Natural Disaster

Chapter 60

Life continued as normal, or as normal as it possibly could have. For the next few days, worried looks were cast in their direction and the trio mumbled behind their backs. But, after a little while, the concern seemed to ease, and normalcy descended upon the group.

Launa and Avi, however, had developed a plan, which they kept quiet about. "When should we tell them?" he asked, one night, leaning back against the wall behind their bed, stroking his fingers through her hair, "Esther will try to stop us, somehow."

She looked up at him with a grimace, slouching with her head resting on his shoulder and playing idly with the collar of his shirt. "The last thing I want to do is drive a wedge between you two."

He shook his head, readjusting her in his lap. "Nah," he said, "We'll be fine, so long as she lets me be an adult."

"She seems to have been getting better at that, though," Launa said, chewing her lip and remaining silent for a long moment, "How well do you think they're gonna take it?"

Avi sighed almost inaudibly. "Not very well," he murmured, tracing his fingers across her back, "We can't give them much time to react."

"You don't have to do this," she reminded him, "We can work out something else."

He shook his head again, smiling down at her. "Not a chance."

______

"Good job, today, guys," Esther said, stirring their dinner on the stove as the other six crammed and milled around the table, then continued with a slight frown, "You guys have been performing an awful lot, lately. What's up?"

Scott shrugged, petting Wyatt as he perched on Mitch's shoulder. "Everyone's been in a good mood, I guess," he answered, scritching under Wyatt's chin, "And a lot of energy." The others simply shrugged but continued on talking throughout dinner, laughing about the little kids that had squeezed their way to the front of their little audience to dance with them.

Launa smiled through the jab of sorrow and anxiety that shot through her gut, glancing around the table at each person. Esther, Mitch, Scott, Kirstie, Kevin. Each of them was smiling and laughing, poking at each other or singing little riffs that came to mind because of a piece of conversation. I'm going to miss them. Her breath caught in her throat, heart clenching in her chest as she flicked her gaze to Avi, barely startled to find him already looking over at her.

She swallowed hard.

Nodded.

Don't give them much time to react.

Almost in unison, they turned to look around at the rest of the group just as they finished their dinners, simply sitting around an enjoying each other's company. "I would walk 500 miles, and I would walk 500 more," Mitch sang, fake-marching in his seat as Scott and Kirstie joined in. How appropriate.

Avi cleared his throat loudly and turned to face her. "Hmm, 500 miles," he chuckled, taking the song as an opening, "How far would you say your hometown is?"

Esther whipped her head around, frowning instantly. She knows something's up. "What?"

"I'm just asking," he responded, his smile tight and strained, earning a deeper frown from his sister.

"Why don't I believe you?" she asked, her voice stern. The trio ceased their chatter, they and Kevin turning to watch the exchange.

Avi chewed his lip, flickering his eyes to Launa's, nodding after a moment. He would speak for them. Pushing his bowl out of the way, he clasped his hands together on the table, staring down at them for a long moment as anxiety fluttered deep in the redhead's stomach.