Gabriel
Outside, The snow had thickened. We walked as Vivi was holding Iris's mittened hand, Elias sliding effortlessly alongside, and me trailing.
The rink lights gleamed beneath ice-crusted pines. Sablegate Park's skating oval was alive with families and laughter. My ice skates felt awkward as I was putting them on but I clutched the railing as I stepped onto the ice, clutching the railing as I tested a blade.
Vivienne and Iris glided by with laughter trailing like ribbons of joy as Elias was looping around in figure-eights trying to draw the eyes of a few ladies.
"Theres no fun in just standing there," a hand placed on my shoulder. I turned around to see my history teacher, Mr. Wilder.
"Mister Wilder?"
"Yo!" He responded
"Its been a while huh. Funny seeing you here" I said. "I thought you hated snow."
"Well I thought I at least had to try it out someday" He chuckled
After all these years he still looked as young as ever.
"Gabriel, come on! You're missing the fun!" Elias called.
I shook my head. I'm not good at skating, but I didn't mind. It was enough to just watch them.
"Come on, babe. Just try it!" Vivienne followed after.
I shifted my weight, blades biting the ice. My heart hammered. Each wobble felt dangerously close to an epic pratfall.
Iris skated in circles around me giggling. "Papa, faster!"
Vivienne glided over, graceful as silk. "Here" she extended her hand. "How about you try me?"
I hesitated, but placed my glove in hers and took her hand. Her grip was firm, guiding me forward. My knees wobbled and my breath came out in short puffs.
"Papa's so wobbly!" Iris said teasing
"Papa needs training wheels!" Elias added.
Vivi kept pace at my side, "Steady, Relax your shoulders. Bend your knees. I got you."
I glanced at her. Her hair gleaming under the lanterns, cheeks rosy in the cold, eyes warm with encouragement. For a moment the world narrowed to the friction of blades on the ice and the comfort of her grip.
Elias spun twice before skidding to a stop "Look at him go!" he toyed loud enough that I glared bashful and good-naturedly.
"Shut up. I'm not a child." There was probably a slight smirk on my face.
Celebrating my first glide I leaned into her. We circled the rink together, tentative at first, then more confident, VIvienne's laughter spilling out like music.
"Papa's not wiggly anymore!"
Pride or the closest I'd felt to it in days flooded me. Vivienne beamed, twirling me around
"He's perfect when he's trying something new. It's like he's still discovering every part of life." Vivi thought.
Chapter: 5 part 2
Gabriel
We ended up not going home right after skating. None of us said it outright, but it was like we all agreed that we wanted a little more time together, just the four of us.
The city had a calm, late evening glow. Neon signs flickered one by one. Streetlights hummed to life. Somewhere nearby, music played from a speaker, a bit too quiet to recognize, but loud enough to feel like background ambience in our little slice of peace.
Iris led the way, practically skipping toward this outdoor food stand tucked in the corner of the block, "Frozenhub, Hot and Cold" I've passed it a hundred times and never thought to stop. But now the smell alone could have convinced me it deserved every five-star rating plastered across the stands window.
Smoke from the open grill danced into the air, mixed with the tang of citrus and spice.
The setup was simple, bar style seating lined along a long metal counter, with stools bolted into the concrete. The kind of place locals swore by.
"Okay," Elias said, eying the chalkboard menu. "Tell me this doesn't sound fake, grilled shrimp tacos with honey-jalapeño aioli; Garlic butter elote, and hibiscus-glazed chicken skewers."
"Fake," I replied, propping Iris up on my lap. "But order it for me."
We laughed, and ten minutes later our table looked like a masterpiece. Paper trays stacked with steaming food, charred corn smothered in cheese and chili, tacos glistening under drizzles of sauce. Iris went feral before anyone else.
Vivienne nursed a cocktail with crushed ice and teased Iris. "Your getting more of that on your shirt than in your mouth."
Iris stuck her tongue out, mouth full. "Shut up."
Vivi paused for a moment then turned to me before saying "It looks like you're rubbing off on her.
Dinner turned into story time, Elias talking about the time he accidentally set his kitchen on fire trying to recreate my recipe, Iris bragging about beating a bully freshman in basketball at 5 years old, Vivienne joked about how their history teacher years back would do the loudest, most chaotic things to wake me up every time I dozed off, and I would always let out the highest shriek
I Kept teasing Elias about the time he mistook a police horse for a regular one and tried to feed it a bagel. "Ive never seen someone run from an officer so fast while yelling, 'He said he was hungry!'"
"I was trying to be nice!" Elias defended. "You all act like it's the weirdest thing I've done."
"It's top three," I responded, chewing on a chicken skewer.
We talked about everything and nothing at once. Stupid jokes. Inside stories. That one time i got lost in a supermarket trying to find the right milk and texted Vivi a picture of every carton in the aisle
Vivienne laughed mid-bite holding a napkin to her mouth as she tried not to choke on her food. "Okay this is a good one, "Remember senior year when Mx. Delaney accused me of skipping class every time I showed up five minutes late?"
I raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you skip actually class a lot?"
Vivi shot me a smirk. "Irrelevant. Anyway, she makes this huge scene, threatens suspension, tells me I'm setting a poor example in front of the entire class. Mind you. So soon enough I decided to get a little payback."
Elias leaned in. "What did you do? Please tell me it wasn't illegal."
Vivi chuckled slightly, "not illegal, just bratty. You know how she always kept her tea thermos at her desk?"
We nodded.
"I may or may not have swapped it with one that looked identical, except mine had a tiny, slow-release capsule of ghost pepper extract hidden in the lid."
Iris burst out laughing. "Nooo you didn't!"
"She took one sip and immediately started sweating like she was being interrogated. Red face, tears, the whole drama. Claimed someone cursed her. Spent the rest of class fanning herself with a worksheet and muttering about evil spirits."
"And no one found out it was you?"
Vivienne winked. "I left the original thermos on her desk the next day, all washed and everything. With a sticky note that said, 'Maybe don't call people liars next time.'"
Elias dropped his fork laughing. "You're scary."
"Justice is scary," She said proudly. "She was a snob," She defended. "She deserved it."
"Thats evil," I said, "And I'm proud of you."
It felt effortless. Just voices, smiles, greasy fingers, shared drinks, napkins fluttering in the wind. Time didn't exist at that counter. It was just us, real, alive, untouchable.
When we finally finished, faces flushed from laughing too hard, Vivi leaned on the counter and sighed. "Dessert?"
A minute later we found ourselves eating ice cream.
Elias stared at his vanilla scoop, shivering slightly as he sat beside us. "I never thought I'd see myself eating ice cream this time of year."
I chuckled. "You look like you're regretting your life choices."
"Im not," He mumbled through a spoonful. "Just… reevaluating them."
Iris offered him her cone, already melting "Trade you for a bite."
"I'll pass," Elias said. "You got mochi bits on yours, I'm allergic to rice, not to mention you got betrayal in your eyes."
"Being cold to your future wife?" Iris grinned
"This again?" Elias replied. "Maybe when you're older?"
"Iris totally has a type" I said teasingly
"Enough with this!" Elias replied awkwardly.
Everyone quieted down, Vivi was quiet beside me, but her smile hadn't dimmed once. As I neared the bottom of my cone she suddenly scooted closer resting her cheek against mine.
Warm. Gentle. Familiar.
I blinked, heat rushing to my face.
"Hey," I whispered.
"Shh," She murmured. "This is nice."
I wrapped an arm around her shoulder, heart thudding. It was nice. I don't think I ever want this night to end. But it did.
Chapter: 5 part 3
Elsewhere, not far, On a hill outside the city, shrouded by quiet trees and a windless air, a tear split reality in half. The black portal warped the ground it touched, expanding like ink bleeding through paper. From the Void, they came.
Countless demons spilled forward, cloaked in tattered shadows. Their forms resembled beings, but there was something off. They were outlines of hunger and death wrapped in black aura. No, face, no mercy, no need for either.
And after their gathering, when they halted… They looked up.
Something stood before them.
A tall figure, unmoving, shrouded in black. His hair drifted lightly in the night breeze, Dark navy with a strange shimmer, like the deep ocean. His eyes pinkish-red cut through the dark like blood dropped into milk.
He didn't speak right away. He didn't have to.
The figures that had spilled out snarled and twitched, but before him… they knelt. One by one.
Not in fear.
In obedience.
Finally the figure raised a single gloved hand and pointed towards the glow of the city in the distance.
"Go." He said, His voice was silk over razors. "They're waiting."
And just like that, the horde moved.
Silent. Swift. Certain, like they already knew who their targets were.