Posted July 28th, 2020. Edited, and posted for the wattys.

A chapter everyday until the wattys 2020 are closed. 

By the end, the story will be complete.

I wanted Isic to stop following me. He could be such a sticky chewing gum under your shoe.

The next day, April 18th, I had gone that day to visit Roxanne, and see how her meds and treatments were going.

I didn't end up knocking at their house the day before. At last minute, I backed away, not feeling it would be right to ask him of such thing when you weren't on good terms.

I didn't want to feel very helpless. Even though I was. I was very helpless.

After almost five hours with Roxanne talking to her and keeping her company, I left the house.

As soon as I saw the forest, last night's events came back to mind.

I looked to my sides to make sure my bodyguards were still around me ready to Protect at any time.

What would the enemy's next move be?

In the process of looking for my lovely loyal bodyguards, I caught sight of Isic following me. Again. He hadn't left me be inside, with him mom, always interrupting, and jumping in. now, he was following me even when I was leaving.

"Not tired of me, yet?" I asked. Maybe if I made it about him, he'd leave?

"No. You realize that I didn't see you for ages, right?"

"yes. Don't you hate me, though?" I said, looking back.

"I do." He kept looking at me. I didn't know which was worse. His quick answer, or the fact that he could say it without cringing at all?

Who was he?

I turned around. Whatever. But in true Autumn fashion, I had to defend myself. "Hate you too. And people who hate each other don't stay together."

He laughed, falling in step beside me. "It rhymed."

I arched an eyebrow. It was a beautiful sunny day, with a chill breeze. He was ruining the mood. "Just leave me the heck alone, Isic. I don't want to see you. I don't like you. Stop annoying me."

I just wanted to walk in peace. I had had nightmares featuring him, his mom and me running from something in the forest for two weeks now. Yesterday, I was kidnapped that time.

Maybe I would in the future?

Anyways. My theory was that if I faced my fear by visiting all the things that haunted me, it would rewire my brain to think theme's nothing dangerous in the forest.

In reality, I loved that forest specifically. But over the yeas, it became a nostalgic place to go to. Almost everything reminded me of my adventures with Isic, my ex best friend.

I tried to ignore Isic, and focus on my task. I took a deep breath. Then, after wiping my sweaty palms on sweatshirt, I took the trail I had run on so many times when I was ten and younger.

I could see little Autumn being chased by Isic on the brown-ish ground.

When I saw our treehouse, so much memories flooded my mind that I stopped walking. After a few seconds to make sure my voice wasn't rough, I spoke. "That's enough. Leave Isic."

"No."

"Leave. You're not going with me."

He crossed his arms, smiling. He really was enjoying himself. "I am, though."

I crossed my arms too, because an idea popped into my head. "I'll make my bodyguards make you leave."

His smile fell. Trying to hide the fact that he had been caught off guard, he started smiling again but something was off.

"You wouldn't."

I paused.

"Try me."

He uncrossed his hands. "I'm also taking a walk. After I'm done, I swear that I'll leave you alone. In..." he looked at his phone. "Twenty five minutes."

I wanted to convince him of leaving before that time. But I had an important meeting after. Every minute I was losing was one I could have used to make peace with the past.

I started walking again. I had to hide my sobs, and my teary eyes from him. But I think he head me, anyway. Most of the time he had been walking beside me.

Just like he said, after twenty-five minutes straight, Isic did leave. I think he had a clock programmed. It was such a big contrast from his mom, who was always late to things.

Isic left me on an unsettling last thought.

After visiting all the places in my dream; the treehouse, the round circle with no trees in the middle, and the swing, which we had been on when his time was up, he talked to me for the first time since his promise.

"Roxanne told me the other day that your mommy had breastfed you and me."

Only siblings in the modern era could be breastfed by the same mom. But we weren't siblings. "That's not possible."

Maybe they didn't respect the law?

He stood up. It was 5:45, exactly twenty five minutes after he said he would leave.

"We're not siblings." I repeated.

He didn't answer. But I could tell he wasn't convinced. It was not possible, though. His mom was Roxanne. He had two other brothers. He grew up with them.

I rubbed my temple before standing up. No. it wasn't possible. He was delusional.

I have to admit that I forgot about what he said completely until he brought it again a few weeks later. There was also an event that should have made me realize maybe there was more than meets the eye to our old friendship, and the way we were brought together.