The Melody of Pip Winter

24: Gnossienne

Words could easily be weapons.
Words could be malicious, words could be scary and words could also be saddening. Tone danced with most words and altered the meaning. When Leo had admitted a small ingredient to his mysterious story the only reaction Pip had was to hold his hand. Neither of them said a word ad they pretended to be absorbed in the white ceiling. They laid there for many uncounted moments, with many uncharted thoughts lingering between them. A sudden idea blasted through Pip's head. He pulled Leo to his feet and handed him a jumper.

"What are you doing?" The boy asked.

Pip smiled and dragged him out the door. His hand was warm and capable of untangling the deepest parts of him, but he kept walking. They departed from the house and Leo followed Pip.

"I'm not to picky when it comes to death but please don't drown me, anything to do with not being able to breathe is a no go." Leo spoke.

Pip chuckled before handing him a sinister smile.

"What a comforting smirk." Leo said sarcastically.

They walked for awhile until they approached a small bakery. The bakery where his mother worked, the bakery where he had worked until he made a teeny mistake.

"Are you going to suffocate me with bread?" Leo asked.

There was something comforting about his voice that made Pip dizzy. He decided to ignore this. The sign said 'closed' but he used to visit his mother all the time before his incident. He hoped they had forgotten, especially because they agreed to let him have his job back.

"The bread will make you wish thats how you die." Pip told him.

Leo smiled, his usual beaming bundle of fireworks blaring off his lips.

"It's closed." Leo pointed.

"I have connections." Pip tried to wink, but failed.

They entered the shop and he found Cassidy. There was a small chance he would die today.

"Hello Pip planning on blowing up my kitchen?" Cassidy said with furrowed brows.

Pip tried to laugh off the awkward hole in his chest.

"One time thing only." Pip assured her, with a rather nervous smile.

Pip caught Leo's amused smirk in the corner of his eye and felt the urge to hit him, he did not, he was trying not to be a monster.

"Claudia's out back having a cigarette if you're looking for her." Cassidy said with a watchful and quite frightening gaze.

They shuffled out the back door into a small courtyard with an ash tray. His mother stood in a cloud of smoke.

"Pippy what are you doing here?" His mother asked cheerily.

Honestly, Pip didn't know but he knew Leo needed a distraction.

"Only here for the finest pasteurises in town." Pip spoke.

His mother stubbed the cigarette into the ashtray and led them to kitchen.

"Not big on religion but I promise you are about to experience heaven." Pip told him.

Leo chuckled as they walked after Claudia. The air was a lot warmer when watching Leo laugh. As they walked into the kitchen Melanie caught him, her face angry.

"No, no you don't get out!" She shouted at him.

"Come one Mel, the incident was so long ago." Claudia tried to reason.

Melanie narrowed her eyes in anger.

"I trust your judgement I'll be outside." Pip smiled.

He left Leo with a shocked and slightly curious expression. Pip walked until he was at the front of the bakery. He laughed at the sight of Leo's face when he had left. A few minutes later Leo was walking through the door with brown paper bags in hand.

"I trust my mother didn't let you pay?" Pip started.

Leo smiled and handed him one of the bags.

"You're such an ass." Pip mumbled.

Leo laughed strongly and the sound almost made Pip stop and catch his breath. They began walking without an idea of where they were going.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Pip asked.

Leo flinched slightly as though someone had shot him with an elastic.

"My dad wasn't a great person and my mother wished so much that he was that she wouldn't listen." Leo scratched the back of his neck.

Pip wondered what the appropriate action would be. What words should he use, was there any thing he could even do? Pip hands lingered at his side before his fingers slipped around the other boys wrist.

"This isn't exactly walking conversation." Leo readjusted.

He cleared his throat and morphed into his old carefree demeanour.

"You can talk to me, whenever, wherever. If you like." Pip choked barely getting the words out of his awkward and confined throat.

Leo nodded with a soft smile.

"You knows there's only two things left on your list." Leo stated.

The reminder of the last two tasks filled him with utter dread but as Leo spoke with a mischievous smirk he didn't remember the fear.

"Any ideas of how we will even finish it?" Pip asked unsure of what to do.

They walked. Leo's lips began to flicker into a cheeky grin, which only meant two things; Leo had a plan and Pip was not going to like it.