Echoes of The Cliff

Chapter 2

It would be expected that Minnie would be the one to break Frank out of his mute shell, but it was not. Instead, it had been Andrew. The brute. The licensed villain. Soon after he got familiar with the three and took a liking to them, he pulled, or rather, beat Frank out of his shell, literally. Minnie screamed profanities at him and tried to stop him, and so did Magnum, till the latter halted and took a long look at the two boys, and turned around, heaving Minnie up and taking her with him to watch from the sidelines.

This led to the little goddess turning her rageful tides in his direction, but he didn't budge. Not till Frank was letting cries out his throat, and then words. Of protest, of course.

Which was why it caused the young man in the shower a suffocating pang of pain that the bundle of trouble with a cocky attitude was no longer in the picture, and it caused him even greater pain that he

was the cause of his absence.

Frank turned off the shower and stepped out of the cubicle, drying his dark locks with a small white towel and wrapping a larger grey one around his waist. He pulled on a light grey tank top, smiling as he put it on. Minnie liked the way it stuck to his body like a second skin and brought out the color of his eyes. He allowed his mind to wander again while sticking his legs into china blue sweatpants.

The four had had a bond as thick as, if not thicker than blood. They could kill for one another, which Andrew was always eager to do. His lips curved into a small smile as he thought of the walking tempest's common volcano eruptions.

Growing into teenagers, their love for one another dwindled...but it took on different forms in all of them, excluding Magnum. Magnum continued to love them fiercely and quietly, playing the role of the big brother none of them have. Frank could even say, he was the closest thing he-no, they, had to a father, despite only being two years old than Frank and three years older than Minnie and Andrew.

As for the other three...Frank found himself falling deeply in love with Minnie, and he found the same enamored look with which he gazed at her being mirrored in Andrew's eyes.

The two soon found themselves in a silent competition with Magnum watching with his all-knowing eyes and Minnie being ever oblivious towards the noiseless battle going on between the two best friends.

The three were still in a fragile state of balance, that was till Minnie started returning Frank's affection, and Andrew knew he had lost. He didn't throw a tantrum about it or take it out on Frank, knowing he didn't make the decision for Minnie and that would only push her away from him. At least she had still loved him as a friend, and a brother.

Frank still remembered the conversation they had clear as day.

"I'm sorry, Andrew." Frank said, lightly kicking the soccer ball towards Andrew as they passed it between themselves.

"No, it's okay, really. I tried and I lost. I can't decide who she falls in love with." Andrew muttered, kicking the ball back towards Frank. Frank had been seventeen and Andrew sixteen, same as Minnie.

"But-"

"But nothing, bro. It really isn't surprising that she chose you, and you know it. You're sweet, and kind, and smart, and she doesn't have to worry about you fighting with a random kid if she turns her eyes away for a second."

Frank said nothing for several seconds, not finding the words he needed to express himself. He settled for "I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what? For falling for someone as awesome as Minnie? Or sorry she loves you back? You can't be really sorry about any of that, can you?"

Frank opened his mouth and closed it when no words came out, heaving a sigh.

"She still loves you, you know."

"Yeah, I know." Andrew replied, mimicking Frank's sigh. "Just never in the way I want her to. And that's-that's fine. I just...I need some time. To come to terms with it."

He never came to terms with it. Andrew watched with repressed agony as the two's love blossomed day after day, and Minnie and Frank out of guilt decided to be considerate towards his plight and be mellow about expressing their love, in his presence at least.

Magnum had left for college the previous year when he turned eighteen, and when Frank turned eighteen he followed suit. They were both officially adults and

officially free to leave the orphanage. Magnum, to no one's surprise, went for a business administration major while Frank pursued his goal to join the police force. He never wanted any more kids to feel helpless the way he had felt that night again.

He had felt a little apprehensive about leaving Minnie at the orphanage with Andrew even though he knew he had no reason to worry, and he and Magnum still swung by to see them whenever they could.

The next year came and the younger two finally turned eighteen and were out of the orphanage system as well. Minnie to no one's surprise pursued a career as a nurse, but Andrew...Frank never heard from him after he left. The others didn't hear from him either.

Frank and Minnie tried to push the stone dropped in their guts out of their minds as their love life blossomed as they grew into adulthood. Minnie, as expected, grew into a wonderful nurse and Frank quickly rose through the ranks of the police force, his outstanding intellect and extraordinary talent when it came to solving murder cases pushing him to the position of Sergeant Detective of Homicide.

Magnum met a girl named Amanda in the university and they fell in love. She had taken a major in culinary arts and now they were happily married and running a small restaurant together. It had been five years and now they had a little daughter and Amanda was pregnant with their second child. Frank smiled as he thought of little Cassia with Magnum's sea green eyes and Amanda's chestnut brown waves. He had named her after his mother.

Frank and Minnie had gotten married a year ago and it had been the best day of his life. A few of Minnie's long lost relatives popped in but she chose Magnum to walk her down the aisle instead, and Frank wouldn't have had it any other way. Little Cassia bad played their bridesmaid, sprinkling rose petals down the aisle with a bright smile that reminded him of little Minnie.

Despite the pang of pain in his chest at the absence of his parents on such an important day in his life, he was still very happy. But they couldn't hide the ghost of pain that lingered in their eyes at the absence of someone else that stung harder than their long gone parents'.

Andrew hadn't showed up for the wedding, and as much as it hurt, no one could really blame him.