angelia (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
hopeonfire) wrote2021-10-03 11:23 pm
hopeonfire) wrote2021-10-03 11:23 pm
fic: hanging by a moment, incomplete
title: hanging by a moment
fandom: The Baby-Sitters Club.
rating: Low.
relationships: Heather Epstein/Cary Retlin endgame, Heather Epstein/RJ Blaser, mentions of Lucas Danver/Dorianne Wallingford.
warnings: None.
notes: This is old (most of it was written in the summer of 2010) and sadly incomplete. I would love to be motivated to finish it. There was a Grooveshark playlist for it back in the day and I still have the track listing for it and might recreate the playlist on Spotify someday in the future.
Heather stopped walking and looked at Cary. "And what if I had other plans?" she asked curiously, wondering if he was going to respond to her.
"Taken care of. I've spoken to both Mia and Jacqui. They said they would handle it."
She raised an eyebrow at him. "But what about Eric and George? I just can't leave without saying something to them."
"Also taken care of. As long as you're back for his wedding to Eleanor Johnson, your father is cool with you going with me. I can't believe our dear Sgt. Johnson is going to be your step-uncle soon. It should make our future encounters more interesting." Cary paused and smirked at the thought. He continued, "Your dad was kind enough to let me enter your house so I could gather some items you would need. "
"You've been in my room. Did you pick the lock?" She was worried. She knew he had to enter her closet and was probably upset that she had written down all the shenanigans they pulled together during the last couple of years.
He nodded and handed Heather her backpack. "There are a few items in there I figured should come with us." She opened her backpack and saw that all three volumes of Favorite Knitting Patterns were in there along with the knitting supplies she would need. She looked at Cary. "You could have kept those in the safety deposit box," he told her with a wry smile. He didn't sound that upset over their existence which surprised Heather. "I think they make for a remarkable history of our activities I like how you changed the names of the people involved including yourself. Not many people would voluntarily call themselves Edna. If no one knew better, they would say it was a work of fiction. Nice job."
"After Ari left there really wasn't any point," she said with a shrug. "Most people aren't curious about my knitting patterns which is fine. That they appreciate the finished product is the important thing."
"It still was a big risk you took by leaving them in plain sight. I know that's what you like to do, but it seemed really unnecessary with the safety deposit box."
"I didn't know how you would have reacted. For all I knew you could have gotten pissed off. I didn't really know you back then and by the time I knew you well enough I just gotten in the habit of keeping it in the closet."
"I would been curious, but I wouldn't have looked if it was in the safe deposit box. I can't believe I was the only one who looked at them. They were sitting so seductively in your closet."
She glanced at Cary curiously. "Did you peak in my underwear drawer? If you entered my closet it stands to reason you would do that too."
"I had Jacqui pack some clothes and underwear for you. I promise you the virtue of your underwear drawer has not been compromised."
With a roll of her eyes, Heather tossed her backpack in the backseat and climbed into the car. "Let's get going," she said.
********
They had been on the road for about a hour when she remembered her boyfriend. Neither Mia nor Jacqui knew she had made plans with him last night at Dorianne Wallingford's graduation party since they both were distracted by their own significant others. "Shit. I need to call RJ." Without looking at Cary, Heather got out her cell phone and hit the speed dial button she had set up for RJ.
"Hey Heather," RJ said. Heather knew he was smiling. He always seemed glad to hear from her. "What's up?"
She closed her eyes as she spoke. "I'm so sorry to do this, but I have to cancel our date. Something came up and I won't be able to make it."
"That sucks." She cringed when she heard the disappointment in his voice. "What happened?"
"Eric needs me to go to New Mexico to try to convince Ari to come to the wedding. Both him and George seem to think I can do something since he showed up to graduation last night." She did plan on having Cary make a stop in Santa Fe to have a talk with her brother so she wasn't completely lying. Ari needed to come to Eric's wedding or he would regret it. "I don't know how long it's going to take. My brother can be pretty stubborn. At least I know we're related," she said with a laugh.
"Good luck with that. It sucks, but I understand. I'm going to miss you. Try to call me when ever you can."
"I'm going to miss you too and I'll try," she said, hoping she wasn't lying to him again.
"I'm looking forward to it. I guess I better let you go. Love you."
"Love you too. Bye." Heather opened her eyes and noticed that Cary had pulled in a Taco Bell parking lot. She closed her phone and put it back in her pocket.
Cary gave her a curious look as he parked the car. "How much longer are you going to keep that charade up? I thought you were done lying to yourself," he said as he turned off the vehicle.
Heather blinked unaware that Cary had been paying attention to her conversation. The worst thing was that she knew he was right. Her relationship with RJ had become a charade and she had been lying to herself about it. "Excuse me? How exactly would you know that?"
"I've studied you for a long time. During our acquaintance and long before it. I never would have considered you for Mischief Knights if I didn't. Sometimes I think I know you better than I know myself which concerns me, but I digress. You haven't been feeling the relationship for a while. I think you realized that he wasn't what you really wanted, but couldn't figure out how to say it without hurting his feelings. You care about him, but not in the way you thought you did."
"Could we just drop the subject for now?" Heather closed her eyes again and sighed.
Cary got out of the car and walked to the other side. "You can't avoid the subject forever," he said opening the door for Heather. He motioned for her to get out. "Come on. It's time for your daily taco feed."
Heather opened her eyes and got out of the car. She could never say no to tacos.
********
"You didn't lie to him," Cary said as they were finishing their tacos. "Eric does want you to try to talk to Ari. He even offered to fund the trip if we stopped in New Mexico. I told him we would because I didn't want us to have to do everything illegally, but if you want to do that, we can make it our final stop."
Heather took a sip of her Mountain Dew. "I do want to talk to Ari. He's doing to regret not going to Eric's wedding just like I would if Genevieve invited me to her wedding and I didn't go. Not that she'll actually remember that she has a daughter."
"Then it's settled. Santa Fe is our turn around location."
"If the car makes it there, you mean," she said with a smirk. "Your car is just as much as a piece of crap as mine. You couldn't get Eric to spring for a car rental."
"I figured the possible chance of the car breaking down would make our trip more interesting. Your father's wedding isn't until the day before Stoneybrook U starts their fall semester. We'll have plenty of time if we're stranded for two weeks waiting for the car to be repaired."
"Why are you going there?" Heather said still puzzled over the whole thing. "You could've gotten a scholarship to someplace better if you wanted."
"My reasons are mine alone. I would prefer not to share them with you at this moment."
She rolled her eyes. "I thought you were done being secretive with me."
"That was before you started dating him. When you see the light, I'll tell."
Heather glared at Cary. Why was he starting this up again? He was ruining the tacos for her. "Why don't you ever call RJ by his name? It's either he, him, or his."
"I'll tell you when you stop lying to yourself."
********
The next hour was silent. Heather looked at the scenery while Cary drove. When she couldn't take the silence anymore, she reached in her backpack and got out the iPod she received at Dorianne’s the night before. It had been given to her by Dorianne’s boyfriend Lucas Danver through Dorianne. She had been instructed not to read the letter that came with it until sometime this afternoon. It didn’t make any sense unless . . .
She turned to Cary. “Did you tell Lucas about this?” she asked.
“I think he was around while I was talking to George and your father about it. Why do you ask?”
She looked at the iPod and dug out the letter that came with it. She quickly scanned it. “I think he gave us a soundtrack to listen to on our journey.”
fandom: The Baby-Sitters Club.
rating: Low.
relationships: Heather Epstein/Cary Retlin endgame, Heather Epstein/RJ Blaser, mentions of Lucas Danver/Dorianne Wallingford.
warnings: None.
notes: This is old (most of it was written in the summer of 2010) and sadly incomplete. I would love to be motivated to finish it. There was a Grooveshark playlist for it back in the day and I still have the track listing for it and might recreate the playlist on Spotify someday in the future.
Heather stopped walking and looked at Cary. "And what if I had other plans?" she asked curiously, wondering if he was going to respond to her.
"Taken care of. I've spoken to both Mia and Jacqui. They said they would handle it."
She raised an eyebrow at him. "But what about Eric and George? I just can't leave without saying something to them."
"Also taken care of. As long as you're back for his wedding to Eleanor Johnson, your father is cool with you going with me. I can't believe our dear Sgt. Johnson is going to be your step-uncle soon. It should make our future encounters more interesting." Cary paused and smirked at the thought. He continued, "Your dad was kind enough to let me enter your house so I could gather some items you would need. "
"You've been in my room. Did you pick the lock?" She was worried. She knew he had to enter her closet and was probably upset that she had written down all the shenanigans they pulled together during the last couple of years.
He nodded and handed Heather her backpack. "There are a few items in there I figured should come with us." She opened her backpack and saw that all three volumes of Favorite Knitting Patterns were in there along with the knitting supplies she would need. She looked at Cary. "You could have kept those in the safety deposit box," he told her with a wry smile. He didn't sound that upset over their existence which surprised Heather. "I think they make for a remarkable history of our activities I like how you changed the names of the people involved including yourself. Not many people would voluntarily call themselves Edna. If no one knew better, they would say it was a work of fiction. Nice job."
"After Ari left there really wasn't any point," she said with a shrug. "Most people aren't curious about my knitting patterns which is fine. That they appreciate the finished product is the important thing."
"It still was a big risk you took by leaving them in plain sight. I know that's what you like to do, but it seemed really unnecessary with the safety deposit box."
"I didn't know how you would have reacted. For all I knew you could have gotten pissed off. I didn't really know you back then and by the time I knew you well enough I just gotten in the habit of keeping it in the closet."
"I would been curious, but I wouldn't have looked if it was in the safe deposit box. I can't believe I was the only one who looked at them. They were sitting so seductively in your closet."
She glanced at Cary curiously. "Did you peak in my underwear drawer? If you entered my closet it stands to reason you would do that too."
"I had Jacqui pack some clothes and underwear for you. I promise you the virtue of your underwear drawer has not been compromised."
With a roll of her eyes, Heather tossed her backpack in the backseat and climbed into the car. "Let's get going," she said.
********
They had been on the road for about a hour when she remembered her boyfriend. Neither Mia nor Jacqui knew she had made plans with him last night at Dorianne Wallingford's graduation party since they both were distracted by their own significant others. "Shit. I need to call RJ." Without looking at Cary, Heather got out her cell phone and hit the speed dial button she had set up for RJ.
"Hey Heather," RJ said. Heather knew he was smiling. He always seemed glad to hear from her. "What's up?"
She closed her eyes as she spoke. "I'm so sorry to do this, but I have to cancel our date. Something came up and I won't be able to make it."
"That sucks." She cringed when she heard the disappointment in his voice. "What happened?"
"Eric needs me to go to New Mexico to try to convince Ari to come to the wedding. Both him and George seem to think I can do something since he showed up to graduation last night." She did plan on having Cary make a stop in Santa Fe to have a talk with her brother so she wasn't completely lying. Ari needed to come to Eric's wedding or he would regret it. "I don't know how long it's going to take. My brother can be pretty stubborn. At least I know we're related," she said with a laugh.
"Good luck with that. It sucks, but I understand. I'm going to miss you. Try to call me when ever you can."
"I'm going to miss you too and I'll try," she said, hoping she wasn't lying to him again.
"I'm looking forward to it. I guess I better let you go. Love you."
"Love you too. Bye." Heather opened her eyes and noticed that Cary had pulled in a Taco Bell parking lot. She closed her phone and put it back in her pocket.
Cary gave her a curious look as he parked the car. "How much longer are you going to keep that charade up? I thought you were done lying to yourself," he said as he turned off the vehicle.
Heather blinked unaware that Cary had been paying attention to her conversation. The worst thing was that she knew he was right. Her relationship with RJ had become a charade and she had been lying to herself about it. "Excuse me? How exactly would you know that?"
"I've studied you for a long time. During our acquaintance and long before it. I never would have considered you for Mischief Knights if I didn't. Sometimes I think I know you better than I know myself which concerns me, but I digress. You haven't been feeling the relationship for a while. I think you realized that he wasn't what you really wanted, but couldn't figure out how to say it without hurting his feelings. You care about him, but not in the way you thought you did."
"Could we just drop the subject for now?" Heather closed her eyes again and sighed.
Cary got out of the car and walked to the other side. "You can't avoid the subject forever," he said opening the door for Heather. He motioned for her to get out. "Come on. It's time for your daily taco feed."
Heather opened her eyes and got out of the car. She could never say no to tacos.
********
"You didn't lie to him," Cary said as they were finishing their tacos. "Eric does want you to try to talk to Ari. He even offered to fund the trip if we stopped in New Mexico. I told him we would because I didn't want us to have to do everything illegally, but if you want to do that, we can make it our final stop."
Heather took a sip of her Mountain Dew. "I do want to talk to Ari. He's doing to regret not going to Eric's wedding just like I would if Genevieve invited me to her wedding and I didn't go. Not that she'll actually remember that she has a daughter."
"Then it's settled. Santa Fe is our turn around location."
"If the car makes it there, you mean," she said with a smirk. "Your car is just as much as a piece of crap as mine. You couldn't get Eric to spring for a car rental."
"I figured the possible chance of the car breaking down would make our trip more interesting. Your father's wedding isn't until the day before Stoneybrook U starts their fall semester. We'll have plenty of time if we're stranded for two weeks waiting for the car to be repaired."
"Why are you going there?" Heather said still puzzled over the whole thing. "You could've gotten a scholarship to someplace better if you wanted."
"My reasons are mine alone. I would prefer not to share them with you at this moment."
She rolled her eyes. "I thought you were done being secretive with me."
"That was before you started dating him. When you see the light, I'll tell."
Heather glared at Cary. Why was he starting this up again? He was ruining the tacos for her. "Why don't you ever call RJ by his name? It's either he, him, or his."
"I'll tell you when you stop lying to yourself."
********
The next hour was silent. Heather looked at the scenery while Cary drove. When she couldn't take the silence anymore, she reached in her backpack and got out the iPod she received at Dorianne’s the night before. It had been given to her by Dorianne’s boyfriend Lucas Danver through Dorianne. She had been instructed not to read the letter that came with it until sometime this afternoon. It didn’t make any sense unless . . .
She turned to Cary. “Did you tell Lucas about this?” she asked.
“I think he was around while I was talking to George and your father about it. Why do you ask?”
She looked at the iPod and dug out the letter that came with it. She quickly scanned it. “I think he gave us a soundtrack to listen to on our journey.”