Chapter Text
ᴊᴜɴᴇ sᴇᴠᴇɴᴛᴇᴇɴᴛʜ
２００７
𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛
Natalie lifts her head at the sound of a door opening, then of crashing. She instinctively knows it's probably Ronnie coming back.
"This is all I could find. Got most of it from my creepy uncle."
"That's just fantastic, Ro."
"You have any family members that aren't criminally insane?"
Ronnie shrugs, going back to making sure Kale doesn't break everything he touches.
"How long has he lived here?"
"Uh, I think about two or three years."
"So, he could've lived in Texas."
"Hey, check this out."
Ronnie and Natalie come up being Ashley, leaning forward to get a better look at the computer screen.
"Murderer: Tell Tale Signs of a Serial Killer. Qualifies for free shipping if you pair it with The Shrine of Jeffrey Dahmer."
"Kale, no."
"Why not?"
"What do you think mom will say if she finds you reading that? She'll think you've gone mental!"
"Going mental is better then smoking pot everyday!"
"What the fuck are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb, Nat! You think I can't tell when you come home stoned, reeking like weed?!"
"So what?"
"So, what? You think it's fucking healthy?"
"Don't act like what you're doing is any better, Kale!"
"You punched your spanish teacher, Kale! For fuck's sake, you're on house arrest!"
"What, like you street racing is any better?!
"Fuck you!"
"Fuck you too!"
"You are so selfish, man!"
Ronnie and Ashley are bystanders of the twin confrontation, silently observing.
"Selfish? That's fucking rich coming from you!"
"I am so sick of you! Ever since dad died, it's like I don't even know who you are anymore!"
"Don't bring him into this!"
"No! I am so tired of you acting like you're the only one who suffered!"
"I don't!"
"You do! It's like you think he only knew you!"
"Nat-"
"Newsflash, Kale! You aren't the only one who lost him!"
"I never said that!"
"Maybe, but you fucking act like it!"
"He was my dad too, Kale! I lost my father too!"
"I know that you blame yourself for what happened, even though it's not your fault!"
"But, sometimes, I can't even look at you! Because everytime I do, all I see is him!"
Natalie stands stone still after that, breathing heavily, glaring at him with gleaming eyes.
Kale stares right back, with hurt clear in his features. He opens his mouth to speak, but she holds up her hand to stop him.
"Save it. Come find me when you have a fucking reality check."
She leaves the room after that, slamming the door behind her. The room is filled with a heavy tension, silent in it's ways.
Kale clears his throat awkwardly, resuming his previous actions. Ashley gapes at him in disbelief, at the fact he's already moved on.
Ronnie knows better, but he's never been good at comforting Kale. Natalie is a different story.
Ronnie stands up, excusing himself from the room. "I- Uh, I'm gonna go check on her." He nods hastily, exiting the room as quickly as he can.
He doesn't stop to ponder her location, because he knows exactly where she'll be.
She's always had a tendency to sit on the outside roof when she's upset. He knows.
He makes his way out into the roof through the window.
"If it's you Kale, you can leave."
"Nat."
"Ronnie."
"I'm not here to reprimand you."
Ronnie cautiously sits next to her, only inches apart. She gently scoots closer to him, letting their shoulders touch.
"You probably hate me now, right?"
Ronnie's eyes soften, looking at her worriedly.
"Why would you think that?"
"Because I just yelled at Kale."
"Nat, he's Kale. Sometimes he needs to be yelled at."
"Still."
"I don't hate you, Nat. I could never hate you."
Natalie finally glances up at him, her eyes gleaming with unshed tears. She blinks, as small droplets leak out of the corners.
Ronnie frowns at this, hating to see her upset.
He places a hand on her cheek, gently brushing away a stray trailing tear. She looks into his eyes, and hers are so full of hurt, and anger, and it makes him want to hurt every single person on this earth, who ever upset her.
She's looking at him, and then it's as if she isn't there anymore. Her eyes glaze over, and her breathing becomes laboured, and fast paced.
She starts making this choked sounds, almost like she can't breathe. Oh. 𝘖𝘩.
She's having a panic attack. Ronnie's seen her have them before. But not for a while.
"I-"
"Can't-"
"Breathe-"
Ronnie hovers protectively over, trying not to seem like he's closing in on her.
"Nat, c'mon."
"Look at me. Breathe."
"I can't."
Ronnie claps his hands on both her cheeks, forcing her to look him. She's shaking, he can feel it through his hands.
"Please, I know you can do it. Just focus. Alright, just breathe."
"C'mon, just focus. It's just you and me, alright? It's just us, just me."
Something inside her seems to snap at that, her shallow breathing slowly evening out. Ronnie gently strokes her cheekbones, trying to ease her down.
"I- I'm sorry."
"Don't apologize, Nat. You know I won't judge you."
She looks up at him finally, breathing normally, but still shaking.
"Hey. You good?"
"Yeah. Thanks."
"Don't worry about it. What happened?"
"I guess it was just too much. You know, everything? I mean, my dad dying, mom having to work twice as much to support us, Kale getting put on house arrest."
"And now, Kale stalks people for a living, and our middle aged man neighbor could very well be a fucking serial killer!"
"God, when did our lives get so fucked up?"
She stares at him, with a smile in her eyes. He bursts out laughing, causing her to do the same.
She starts coughing from laughing too hard, prompting Ronnie to clap her on the back. She comes down in soft wheezes, letting out a heavy sigh.
"I should probably apologize."
Ronnie doesn't say anything, only patting her shoulder. She ruffles his hair, before heading back inside. She makes her way up to Kale's room, opening the door.
"I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry."
"You go first."
"I'm sorry I called you mental."
"I'm sorry I brought up you smoking."
"I'm sorry I talked about you punching your teacher."
"I'm sorry I said your street racing was bad."
Kale smiles at her, punching her lightly in the shoulder.
"You gonna tell mom?"
"I won't if you don't. But only if you promise to let me watch you race sometimes."
"Deal."