Page 65 of Nocturne

I sigh quietly, brushing away the ache that creeps in at the edges of that memory.

I miss those goofy boys who chased after me, insisting on copying everything I did. They filled the space where a brother should’ve been—a space that’s been hollow ever since they left.

“Behold the masterpiece,” Ivy tries to mimic some deep voice as she descends the staircase.

I glance at her and struggle to suppress my laughter as she continues, adding what she clearly thinks are grand trumpet sounds. Instead, it sounds like a dying kazoo.

Her outfit—jean shorts and a white shirt tied above her navel—is splattered with paint. There’s white on her cheek, red on her chin, and streaks of blue on her forearm. Even her bandana looks like it’s been attacked by a colour palette. She’s barefoot like me, carefree and completely at home in this chaos we’ve created. When she notices Eero behind me, she lets out a low whistle — the same one she learned from him.

“Look what the cat dragged into our neighbourhood,” she quips with a grin.

I glance at Eero, remembering how Ivy told me he had dropped by regularly while I was in the hospital—even when I was asleep—just to check on me. It gave them plenty of time to bond, and they’ve become quick friends since. They’ve even exchanged numbers, texting each other dumb memes and inside jokes I’m clearly not privy to.

I’d asked Ivy once if there was anything romantic between them, but she scrunched up her nose as if I’d suggested something truly offensive.

“Sexy, yes. But nah,” she’d said, waving it off. “He’s more like a partner-in-crime. My meme dealer.”

I’m sure that is because her eyes have been busy fixating on some other devilishly charming man, but I don’t dare say that out loud. Where Iblis is concerned, Ivy’s like a ticking bomb, ready to go off at any moment.

I have no idea what the man did to successfully crawl down her skin. One minute she hates him and the other minute she cannot stop thinking or obsessing over him.

“What is this masterpiece you’re talking about?” Eero cocks his head, an amused glint in his face.

It is a nice reprieve to see the absence of the psycho-killer maniac smile on his face that scared the wits out of me initially. It is still slightly weird that we are friends with this man, but Eero has the knack to slither into the tiniest cracks and shove himself into our lives and make us feel good about it. He is goofy, childish, fun and humorous.

He is also deeply caring and observant. It makes it easy for me to forget who he is and what he does.

“Follow me,” Ivy motions us with her head.

We climb the stairs, heading to the north side of the floor, where the L-shaped master bedroom dominates, its massive windows overlooking the street. Cas's room, to the left of the bannister, is slightly smaller than mine but perfect for the blanket fort I plan to build for him.

As Ivy leads us to Cas’s room, I can’t help but gasp at the transformation. She’s spent three days working on it, armed only with the vague instruction that Cas loves space and stars. Now, the room looks like a mini planetarium.

The walls and ceiling are painted black, depicting twinkling stars, planets, and star clusters. The ceiling, with its swirling hues of blue, orange, pink, and white, is breathtaking, perfectly capturing the beauty of nebulae.

“This isn’t it,” Ivy says, closing the curtains and turning off the lights.

I gasp again, tears stinging my eyes as white stars begin to twinkle in the dark.

“I got glow-in-the-dark paint and worked some magic. Do you like it?”

Ivy’s nervous smile makes me laugh through my tears. Without thinking, I pull her into a tight hug.

“Like it? Iloveit! Thank you so much, Ives. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

“You don’t have to tell me. I already know,” she says, relaxing as she pats my back and hugs me with a soft laugh.

Eero, standing off to the side, smirks. “Alright, I’m allergic to this mushy stuff. I’m heading downstairs to finish assembling. Brilliant work, love.”

Ivy thanks him as he leaves, but I’m still staring at the room, words failing me. Cas is going to love this. And her.

“Wow. Just wow.”

Ivy blushes, turning away to clear her throat, obviously uncomfortable with the praise.

“Cas is going to love it,” I say softly.

Her hopeful eyes meet mine. She hasn’t met him yet but is already so invested, nervous that he won’t like her.

---