Chapter 15

The clouds blocked the moon creating a dark shadow, everything felt pointless in that moment. She didn't know why she was walking to the factory, all she knew was there was no where left to go. The abandoned buildings on the street looked beautiful with the shadows dancing across them. They had uneven levels that created an artistic feel to them and the glass that littered their front lawns were like the loneliness that Arder felt.

She took a moment to sit on the curb next to one of them, and just watched. She could see the silhouettes of the few birds flying across the sky and a tipped over metal garbage can rustling back and forth. A woman wearing a bunched up jacket and only one glove looked up from behind it. A few gray hair strands peaked out from under the light blue hat she had over her head. Arder jumped up and continued to walk, not wanting to disturb her further. "Arder?" A voice asked, making her jump. She spun around to see Grey standing in the middle of the street.

This had been enough to break the neutral expression she had concealed her emotions with. The first tear fell and landed before Grey reached the sidewalk. "I don't know what to do," Arder admitted, wiping the tears away with both hands. When she removed her hands, he was standing a lot closer. The wind pushed his hair back and forth making him look like one of the models from the photographs Lexie took in her photography classes. He wiped away her tears for the second time since they had met.

"I didn't want to tell you," he mumbled, letting his hand linger on her cheek. This made her realize just how close they were, inches apart. A crash behind them made her trip forward, stumbling into Grey's chest. She caught herself, with one hand on his heart and looked behind her. A stray walked out of the apartment behind them, its cream coloured fur looking torn and uneven.

"Sorry," Arder whispered. She could feel his steady beating heart pick up its pace, and looked up to meet his eyes once more. Arder knew it would be best to step back, though she didn't. She stayed completely still, his hand that had previously been on her cheek now in her hair. The gold in his eyes shone like the silver of moon escaping the clouds.

"For what?" he smiled.

Arder shrugged a weird feeling overcoming her. She took an uneasy breath, noticing his face moving closer to hers. She noticed a small scar on the top of his forehead, much similar to the one Cyrus had. "Should we go inside?" Arder asked.

Imitating Arder, he just shrugged before continuing to lean in closer. His soft lips gently brushed against her own and she felt her eyes slowly flutter shut. Forgetting everything else, she lost herself in the moment. After a few seconds Arder smiled and stepped back.

"I probably shouldn't have done that," he said.

"No, it's not that," Arder replied. "I should get back though, Lexie doesn't know where I went. Can we talk about this later?"

"Sure," he nodded. Arder started to feel slightly guilty for leaving her friend and knew she had to go back. "I'll see you soon," he said. She walked back down the street she came from, glancing over her shoulder to see him walking into the factory. Arder smiled at his retreating figure, she hadn't been expecting him to kiss her. "Oh, Arder?" He looked back onto the street calling to her.

"Yeah?" Arder called back. He lifted the side of his mouth into a half smile.

"You should try to talk to your mom again, don't give up," he encouraged. Arder nodded in agreement before watching him close the factory door. Don't give up, repeated throughout her mind all the way back to the cafe.

The blinds were drawn at Cara's and she could tell they closed up long before she arrived. She flipped through her keychain stopping at the one she had labeled Sophie's with a green piece of masking tape. It had always been a hassle unlocking the front door, the lock was very old and the key was almost impossible to take out of the lock. "Arder is that you?" A soft voice spoke up as she struggled to retrieve her key.

"Yeah, Sophie?" Arder asked. Instead, Lexie appeared at her side, a steaming cup of tea in hand. Herbal tea was about all Lexie drank, though Arder detested it.

"Hey, you're back," she stated, taking a sip of her hot tea. "Sophie's in the kitchen." The lights had all been turned out except for a single lamp beside the couches. There sat one of the many books off the bookshelf left open and Lexie's phone.

"You waited for me?" Arder asked. She felt a lot more calm than she had before, as if the storm had ended for now.

"Of course I did," Lexie said, walking back inside the cafe. After finally getting her key back Arder followed her to the kitchen. Sophie sat on one of the tall bar stools at the sink, scrubbing at mugs and plates. The kitchen had become a mess since and Sophie had barely made a dent in the work load. A large coffee spill on the floor surrounded Sophie's seat yet she made no move to clean it.

"You're back," she smiled. "You girls can head upstairs, I'm just going to finish," Sophie said, turning back to her soap filled sink.

"No Soph, we're helping," Arder volunteered. She knew Lexie would have said the same so she walked to the sink and grabbed a soapy rag. "I got the coffee spill," she told Lexie, silently telling her to help Sophie with the dishes. Lexie nodded and started drying dishes while Arder soaked up the large spill.

She had made a plan while cleaning up. She was going home the next day and she wasn't taking no for an answer. She wasn't going to give up.