The Dorm Guard

Goodbye: used to express good wishes when parting.

*

Robyn"s parents wouldn"t let her come back to the dorm, to which Robyn strangely agreed if it meant there was no more arguing.

Her parents stood in the doorway, each somewhat rattled by Ava"s words. Ava a.s.sumed she was no longer welcomed in the Penrose house, and she was fine with that, she just hoped Robyn wouldn"t hate her.

Robyn hugged me goodbye before turning her attention to Ava.

It was a heartfelt farewell. Ava embraced Robyn, "Maybe after some time," she signed, "We can get together again. Pretend that none of this ever happened."

Robyn smiled at that, looking down to the ground, looking bashful. Ava became daring, and reached up to her face, tucking one of her loose locks behind her ear and holding her face. "Robyn, you are amazing, okay? And talented. And sweet. And you make the best chocolate cake ever." Robyn blushed at the compliment, pulling her head from Ava"s hand as she added, "Please, don"t let anyone tell you otherwise, okay?"

After a while, Robyn made a feeble nod. Ava nodded, "Good. I"m gonna miss you." Ava embraced her friend again before pulling away and walking over to me. Her façade of calm shattering when she faced away from Robyn.

Robyn made a clicking sound.

Ava turned, Robyn having clicked her tongue to catch her attention. Robyn closed the s.p.a.ce between them, in the few moments her eyes filled with tears and she started frantically signing, her breathing erratic. "I"m so sorry, Ava. I"m so sorry that I can"t control more of what happens…" Robyn started sobbing, slowly scrunching her fists in distress.

Ava"s worry vanished as she consoled Robyn. "Oh Robyn, no, sweetheart, shh, shh." Ava reached forwards, holding her longer as she tried to soothe her. "Robyn, listen to me," Ava pulled away so that Robyn could read her lips, "None of what"s happened… none of it is your fault, you hear me? None of it."

Robyn sniffed as she wiped her eyes and I watched her say, "I love you, Ava," and kissed her.

Ava wasn"t expecting it as upon their lips touching she grunted, she was taken aback by the tender kiss. But I could tell when the surprise pa.s.sed as Ava leaned into the kiss, blindly reaching forwards to hold Robyn.

It was such a sweet moment.

And the moment that either pulled away, where they could look into each other"s eyes post-kiss for only a millisecond, Damien grabbed Robyn by the arm and pulled her, outraged by his daughter"s action. But Robyn yanked her arm from his grip, stamping her foot and startling her father with a cold glare. She rubbed where he had grabbed her to soothe the discomfort before she faced Ava and signed something I missed.

With nothing else to say, she turned and marched back to the house, ignoring her mother"s touch and leaving her father outside. After a moment, Damien rushed back inside.

I hurried to Ava, who stood there stunned.

"Ava, are you okay?" I asked as I faced her and held her shoulders.

She was still in a state of shock, her eyes gla.s.sy as her hand slowly touched her lips. "Yeah I"m… I"m fine…" she sounded absent.

"What was Robyn saying just then?" I asked, looking back at the house.

Ava blinked, pressing her lips together in thought as she said, ""I love you, goodbye.""

The crack of stone under wheels came to life as the limo drove down the driveway towards us. When it pulled up, Ava was still in a state of deep thought, I had to nudge her towards the car. When she sat down, she absently put on her seatbelt as she made small sign gestures I didn"t recognise.

We were well on our way home when Ava"s hands froze, and the colour drained from her face. "Stop the car…" she said.

I frowned, "What?"

She bashed against the plastic gla.s.s that separate pa.s.sengers and drivers. "Turn us around! Take us back!" she yelled, confusing the driver.

In a panic, Ava pulled on the door handles, trying to open the car door. When she couldn"t, she kicked at the window, close to cracking it when the driver started freaking out himself. "What the h.e.l.l are you doing?!"

"Either take us back or let me out of the car!" Ava demanded.

Not wishing to be part of some liability, the driver turned the car around and drove back towards the house. When I tried to ask what was wrong, Ava was in too much hysterics to give me a straight answer, just panickily told me, "She said she loved me, goodbye, she said she was sorry. I just need to make sure I"m wrong."

"Wrong about what?" I pried.

The car came to a sudden stop and Ava sprinted from the car to the front door and started banging on the wood. After seconds when no one answered, she stepped back, bracing herself to kick it down, when the old butler turned the k.n.o.b and opened the door.

Ava barrelled past the old man, almost knocking him over in her pursuit of the stairs, only to be blocked by Damien and Grace, who were at the base of the stairs. Upon seeing her, Damien tried to catch her, but Ava braced herself against him and managed to pull herself from his reach.

"Where"s Robyn?" Ava shrilled.

The tone of her voice frightened the Penrose parents. "What? Why?"

"Please, where is she?" Ava pleaded.

I managed to catch up to her and touched her shoulder. "Av"

She shrugged me off, "No. Is she in the room she"s usually in when she stays here?" Ava asked, she sounded so desperate.

Grace became fl.u.s.tered, "Yes but…"

Ava sprinted two at a time up the stairs, despite the objections of Grace and Damien, who were quick to run after her.

Ava stayed a head of them, when she reached the hallway, she sped walked to some of the doors, counting them in search of the one she was looking for. I made it to the hall as she tried to open a door: it was locked.

"Robyn!" Ava called, open palm slapping the wall as she pressed her ear against it, "Robyn! Robyn!" She started punching and kicking the door. Damien demanded to know what was going on. "I think Robyn is going to kill herself!" Ava answered as she started kicking at the lock.

This information stunned the couple into silence, neither objecting as Ava continued to kick the door in until the lock broke and Ava stumbled inside, crashing onto the ground.

The room was dark, not a single light had been turned on, sending a rectangle of light stretching from the doorway to the opposite wall. With the new threat at hand, I rushed in soon after as Ava got to her feet and scanned the room for Robyn.

Her eyes locked on a silhouette in the closet, and her voice cracked as she squealed, "Robyn!"