Andy

“So, what have you been up to, Asheen?” My Grandmother wondered, lifting her condensation coated glass of ice tea with surprising strength I didn’t know she possessed.

“Oh, um...” I paused to rack my brain to come up with something positive. The longer I thought, the more disappointed I was to find they were only troublesome things, and my parents’ frowns deepened.

“Writing songs.” I finally replied when every other unique thing I had done had involved being grounded, or Andy, our fictional waiter.

“Oh, really?” She inquired with great interest. “What kind?”

I wanted to tell her about how I sang at the funeral, but I feared my parents would put two and two together and recognize Andy. It was in everyone’s best interest that I didn’t mention anything pertaining to the funeral.

“A variety.” I replied, not going into much detail. “Just writing different things, trying to get a feel for it.”

“Don’t forget the amazing adventures spent with your ghostly best friend.” Andy added with a fond smile. “Sneaking out, doing highly illegal things that would have landed you in the backseat of a police car, at best.”

I almost shot him a glare, and elbowed him instead. His laughter replaced his words in seconds.

“I think it’d be great to do music. A few weeks back, some friends I have in Pendant let me play a set with them at a cafe. It was something I never imagined having the chance to do, but I’m glad I did.” I continue, clipping out the part about being sexually assaulted by that asshole... A shiver ran down my spine, remembering it. I masked my expression well, shaking my head dismissively, I worked to erase the visual from my memory.

I hadn’t noticed until my Grandma had grabbed my hands and encased them in hers with surprising strength that she’d taken them at all.

“That’s wonderful, Asheen. You must come play for me someday.” He smile was kind, sweet and adoring, and absolutely impossible to say no to. With a pursed smile, I nodded at last.

“Okay, okay, sure. I will.”

The waiter returned then, still looking a little baffled, he put on his best professional attitude and addressed us. “How are we doing? Can I get you any dessert? We have apple pie today as our special.” He even flashed a nice smile to sell his advertisement.

“Sure, why not?” My Dad responded, seeming very cool and calm at the moment. Not acting much like the ridgid man I remember making the two-day trek to California with.

I took another moment to look at my surroundings, still in awe at how beautiful it was. Just as I begin to think about how serene the whole city must be, Andy seemed to read my thoughts and weighed in.

“In case you were wondering, no, the whole city, and state is not like this.” He chuckled, ruffling his short brown hair briefly, making the neat combed-back syle he’d worn while pulling off his waiter charade disappear in the waves of tousled locks.

“In fact, depending on where you go, you’re more likely to find a heroine needle and syringe than a nice view to admire.... Sorry.” He laughed when he saw my peaceful smile falter.

“But in all honestly, yeah, California is a nice place to live, if you can afford it and put up with all the shit that goes with it.” He shrugged.

“I mean, when I lived here, I just likened all my bad touring experiences to California, because they were pretty much the same thing: drunk nights, trick girls, being late to everything and always living life loud and impatiently. It’s really just about learning to weave through those things.”

It made me curious for a moment, and an hour’s worth of questions popped in my head, but I very well couldn’t ask them right then, so I made a mental note of them for later.

“If I had to pick a favorite thing about California, though, it’d have to be the sunset. I love the sunsets here. Of course, they’re a far cry from anything back in Pendant, but they’re really unique, colorful and beautiful here. Though, everywhere in the world has it’s own special sunset, but from the one I’ve seen, California ones are my favorite.”

I noticed he had just started rambling, and was speaking mostly to himself, but the way he phrased his love of sunsets was facinating to listen to.

The waiter returned again, carrying a tray with our dessert. When he set down mine, I waited until my parents were preoccupied, then I chopped the slice in half and flipped it over onto a napkin, discreetly pushing it in Andy’s direction until he scooped it up and it disappeared from the sight of my family.

Of course, like everything else the restaurant had offered so far, the pie was wonderful, and if I was being brutally honest, it was the best I’d ever had. Andy was far less graceful eating his as he inhaled it from off the napkin like a vaccum, and still, he managed to make a mess. I handed him another napkin without looking at him, trying to maintain a calm posture as he accepted it and scrubbed his face.

“What else are we doing today?” I wondered, taking one of the clean cloth napkins we had, aimlessly trying to fold it into a swan like my first grade teacher Mrs. Simmons had taught us while we were studying Japan, you know, back when school was fun and cool. The fabric failed to comply as I pinched and pulled at it, trying to replicate the creases I hadn’t made in years.

“Hmm... We could visit some of the stores on the beachfront?” My Mother suggested as she addressed a check for the cashier. “There’s some souvenier shops in the village, isn’t there?” She asked my Grandma.

After thinking about it for a few moments, she nodded. “Yes, I think so. There was also a few clothing shops, if I remember right.”

~~~


After we’d left the restaurant, we took a moment to get a family photo near the railing in front of the enterance. Andy grinned brilliantly, propping up a pair of bunny ears behind me, even though the camera wouldn’t pick up on it.

It was kinda sad to think about, actually. He really threw himself into his poses, and he looked alive. He acted so fully aware, I silently wondered if he was actually joking or had just forgotten his circumstance.

After that, I’d offered to get a picture of my Mom and Dad with my Grandma. It wasn’t that I thought it’d be the last picture they’d ever get, it was that I felt like it could be... And it terrified me. To look at my Grandma, years of wisdom, badassery and strength rolled up in a very frail looking package. I frowned a little after I snapped the photo, and looked up to see Andy looking at my Grandmother in what looked like deep concentration. His eyes narrowed a little, then he dropped them. They weren’t filled with hate or suspicion, but sympathy. My heart lunged and I feared he knew something I didn’t.

Looking at my parents again, they were laughing, and having a good time, even as they pushed her wheelchair towards the car. I frowned again and jogged to catch up to Andy.

“What was that?” I whispered.

“What?”

“The way you were looking at her.”

“Huh?... Oh, it was nothing.” He shook his head and sped up a little. His tone sounded the opposite, actually.

“You know something.” I accused, my voice came out in a shrill, panicked whisper.

He shook his head again, and his features relaxed and he looked at me the way a parent looks at their kid after they tell an inappropriate joke in front of family. Annoyance, concern, and a hint of amusement underneath it all. “No, I don’t.” He confirmed again, reaching the car before I did. I huffed a sigh and pulled open the backdoor so he could slide in on my side. I looked from him to my Grandmother and back again. I didn’t catch him looking at her again.

Notes

Ahhh camp planning has been hectic! I am so, so sooo relieved to have a full three days off to get caught up on some work. So as of right now, I am binge watching Walking Dead, while finishing some art projects I'm working on, which includes a new Andy Biersack drawing, and a Josh Dun (from twenty one pilots) portrait. I've never drawn him before so it was something completely different!
Speaking of different, I wrote this outdoors, in the middle of nowhere haha. I've mentioned I live in the prairie, and one of the main inspirations for this story has always been overcast days. Today it was, so I walked way out into the pasture with my laptop and worked this out and I feel so inspired by the change of scenery haha.

Shoutouts!

- Andley_Coma
- anathema
- blackveilkitty
- Fallen_Savior