October 17

~•~

The Appraisal was beginning to wind down, and with it the summer. The air was becoming cool and crisp again, bringing with it the signs of fall. It wouldn't be long until Jack and Katherine would be swept back to New York to proceed with their previous lives.

Neither of them knew how they would do it, having grown accustomed to the quaint house far from civilized life. Katherine grew to love the mountains overlooking the valley where their house was located.

Yet, the thought of leaving made Katherine feel sick. There were good memories here. She could finally understand why Jack wanted to stay.

Katherine was scrolling through her phone absentmindedly, bored from the lack of activities there were to do while trapped in the house. Jack was upstairs, doing who knows what. Pip rested by Katherine, the dog's chin sitting atop her thigh.

The house was quiet and still. Nothing was heard except for the occasional grunt from Pip as his nap took him through his dreams. Then, a notification from her laptop caught her attention, and when she went to see who the message was from, her eyes lit up.

She leaned forward, causing Pip to jerk awake. She set the laptop on her legs, answering the video call request. The screen loaded before enlarging, and a familiar face greeted her with a bright smile. "Kath!" The person greeted. "Gosh I haven't seen you in forever!"

"I miss you, too, Lucy," Katherine said to her sister, smiling at the sound of her sister's voice. "How are things back home?"

"They're great!" Lucille expressed. "Everyone misses you, of course. Herbert started preschool last month. He was so excited."

"Really?" Katherine replied, feeling a sudden melancholy fill her. "Is he enjoying it?"

"Definitely! His teacher loves him. You know his energy; sometimes it gets him in trouble but he's just so energetic. He's made tons of friends." Lucille explained. "He keeps asking where you are. He really misses you."

Katherine smiled sadly, looking down at the keyboard. "I hate that I'm missing so much."

"You'll be home soon enough!" Lucille expressed. "And perhaps something good will have come out of it. Hannah told me you and your partner are a success."

Katherine nodded. "I suppose so."

"What's he like?"

"Hannah hasn't told you about him?"

Lucille shook her head, resting her chin in her hand. "Care to explain?"

Katherine sucked in a breath, looking up at the banister above her for a short second before looking back down. "His name's Jack. He's an ass but can be sweet if he wants to be. He tries to act all tough, but he's really not. We—uh—we actually want to move in together when we get back to New York."

"Really now?" Lucille smirked, cocking an eyebrow. "Are things..." she trailed off playfully, "...intimate?"

Katherine felt her face flush with heat. "Lucille! I am not answering that!"

"Judging by your reaction, I have my answer."

"For being twenty, you sure are childish," Katherine groaned, setting the computer down on the coffee table and leaning onto her knees so she could sit more comfortably.

"I like to call it being youthful and vibrant."

"Can we get back to the others? How's Ralph?"

Lucille shrugged. "He's Ralph. You know how he is. Dad's been pressuring him to get more involved with the Institute. He wants to, but he's reluctant."

"How come?"

"He thinks he won't do the job well enough," Lucy answered. "Dad's legacy is a difficult one to carry."

"I can understand that," Katherine said with a sigh. "What about Jo?"

"He's like any other fifteen year-old boy. He made the basketball team, though! He did great on his first game!"

That same feeling passed through Katherine again. She resented the fact that her being a part of the Appraisal meant she couldn't be close to her family, experiencing new things and being in their lives more. "That's great," she said, placing a smile on her face. "He always could beat you and me on his own whenever we played him."

"He's the star of the team," Lucille said with a smile. "Constance joined the middle school band. She's a flute player. It is annoying, though, when she practices. I love her but she hasn't gotten the hang of it yet."

Katherine grinned crookedly. "Sounds entertaining."

"Not in the good way." Lucille turned to look at something to her side for a few moments before turning back to the screen. "I have to go now, but I just wanted to say hi. Last time we got to talk was so long ago. Just a few more months, Kath! Hang in there!"

"I'll try," Katherine responded. "Tell everyone I said hi and that I love them. I can't wait to be home!"

"We can't wait for you be home, too. Bye, Kath!"

"Bye, Lucy."

<><><>

October 31/November 1

~•~

Katherine had it all planned out. All that was left was to wait.

The clock ticked. She found herself glancing at her phone for the time every ten seconds, waiting for that very specific time to come around before she could make her move.

It felt like an eternity until she glanced at her phone screen, happy to find that 12:00 had finally arrived. She hurried into the kitchen, opening the fridge and pulling out a small cake she had made before taking the candles and the lighter off of the counter.

She made her way up the staircase, carefully opening the door to Jack's bedroom and finding his body sprawled under the covers. She sat down close to the headboard, lighting the candles before shaking Jack's shoulder. He stirred lightly, finally turning to look at her with groggy eyes after she shook him a few more times.

"Ace? What're you doin'?"

"Same thing you did for me," Katherine said with a soft smile. "Happy nineteenth birthday, Jack."

Jack's brows furrowed and he sat up, glancing at the cake in her hands before looking up at her. "It's my birthday?"

"Yes, you idiot. Come on," she encouraged him, holding the cake closer to him, "make a wish."

Jack gave a soft grin at the girl before looking down at the cake, closing his eyes for a brief second before blowing out the candles. The room was swallowed in darkness as he did so, the moonlight barely making out the smiles on both of their faces.

"Thank you, Ace," Jack said, setting the cake down on the nightstand so it wouldn't be between them.

"You did the same thing for me," she responded with a tender tone. "It seemed fitting to do the same thing."

Jack motioned to the spot beside him on the bed, "Wanna stay?"

"I'd love to," Katherine replied. "There's just something I have to do first."

She stood up and took the cake, taking it back downstairs and setting it in the fridge so it would still be good to eat the next day. By the time she reached the kitchen, her smile had faded, for she felt as if something had become inevitable.

Reaching for her phone and praying the person she needed was still awake, she called one of her contacts and held the device to her ear.

"Hello?" The person on the other end answered.

"Hannah," Katherine breathed, attempting to hide the shakiness of her voice, "I need you to bring something to the checkup tomorrow."

"What do you need?"