vagabond.

It kind of stung to see that her charms didn’t have the same effect on him, but Juliette refused to let it show. Instead of talking about whatever it was that could be on their way, they were actually walking in circles, dancing around the elephant in the room and refusing to be adults. “Not much.” She replied with a shrug, making her way to his couch and talking a seat. Things would’ve been easier if she simply told him about thinking this whole thing through, but would it happen? Probably not. “I visited some places and realized the world out there is overrated. Besides, I missed Mimi.”

Sterling allowed the conversation to lag into silence. He had nothing to say in reaction to her discoveries. He’d already known that the outside world was overrated. He could’ve told her that if she’d asked, but she’d needed to discover it for herself, needed a reason to come back. And that reason was Mimi, it seemed. Not that he’d thought that she’d come back for what they’d had. That would’ve been a naively childish hope, and he’d left naivete and childishness behind so long ago. “I’m sure she missed you,” he finally said. They were dancing around, saying things they didn’t truly want to say all to avoid the things that needed to be said. It’d be much easier if he could just tell her the words that were on the tip of his tongue to say to her, but that would make him vulnerable and she’d already proven that being vulnerable with her was unwise. “Will you stay for a bit? We can watch a movie or something.” 

He laughs, “Figure of speech, I’m pretty sure you’ll be her Uncle Sterling for life anyway.” He chuckles. “She’ll probably want to help you come up with one. Though it will undoubtedly be something ridiculous”

“I really wouldn’t have accepted anything else.” Had anyone told him a few months ago that he’d be this attached to a child, he would’ve laughed at them. But here he was. “I doubt anything could be more ridiculous than Dr Seuss.” 

She chuckled, stepping on the floorboards until she found the loose one. Grinning, she pried it up, producing a bottle of her father’s prized age bourbon that she pilfered long ago. “Don’t even start. Do you know that he planned for me to walk in on his tart in our old bedroom after they had sex? At least have a bit of respect for what we once had. He is such a child.”

Sterling grinned, eyebrow raised slightly, as Rosemary produced the bottle. He still wasn’t sure what to expect from this clandestine meeting, but he was enjoying himself. “I could’ve told you the bit about him being a child, darling. Though I did think that vindictive was outside of his skill set. How’d you react?”

She pouted, opening the door for him. “Really? You didn’t do it because you missed me?” Would it be so much to ask that one person missed her being around. It was beginning to get rather annoying that everyone decided that she was evil incarnate, but at least Sterling didn’t yet. “If I were to kill anyone, darling, it would be that idiotic ex of mine.”

“I thought we’d established that already,” Sterling said, stepping through the door. As if he’d follow anyone he didn’t at least have fond feelings for. “Why haven’t you though? I mean, seriously, what a waste of space.” 

“And yet you followed.” He was always good for a distraction if nothing else. It was a shame that he had been tainted by feelings. Rose never thought that the suited anyone, but that was how things seemed to go. “Do not let that alarm you. It is probably Juniper up to her old tricks. I promise I shall protect you.”

“I was bored,” she said, shrugging nonchalantly. And in desperate need of a distraction from his feelings, he added silently. “So you didn’t bring me out here to kill me? I have nothing to fear?”

He chuckles, “You have no idea how much she’d love that. I guarantee you’d be her Uncle Sterling for life. There’s be no way out of it. She’d litter your fridge with pictures and drawings. Granted she’s going to do that anyway.”

“Are you saying I won’t be her Uncle Sterling if I don’t write children’s novels for her?” He pouted slightly, a sight that he was sure looked ridiculous considering the fac that he was 40 years old. “I’m going to have to adopt a penname. Something cool and child friendly like Dr Seuss, only not, because that one’s taken.” 

The news about Cannoli spending some days at the vet brought her walls halfway down. She’d grown quite fondly of Sterling’s cat, even more as they’d spend their days together and Cannoli was doing a nice job adjusting to Mimi’s presence and vice versa. “Is everything alright with him?” Jules asked, disregarding their previous banter and focusing on the cat instead, then, remained quiet throughout their walk to Sterling’s house. She was still getting reacquainted to Barton Hollow. It felt the same to her, but also, it was like something had changed. Maybe this is what happened when one left town after leaving there for so long, then came back. 

Once she stepped into his place, Jules shrugged off her jacket, too, folding it in her arms as she heard him saying that nothing had changed since she’d been there. “Nothing?” With a smirk, she allowed her gaze to fall upon him, arching one brow as she walked past him. “Good to know.” He might’ve been talking about his house in general, but of course she’d take this opportunity to make things more personal. Maybe he’d meant how he felt, too. After pouring drinks for both of them, Juliette approached him, probably standing too close for comfort, her eyes watching him. “Your drink…”

“Dr. Bhatt says he’ll be okay,” Sterling assured her. It was nice to know that even if she no longer cared for him, Cannoli still held a place in her heart. Then again, the little gremlin had a reputation for weaseling his way into hearts. It was what he’d done to Sterling, after all. “You can put your jacket down, you know.” He motioned to the couch as he accepted the drink and brought the drink to his lips. At this point, it didn’t matter what she’d poured for him.  He’d drink poison if it gave him the opportunity to look at her. “Nothing’s changed,” Sterling reiterated just in case she hadn’t caught the meaning in his words. It’d been easy to pretend that nothing was wrong when Nate had visited him. He was fond of the man, but as with most people, he’d seen only what Sterling had wanted him to see. He couldn’t blame the man, though. Sterling was an expert at hiding behind his masks. It was more difficult with Jules, though, because she too was used to hiding behind masks and she tended to see right through him. “So, tell me about your vacation. What did you do while you were away?”

“Ah, yes. I remember that.” Her blue hues stared at him for a moment, as if silently telling him that yes, she had trust issues as well and that he knew that much about her, but some words were better left unsaid. “No? Where have you been? Bunking beds with Rose?” She didn’t want to sound so bitter and yet, she did. Jules wasn’t jealous, that much she knew, but there was something about him not seeing Cannoli in a while that made her question where he’d been. “But yeah, I wouldn’t mind going to your place.”

Sterling resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He would have expected that comeback from one of his students, not Juliette. She always seemed much more clever with her retorts. “Yes, because I’m in the habit of trading one roommate for another.” If he’d judged Jules for her lowbrow comment, he was judging himself one hundred times more intensely. “He spent a few days at the vet’s.” Sterling didn’t know why he’d chosen to supply that bit of information. It wasn’t as if it had been crucial to the conversation but it had felt needed. He turned, hands still snug in his pockets, and began to walk in the direction of his house. Luckily they were only a few blocks away. He spent the majority of the walk in silence, unsure of what to say. It seemed pointless to attempt to talk about anything too personal and he tired of having to wear the friendly mask with her. When at last they arrived at his house, he simply pushed the door -- he barely locked it nowadays -- and led her inside. “Make yourself at home,” he said, shrugging out of his jacket. “You should know where everything is. Nothing’s changed since you were here last.” 

“I suppose that is why I have always been drawn to you. You are nothing like them. You belong to the world.” She smiled at him, beckoning him closer now that they were near the cabin. “So why don’t you tell me what you were expecting to happen once I got you to the cabin? If you say the magic word, I might even make it into a reality.”

Sterling had never belonged to anything; the idea of it felt foreign, but he supposed that in comparison to those in this town, he did seem worldly. “I’m not entirely sure what I expected,” he answered, shrugging nonchalantly. “I’m starting to rethink following you out here. I’ve heard there’s a serial killer in town.” 

“I though you knew by now that my faith in you is never unwavering.” Jules grinned right back, trying not to sound relieved by his invitation. “I’d love to get a drink with you and talk about myself. I am my favorite subject anyway.”

“I thought you knew by now that I have trust issues.” The words were delivered in jest, but he knew that, if anyone could, Jules would recognize the truth in them. “You wouldn’t mind going to my place, would you? I haven’t seen Cannoli in a while.” 

“Contrary to popular belief, I’m quite smart.” Juliette’s smirk remained untouched on her lips as she kept her piercing gaze on him. “So I was able to catch the irony in your sentence.” Tilting her head to the side, the younger woman then smacked her lips, opening her mouth to say something else about Rosemary, but ended up pressing them shut again, curving them up into a forced smile. “You’re back into your old habits, then. Is it still fun, now that she’s not married anymore so you can’t be a homewrecker?”

“I’m hardly capable of wrecking something that was already broken to begin with, but I do appreciate your faith in me.” The grin on Sterling’s face grew wider at her words and he rocked back on his heels slightly.  “Will you get a drink with me? I’d love to hear about your little vacation.” 

“Funny isn’t exactly the word I’d use to describe myself being back here, but it’s actually good to see you.” Now if only she could find it within herself the courage to talk to him about what she really wanted to. And she wasn’t expecting to find him devastated by her absence, but to see Sterling acting so casual around her was actually strange. “It’s been fine. How’ve you been?” 

“When I said funny, I really met ironic, but ironic seeing you here doesn’t have quite the same ring.” He grinned. The clarification hadn’t been absolutely necessary but it had kept him from responding to the good to see you half of her sentence. Sterling slipped his hands into his pants pockets and shrugged nonchalantly. “I’ve been busy, you know? School’s back in session and Rose is back.”

“Ah I don’t know, what else would you like to do? You could write horror novels about hell hounds that invade your life and try and braid your hair…fair warning she’s going to ask”

“Maybe I’ll do that in my free time. Only they wouldn’t be horror stories. They’d be children stories about hellhounds that are supposed to be terrifying but are actually adorable little brats. I’d even dedicate the book to your hellhound. I won’t let her braid my hair though. Thanks for the offer.” 

“Tell me about it.” She sighed, linking her arm with Sterling. “They are all beneath us, darling. Small minds and smaller worlds.”

“It’s a byproduct of small town living. They can’t help it.”

When she saw him, Juliette wished there was an easier way to do this. To tell him she was sorry for freaking out, for running away, but there wasn’t. All in all, she wasn’t sorry for leaving town because it helped her see things clearer, but she was sorry not having trusted him with her truth. With how she felt… “Jesus, not the whole town, I hope. Can’t have all of these useless people on my ass. A numbered few though? I can handle that.” Her blue eyes were on his as she said that and for a moment there, Juliette almost pouted, but she knew that her charms wouldn’t work on him at the moment, so maybe being a little honest with him would help even if she didn’t know how. “Hello, Isaac.”

Sterling wasn’t quite sure how to behave in this situation. There was a lot that he didn’t know -- why had Jules left, what had prompted her return? So, he opted for a friendly, if not aloof attitude. It was easy, considering the fact that he was so used to hiding behind a mask. Surprisingly easy, even, considering that he’d been so open with this woman. “Hey, baby,” he replied eyebrow raised slightly at the name she’d chosen to use in addressing him. “Funny seeing you here. How’s it been?”