Chapter 11
The next morning, Kate woke up feeling giddy and more refreshed than she had in a long time.
She was ready to seize the day, conquer the world even, if necessary! Unbeknownst to the redhead, a wide grin was on her face.
Her mother who she passed by in the hallway smiled knowingly at her eldest daughter and called out, a little louder than usual to get her daughter's attention. "Good morning, Katie! Sleep well?“
Kate snapped out of her daydream, greeting her mother back joyfully. "Mornin' ma! Very well in fact. How did you sleep?“
The older Janeway smiled a little brighter hearing her eldest daughter's words. "That's good to hear, sweetheart. I slept well, despite your old man's snorin'.“
The two giggled, alerting Phoebe who'd just stepped out of her room. "What's so funny? I wanna have a laugh as well.“
Gretchen and Kate shared a look before letting the youngest Janeway in on the joke, resulting in a snort to leave Phoebe, rolling her eyes playfully, a gesture she'd learned from her older sister. "Tell me 'bout it! I hardly slept last night cause of that. The walls in this house are far too thin!“
Kate felt grateful to have a room that was quite far off from the master bedroom.
Not only did it make sneaking out at night much easier than if she had her younger sister's room, but also did she not have to endure her father's infamous snoring.
As much as she loved her father, if there was one thing the young girl could not stand it was snoring.
Kate preferred absolute silence as it was what helped her fall asleep the best.
The redhead for a moment there found herself wondering if Nastya was a snorer or a quiet sleeper.
'Nah, who are you trying to fool, Katie? There's no way in hell a girl like her is snoring! She totally pings me as a quiet sleeper.'
"Only one way to find out for real.", a tiny voice said to her that sounded much like her younger sister, except that it was in her head.
'Oh, hell, nah! Don't tell me Phoebe got in my head already, quite literally. What a pain...'
The redhead groaned out in agony, dragging herself down the stairs to the kitchen from which the delicious scent of pancakes and freshly brewed coffee greeted her, causing her to lick her lips subconsciously.
"Thinkin' of Nastya, sis?“ Kate almost jumped at the teasing voice of her little sister that this time wasn't in her head, but came from next to her.
The older girl turned in the direction the voice had come from, shooting one of her infamous death stares at Phoebe who visibly flinched.
Her tone icy, Kate told her. "Watch what you're sayin', lil sis. I doubt you want me to have a talk with ma about your behavior. Do you?“
Phoebe looked horrified, her eyes watery she begged her older sister. "Please, don't talk to ma, Katie! I promise to keep ma mouth shut from now on.
"Sorry for what I just said. It was uncouth.“
She softly added. "You like Nastya though, Katie. Don't ya? I promise I won't tell ma and pa.
"I know she likes you too. You two would make for a great pair in my opinion.“
Kate's eyes turned wide at her sister's words, her cheeks turning pink. "Pheebs, please... Can we stop this conversation now? It makes me uncomfortable.
"Just why do ya think I like girls anyway? It's normal for girls to like boys, after all...“
Phoebe Janeway to her older sister's surprise stated smartly. "Why would it not be normal for girls to like girls, sis? I like Natascha too and I know you like Nastya and that's fine.
"Whoever said girls liking other girls is not normal was an idiot!
"I don't like boys, they're yuck and I know you think the same, Katie. I've read it in your red book...“
Kate's eyes turned even wider, rage turning her blood cold, her voice low and menacing. "You did.. what, Phoebe Janeway? When did you read it? How much of it?“
Phoebe wished the ground beneath her feet would swallow her whole, humiliation causing her to blush hard, her eyes downcast she mumbled. "I'm sorry, Katie. I was lookin' for ya one day, bout a month ago and the book was lying opened on your bed.
"I didn't know it was private and not meant to be read by anyone else. I only read the recent entry which said that you feel attracted to girls and were afraid ma and pa could find out and disown you which I think is bullshit.
"They'd never do that! They love ya, Katie. You're their precious eldest daughter, whether you like girls or boys.“
Kate felt tears well up in her eyes, forcing them down she told her sister sternly. "What did we say about cursin'?“
Phoebe bit her bottom lip before grinning sheepishly. "Cursin' is only allowed for the adults of this house. That means you're not allowed to curse either, by the way, Katie. Ya know that, right?“
Phoebe smirked triumphantly which caused Kate to sigh and roll her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, Pheebs. I'm aware of that. No need to rub it in ma face.
"On a lighter note... Thanks for accepting me the way I am. It means a lot to me and if you're interested in girls too as you told me earlier know that I'll support ya come what may and by the way, Natascha and you would make for a cute couple, Pheebs.“
Kate winked playfully at her little sister who blushed adorably. "Y-ya think so, Katie? She's so pretty though and I'm well... plain and boring. What could I possibly offer her?“
Kate frowned, telling the younger girl sternly. "You're not plain and boring, Phoebe. Whoever told ya that was a nutjob!
"My lil sister is smart and cute. I accept nothing else. Now, let's go eat breakfast. Else ma and pa will hunt us down.“
Phoebe quickly scrambled into the kitchen, making Kate chuckle at her little sister's antics, following her at a more casual pace, without her knowledge a goofy grin had formed on her face once more.
The duo greeted their parents who had already started their breakfast.
Edward Janeway smiled gently at his oldest daughter. "Katie, what's gotten you into such high spirits today? Does it have anything to do with...“
He stopped mid-sentence, irritating his daughter who asked. "Does it have anything to with what, pa? Why did ya stop talkin'?“
The older man scratched his beard before changing the topic. "Ready to get back to work today, pumpkin?“
Kate felt even more irritated at her father's odd behavior now but decided to shrug it off for the time being, declaring. "Sure thing, pa! The fields are callin' my name.“
Phoebe exclaimed while standing up. "Well, school's callin' my name, so I'm gonna get goin' now.
"See ya'll in the afternoon. Have a great day at work everyone! Bye Katie, bye ma, bye pa!“
The other three waved at the youngest Janeway before exclaiming back in unison. "Bye Phoebe!“
The youngest Janeway snickered, still feeling amused at the way her family bid goodbye to her in perfect sync, despite having heard it for years now. Some things never grow old.
To Phoebe's surprise, Kate appeared in the doorframe when she was about to leave.
The younger girl tilted her head to the side in wonder and asked her older sister. "Did I forget something, Katie?“
Kate shook her head before taking the smaller girl into a bearhug, stunning Phoebe.
Her voice gentle, the older told the younger sister. "I love you, Phoebe. Just thought I should tell ya that. I haven't told ya that enough in the past two years, or so and for that, I'm really sorry.
"Have fun in school and study hard, alright? I believe in ya, Pheebs.“
The shorter girl sniffled, deeply touched by her sister's words and gesture. "I promise it, Katie. I'll make ya proud.
"Love ya too, big sis! Always have, always will. You'll always be my hero!“
Kate felt touched, tears brimming in her own eyes now.
She tightened her hold on the younger girl before gently letting go of her. "You gotta leave now. You don't wanna risk running late. Do you?“
Phoebe dashed off which made her older sister chuckle in amusement.
Her laughter died in her throat at a familiar alto stating. "The tendency to 'bolt off' certainly seems to run in the family.“
Kate swallowed hard, afraid to look up, her cheeks burning. Fencing down her inner demons she finally did dare look and was greeted by nothing.
'Come again? I swear I heard Nastya's voice just now. Am I losing my mind already?'
Kate looked around once more, tentatively asking. "Nastya? Are you there?“
To her dismay, she was greeted by silence, no sign of the blonde anywhere.
Kate who felt completely bewildered at what had just transpired outside, trying unsuccessfully to come up with a logical explanation for the odd occurrence but to her chagrin coming up empty-handed.
The young girl was grateful when her father joined her outside soon after and the two of them went to the fields together to spent another day of hard work there while Gretchen Janeway was busy preparing lunch for the hardworking duo.
Kate found herself wondering what her mother was cooking for lunch today. Suddenly something blue in her peripheral caught her attention.
Kate went over to it and was stunned to find it was a cornflower, the same kind of flower Nastya had plucked for her the other day on their way to Fairy Hill.
Kate carefully plucked the delicate flower, lifting it up to her nose, inhaling its sweet scent when out of a sudden a voice made her look up. "Kate!“
The redhead looked around, her eyes scanning the whole area around, only to once again be greeted by nothing but the vast fields around and her father busy working in the distance.
Kate broke out in a cold sweat, crying out while cradling her face. "No, no!!!“
She fell down on her knees, whispering out. "This can't be! It's impossible. Experiencing this one time is one thing, but to have the same thing happen to me twice in one day...
"I must really be losing it! Oh, Gods. What do I do? I can't share this with anyone, much less Nastya herself.
She'll think I'm mad and belong in an asylum! I need to find an explanation for this, but before that, it may be best to stay home...“
At the same time, a certain blonde sat in her trailer, cradling a cup of coffee in her hands. She had never tried the beverage before, feeling repulsed by the mere scent of it, yet she experienced a strong urge to do so right now.
Her thoughts as per usual these days wandered off to a certain redhead, wondering what she might be doing at this moment.
Taking the early hour into consideration, Anastasia was soon convinced she was most likely still busy with farm work right now.
Forcing down the feeling of repulsion, Nastya took a first furtive sip of the hot beverage. She rolled the liquid around in her mouth for a while before swallowing, a soft smile forming on her lips.
'This is good! I did expect it to be undrinkable, taking the bitter scent into consideration, but it is surprisingly sweet and savory at the same time with a hint of bitterness to round up the flavor.
'I can relate to why Kate would enjoy this drink now. It possesses quite a pleasant aroma.'
The blonde bit her lip, heat rising from her ears to her cheeks, causing her to hide her face inside her oversized wool pullover.
It certainly had not been helping her situation at all to have that dream the previous night, much less the actions she performed earlier...
In the afternoon after eating lunch with the rest of her theater family, Nastya who felt restless decided to take a walk around town to try and take her mind off things.
She needed time to be alone and to think. Natascha had gone to the Janeway farm to meet her new friend Phoebe there.
The younger girl had asked the blonde if she wanted to accompany her there, but Nastya, to Natascha's surprise had declined, stating she had business to attend to in the town center.
On her walk, Anastasia came by lots of shops and quite a few people. Thanks to Dee's potion, the young woman's face was void of her implants which to her chagrin did not stop strangers from looking in her direction.
She hoped it was merely because she was not from around here and not because they were repulsed by her appearance.
Before long, Nastya, to her own surprise, found herself standing before a relatively big building, especially for Carbury's standards which read 'Town library'.
The blonde was delighted and decided to go inside and take a look around.
'Maybe they indeed do have that book there. Or maybe other books of that genre...'
Anastasia shook her head dismissively at her own thoughts, walking into the building, head held high.
She politely greeted the librarian sitting behind a counter who was engrossed, as expected, in reading a book.
The woman looked up briefly, smiling softly at the tall woman, whispering a 'G'day.' back at her.
Nastya walked over to the fiction section of the library, browsing the shelves for interesting titles.
When she rounded a corner she bumped into someone, her cheeks turning pink in humiliation, muttering quick apologies under her breath that sounded far more Russian than English.
The blonde's heart stopped for a split second upon hearing the familiar husky voice exclaiming in shock. "Nastya?“
The addressed woman looked down at a by-now blushing Kate who was covering her mouth with a hand, embarrassed about her own outburst, much less inside a library which was as everyone should know a quiet zone.
Nastya found herself dumbfounded when the redhead suddenly ran off, never looking back. The blonde felt her heart ache, afraid Kate did not enjoy the time they'd spent together the previous night, after all.
She left the library as well, determined to find the younger girl and talk to her. She didn't have to look far.
Kate had sat down on a bench, face hidden in her hands, worrying the blonde.
Nastya walked up hesitantly, taking a seat next to the redhead who as she noticed to her surprise mumbled under her breath.
Anastasia wrapped one arm around the smaller girl, gently pulling her closer, inquiring. "Kate, what is the matter? Do you not wish to see me again?
"Are you frightened because of what has transpired between us the previous night? Are you repulsed by my presence, or by my person in general?
"I understand if you do not wish to see me again. It appears my assessment of the situation was... flawed.
"The conclusions I'd drawn based on your behavior illogical and my own emotions are irrelevant. Do not mind me. I shall go take my leave and never bother you again...“
Kate uncovered her face, staring at the girl next to her wide-eyed, whispering. "Nastya, what are you talking about? You've got it all wrong! Of course, I want to still see you and I'm not repulsed by you, never!
"You are the most gorgeous person I've ever met in my life and the sweetest one as well. Please, don't leave, Nastya!
"I didn't run away from you, well not exactly anyway. I ran away because I thought I was hallucinating, that you were a vision and I'd finally completely lost my mind...“
Nastya frowned in confusion, new hope blossoming in her chest that maybe, just maybe Kate did return her feelings, after all.
The words the younger girl had said, however, were deeply concerning her and she asked the redhead. "Kate, what do you mean, you thought you were hallucinating?
"You deemed me a 'vision' and that you had lost your sanity? What would make you reach those conclusions?“
Kate sighed heavily, merely worrying the blonde further before answering her, cheeks turning crimson which sent heat to a place Nastya did not wish to experience such a sensation, especially not right at this moment. "This probably sounds strange now, but... earlier today I could've sworn I heard your voice.
"The first time it occurred I was shocked because it sounded so real, but when I looked up you were nowhere to be seen.
"The second time was during work while we were out in the fields. I'd just found a cornflower, the blue flower you'd plucked for me the other day and placed in my hair, and was smelling it when out of the blue, I could've sworn I heard you crying out my name.
"It kinda sounded like you were in pain, now that I think about it...“
Kate frowned at the realization, wondering how she hadn't noticed such a crucial detail before. Nastya on the other hand was stunned.
It took a while before she asked hesitantly. "May I know when you were experiencing these occurrences, Kate?
"Also, you stated on the field it seemed like I was crying out your name. What did I say the first time?“
Kate pinched the bridge of her nose, a gesture she tended to do to prevent an oncoming headache from building, pondering before answering the blonde. "I believe the first time you said. 'The tendency to bolt off certainly seems to run in the family.'
"What's weird about this is that Phoebe had just run off the moment before I heard you say that, so I wasn't too surprised about those words, but the fact that you seemed to suddenly be around.
"As for the time those two events took place. Hm, let me see.
The first one was shortly after Phoebe had left for school which usually starts at 8, so it must've been around 7:30 am.
"The second one was about an hour before lunch, so at about 11 am. Why do you wanna know that though, Nastya?“
The blonde was taken aback.
'This can not be! At 7:30 am I said just that to Dee while we were having a conversation about Kate during breakfast and at 11 am... I certainly did cry out her name, albeit not in pain, but...'
Nastya felt her own cheeks heat up, feeling caught, despite Kate technically not knowing of the actions she'd performed earlier today while she was out in the fields, innocently smelling a flower.
She swallowed before stating. "I believe there is no reason for you to worry, Kate. I sometimes do experience the sensation of hearing a certain voice, despite the person said voice belongs to not being around.
"It is an auditory hallucination, yet I believe everyone experiences these every now and then, so you are not alone and certainly not mad!“
Kate flinched at the harsh tone in which the blonde had said the last words, nodding softly. "You're probably right, Nastya. Thank you for listening to me and reassuring me of my sanity.
"Would you like to do something together? I could introduce you to another sight of the town if you like.“
The duo soon agreed to do a little sightseeing to take both their minds off things, both thankful for the distraction...