On the Bank of Oblivion by Emma G Rose & own

Author:Emma G Rose & own [Rose, Emma G]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: chronic illness, high school, fantasy, mythology
Publisher: Imperative Press
Published: 2022-07-24T19:38:05+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

The Cards

Walking into Auntie Val’s house was like walking onto an HGTV set. Everything seemed flawless. Maybe it was because she lived alone and there was no one to mess it up, or maybe it was because she had a housekeeper who came in once a week. Owen had heard Mom and Dad talking about the housekeeper as though hiring one was a ridiculous extravagance. Maybe it was, but Owen thought if he was rich he would happily pay someone to clean for him. Then everyone would stop hounding him about the state of his room.

Auntie Val hugged Owen tightly and said, “You’ve gotten so skinny.”

Owen, who still felt the motion of the car even though he was standing on Auntie Val’s polished wooden floor said, “I’m on a vegetarian diet.”

“Hmm, so you don’t want me to order brunch from McKenna’s?”

Owen didn’t even stop to think about it. He loved the french toast there. “I didn’t say that.”

“Okay good, come into the kitchen and open your presents while I put the order in.”

“You didn’t have to do that, Val,” Mom said. But Auntie Val waved this away.

“It’s the perks of being the cool aunt. You get to buy them things.”

Owen didn’t know why Mom bothered to object. Auntie Val got them presents every time she saw them, and sometimes sent them packages in between. If he saw his aunt and didn’t get a present, he would assume she’d been switched with a body double.

Their gifts were waiting on the counter. A small rectangle for Owen and a suspiciously book-shaped package for Liv.

“Go ahead, you don’t have to be all polite about it,” Auntie Val said. She pulled out her phone and tapped at the screen. She always seemed a little more brisk at home in Boston. Maybe it was because she was closer to work, or because her house was so shiny and neat.

Normally, Owen would tear into a present, ripping the paper any way it would let him. At Auntie Val’s he felt the need for caution. He didn’t want to leave bits of paper all over the place. Besides, he thought he knew what would be inside.

And he was right. It was a deck of tarot cards just like Auntie Val’s.

“Tarot cards?” Liv asked.

“I remembered that you liked mine,” Auntie Val said.

“I did. I do. Thank you,” Owen said to Auntie Val. Then, as a kind of excuse to Liv, he added, “The art is interesting.”

He looked over at Liv’s gift. He’d been right about that one too. It was a book. The author’s name was bigger than the title, Neil deGrasse Tyson. “Thank you, Auntie Val,” Liv said. She didn’t seem particularly excited by the book. Owen wondered if she’d read it before.

“Oh, that’s not the whole gift. Open the cover.” Liv flipped the book open and squealed.

“Really? Really?”

“Yes, really.”

“Wait, what is it?” Mom asked.

“Tickets. To see Neil deGrasse Tyson speak at MIT. Tonight! Oh my gosh. I have to message my entire physics class.” She threw her arms around Auntie Val’s neck, almost knocking the phone from Val’s hands.

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