θάνατος

☆

Alice smiled a little more genuinely this time. “Oh really? Thanks that’s…sweet.” She let out a quiet laugh. Maybe an aquarium wouldn’t be so bad after all. It was definitely a more neutral place than anywhere else she could think of. There was less pressure and that was actually nice for one.

The red-head smirked as she held the bag out. “There you go, help yourself!” Mackenzie’s new excitement seemed like it was going to be infectious. Her eyebrows raised slightly in thought before she nodded her head. “Oh sure. That actually sounds pretty cool. I wonder if they have those horseshoe crabs here. You know, the things that are as old as the dinosaurs. We should see about those too. They look pretty cool.” Alice added. At least they didn’t say something about being excited to see some small silly fish. 

it’s always beautiful seeing people smile, somethings that the dead can’t do, something so beautifully alive that gives mackenzie hope - as small as that may be. “you’re welcome, i’m excited to spend time with you today.” mackenzie spoke softly, looking at the other with warmth. 

there’s a pause after the offer, before mack grabs a chunk and takes a bite; watching as their lip gloss stays on the remaining candy floss and starts to melt a little bit. it’s like the video of the raccoon dropping the candy floss in the puddle and watching it disappear, something so simple yet so entrancing. mack loved this stuff, watching it all with a soft wonder. “oh yes! those things are beautiful, the natural preservation of them is wonderous! i’m certain they’d have it...” mack bounced a little, looking over at her. “we should follow the usual route but just walk faster through the boring bits, i don’t think there are any kind of shortcuts to the sharks...” they smiled, as they started to walk towards the entrance.

☆

Damien thought his therapist would be happy to hear him quote them. Sure he was mostly messing around, but at least something had sank in over the years. “You being an optimist? Did you take new year new me too seriously,” he raised as eyebrow as his coffee arrived at the table and he started to rip into a few packets of sugar. “Oh yeah. A super fancy party, too! There was a lot of free alcohol but I guess I just wanted to really be able to enjoy myself for once,” he shrugged his shoulders as he took a sip of his coffee. A smirk spread across his face as he set the cup down again. “I might actually take you up on that. I think you need to get out and have a fun night or something.” Damien leaned back in his seat and nodded his head slowly. “Seriously? Huh, that’s definitely interesting. What is she afraid of about it or is it just the whole thing? The crocodile is pretty creepy, I’ll give her that!”

both brothers had a hard time relearning what ‘okay’ was, but there was something to heartwarming about it sticking for damien, phineas was proud of his younger brother - not that he’d actually say something so cheesy out loud. with a shrug, phineas smiled a little. “what, you don’t think that i should get those ‘live laugh love’ posters in my office? i could be the next great self help guru.” he laughed, shaking his head at the thought. “an open bar? that shows a lot of self-restraint, that’s wonderful.” he smiled,  looking at the coffee that sat in front of him. at the hint, phineas just shrugged, noting that their coping mechanisms were totally different, but at least damien was working through it. phineas could help fix others, but it was harder when it came to himself, acknowledging just how traumatized her was. “whatever you want... as long as it’s not a strip club again.” he laughed, pushing away his thoughts. “the whole thing, but there’s that whole thing where wendy stitches peter’s shadow back onto his feet, and i think that’s the part that got her. who knew kids movies had that much body horror?”

* ✶ ━

the most important thing in any relationship, whether romantic or platonic or familial, according to minni, was trust. and she trusted her sibling with her life and those of everyone she loved. mackenzie never mocked her, always took an interest in her work and made sure that minni never felt like she wasn’t seen or appreciated. if she ever needed advice or guidance, mack was the go-to person for her and she would be eternally grateful. even if she was angry that the whole reason they hadn’t moved out yet was to be around minni.

but it wasn’t a big deal, since they still got along great and made sure to pretend to look at apartments and houses every once in a while. and, of course, meet up as often as possible to grab coffee and judge everyone around them. “i watched this trashy mini series about an asteroid slamming into the moon once, it sucked ass. but they didn’t discuss that.” minni shrugged, leaning back in her chair with her cup in her hands. “i guess it’s the same question as ‘if a tree falls in a forest’, you know. if there’s no one there to see the ghosts, are they still there? i don’t know.”

there’s a bright smile on mackenzie’s face whenever minni is around. they’re filled with dark thoughts, but minni manages to bring the sunshine to them, and maybe it’s selfish of them, but they don’t want minni to leave them, for them to move out and they just saw each other once a week. minni was mackenzie’s other half, and maybe the dependency was unhealthy but they didn’t care anymore. they grew up together, and that’s all they wanted for the rest of their life. apartment ‘hunting’ was fun when realtors hyped up what was simply four walls and a roof, but they just didn’t have the heart to do it. 

“ugh, those documentaries are always boring, why do you watch them?” they joked, shaking their head with a bright smile. “most people never think about the ghosts, they deserve better...” mack paused at the next words, taking a moment to sip on their coffee to think about it. “i’m never good at rhetoricals... it makes me sad. like... the way that no one around us notice them, and imagine a world where we don’t either- where there’s no ghost adventures or- ... anything.”

☆

Alice felt a little more at ease now that she had been able to meet up with her date. She was pleasantly surprised. At least they were good looking even if they did seem a little shy. “Oh well, then I guess I’ll call you Mac!” She flashed Mackenzie a bright smile. “But yes, I’m Alice. I’m afraid I don’t have any nicknames for you to call me,” she joked. 

The red-head glanced around awkwardly for a moment before she held up the bag in her hand. “I would shake your hand, but my fingers are probably sticky. I got some cotton candy and other stuff if you want any.” She might as well be nice. “I figured we could speed through most of the small fish and get to the cool stuff! You know, sharks. Jellyfish. I mean, if you’re alright with that.”

as the woman spoke, mackenie just smiled, shaking her head. “alice is beautiful, it’s nice and short, you don’t need a nickname.” they smiled, head falling to the side a little as they spoke. they were getting more comfortable with the other, and somewhere as neutral as the aquarium allowed them to breathe a little easier. 

at the mention of sugar, mackenzie beamed a smile and nodded their head. “ah i would love some, thank you- i haven’t had cotton candy in forever, but i remember how fun it is.” they grinned, before thinking about alice’s words. “oh totally, i’d love it if we could stop so i can take photos of the preserved animals, but other than that you can lead the way!” they grinned, rocking on the balls of their feet. was it macabre to want to see the intricacies of preserving squid? slightly, but mac was never one for normalcy.

as their sister walked in, mackenzie’s smile grew and they waved her over to their usual spot. it wasn’t a busy cafe, which made it perfect for when they wanted the space to talk. “okay hear me out... if the moon like, exploded or whatever, we know the tides would be gone, but would the ghosts be okay? every story talks about them being illuminated by moonlight... so what would happen.” they mumbled, looking at minni with full sincerity. 

@oldgcds​

Damien always felt a little better when he was around his older brother. Whether it was because he understood him a little more than most people or not, he couldn’t really say. All he knew that he could always call Phineas if he needed something. “Progress is progress,” Damien nodded his head sagely before he let out a snort of laughter. “I’m aiming for less than five years.” He tapped his fingers on the table. “Speaking of! I made it through a fancy party without getting totally blackout drunk so I think that’s a cause for celebration!” Damien ran a hand through his hair as he raised an eyebrow. “Jesus, that sucks. What can you really do about something like that, man?”

as damien spoke, phineas smiled at the words that sounded as if they were straight out of a therapy session. they both knew well what it sounded like, they had both been through the system for a long time- frankly it was comforting to hear the words come from damien, maybe something had stuck. “I think you might manage it in three.. and that’s being optimistic.” phineas joked, shaking his head. laughing at the thought, phineas grinned at his younger brother. “a whole party? well it sounds like we need to get blackout drunk to celebrate.” phineas grinned, shaking his head. “that’s the million dollar question, right? at least we’re getting to the root of it, you remember that old peter pan film? that whole movie terrifies her.”

He knew that Phineas was almost always looking out for him, but judging him for being a few minutes late? Damien pouted mockingly as he sank down leaned back in his seat. “I only made 2 excuses which was far less excuses than the last time I made any, just so you know!” He smirked and rolled his eyes as he turned his head to great the waitress who had hurried over. “Coffee for now, please. Maybe you’ll inspire me to stop making excuses! Isn’t that part of your job,” he joked. “I’ve been alright. Definitely better than before. How about you? Cause anyone any existential dread, lately?”

there’s a smile on his features, he looks at his brother and can’t help but always smile. they’re both horribly troubled, but there’s something comforting about the younger’s presence around Phineas. “far less than the last time... maybe in five years we’ll get you down to zero.” he laughed, looking as the waitress walked away again. “recovery is never a straight line, but i’m glad you’re on the better side of it... well, i haven’t caused it but there is this young girl afraid of her own shadow, which is rather complicated to deal with...”