Heli’s cheeks flushed. She hated reminding Trip of what had happened between him and Tony because it always felt like her fault, no matter how many times he said it wasn’t. She wasn’t sure if she should slow him down or let him push past it. Usually she tried to be on her mom’s side about progressing your emotions but this wasn’t exactly the time. So instead she give his hand another tight squeeze. I’m here she wanted to whisper, but she knew that reminding him had the potential to make either of them feel stupid. Well, not stupid. She wasn’t supposed to feel that. But silly.
“Oh I do remember the garage.” She agreed. “I haven’t been down but Cricket is very upset about it.” She didn’t say why because she liked to keep people’s confidence if she could, and, quite frankly to her, it was obvious. But he seemed to not like when she gently broached it so it seemed best to refrain. Wow. She forgot sometimes why Trip and Cricket had gotten along. “But the garage is open, right? They’d want some place with privacy. Especially if they were going to have Charlie living here. And Lucy too.” And Finn too, though she didn’t want to think about what Charlie’s older brother could be getting up to. It made her hurt to much for Charlie.
She was losing track of the current population of the Alessi compound. It was a lot easier to remember when it was just Trip, Tony, Anu, their parents, and whatever big guys who looked like her dad they had protecting them that day.
Heli nodded and squeezed Trip’s arm again in agreement. It was better to be close. She knew how to do that.
They reached the first door. She pressed her ear to listen but heard nothing. She placed her finger to her lips then checked wordlessly with Trip to make sure this was still something he wanted to do. Finally, she turned the knob slowly and edged the door open inch by inch. It was large and heavy smelling, like old leather and the cigars her Nonno smoked. Moonlight crept through a large picture window at the far side of the room but the field beyond was so dark that all she could see was the window seat beneath the glass pane. There was a large table at the center of the room and what looked like shelving on the walls. She stepped forward carefully, steadying herself against the table. She was surprised to find a very weird tablecloth against her hands. It was… felt? Like one of the toys she used to make with her mom’s sewing kits. Then she realized. “Baby. It’s a billing room. For pool. Like in Clue.” She loved Clue. It was just nonsensencial enough for her to follow.
“Yeah I’ve been in the garage like...roughly nine hundred and thirty-two times and I’ve never seen like a secret room in there.” Trip remembered one particularly intense high hide and seek game that had nearly killed both him and Finn. He shivered. “I’d know if there was a thing down here.”
He followed her into a room he wasn’t sure existed last year. Man, he really was never down in this place. Mrs. S’s kitchen was the place to be. And the boxing area. But, like, he didn’t even like going up to Tony’s wing. It felt...invasive.
“Yeah,” he eyed the balls. Heh. They didn’t have time for getting distracted but this was a good room for distractions. “Kay, not here.” He ducked out before he did something stupid.
He pushed the next door open. The room was filled with books. “Uhhh...I guess Mrs. S has a Beauty and the Beast thing. Who knew?”
