Summer In Cloudsdale

by Marli_Lin

Chapter 11

Before leaving for college, Dash decided to call her parents. Although she wasn’t sure if her parents knew about the fire or not, she still thought they should know. Who knew if they had heard, but couldn’t reach her, because she had just activated her new phone from Soarin this morning. Her parents would probably be worried to death.
Before Soarin left for the airport that morning, he told Dash that Aunt Rose would be coming to clean the house. According to him, Aunt Rose used to come up the house three times a week. He said she had worked for the family for a long time and that she could be trusted one hundred percent, so Dash didn’t have to worry. However, she still had to be careful. If people found out she lived in Soarin’s house, it would turn into a scandal.
After introducing herself to Aunt Rose and letting the portly middle-aged woman carry out her duties, Dash took the phone and went into the room to call her parents. Like her first assumption, it turned out her parents didn’t know anything about the fire, and now Dash had to try hard to calm them down.
First, she spoke with her mother, so she spoke in Indonesian.
"Yes, I’m okay, Mom. The fire was rather large, so I couldn’t grab anything ... What? ... Oh, as far as I know, no one was injured. Everyone survived ... But the fire department came rather late, so the building was completely charred."
Suddenly, Dash heard another voice on the other end, and she changed to English. "Daddy, you don’t need to worry about that. I am alright. Really. I’m safe. Why?"
It seemed like her mother was trying to snatch the phone from her dad. Dash smiled to herself as she heard her mother speak impatiently. Finally, her mother regained control of the phone, and Dash returned to speaking in Indonesian.
"Dash, why don’t you go home here for a while?" she offered.
Dash chuckled. "I’m still going to school. "
"So, where are you living now?" she asked directly.
Dash confused to answer it. "Now? ... Ng, staying at a friend's house. My friend lives alone. Anyway, there are empty rooms here. Today I’m going to find a new place to live. "
"You're not staying at Spitfire’s home?" she asked again.
"No. You’ve seen her home. Her house just large enough for her family. If I stayed there, I would be a burden to Uncle and Aunt, right? Spit has already lent some of her clothes to me, so I didn’t want cause them any more trouble."
"Oh, I see?” She continued speaking, “What is your friend's name? What’s the number? Where’s the address? "
Now Dash somewhat reluctantly replied, "My friend?"
"Yes, the friend that’s allowing you to stay in their house. What is their name? Do I know them? "
"Oh ... oh ... it's ..." Did she have to be blunt?
"Don’t tell me you’re now in the artist's home."
Her mother's words struck like lightning in broad daylight. So her mother already knew? How did she?
"Mom…?" Dash is still trying to dodge.
"My friends told me." Her mother's voice turned flat. "So?"
Dash was shocked. She sat cross-legged on the bed, staring at her toes.
"Tell me, are you in a relationship with the artist?"
Dash swallowed and breathed slowly. "He’s … just …like …," she stuttered a bit timidly.
"Like what?" insisted her mother. "So, how are you now in his house?"
Dash bit her lip and finally choose to be forthright. "Mom, nothing’s happening between us. I only intended to help Soarin, nothing more than that. You must believe me. It’s true, I’m now living in his house, but just for a while."
Dash heard her mother sigh softly. "I don’t know, Dash. Don’t you have other friends who could help? Why his house?"
Dash closed her eyes, and raised her hand to her forehead.
Her mother went on, "I don’t really know what to say. Frankly... How do you feel about him?"
Dash never thought of it like that. Ever since she agreed to help Soarin, she always remembered things that shouldn’t have been on her mind. "But, Mom, Soarin is good person," she said.
"You've always been able to distinguish between what was good and what was not. It's your decision," said her mother. "I’ll send clothes for you. Do you need anything else?"
“No, I’m fine,” Dash replied.
“Ok. Bye.”
“Bye.”
After her mother hung up, Dash sat brooding. Her chest felt tight. She drew a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. She always did this to calm down.
"Miss."
Dash turned toward the door of the room. Dash immediately got out of bed and walked to it. She opened the door and saw Aunt Rose’s beaming face.
Before Dash could speak, Aunt Rose reached out her hand and said, "I found this on the floor. Does it belong to you? "
Dash looked at object in Aunt Rose’s palms. It was a shiny red heart-shaped brooch with golden fringes. She recently recalled, that on the night of the fire, she kept staring at the brooch. It turned out that at the time, she had unknowingly put it into the pocket of her pajamas. Dash had almost forgotten about it until it showed up again in front of her now.
"Is this yours?" Aunt Rose repeated.
Dash snapped. "Yes, right. Thanks. You found it. "
Dash retrieved the brooch, and Aunt Rose continued doing her job. Dash closed the bedroom door and sat on the bed, staring at the pin. She looked up at the ceiling, sighed again, then exhaled slowly. Once, twice, three times, and suddenly tears started rolling down her cheeks. She wiped them with the palm of her hand, then took a deep breath and let it out again.

Spitfire smoothed her hair, which was blowing in the wind. She and Dash were sitting at a nice cafe. Because the weather was nice this afternoon, they chose a table outside shaded by large blue and white umbrellas. Spitfire noticed that Dash was frowning and churning her cappuccino in slow motion. Spitfire felt that Dash’s attitude has been somewhat different. Lately, it seemed like Dash was always lost in thought. Spitfire never tried to find out what was on her mind, but did not get a satisfactory answer.
"Dashie, today Soarin’s coming home, right?" asked Spitfire casually.
Dash did not answer, and didn’t even look up. She just continued stirring her cappuccino.
Spitfire draw a deep breath, and yelled, "Hey, Rainbow Dash!"
This time Dash gasped and stared at her with a questioning look. "What?"
"I asked, Soarin’s coming back today, right?"
"Oh no. This afternoon he called and told me he won’t be back today," Dash replied with a shrug. "He said there was a sudden affair or something. Maybe I will move into my new home tomorrow."
"So?" Spitfire nodded and fell silent. After thinking a moment, she asked, "Maybe he’s in a relationship with someone in Manhattan?"
Dash laughed lightly. "If he was cheating or already had a relationship with someone, don’t you think they wouldn’t have needed me at all?"
Spitfire laughed. "That's true," she said. "So you're going to move out after he comes home tomorrow?"
Dash looked up and cocked her head. "Mmm. It would feel uncomfortable if I move out without telling him first, right?"
Spitfire leaned forward. "I mean, why don’t you stay at Soarin’s home? I don’t think he will mind."
Dash's eyes widened. "Are you crazy? If I get caught, it could turn into a large scandal!" she exclaimed. "Besides my mother wasn’t to happy when she found out. It would probably be better if I had my own place."
Spitfire cleared her throat, looked at ten neatly trimmed fingernails and said, "Doesn’t he like you?"
Although Dash did not show any expression, Spitfire could presume that the relationship between Dash and Soarin was not as simple as they said. She believed that Soarin is interested in Dash. Why was she so sure? Because he allowed Dash to stay in his home, bought her a cell phone, and celebrated her birthday. Then while he was Manhattan, he often called Dash, and if he wasn’t calling, he was sending her short messages. Spitfire was pretty sure Dash was also interested in Soarin, but she didn’t have any obvious proof to confirm it. Dash herself never bluntly said or showed any feelings about this particular issue.
"What do you think?" asked Spitfire. "You can feel it, right?"
Dash looked at Spitfire with a faint smile. "Feel what? You're talking nonsense. Oh right, I have to thank you, because you’ve been helping me look for a new apartment all day. You want to help choose the furniture, right? I should say first that I was only able to buy some basic furnishings. When moving up, I’ll definitely need your help again."
Spitfire did not say anything. She exhaled slowly and leaned back in her plastic chair. "Of course," she said after a pause. "I’ll help you."

Soarin removed his sunglasses after he drove his car out of the airport. He leaned his head back against the chair and turned toward Ben who was sitting beside him.
"Ben, where are we going now?" he asked.
Ben said, "Didn’t we say we would go drinking with the others? The staff members have also been working hard in Manhattan. It is appropriate that they have a little fun."
Soarin thought for a moment, then pulled his phone from his jacket behind him. He pressed the nine button and put his cell phone up to his ear.
Ben smiled. "Calling her?"
Soarin looked at his manager and winked.
"I’m a bit envious," said Ben, sighing. "Maybe I should find a girlfriend too."
Soarin didn’t respond to his manager, because he heard Dash’s voice on the phone.
"Oh, it's me," said Soarin. He felt his spirits rise when he heard her voice.
"Are you there yet?"
"Well, where are you?"
"In your home. Umm, do you still have something to do? "
"No. Why?"
"Could you come home to eat?"
Soarin laughed softly. "Is there something to eat at house?"
"Of course there is. Are you going to go home and eat? I’m waiting."
"Okay," said Soarin. "I'm coming home now."
"Hey, aren’t you going to drink with us?" asked Ben as Soarin closed the phone.
Soarin smiled apologetically. "Sorry, Ben. Maybe another time." Then he asked the driver to take him to home.

"Well, what are we celebrating? Why is there so much food?" asked Soarin as he went into the kitchen.
Dash was wearing an apron and was placing some food on the table. She lifted her head when Soarin appeared. Her smile expanded. "Already home? How was your trip?"
Seeing the food on the table and Dash wearing an apron while asking him how his trip was made Soarin feel slightly awkward.
"Soarin, is something wrong?"
Soarin gasped and looked at the girl in front of him. "What? Oh, my journey was fine."
Dash checked the dishes, then looked at Soarin. "Let's eat." She removed her apron and gloves.
Soarin sat down and asked, "Did you cook this?"
Dash sat in front of him. "I would like to say, "Yes, I'm the one who cooked it," but I didn’t actually cook it," she chuckled. "This morning, I asked Aunt Rose to cook. I only heated it."
Soarin smiled and began to eat.
Dash leaned forward. "Is it good?"
Soarin nodded. "Mmm, of course. By the way, is something being celebrated?"
Dash tilted her head and thinking. "Well, of course something is. Many things are."
"Many? Like what?"
"First of all, we’re celebrating your return from Manhattan," said Dash. "Also, did you know that it’s been exactly one month since we first met? That should be celebrated too. You can also think of this as a thank you gift for all you’ve done to help me."
Soarin smiled and nodded. "Is there more?"
"We can also celebrate that I got a new apartment."
Soarin looked up and stared at Dash. "You found an apartment?"
Dash nodded firmly. "Yes, I'm going to move tomorrow."
"Why?" he asked without thinking.
Dash chuckled. "Soarin, you probably don’t think that I'll stay here and be a burden to you forever, right?"
"A burden? Of what?" asked Soarin.
Dash ignored the question and continued to speak, "Besides, if reporters knew we lived together, they would think we are already engaged to be married. Do you want to create a new scandal again?"
Ah, right, the agreement to remove the gay gossip. Soarin had already forgotten about that.
"According to our first agreement, I was just going to be your girlfriend in the media. So I can’t marry you," Dash said and laughed.
Soarin knew Dash was joking, but he was in no mood to laugh. He just looked down and continued eating.
Dash cleared her throat. "Soarin, how long was our agreement supposed to last? I've done everything that we mentioned in the deal, right? We already took pictures, and I was even chased by reporters. There has been no more gossip about you being gay. I think that’s enough."
Soarin raised his head. "What do you mean?"
"What do I mean? Soarin, I can’t help you forever. I have a life of my own. Ever since others have known me as "Soarin’s lover", my life hasn’t been the same anymore. I'm not famous, and I'm not used to things like that. "
"Oh really? I think many people would want to be lovers with a famous person."
Dash smiled. "You are right. I did wonder what it would have been like if I dated a beloved artist. I surely would have been the focus of my friends’ envy." She looked at Soarin with amused eyes. "But in reality, it’s not exactly like that. Although I am only a fake Soarin lover, it’s difficult enough for me as it is."
"So, you don’t want a famous artist be your lover?" asks Soarin carefully.
Dash tilted her head thoughtfully and replied, "No. I hope not."
Soarin put down his spoon. "Then, should I stop?"
He looked up and saw Dash was giving him with a questioning look. "What did you say?" asked Dash.
"Should I stop to be a singer?" Soarin repeat his words.
"Why stop?"
Soarin look at Dash and said, "Because, I started to like you."

"Because, I started to like you."
Did she mishear? No, Soarin did say it. Dash surprised to hear Soarin’s confession. Was he kidding? No, it didn’t seem like it. He looked serious. Then how?
"So how? Do I have to start looking for another job?" asked Soarin, mostly to himself.
Dash blinked and realized Soarin was watching her intently, waiting for an answer.
"I'm not kidding," said Soarin, as if he could read the contents of Dash’s mind.
"I know," said Dash. That is what she feared: that Soarin was not kidding. Then she smiled, "But I think you should still be a singer."
"You think so?"
Dash looked at Soarin and said, "Of course. You’re a great singer." She rose from her chair. "If you've finished eating, let me know. You should rest."
Soarin was thoughtful for a moment, then he nodded and rose. "OK. Sorry to trouble you. Tomorrow... I might not be able to help you move. I have to leave early in the morning. "
Dash chuckled. "It’s okay. Spitfire will help me."
Soarin nodded again, then he turned and walked toward the stairs.
Dash looked at his back. When Soarin reached second rung, she called to him. "Soarin."
Soarin turned. "What is wrong?"
"Thank you."
"Thank you? What for?"
Thank you for liking me.
"For everything. Thank you."

Author's Note:

Oh my, Dash reject Soarin i felt kinda sad and my plan want finish it in here but since my friends and editor said is to weird to end it here so i will still continue it.

What you guys think about this chapter

Comments

[Dusk_Writer]

Omg, if you actually would've ended right there, I would've screamed XD

[Marli_Lin]

6997434
i know right XD
that's why i should continue the story...

[THEPONYREADER]

Can't wait till the new chapter

[Fan Of Rainbow Dash]

Seeing the food on the table and Dash wearing an apron while asking him how his trip was made Soarin feel slightly awkward.

Why does I make you feel like she is your wife?