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Dust is caked around the small wooden room, sentimental items left to rot in the dim lit room. Well, they were subjected to that fate until today. Juniper rolls up her sleeves, taking each item into consideration as she organizes the small space she’s been procrastinating on.
She needs to get this done since she’s in the process of moving. Her life has changed so much in the last two years. Taking a job as a judge, getting engaged, and now permanently moving in with her fiancee has been quite a bit on her.
When she coughs again, she realizes it’s probably not the dust. She’s been coughing a lot more due to stress alone, but she knows it will be worth it when it’s all over. Though, going through all of her stuff has resurfaced pleasant and...not so pleasant memories.
The truth is, she never thought she would see Athena again after she left all those years ago. It’s a blessing their paths crossed again. After realizing she was going to be a permanent presence in her life, Juniper finally got the courage to ask her out. She was stunned Athena even said yes.
Well, life is unpredictable like that. Especially with someone like her in it.
Juniper sorts through each box, trying to organize her thoughts as she decides on what to keep and what to donate. She ends up trying to lift a box that’s definitely aged. The minute she lifts it up, it rips at the seams. Her childhood toys and some notebooks go everywhere. She groans, leaning down to pick up the mess.
She was going to just donate everything in the box, but it may have been for the best that it opened up. There’s a couple plushies she decides to take to her new place, putting them in the far corner so they aren’t accidentally tossed. It doesn’t take long for her to decide where the rest of the toys will be going. Though as she places the toys in their rightful places, the donation pile is starting to become too big.
She knows she will have to start clearing that up to continue her organization. However, as she’s about to call her partner up the staircase, she steps on a worned, yellowing paper. She looks down, bending over to grab it.
Picking it up, she’s surprised to see some familiar words echoing back to her. She frowns as she continues to read it. In the back of her mind, she can recall the day she wrote this letter.
When she did, she was young, about twelve years old. She was sitting on a chair, pressed into the desk, sobbing in the mahogany wood and trying to process why Athena left the states. Juniper begged through tears, asking why they couldn’t take care of her. She could stay in Juniper’s room. She’d make room. They could get Athena a bunk bed. She swears Athena won’t be a burden.
When her parents looked at Juniper together, they didn’t even need to tell her she was already gone. Athena moving in wouldn’t even be a possibility by this point.
At first, Juniper was angry with the situation, storming to her room and not wanting to even come down for dinner. Juniper would learn the legal reason years later when she could actually comprehend it, but that day, she decided to write her feelings in a letter. Juniper glances at the contents of the letter, recalling each emotion as she wrote those words. They were full of anger, sadness, and distraught that Athena would leave her behind like this.
She was supposed to be her best friend. Her confidant.
Juniper stops reading the letter, glad she never ended up sending that letter and kept it to herself. It was mostly unplaced anger and venting, anyway. It didn’t occur to her right then and there just because they were separated there were websites they could reach out to each other on. They did end up staying in touch through the internet and have, to Juniper’s relief, much more pleasant communications throughout the years.
She just feels the weight of the words in her hands, the yellow paper haunting her for venting all those years ago. She rolls the letter in a ball, placing it in the discarding pile. Athena doesn’t need to know the thoughts Juniper had over a decade ago.
She’s happy where they’re at now and this won’t hurt to keep to herself.
She sighs, looking at the pile, which is still far too big for her liking. She needs to focus on getting this stuffy attic cleaned. The less time she’s here, the better.
“Athena!” Juniper calls down the stairs, waiting for a response.
“What’s up, babe?” Athena calls out. “Simon, watch your step! We’ll both fall and you’ll be paying for any bills if I end up in the hospital!”
Simon mutters an apology with a chuckle. Athena pokes her head up the staircase, grumbling some insults towards her bruncle.
“Asshole…”
“Someone’s getting grumpy,” Juniper teases as she looks down, seeing Athena’s frame. She looks as if she’s going to crumble at any moment. “Should I start making some lunch after this?”
“Probably,” Athena sighs, shaking her head. “Don’t you dare smirk at me, Simon! You know what? Go outside! Sorry, Junie, Simon’s being an ass. You almost done up there?”
“Oh yes, I just needed you to throw these bags away,” Juniper throws her bags down the staircase. “If you don’t mind. It’ll be done faster if I stay up here.”
“Fair enough,” Athena grabs the trash. “I’ll check on you when I get back.”
“Thank you!” Juniper watches Athena go downstairs, grabbing the bags with one arm, lifting them over her shoulders. She’s got a future with Athena, while that letter will be withering away in a landfill, those words she wrote stuck in the past.
Where they belong.