Chapter Text
“Do you want to know something odd, Julian?” Penny kicked her legs, trying to swing just a little bit higher. “I don’t remember the day we met.”
I remember the moment like it was yesterday: her wide, brown eyes, like a deer trapped before oncoming headlights; her nervous smile, those thin lips curling towards the sky; her thin, pale fingers fidgeting with the hem of her shirt. The moment I saw her, the stars aligned. I knew exactly who I would be for her.
“You don’t remember? It was Mr. Prendergast’s class.” I kicked my legs, trying to keep pace with Penny. My timing was off; we swung past each other, opposite sides of a pendulum.
Penny leaned back, her body straight as a board as she rocketed forward on the swing. “We didn’t talk much in that class.”
That was true. I got to take my tests in a different room because I needed extra time, and Mr. Prendergast gave way more tests than any other fifth-year teacher. It felt like I was barely even in the classroom. I dragged my shoes against the pavement, the rubber soles squeaking loudly as I skidded to a stop. “What’s the earliest thing you remember about me?”
“Your smile.” My heart did a tiny backflip at how confidently Penny answered. “You were the nicest kid at school. Even when I was super nervous, you always gave me this huge smile.” She stopped pumping her legs and just let the swing slow down on its own. She didn’t risk scraping her soles on the asphalt; Mom would always gush about how well she took care of her things.
Not like me; it had barely been six months and I was already on my third pair of sneakers.
“What about you, Jules? What’s the first thing you remember about me?”
I stifled a cough. There was no way I’d ever admit the first thought that flitted through my mind when she stood at the front of Mr. P’s class. “I… um… I remember you talking about your dad.” Penny smiled, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Crisis averted. “You said he works on the mako reactors. I thought that was the coolest thing ever. And you did too, because you were super excited about it. ”
“His job is such a blessing.” Penny kicked her legs idly, her toes brushing the ground. “If he hadn’t gotten it…” She paused.
The grown-ups never told us much about mako poisoning. But everybody at school knew someone who’d gotten sick from living or working too close to the reactors. If it wasn’t too bad, like Penny’s dad, they were just really tired and looked like a ghost. Nobody ever talked about what happened when it was really bad.
A shrill whistle sounded from across the courtyard. Penny cheerfully hopped off the swing. “Dinnertime! See you later, Jules!”
I kept my eyes locked on her as she followed her dad home.
Mom always reminded me to count my blessings. And our family had lots.
My dad was an engineer for Shinra; he made enough money for Mom to live at home, to focus on raising me and keeping house. She baked killer chocolate-chip cookies every spring, and always added one to my daily school lunch of rice, soy sauce, and green peas.
Dad was a good cook too, knowing the perfect way to broil fish or sear steak. But that was only for special occasions; he worked hard, like any good man should, to provide for Mom and me. He didn’t have time to cook regularly. Instead he focused on making sure we had a roof over our heads, food on our plates, and the opportunity to pursue any of my dreams.
I wanted to grow up to be just like him.
“So one over five… times two over nine… you multiply…” I could practically see the steam coming out of Penny’s ears.
“It’s two over forty-five,” I answered helpfully. “You multiply the top, and then you multiply the bottom.”
“Oh, okay!” Penny nodded eagerly. “I think I get it, so… the next one is three over five, times four over seven… which is three-times-four, over five-times-seven-”
“Twelve over thirty-five,” I boasted.
“Oh.” Penny tapped her pencil against her lips. “I see…”
“And the next one is seven over twenty, and that one’s-”
“Hey Jules?” Penny pushed her paper away from under my pointing finger. “I don’t want to do math anymore.”
“But math is fun!” I protested.
Penny laughed. “For someone smart like you, maybe!” She set down her pen and rose to her feet. “Wanna go swing?”
As if I’d ever say no.
Every boy in my class wanted to be a SOLDIER whenever we played at recess. There’d always be three or four of them gathered in a circle, swinging sticks around and shouting catchphrases they’d heard on TV. Inevitably, a stick would find its way into an eye, or one of the boys would trip over the sidewalk and scrape his knee, then scream and cry for the teacher.
They all thought it would impress the girls. But they’d always roll their eyes and scoff, leaving wounded egos in their wake. Then they’d gather close and whisper things that no boy was allowed to hear.
The mystery somehow made it all the more alluring; surely one impressive show of swordsmanship would be enough to draw their eye.
It certainly worked for Shinra’s hero.
I found Penny sitting under the shade of an old oak, her notebook flipped open. She was in her own world again; there was nothing but her and the page when she got in this state. It was mesmerizing to watch—and impossible to resist sneaking up behind her and dumping pine needles on her head.
“Hey!” Her hand flew to her hair, frantically brushing away the spindly green debris. “Jules!” I couldn’t help but laugh. She threw a handful of pine needles back at me. “Meanie!”
I sat down beside her. “What’re you drawing?” I tried to peek over at her notebook, but she quickly pulled it away. I managed to catch a glimpse of the iconic SOLDIER uniform. “Wait, who’s that?”
“No one.”
“Seriously, who?” I reached over and caught hold of the top of her notebook.
“No one! Let go!” Penny tugged at her notebook, but I was stronger; I ripped it from her hands and held it out of reach, taking a closer look.
I recognized the SOLDIER on the page instantly; I let out a loud groan. “Him!? Are you for real?”
Penny managed to snatch her notebook back, her face bright red. It was a surprise to see her so defensive; Penny wasn’t like other girls. She didn’t swoon over any of the other pop stars that melted their brains. I didn’t expect her to be into Shinra’s stupid new SOLDIER hero.
He wasn’t even that cool anyway. In my opinion, he seemed kind of mean; not the type of guy a girl should be throwing herself at. Not at all. But he was physically strong, for sure, and had that wild mop of hair that he could swoosh on the camera in that way that all pretty-boys do.
I tried growing my hair out like that once; Mom called it a “rat’s nest” and threatened to shave me bald if it ever got that long again.
Penny’s house was only three rooms. Her dad had a bedroom, she had a bedroom, and everything else was squeezed into one large kitchen-dining-living room. They didn’t even have a garage! All their neighbors had to park on the parking lot outside, and Penny’s dad had to take the train to work instead of driving on the expressway.
It was hard to find a good hiding place in such a small space. Mom and Dad and Ernest’s mom and dad didn’t even try; they just stood off to the side like they were pretending to be lamps. Ernest and I weren’t going to make it that easy; Ernest of course claimed the best hiding spot under the table. The best I could do was duck behind the door to Penny’s room.
“Julian! Get out of there!”
I almost yelped as Dad snapped at me. I scurried out of the room as if my pants were on fire.
“Stay out of the bedrooms,” Mom scolded. “Look, you can duck behind the kitchen counter here.” She pointed around the corner.
I let out a huff; that was a terrible hiding spot. Hiding behind the door was a way better idea. But I didn’t want to get in more trouble, so I crouched down behind the counter and waited in silence.
It felt like forever. My legs got sore from crouching for so long, but I didn’t dare move as a shadow shifted at the front door. Click…
“SURPRISE!”
Everyone leapt from their hiding spots (well, the grown-ups stood in place and raised their arms) and rushed forward to greet the birthday girl. Penny’s eyes sparkled as they flitted from person to person—before landing on me.
“You remembered!”
I puffed out my chest. “Of course! Happy birthday!”
“We got you presents!” Ernest crawled out from under the table, his glasses crooked on his face. He straightened them awkwardly as his mom brought over a brightly-colored box with a bow on top.
“You’ll like mine the best,” I bragged.
Penny didn’t hear the comment; she was too busy unwrapping Ernest’s gift. “Colored pencils! Thank you, Ernest!”
“Now mine! Now mine!” I ran to the table and picked up my gift, practically shoving it into Penny’s arms. “You’ll love it!”
Penny giggled excitedly as she opened her gift, and my heart wouldn’t stop racing. It felt like her fingers moved incredibly slowly, and I had to resist the urge to just open it for her so she could get to what was inside.
“Oh, Jules!” Penny gasped as she carefully opened the box and pulled out the necklace. “It’s beautiful!”
“It’s real materia.” I pointed to the deep purple orb encased in an ornate silver pendant. “Dad got it from work.”
“It’s beautiful.” Penny carefully unclasped the chain and draped it around her neck. She cradled the materia in her hand. “I’ll wear it always. Thank you.”