strike. She needed to let him know she was serious. "My Ma just called! She needs our help!"

She peeked around the side of the deck chair, hoping that would be enough to call for a cease-fire. "Truce?"

Girls vs. Boys

You can only stand and watch a pair of boys sit on a beach and talk for so long.

Faith watched Rachael from the corner of her eye as she leaned over the deck rail to aim at her boyfriend with the water gun, while she aimed at her cousin Aaron. She laughed when Rachael squirted Ryan in the back, and when his brother turned to see what was going on, Faith hit him with a stream of water full in the face. Their expressions were priceless, and she couldn't stop laughing. Looking over at Rachael, she could tell she couldn't either.

Glancing back down at the boys, she saw them running up the beach towards them and grinned. "Looks like we're in trouble." Grabbing Rachael's hand and laughing, she began to run, leaving her guitar sitting against the railing of the deck.

Flowers On The Ocean

Her mother was wrong.

The trip from the condo to the beach house was not in fact an hour on foot. It actually took her just over two hours on roller blades, the place was that far removed from the center of the city. Though admittedly, bringing her guitar with her had probably slowed her down. At least, the small bouquet of flowers she had bought was light. She had specifically asked for something that would float on water, much to the initial confusion of the florist.

She left her blades and guitar case on the sand, and taking only the flowers, she waded barefoot into the water. Farther up the shore, she could see the sea-side house that belonged to her uncle, sitting quiet and undisturbed despite the emotions and chaos that had surrounded the area the last few days.

She had thought of going there to see his family, but felt awkward at the idea. They were his family, not hers. The only person she really knew was her uncle. Everyone else was all essentially strangers to her. Even knowing she had gone to school for a short time with some of the children wasn't reassuring. She doubted Ryan, Aaron or Alexia even remembered her. They had all been so young; she barely remembered what any of them looked like herself.

As the water reached her knees, she looked out over the horizon. The ocean looked so full and blue, vast and limitless. Until a few days ago, she had been looking forward to finally learning how to surf from her mother when she finally came home. The ocean had seemed a source of endless challenge and adventure.

Now that it had swallowed her uncle, she felt like she was staring at a sleeping beast, a monster that would devour her too if it woke up cranky.

The stems of the flowers crunched in her grip as her hands tensed at the thought, imagining what it must be like to be lost in those depths, without light, without air, and just waiting to die.

She glanced down at her legs, partially submerged in the clear water. It felt warm and comforting against her skin, and she could see and feel the wet sand squish playfully underneath her feet. A tiny, colourful fish fluttered past her toes like an underwater butterfly.

She found it hard to believe this was the same ocean that had stolen her uncle.

Wading farther into the sea, until the ocean was kissing the hem of her shorts, she gently placed the flowers in the water. It floated like the florist had promised, so she gave it a push to send it out towards the distant horizon.

She watched it drift slowly, lazily for a long time. Not having caught any current to give it direction, it seemed listless, aimless and confused, unsure of where it should go. She wanted to give it another push, but it had already floated out of her reach.

So she stood there, helplessly watching. Waiting for the ocean to take her flowers, she wondered if she had just left them on what was now basically her uncle's grave, or had given a peacing offering to appease the ocean so it would return what it had taken away.

Partings...

"Are you sure you're going to be okay on your own?"

Syl smiled weakly. "Shouldn't I be asking you that question?"

Faith folded her arms and forced a smile to hide her frustration. "You're avoiding the question, Ma." She had seen her mother unravel numerous times before; she knew the symptoms very well now.

"I'll be fine, love," Syl lied, hoping she sounded convincing, then laughed in an attempt to further mask her feelings. She refused to fall to pieces in the middle of the airport just before her flight. "Listen to you. You're sounding all grown up again." She smiled, wishing she were leaving Faith under better circumstances. She wished she had raised her under better circumstances.

Sighing, she looked her daughter up and down. Faith was still small for her age, but Syl felt like the girl was still growing up too fast.

Everything happened too fast.

And friends and family died too soon.

Syl suppressed a shutter at the thought and hugged her daughter. "I'm sorry I haven't been a better mother. You deserve better."

The apology caught Faith by surprise. "Geez, Ma. You did fine." She remembered what her uncle had told her when she rode in his sportscar. Her mother was blaming herself again. Wrapping her arms around her, Faith held her tight. "You're still doing fine, Ma."

Syl was unconvinced; she had been at this point once before, when her boyfriend died and she pulled her daughter out of school. She wasn't going to make the same mistake again.

As much as she wanted Faith to come with her, the girl needed to be somewhere fixed and stable, a place she could become familiar with and make friends. Faith couldn't do that on the road where the people and settings were constantly changing. Admittedly, the unique experience had led her to be surprisingly mature in some aspects, but she was mentally under-developed in others, especially social skills. Outside the band, the road crew and her uncle, she was completely friendless. That wasn't healthy for a girl her age.

Her mother wasn't going to be selfish this time.

"I better head through the check point before they start boarding call. I'll call to check on you everyday, okay?" She kissed her daughter on the forehead as she reluctantly stepped away. "Oh, and I left your roller blades in the closet in the front hall if you want to use them," she added with a smile. "Just promise me you won't cause anymore trouble with them."

Fidgeting, Faith bit her lip, not wanting to tell her mother that her uncle had bought her a new pair the day before he disappeared. "I won't, Ma. I promise." She tried to hide a mischievous smile as a thought came to her. Technically, that means I can't get in trouble with the *first* pair of roller blades. I can get in trouble with the *second* ones if I really had to.

Syl looked skeptically at her daughter's expression. "Faith, love. What are you thinking?"

"Nothing, Ma. Really."

"Alright," she conceded, not entirely convinced, but she didn't have time to inquire further. "No trouble, or my PA is going to fly back here to drag you back on the tour with me." As much as her girl needed some place stable, if it proved she needed parental authority around even more, she wasn't afraid to make that a priority. There was a difference between keeping Faith around because Syl herself was an emotional wreck, and keeping an eye on the girl because she wasn't responsible enough to be on her own yet. "And... call me right away if you hear any news, okay?"

This time, Faith closed the space between them and hugged her mother. "I will, Ma. I promise." At least, that promise she can be sincere about. "Hey, Ma? You didn't answer my question."

"What question?" Syl had honestly forgotten.

"Are you going to be okay on your own?"

She squeezed her daughter tightly, as she began to shutter. Her brother was missing and hope faded with each passing day. Her voice was low and strained when she replied.

"Honestly, love. I don't think I have a choice in the matter."

Amusements and Distractions

The Kawosaki had slowed when it turned into the bus terminal, but hadn't yet come to a complete stop. Impatient, Faith hopped off the back of the motorcycle while it was still moving, stumbling as her feet struggled to match the inertia that still propelled the rest of her body forward.

Ahead of her, her mother's bike screeched to a halt as Syl yanked off her helmet to scream. "Faith Laurent! What do you think you're doing?"

The girl ignored her mother as she ran past, pulling off her own helmet and racing over to where the large luxury tour bus was entering the terminal.

Sighing, Syl shook her head. Leaning forward to rest her elbows on the handle bars, she propped her chin in her hands and watched her daughter wait excitedly for her uncle with a mix of exasperation and amusement.