Nepenthe AU

Math sucked. It really did. At least the two of them got it done, Dee struggling over the questions while Dave offered advice and yapped about random stuff. It was what they usually did. It was a welcome change to the grind of school. She wasn’t in the studying group because of the sounds of pencils scraping, which usually made her lose focus. The silence at home wasn’t helpful either, even though Caroline often came up with snacks and to check on Dee… 

The only distraction today was the thought of that graffiti. It had to be some sort of gang sign, she assumed. Was that some sort of tag? She was pretty sure her town was safe, but you never really knew. She closed her notebook, the papers making a soft thump.

“Hey… I can’t help but think… what was that graffiti for?” She leaned forward. “Are you, like, in danger or something? I-”

Dave quickly waved it off. “Dee, I’m fiiine! It’s all good! If it ever gets bad, I’ll tell ya, but for now, ya don’t need to worry about it. Kay?”

She made a small squeak as Dave reached out and ruffled her hair. “I get it, I get it… whatever you say, Dave…”

“Ya need me to grab ya food at all before ya go? McDonald’s isn’t too far and I don’t mind closing the shop for an hour.”

“Oh-!” She blinked. “That would be nice, actually… thanks, Dave.” The whole mess was still on her mind, but chicken nuggets were always good. 

“No problem, kiddo.” He gave her a grin, grabbing a piece of paper and scribbling out “closed for now” with a dying sharpie, taping it to the front of the shop. “Come on, let’s go then, huh?”

Dee nodded, and the two of them started walking. It was only a few blocks away, really. Their town was really walkable, which was good for her. She liked being able to go where she wanted without having to rely on a car… not that her family could afford a second car. Jack didn’t have a car either, as far as she knew. 

Dave held open the door for her, which recieved a small snort. “You don’t have to hold the door, I’m 16.”

“Someday you’re going to appreciate a door being held open when you’re carrying a heavy ass engine.”

“I’m not looking to go into being a mechanic, so there. Blehh.” A lie. Dee was planning on taking after Dave and learning under him, but that was a surprise for later.

He shrugged. “Still is nice.” He ordered himself a burger and Dee chicken nuggets, and they sat down to wait for their food.

“Ya know what I like? Moments like this. When yer older, yer gonna appreciate the quiet moments in life.” He leaned back in his chair, a small smile on his face. “It’s real nice to just breathe and not have to worry about anythin.”

“Really? Doing nothing is boring… school is boring…” Dee fidgeted with one of her gloves, running her thumb along the stripes.

“Boring will become real nice. Trust me on that. Comfort in the mundane, ya know?”

“I dunno…” She trailed off as their bag of food came, and she pulled out her fries. The two of them ate in silence, but Dave did mumble something before he ate. She couldn’t catch it over the chatter and beeps around them.

Either way, the food was nice. Being able to spend time with Dave was nice. He was like an uncle to Dee, although she was a bit too embarrassed to say that out loud. It wasn’t very likely that he would agree with all that, anyway… She said goodbye to him once they were done eating, thanking him over and over for his kindness. 

A week passed. Her life was still as boring as ever. Same routine of going to school, heading home, sometimes going to the cafe of Dave’s to work. It was Dave’s more often than not due to how Jack had brushed her off…

It was a Wednesday, but Peter was home. He was on the phone. “Yes, officer, he wasn’t at his apartment, either. It’s like he went and vanished without a trace. No, he didn’t show any signs of wanting to hurt himself, he didn’t even-”

“Peter?” Dee finally spoke up, and Peter raised a finger, telling her to be quiet.

“Yes. Thank you so much for your help, I just want to make sure he comes back safe. I’ll print out some posters and put them around town…” He nodded along to the person on the other end of the line. The police. Why was Peter calling the cops? Who was missing?

“What’s going on?” She moved forward as soon as he hung up and put his phone on the counter. 

“Jack’s work called me… he’s been a no show for three shifts, so I went out to check on him… He isn’t home, Dee, and I don’t know where the hell he could be.” He ran his hand through his hair. “I’m missing work for all this… god, I hope this is going to be worth it…”

“That can’t be true, he can’t have just disappeared. He would have told me at least! Or his boss, Steven… Maybe not Steven, he hates Steven… But you get it!” Dee shook her head. “The thing is, he would have told someone if he wanted to disappear! There would have been something at least, I know that he wouldn’t want to do something like this, not willingly. You know him too, Peter. You know he wouldn’t do this either.”

“He’s depressed, absent, an asshole to everyone around him, and drinks for fun. I don’t like what’s going on either, but he probably did something stupid and doesn’t want to face the consequences of his actions. That’s why I called the police, and that’s why I want him to get back safe. If he isn’t safe? He can stay with us for a bit.”

“And so, what, you’re just hoping the police can take care of it?” Her fists clenched. “No, I’m going to actually do something, because clearly you don’t care!”

“Dee, wait a moment-” Peter tried to reach out after her.

Dee didn’t listen. She stormed out of the house, slamming open the front door and then breaking into a run. She didn’t know where she was going, and she really didn’t care at the moment. All that she knew is that she was running into the forest. Somewhere she would go when she was upset.

She remembered when their mother had passed. She had ran then too. Running meant that you didn’t have to deal with all the problems. What Dave had said… it really did make sense. 

Her lungs were starting to burn, so she slowed and collapsed onto the mossy floor. She took a deep breath, smelling the dirt and the white lilies… 

Lilies?

She sat up slightly, reaching out towards one. Her fingers brushed against the soft petals, wondering why they were growing around here. Lilies didn’t usually grow in the area, right? 

She heard soft steps behind her, and turned around. A woman with white hair and a grey dress… white and black accents… 

“... What the fuck.” Dee furrowed her brow. “Who are you?”

“You seem to be a bit lost.” She didn’t answer the question, instead crouching down in front of Dee. “Not physically… mentally. Something is bothering you, dear.”

“I… My brother…”

The woman reached out and ran her fingers through Dee’s hair. They were cold. “Shh… you’re going to be okay. Tell me what’s going on, and take your time.

Dee nodded. “Um… His name is Jack, and apparently he hasn’t been to work in a while… Peter thinks he’s gone missing since he isn’t home, but there’s no way he could have gone missing…”

The woman gave a slow nod. “I see… and you’re worried for him, aren’t you?” Her hand didn’t leave Dee’s hair, still gently petting her head. “I can most likely help.”

“You never told me your name.”