this love is good, this love is bad [wenclair]

chapter 8.2: I see your brother as my brother

"When you said you knew a place, I didn't expect this", Wednesday commented dryly as we pushed the door of the MacDonald's that was a fifteen-minute walk away from my house.
"I wasn't planning on bringing you here, it's for Tony."
He gave her a bright grin, which she didn't even flinch at.
Back home, right when we were about to leave, Tony showed up at the bottom of the staircase. We had no choice but to bring him with us, since dad was working and mom, Jared and aunt Cassie were still sleeping (passed out).
We sat down at one of the booths by the window and Wednesday offered to go place our order at the counter, so Tony and I made our choices and told her them. Then, Tony asked if he could go to the playground, which I agreed to as long as he would come back maximum ten minutes later.
I watched as Wednesday walked away from our table. She was wearing the dark blue pleated skirt and a white T-shirt with an open grey suit vest above it. Back at Nevermore, on a weekend during which the school had organized some outdoor activities for us, she had worn that same outfit. Only she had put on some tights because the skirt was 'pretty short' and that was against the dress code.
"Do you have a card?", Wednesday asked.
I hadn't even noticed that she came back, too lost in my thoughts.
"They don't accept cash here", she added.
"Ow yeah, just stay here so we don't lose our place, I'll go pay", I said, pulling out my bankcard from my phone case.

When I got back, she had already laid her part in cash on my side of the table. I sat down, put the drinks down and pushed the money towards her.
"Keep it."
"Enid. Respectfully, no", she said and she pushed it back to my side.
"Seriously, keep it. I don't even use cash, I always use my card."
She squinted her eyes in suspicion, but ended up stuffing the money back in her wallet.
"I always use cash. And you should do the same", she said.
"Why?"
"It isn't traceable", she said, emotionless.
I giggled, I should've expected that kind of answer. "Should I be scared?"
"Always", she replied, taking a sip of her drink.
She almost gave me that side smile again. Almost.
"So... What are we doing later today?", Wednesday asked.
I had to think for a second.
"Well, uhm, I thought we could maybe walk around and stuff. I don't really have a plan", I admitted.
She shrugged her shoulders. "Okay."
"Oh. My. God. Is Wednesday Addams just going with the flow?!", I teased.
"Is Enid Sinclair going to make a comment every time I do something unexpected?!", she mocked back, with a big exaggerated smile on her face.
I opened my mouth in surprise.
"Tempted to say something, Sinclair?", she asked, dropping back to her usual relaxed face.
"No, why?", I grinned as I sipped on my drink and looked her in the eyes.
"Oh, the food is coming", she said, breaking eye contact.
I looked over my shoulder and a waitress was indeed coming in our direction with two trays.
"I'll go get Tony", I announced.
"Where is he?"
"On the playground", I said, getting up.
She stood up as well. "I'll get him, you stay here", she said.
I mumbled a muffled 'okay' and sat back down as the waitress put the trays down in the center of the table.
"Thank you!"
She smiled and went away. I decided to not touch the food as long as they weren't back, but after a minute or two I started to already dispose everything on the table to pass the time. Tony's happy meal in front of where he was sitting, Wednesday's salad in front of her seat... I basically set the table, but after I was done, they still weren't back, so I took both Wednesday's purse that she had left and mine, after I'd shoved Tony's plastic dinosaur in it, and left the food behind to go check on them.

"Ha! You'll never get me, just give up", I heard Wednesday say from afar.
"Never!", my brother shouted back.
When I came in, I saw Wednesday at the top of the slide, taunting Tony.
"Are you guys kidding me? The food's already there", I said.
"We just have to finish this", she said, "and I'm not giving up."
"Well neither am I!"
He crossed his arms, full of confidence.
"I don't wanna eat cold, come on guys..."
As could be expected, neither of them reacted to that. In fact, Tony even tried to go up the slide, but failed miserably. Wednesday stuck her tongue out to him, which got him kind of mad. Tony quickly went up the stairs to the slide, but, right when he got there, Wednesday slid it down.
"I'm ready to go", she said, standing by my side.
Tony also got off the slide and came running towards Wednesday.
"HAHA I win!", he exclaimed, bumping her arm with his fist.
"I hate to break it to you, but the game is over. It doesn't count", Wednesday contradicted.
"Not true", he pouted.
"Enid, please tell him it was over", she asked me as we walked back to our table.
"I don't really know, Addams..."
I decided to play with it.
"Come on Enid! It wasn't over!", he insisted, pulling on my T-shirt.
He hadn't taken a game to heart like this since Lucas.
"You know what? Convince me, you guys", I grinned, as I sat down.

"That sure is an interesting thing to have in your purse", Wednesday commented.
I had to think for a second, but then figured she was talking about the plastic dinosaur, whose head was sticking out of my bag that lay between us on the seat of our booth.
"Meet Oscar", I said, pulling it fully out.
"Hey! Give him back!", Tony protested. "Unless you say I win, then keep him."
"Oh gosh, just take it already", I laughed as I gave it back.
"You're enjoying this, aren't you?", Wednesday asked -not really-, rather observed, while stealing one of my fries.
"Yes I am", I said, putting a fry to my mouth as well. "So... do you have any arguments? Do you really think you deserve to win?"
'Do you really think you deserve to win', Wednesday and Tony mumbled under their breath mockingly. I gave both of them the disappointed big sister look and rolled my eyes.
"My burger's cold!", Tony whined.
"Yeah, well, whose fault is it?"

After he was done, my brother went back to the playground. So it was only Wednesday and I at the table. She was finishing her salad while I was just getting started with my burger.
"It's like the universal rule to eat the fries afterwards, not before your burger, you know", she commented.
"Whatever."
"I really wonder", she started in between two bites, "when children stop playing with that stuff."
She gestured to the happy meal toy Tony had gotten and to Oscar.
"Pugsley used to play with those all the time, but someday he just stopped."
"I guess we all do...", I sighed. "Did you play with dolls and stuff?"
I was genuinely curious, because I had difficulties imagining her dressing up Barbie for her date with Ken.
"I guess, if you use decapitate and play synonymously."
I smiled at that.
"But pretty early on, the satisfaction wasn't the same anymore and so I had to start doing it on people", she added.
My smile faded a bit because she seemed dead serious.
"I'm joking by the way."
I sighed in relief.
"Or am I?"

~~~

"Your phone buzzed like fourteen times", I informed her as she entered my room after showering.
After eating, we had walked around town and then went back home. We somehow made it in time for diner, but mom was still mad at us -mostly at me-, even though I had left a note, messaged her and dad AND called her multiple times (she never picked up). Long story short, diner had been pretty awkward. After that I kissed Tony goodnight and Wednesday and I headed back to my room. I showered first, then she did the same to 'wash the fastfood smell away'.
She was still drying her hair with a borrowed towel. "It's probably Xavier."
"Ow."
She went over to where her bag was and took a hair brush out of it.
"How do you keep your hair that healthy? Even when I didn't dye mine, it was dry as fuck."
"I mostly stay out of the sun. No sun, no damage."
I shrugged my shoulders. "I guess that works."
I threw myself on the bed, unlocked my phone and started to scroll on social media. Nothing new. No drama, nothing. Typical for the beginning of the summer break. Still disappointing, though.
"Oh! BeReal time!"
"You better be joking, Enid."
"Strike a pose!"
I got the killer look from her, again. Then I proceeded to take a selfie.
"This is so gen z of you", Wednesday commented.
"Oh, I know", I grinned, putting my phone away. "So what are we doing?"
"I'm not watching another coming of age movie with you", she immediately reacted.
"Okay okay", I said putting my hands up.
She came closer and sat on her mattress on the ground.
"What about..."
She raised an eyebrow.
"We could just talk, but not for too long. Not gonna lie, I'm tired 'cause someone woke me up way too early."
"I was hungry okay", she replied.