My Lovely Lunacy (Lisa Rowe x OC)

how to be found

  Kali heard Leo's voice before she saw him. Then she spotted her brother's boots, coming down the stairs. And she couldn't explain why, but she found herself rushing to embrace him. It had only been a couple of weeks since she last saw him. But so much had happened. She had went from being mad at Lisa to spending all of her time with Lisa. She had gone from a quiet newcomer to McLean to a runaway.

  And if she was being honest, she didn't want to go back. Kali finally let go of her brother, who gratefully took the chance to breathe again. Lisa watched from the couch. She wondered what was going on in Kali's head. She couldn't shake the feeling that Kali was different than she was in McLean.

  "What happened?" Leo refused a seat, preferring instead to stand like an interrogator, prepared to flip a table or shine a lamp in their faces at any moment.

  This time, Lisa didn't jump in to tell the story. This time, there was a silence.

  Kali exhaled slowly, "We snuck out just to look at the sky. And this girl, Amelia....she locked us out."

  Leo nodded in understanding. He could piece together the rest. Someone had a problem with Lisa and Kali being Lisa and Kali. And once he understood that, he could understand the rest. The want to run, to leave it all behind. But he also had to admit he was worried. If Kali was out, what was to guarantee she wouldn't find her way back on the bridge? He didn't even know what Lisa's deal was.

  So much was unknown. Would someone come looking for them? Were they essentially escaped convicts? Or would nobody care?

  "This is Lisa." Leo didn't phrase it as a question, rather as a revelation.

  "Guilty." Lisa waved her hand, "You're her brother?"

  "Yeah."

  Fred came skipping back down the stairs, apparently fully awake now. He offered Leo a can of soda. When Leo declined, Lisa was all too glad to take it off of his hands. Then Fred settled down on the couch beside them.

  "So...anyone wanna watch a movie?" He was retying his robe as he looked around the room.

  Nobody spoke up at once until Lisa answered with, "What kind?"

  Leo then motioned for Kali to follow him upstairs. Fred and Lisa stayed in the basement, filing through his movie collection. The backyard provided some welcome fresh air. Kali sat on the back steps and her brother settled in next to her.

  "Does she have any family?" He wondered.

  Kali thought about it, "I don't think she has anyone out here...not anymore."

  "I don't think you thought this through."

  "I know."

  "I mean, I could barely support us with my paycheck. To bring in another person..."

  "I know." Kali repeated, twirling a piece of grass between her fingers.

  "And it's not like you guys can stay with Fred forever. And-"

  She sighed and got up, walking away from the steps and further into the yard, "I know. I know. I know! I wasn't thinking, okay? I just wanted a break from it all."

  Kali had changed since she was in McLean. She could stand up for herself. She had pushed her breaking point. Leo was proud. But to go back was tricky. Amelia probably would've spread her opinions throughout the halls by now. And Kali was strong, but she couldn't fight everyone. She couldn't fight people's opinions forever.

  He wasn't going to send her back. That wasn't what worried him. Was it really his decision whether Lisa went back or not? She wasn't obligated to listen to him. She could vanish at the drop of a hat if she wanted to. He had a feeling she didn't want to for one reason: Kali.

  "Do you ever feel..." Kali leaned against the fence, "like you're just floating along? Like you're waiting for someone to come pick you out or something to just...change?"

  "Yeah." Leo answered honestly.

  "This whole thing- I feel like maybe I can swim out now."

  They went back to silently staring at the ground after that. And the quiet spoke for itself.