Bella

 

The Dreamers and Destinee left after lunch and a quick chat. Dirk gave Lilith a kiss and told her he would pick her up that evening. Lilith was positively glowing, and Bella figured that must have meant that she was, in fact, able to tell Dirk she loved him. The happiness only lasted for a couple of hours however, as Lilith suddenly began freaking out.

    “I just realized,” she panicked, “I thought I was going to be able to go home before the art show and I didn't pack anything. I have nothing to wear!”

    “It's okay,” Bella told her. “I'm sure Cassandra has an old dress somewhere that will work.” Bella didn't know where they were, having been living in Strangetown by the time her daughter had outgrown them, but Cassandra came to the rescue by pulling out a black lacy dress out of an attic closet. It fit Lilith almost perfectly, only needing a few tucks here and there, which Bella was able to sew in on the spot.

    “I'm sorry for losing it like that,” Lilith said as Bella was fixing the dress. “It's just that other than school dances, we've never really gone to a public event as boyfriend and girlfriend. Being together in front of our classmates is one thing, but this is in front of the whole town.”

    “And you're a little nervous?” Bella asked. Lilith nodded.

    “And I really want to look nice for him and his dad. It's kinda a big deal for them.”

    “That's normal. You won't feel it once you're with him, trust me. It doesn't matter what other people think. What matters is how you and Dirk feel about each other. I take it you got to talk to him.”

    “Yes.”

    “And how did it go?”

    “He told me he loves me. He wanted to tell me at the same time I told him.”

    “Then you have nothing to worry about.”

    Dirk arrived exactly when he said he would. Despite the setting sun and the long walk to the front of the house, he parked his car, walked to the front door and rang the doorbell. Lilith practically threw herself into his arms, but he was happy to hold her, kiss her and tell her she looked beautiful. They were about to leave when Cassandra pulled out her phone and took a picture to send to their parents. Lilith and Dirk headed out after that, and Bella, Mortimer and Cassandra left a few minutes later.

    There was a decent crowd at the art museum even though most of it was closed off. Darren was only one of several artists featured, all of whom were local to the area. Bella and Mortimer went around admiring paintings and chatting with people they hadn't seen in a long time. There were all sorts of paintings there, from portraits to landscapes to still life. Mortimer took his time looking at them, but Bella didn't mind. His artistic side wasn't something a lot of people knew about, and Bella was happy to watch him admire the beautiful works of art in front of them. She enjoyed painting too, but she wasn't nearly as good as any of these artists. She was okay with that though, as it was just something she had enjoyed doing casually since she was a child. Sometimes she and Mortimer would do one together, girls in tow, and so by the time they finished, the third floor landing was usually covered in paint.

    As Bella glanced over to the other side of the room, she noticed Dirk and Lilith heading for the door to the museum’s main entrance. She squeezed Mortimer's hand and pointed them out to him.

    “We'd better go follow them,” Bella said as Lilith closed the door behind her. “We need to make sure they're not getting into any kind of trouble.”

    They found Dirk and Lilith sitting on a bench in a hall that lead to the restrooms. They were just talking, but Bella and Mortimer stayed back, allowing them some privacy. Still, as there was no one else in the hallway, Bella could hear exactly what they were saying to each other.

     “... when I hit the water it felt like my top would come off?” Lilith asked. Dirk nodded. “Well I had a dream that it actually did.”

    “Sounds more like a nightmare,” Dirk responded.

    “But you were there. And you gathered me into your arms so that no one else could see. And then we kissed and you whispered in my ear that I was beautiful.” Lilith blushed as she said those words.

    “I told you something else didn't I?” Dirk asked. Lilith nodded, her cheeks getting redder. “What was it?”

    “Goodness, no! I'm not saying that here! I'll tell you when we get back in the car.” She turned around and let Dirk hold her in his arms, resting her head on his shoulder. “I wish you could come back to Strangetown with me. I want you to meet my friends. The smoothie place we went to has a couples special with a crazy two in one straw that I would like us to try. And there's this one spot at the water park, a little waterfall along the river that a lot of couples kiss under, I definitely want to do that with you.”

    “Maybe we can go sometime. Maybe over the summer.” Lilith sat up and looked at him.

    “Our parents would never let us go,” she said.

    “Maybe if Dad went with us,” Dirk suggested. “He used to live in a desert town when he was younger. He loved painting the desert landscape.”

    “Really?” Lilith asked. “I thought he couldn't stand being outdoors for too long.”

    “They're called windows,” Dirk said and Lilith laughed. “But seriously, I think he quit doing them because they reminded him too much about Mom, but now that he has Destinee, maybe he would be willing to go and make some new memories.”

    “You think so?”

    “You know, Destinee will never replace my mom, but she doesn't try to. And it's not like she doesn't care. Dad seems really happy with her, happier than I've seen him in a long time. Since whatever happened between him and Cassandra.”

    “Bella told me he loved her.”

    As if responding to her own name, Bella tripped over herself causing Dirk and Lilith to notice her and Mortimer standing there.

    “How long have they been...” Dirk started.

    “It's okay, Dirk.” Lilith took his hand. “I trust her.”

    “You know your parents don't want you unsupervised,” Bella told them as they approached her. “Come on, let's go back to the art show. Hopefully no one has noticed we've been gone.”

 

Cassandra

 

There was one painting in particular that Cassandra was drawn to. She wasn't sure why, except that it was obviously Darren's best piece in the gallery. It was a painting of a woman with long flowing black hair, kinda like Cassandra's own hair when she left it down. She was wearing a long, dark dress and her face was spotless – no accessories and no makeup. Cassandra couldn't really imagine where Darren would have met this woman as she didn't resemble Darleen at all. Maybe she was Destinee, but this woman didn't look like her either. Whoever this was, Darren must have been attracted to her enough to spend a lot of time and effort on that painting. And then it hit her – she was staring at a portrait of herself.

    Normally this would have been completely embarrassing for Cassandra, but she took comfort in the fact that no one would be able to tell it was her. Well, her parents would, but they must have not seen it yet or they would have given her a heads up. Had she ever felt like that woman? She definitely hadn't recently - not since she found out that Don had been constantly running around on her. She certainly wasn't that beautiful. But as she looked at the portrait, Darren's words suddenly became crystal clear in her mind. He had loved her. As she had fallen for Don's charade, another man had been head over heels for her, a man she could never see herself loving back. Was this how he really saw her? Did he still see her this way?

    “It's beautiful, isn't it?”

    Cassandra turned around to see Destinee standing next to her. The other woman was admiring the painting as well, a knowing smile across her face.

    “Yeah... it's great,” Cassandra replied, trying to figure her way out of this. “Darren's really good at that isn't he? Making things look more beautiful then they really are?”

    “Actually, I think he got this one pretty accurate,” Destinee told her. “He didn't even want to include this in the gallery, but it was the director's favorite. He couldn't tell him no.” Cassandra sighed. She followed Destinee to a nearby bench where the other woman sat down.

    “Look, about Darren and me...” Cassandra started, “there's no way we're ever going to be anything other than friends.”

    Destinee nodded. “I understand,” she said.

    “How much do you know?”

    “Everything,” Destinee replied. “It pretty much came out when he came back from that convention in Phoenix. I had to ask him why he went a day early.”

    “I never had any sort of feelings for him,” Cassandra told her. “I honestly had no idea he felt that way about me.”

    “To be honest, I think he might still have some sort of feelings towards you, just like he'll always love Darleen. I've also lost someone I loved, so I know just how that feels. I never thought I'd find love again. I also never thought I'd be with the artistic type. Shows how much I know.”

    “That's okay. I don't think I know anything either. I couldn't even realize I'd fallen in love with the wrong man.”

    “You haven't happened to see Dirk and Lilith in the last fifteen minutes, have you?” Darren asked as he walked over to them.

    “No, I haven't,” Destinee replied.

    “Come to think of it, I haven't seen my parents recently either,” Cassandra added.

    “Why?” Destinee asked. “Do you think Dirk and Lilith slipped off?”

    “They must have,” Darren said.

    “Give them a break,” Destinee advised him. “They've spent the whole week apart and probably just want some time to themselves. I'm sure they haven't left the building.”

    “I'm guessing my parents saw them and followed them,” Cassandra said. “Dad would not have left the room otherwise.”

    “I would go look for them, but I can't leave the gallery,” Darren told them.

    “We'll let you know if we see them,” Destinee said. Cassandra turned back to Destinee once Darren had taken off to talk to an art collector.

    “If you don't mind me asking,” she said, “how are things between you and Dirk?”

    “As well as you'd expect,” Destinee replied. “I'm not going to try to be his mother, but if later on he wants me to be a mother figure to him, I'm open to that. For right now though, I think it's best to just be his friend. He's already come to me for advice. He wanted an opinion on how to help Lilith, and I guess he just needed a female perspective. If Dirk had it his way, he would have been on the first flight over there, but Darren put his foot down on that. You have children, right?” Cassandra nodded.

    “My brother is back in Strangetown watching the girls, and one of my mom's friends is spending the night with them.”

    “How old are they?”

    “I have a six year old and a fourteen month old,” Cassandra answered. “I also adopted a boy right after I got married. It was unexpected, but I couldn’t stand the thought of him being sent to foster care. He's fifteen.”

    “So you know what it's like.”

    “Yes, I do.”

    “It's kinda like a crash course in parenting. Even just watching Darren raise his son teaches me about being a mother. Starting with a teen is like being thrown into the deep end, but now I know how I want to parent my future children.”

    “It was a little easier with Randy. He was nine when we took him in, but it did give me an idea of what to expect. And trust me, my girls can be a handful at times. They get that from their father.”

    “It's okay, you know, that Don wasn't the one,” Destinee said. “Maybe that's a good thing. I never saw myself with a man who has a child, and to be honest, I think Dirk being a teenager made meeting him a little easier. He's old enough to understand that his father deserves to be happy. I'm thankful that I didn't have to deal with any of the hate and resentment and... my parents? What are they doing here?”

    “Are you okay?” Cassandra asked.

    “They were supposed to come into town next weekend.” Destinee sighed. “I guess we're doing this now.”

    “Destinee!” A couple who had been viewing some nearby paintings approached them, the woman giving Destinee a hug. “I have to admit I'm surprised to find you here.”

    “You're not the only one,” Destinee replied.

    “I'm sorry, but your father and I decided to surprise you with a visit and since you weren't home we decided to check out the town.”

    “Someone suggested this to us and we figured why not,” the man added. “We didn't expect to find you here.”

    “My boyfriend is one of the featured artists,” Destinee explained.

    “Really?” her mother said. “And who is your friend?”

    “Oh, this is Cassandra Goth. Her grandfather founded this town.”

    “Well, it's nice to meet you Cassandra.” The woman smiled and shook her hand. “I'm Sheila Robinson, and this is my husband Mark.”

    “If you'll excuse me,” Cassandra slipped in, “I'm going to see if I can't locate my parents.”

    Leaving Destinee to handle the unexpected visitors, Cassandra made her way through the gallery. She found her parents by one of the doors that led to the hallway, and sure enough, Dirk and Lilith were with them.

    “There you are,” Cassandra told them. “Dirk, your father was wondering where you went.”

    “Guess we'd better find him then,” Dirk said.

    “This may be a bad time,” Cassandra warned, “but Destinee's parents are here.”

    “What?” Lilith said, her face turning pale.

    “It's okay Lilith,” Dirk said, rubbing her back. “You look great.” He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and she relaxed a little. “Maybe we'll find my Dad before he meets them.” Slipping his arm around her waist, Dirk led Lilith over to where the artists were, leaving Cassandra with her parents. They walked in silence for a bit, and stopped in front of the portrait of her.

    “This has got to be the best piece in the whole gallery,” her mother noted.

    “Yeah...” Cassandra said, trying to hide her embarrassment.

    “Cassandra, I know my own daughter when I'm looking at her.” Her mother put an arm around her shoulder.

    “If it makes you feel any better,” her father added, “there are two people who see you like this all the time.”

 

Lilith

 

    The event had been going well. No one seemed to notice Lilith and Dirk or wonder what they were doing together. They were just another couple in the museum enjoying the art show. Maybe it was because in the semi-causal atmosphere, she had decided to leave her edgy jewelry off and her black lipstick had been replaced with a brown that Cassandra had found in one of the bathrooms. But Destinee's parents were a whole other story. Darren had to be trying to make a good impression on them, and Lilith knew she didn't fit that image. They wouldn't want to meet her, would they? What would happen if they did?

    “Look's like Dad's already met them,” Dirk said as they approached his father who was talking with Destinee and a middle aged couple. “We could just hang back until they're done talking. They might not want to meet us anyway.”

    “They'll want to meet you,” Lilith told him. “Why don't you go ahead and I'll stay here?”

    “Lilith,” Dirk replied, “I'm not leaving my girlfriend alone while I'm on a date with her.”

    “Then maybe it would be best to wait for them to finish.”

    “What's the matter, Lilith?” Dirk asked. “Why is this bothering you?”

    “It's your dad's big night and I don't want to ruin it for him.”

    “Lilith, you being here is not ruining it for him.”

    “Be honest, Dirk. How are they going to see a man who lets his son date a girl who runs away from home and sneaks out at night?”

    “They don't know any of that, Lilith.”

    “How do you know Destinee hasn't told them?”

    “She doesn't seem like the gossipy type.”

    “And then there's the whole...”

    “There you are,” came Darren's voice. Lilith took Dirk's hand as they walked over to the group. “I'd like you to meet my son Dirk,” Darren said to the couple who looked like they were sizing them up.

    “It's nice to meet you Dirk,” said the woman. “And who's the girl with you?”

    “This is Lilith, my girlfriend.”

    “Well, Lilith,” the woman continued, “it's lovely to meet you as well. How long have you been together?”

    “It's been about six months,” Dirk replied as Lilith internally cringed.

    “Your father tells us you're in high school,” said the man. “Do you play any sports?”

    “Not at the moment,” Dirk said, “but I was on the JV basketball team last year.”

    “That's impressive,” said the woman. “What about you, Lilith? Do you do anything at school?”

    “Not really,” Lilith admitted, leaving out that she probably couldn't due to her atrocious grades.

    “So Dirk,” said the man, “you must be proud of your father, right?”

    “Yeah, I am,” Dirk answered. “He's worked hard to get here.”

    “What do your parents do, Lilith?” asked Destinee's mother. Lilith considered her answer. She sure wasn't going to say the first thing that popped into her mind, or the second. Before she could figure out a way to answer the question in a way that didn't add to that conversation, Cassandra ducked into the group.

    “Mr. and Mrs. Robinson, have you met my parents yet?” she said. Destinee's mother turned to her excitedly and Lilith saw her chance to escape. She and Dirk quickly darted into the crowd and found a spot near some portraits.

    “What was that?” she asked.

    “I think they were just trying to be friendly,” Dirk said.

    “By asking all those personal questions?”

    “Yeah, that was a little awkward, but I don't think they meant any harm.”

    “I'm just glad Cassandra came when she did. I really had no idea how to answer that question. The last thing I want to talk about right now is my parents.”

    “You could have told them the first thing that came into your mind and leave it at that.”

    “You want me to tell them my parents fight?” They both laughed.

    “Okay, maybe not that,” Dirk said.

    “Why don't we do what we actually came here to do?” Lilith suggested. “Which one is your dad's?”

    “That one,” Dirk said pointing to a portrait of a woman.

    “You mean the one that's been sold?”

    “What?”

    “Did you not see the sold sign under it?” Lilith asked. “Dirk, your dad sold a painting!”

    “Already?”

    “Isn't that great?” Dirk gave her a quick kiss in response, and when they parted, Destinee was standing in front of them.

    “Look,” she said, “I'm sorry about my parents showing up out of the blue like that.”

    “Don't worry about it,” Dirk replied. “It's fine.”

    “They're just really excited about the fact that I'm in a relationship. I just told them the other day because they were planing to visit me next weekend. I didn't think they'd actually move up their trip.” Destinee sighed and sat down. “And I guess this means we'll be getting a visit from each one of my siblings too. I don't doubt my mother would have called at least one of them as soon as she found out.”

    “How many do you have?” Dirk asked.

    “Four,” Destinee replied. “I'm right in the middle.”

    Lilith put her arm around Dirk, knowing that this had to be a little overwhelming for him. His family consisted of just him and his dad, a far cry from what Destinee was probably used to.

    “I guess what I'm saying is,” Destinee continued, “Lilith, I know what it's like to be annoyed by and jealous of your family. My older brother got engaged at the worst possible time for me. He was going to propose at my wedding, but when that ended up not happening, he took his girlfriend on what would have been my honeymoon and proposed to her there. They kept it secret for a couple of months, of course, but when the news came out, I just couldn't be happy for him. I was constantly wondering how he could do that to me. It felt like he was rubbing his happiness in my face. I couldn't stand to be around him for a while after that.”

    Lilith didn't really know Destinee that well as she had never really talked to her. Destinee had supervised her and Dirk a couple of times, but that was pretty much all the interaction they'd ever had. Dirk must have told her something, but as Lilith looked at her boyfriend, she realized it didn't matter. She trusted him.

    “But he'll be here with the rest of them,” Destinee said, “probably to issue an ultimatum to Darren. Family can get on your nerves sometimes, but they mean well. You'll find that when you need them, they'll be there for you.”

    “What did you tell her?” Lilith asked Dirk after Destinee left.

    “Not much,” he replied. “Just that Angela showed up and it didn't end well. I was trying to find a way to help you.”

    “I know,” Lilith said, taking his hand. “Still, it's nice to know that I'm not the only one with these problems.”

    “Then I'd say, it was worth it.” Lilith couldn't help but smile.

 

***

 

    “Okay, what else did I tell you in that dream?” Dirk asked once they had gotten in his car.

    “Do you really want to know?”

    “It's been on my mind all night.”

    “Well, you said I was beautiful and...” Lilith hesitated. It was just the two of them, but she still didn't feel comfortable saying the words out loud. She leaned over and whispered it into his ear. Dirk's face flushed.

    “Did... did I?” he asked.

    “I woke up before you could.”

    “Was I going to?”

    “We were in public, Dirk. That wouldn't have made any sense.”

    “It was a dream,” Dirk replied. “I doesn't have to make sense.”

    “You're right,” Lilith said laughing. Dirk brought his hand to her face and looked her in the eye.

    “I'm sure you are beautiful,” he told her. “And I'll confirm that whenever you're ready to show me.”

    “That might not be for a while with everyone watching us all the time,” Lilith said.

    “We're alone right now,” Dirk observed.

    “I don't think I'm quite ready for that yet,” Lilith told him. “But when I am, I want it to be with you.” Dirk kissed her. “I love you,” she said against his lips.

    “I love you too,” he said back.

    They took off from the town and started the drive back to the manor. Lilith mostly stayed silent, her mind focused on what would happen the next morning.

    “You okay?” Dirk asked once they had stopped at a light.

    “I'm just nervous about tomorrow,” Lilith told him. “The last time I came home they didn't exactly welcome me back with open arms.”

    “But isn't it different this time? Don't you all want to make things better?”

    “Yeah, but... I don't know Dirk. What if things don't change?”

    “Your mom sounded pretty sincere about it at the airport.”

    “I think she is.” The light changed and they continued along the main road.

    “Then what's the problem?” Dirk asked. “Don't you want a better relationship with your family?”

    “I think... I want what Bella has, you know? A family where everyone loves each other. But that's not going to happen with my family.”

    “Not without some effort.”

    “Mom... I think that she really is sorry. But Angela... I've spent half of my life hating her, Dirk. I don't think that's going to go away just because we want it to. And then there's Dad and everything he's done...”

    “But he'll be out of the house in a couple of weeks, right? Then you won't have to listen to your parents fight anymore. Maybe that will be a better environment for everyone to try and get along.”

    “It's just... Angela said she was worried about me when I took off. She said she didn't want anything bad to happen to me. But you know what she did when I came back? She started another fight with me. What if it's just like that Dirk? We'll never get anywhere.”

    “Then maybe you should do what my dad does when he's mad at me. He takes some time to let things cool off and then he comes to me and we talk it out.”

    “We've... never been very good at talking. Usually it just ends up in a shouting match,” Lilith admitted. “And I always lose.”

    “Then call me,” Dirk said. “I'll be there for you. You know that.”

    “Yeah. That's why I love you.” Lilith could feel a smile forming across her face. “It's weird how easy that is to say now.”

    “And I hope you never get tired of hearing it.” Dirk squeezed her hand as they sat at another light. “Because I'll never get tired of telling you how much I love you.”

    “I won't, Dirk. I definitely won't. Not when you always see me as good when everyone else just assumes I'm bad.”

    “That's because they don't care enough to see the battles you're fighting. If they can't see you for who you really are, it's their loss.”

    They crossed the street and started up the hill. The gate leading to the private driveway had been left open, and they were able to sail right up to the garage.

    “Well, I guess we know they're home,” Lilith said, making Dirk laugh.

    “Can you imagine if they closed it and we had to knock it down?” Lilith started laughing as Dirk turned off the car, leaving them in the glow of the light perched on the garage.

    “How would that even work?” Lilith asked.

    “You just back the car up, and then... BOOM!” They were both laughing uncontrollably now.

    “That actually sounds kinda fun,” Lilith said when she could speak again.

    “You're not actually going to do that, are you?”

    “Of course not. I don't hate them.”

    “Lilith...”

    “I'm kidding, Dirk.”

    “I know.”

    “I meant that would be fun if they had places where you could knock down gates and stuff.”

    “And we'd what? Tie mattresses to the front of our cars?” Lilith started laughing again.

    “But seriously, Lilith,” Dirk said once they calmed down. “Don't ever get rid of that fire inside you. It's something I love about you. And despite what others might think, it makes you beautiful. If it weren't for people like you, we wouldn't be able to be together.”

    “If that was the case,” Lilith told him, “I'd fight ever yone of those people as hard as I could. They have no right to take away the person who makes me the happiest.”

    “I'd fight for us too, Lilith. Even if we broke up...”

    “Dirk, don't say that!” Lilith interrupted. “You don't think that's going to happen, do you?”

    “No, I don't,” Dirk replied reassuringly. “And I don't want it to. But if it did happen, I'd fight to win you back.”

    “I'd fight harder than I ever have, Dirk. I'd make sure we'd win.” Dirk pulled her closer, and Lilith could feel herself responding to his touch.

    “I knew you were amazing the moment I saw you surf down that slide. I love everything about about you, Lilith, even all your flaws. And I don't want to take on the world without you by my side.” Lilith's eyes began to water as Dirk stroked her hair. “What is it?”

    “You just said this wonderful speech and I can't even think of anything to tell you except that I feel exactly the same.”

    “How about you just kiss me?” Dirk suggested.

    “I'd love too.” She leaned over and kissed him deeply, running her fingers through his hair, feeling his hand run up and down her back, her tongue in a passionate dance with his. “I love you, Dirk,” she said between kisses. “I love you so much.”

    “I'm never letting you go,” Dirk whispered in her ear before kissing her neck, satisfying her crave for his touch before returning his mouth to hers. This was amazing, the emotion even more intensified now that she knew it was love.

    The lights outside the garage blinked a couple of times, and Dirk finished the kiss slowly and sweetly.

    “I guess it's time to get out of the battering ram,” he said. They both started laughing all over again as they got out of the car, and walked hand in hand around the house to the front door.

    “I'm so calling your car that from now on,” Lilith decided. Dirk gently kissed her forehead and she gave his hand a squeeze. When they reached the front door, Dirk gave her a lengthy embrace while they whispered “I love you” into each other's ears.

    “I'll see you tomorrow,” he said, and Lilith couldn't help but smile as her boyfriend kissed her goodnight.