Chapter 63: A Stacy Always Stays Positive (Part 2)

— "After that, I flew through the air. Yeah, impressive, right? I have to admit, it was a really unique experience. Then, when classes were almost over, at school, our new teacher told us we were going on a school trip to Paris. While we were there, we visited famous and beautiful places, like the Eiffel Tower. We also ate at a restaurant and outside during a walk. It was really beautiful. At the same time, our group grew closer to Flash and two girls who are close to him. You probably forgot, but I had already told you about him. He was the boy who was always looking for trouble with Peter, Harry, and other students too. But strangely, during that trip, he was really different. Then after that, our teacher gave us a free evening, and one of the girls, Sally, suggested that we go to a party where there were Americans, since we didn't speak French. And there, I..."

She suddenly stopped.

The memory of that evening came back to her with unpleasant clarity. Her face tightened slightly, and a thin bead of sweat slowly rolled down her forehead.

— "There... I..."

For a moment, she almost felt as though her father were standing in front of her, his arms crossed, looking at her with curiosity... or perhaps with a certain severity, simply waiting for her to confess the foolish thing she had done. Embarrassed by the mere thought, she looked away slightly before continuing in a more hesitant voice.

— "There... I drank alcohol. And, uh... I said some embarrassing things, and I ended up passing out. After that, Peter and Flash apparently helped me. Peter supposedly carried me, and while I was unconscious, we all ran away from that party because the police had come to arrest the young people who were there. There were drugs too..."

The more she spoke, the more uncomfortable she became. Her expression twisted with shame, unable to stop her imagination from making her believe that her father must have been deeply disappointed to hear such a story.

— "But don't worry, Dad. Think of it as an accident. I'll never drink again, trust me! And I didn't take any drugs, you know!"

She discreetly inhaled, then displayed a confident smile... or rather, a smile she was trying to make convincing despite her embarrassment.

— "While we were running away, we went near the Eiffel Tower, and Peter and the others took a picture of all of us... Wait, here, look."

She quickly took out her phone, opened her gallery until she found the photograph in question, then gently turned the screen toward the grave, as though her father could truly look at it.

— "See? It's nice, right? But they didn't even bother waking me up... That wasn't cool..."

Wearing a childish and falsely sulky expression, she couldn't help laughing softly at her own remark. Then, little by little, her smile faded, and silence naturally reclaimed its place, once again surrounding the cemetery with its peaceful yet melancholic atmosphere.

— "After all that, our group had eight members: Peter, Harry, Miles, Anya, Flash, Liz, Sally... and me. When we came back to New York, Flash joined the army for personal reasons, while the rest of us simply continued with our lives. Peter and I had to find part-time jobs to help his aunt. Because of her accident, she couldn't work for a long time, but we managed thanks to her savings. But after long months of taking care of two teenagers... we reached a dead end. So we had to contribute financially, and at the same time, we resumed our internship with the Connors..."

As she spoke, her voice gradually lost its confidence. Her gaze slowly drifted toward the ground while her expression grew darker and darker, as though each of those memories awakened thoughts that stabbed her one after another.

— "And that was when... things started going a little wrong. When we arrived and saw the Connors again, I also met a boy who was slightly older than Peter and me. His name is Eddie, and he's a very old acquaintance of Peter's. When they saw each other again... I didn't understand anything at all. Peter started attacking him, and Eddie seemed so... kind and gentle that the Connors and I defended him."

She slowly turned her eyes toward the grave before falling silent for a few moments, allowing the silence to settle as though, in her mind, her father had just answered her or asked her a question.

— "Yes, I know... Peter wouldn't have acted like that without a reason. At first, I didn't understand. After that, Peter suddenly started changing, and he became more aggressive... colder."

Her voice gradually filled with sadness when a flash of realization suddenly crossed her eyes, as though a memory more important than the others had just resurfaced.

— "But after Eddie told me their story and the reason behind Peter's behavior... I realized he was lying. And I also understood why Peter seemed to completely hate him. If you knew the things he told me, Dad..."

She clenched her teeth.

— "I still have trouble believing it. How can someone who claims to be close to Peter make up and say things like that about him, huh?! How?!"

Still shaken by those revelations, she began pacing in front of the grave, unable to remain still as her emotions collided within her. After several moments, however, she finally managed to regain some composure. She stopped, took a deep breath, then slowly sat down on the ground.

— "You know... I tried talking to Peter about it. I tried several times to discuss it with him, but he doesn't want to hear anything."

She paused briefly before letting out a long sigh filled with weariness.

— "I swear... I've never seen him like this."

Her gaze remained fixed on the ground for a moment, lost in thought. For several long seconds, different emotions crossed her face: fear, doubt, confusion... Then, when she finally seemed to find the words she had been searching for, she slowly raised her head. Her gaze had changed. She was now determined.

— "You know what? I'm going to get the truth out of him. Why should I keep feeling miserable and hesitating all by myself in my corner? It's ridiculous!"

She suddenly stood up, as though that simple decision had just restored part of her strength.

— "After all..."

At that moment, two memories suddenly surfaced in her mind. The first brought her back to Peter, when she had reassured him by striking a theatrical and confident pose inside the Parker house. The second took her several years into the past, standing before her father, who had adopted exactly the same posture while saying the same phrase with a confident smile. The two images lasted only an instant, but they were strikingly clear.

When she returned to the present, emotion immediately tightened her throat. A tear threatened to fall, but she held it back with all her strength. No... she didn't want to cry.

So she took a deep breath, adopted exactly the same pose as in her memories and, with a voice filled with almost triumphant energy, declared:

— "After all, a Stacy ALWAYS stays positive!"

After remaining in that theatrical pose for a few moments, she gently straightened up and returned to a natural stance. A sincere smile then lit up her face. A few minutes earlier, she had seemed completely lost, unable to know what to do. Now, a strange serenity filled her. Without truly being able to explain it, she felt that everything would eventually work out.

— "Thank you, Dad."

She gently knelt down and carefully placed the yellow primroses she had held close to herself until now beside the many other flowers already covering the grave and giving it a little life despite the sadness of the place. She remained there for several more long seconds, silently observing it as though trying to engrave that moment into her memory, then finally turned away and slowly resumed her path, her heart much lighter than when she had arrived.

As she walked, her gaze naturally rose toward the sky, where the sun shone peacefully, bathing the cemetery in a soft and warm light.

— "...The weather is really beautiful today."

TO BE CONTINUED.