Harker recognized his Dad since he looked almost the same, but could barely recognize his Mom. His Mom really had a different style back then, looking fashionable in a late 70s way with a flannel daisy dukes shirt, baggy jeans, and gold hoop earrings.
She looked like your typical popular girl that everyone likes and wins Prom Queen every single time.
It was a total mismatch with his Dad that was tall and lanky with shaggy hair, blue polo shirt, and some khaki pants. He didn't look anything special. But from the way he put his hands around his mom, you could tell she was his girl and that they love each other very much.
As for this G.G...
He also had medium-length hair, but it was pitch black and straight instead of shaggy. He wore a frilly white satin shirt, black leather jacket, ripped jeans, and diamond-studded knee-high boots. His style was more like punk or glam rock, and he had a serious expression instead of a bright smile like his other two friends showed.
He looked like a bike gang leader who'd put a shoe on your mouth. Whatever your gender may be, he wouldn't care. Those eyes were ruthless.
But even though he had black hair, a completely opposite aura, and fashion sense….
Harker could still not ignore how much he looked like Roland.
G.G.'s eyes were not blue but reddish-brown. The red eye effect from the camera's flash made his appearance even more unsettling and intimidating.
Harker read the entry under this picture:
[....was pretty fun. G.G. and Howard had caught a mackerel on Lake George. He made a joke that this lake was his domain since it has his name. Geegee sure is funny when he tries, hah! Howie almost let go of the fish, and got slapped by its tail on the chin. Hahaha, ah I love that man so much XOXO ]
"Mom sure was a different person back then, huh?" Harker couldn't help but feel a little weirded out but also intrigued.
Chloe nodded. "I think so. I don't remember much about her, though."
Harker remembered that Chloe was only 3 when their mom died, and Josephine Jones didn't even get the chance to see the twins. He was the only one who truly remembered her along with his Dad. He felt a little sorry for his siblings because of this.
"Do you…. often wonder what it's like if you grew up with her by your side?" Harker asked Chloe.
She must envy her peers for having a mother they can bond with. As the only girl in the family, it must be quite hard. Harker does his best, but that's all he could do. He had learned how to tie her hair decently and find dresses that suit her, but it was still a different matter from having a mother.
"I do. But I'm more interested in her the way I am interested in the stories I read." Chloe admitted. "She felt more like Santa Claus, or the Tooth Fairy. She feels almost fictional now."
"That…. really sucks." Harker hated how he couldn't find the right words to say in this situation.
Chloe shrugged. "I'm just glad I found her diary. There are many interesting things, especially her drama with G.G. and Dad."
"What drama?" Harker blinked.
Chloe flipped a certain page, and pointed at the picture attached to it.
It seemed to be the Mardi Gras parade at night. They were all wearing formal clothes. His mother wore a beautiful frilly yellow gown, and had her hair styled up with a tiara on it. His dad was in a white suit, very simple. And G.G. was in all black as always like the emo he was.
Since it's the Mardi Gras, they also wore masks. His mother wore a colorful one that reminded him of peacocks from the design of its feathers. His father wore a white one with white feathers, like a dove. And finally….
G.G. wore a black one, but it had the same eye-like pattern that peacocks have. Only that his was red.
It was the same arrangement again. Howard on the left, Josephine in the middle, and G.G. on the right. First two smiling, last one brooding.
[..... went on a trip back home with the boys. Howard's not really the best dancer, but he got some groove in him. He's my future husband so I'll just teach him how to dance for the rest of our lives. G.G. on the other hand was the Dancing King, and I have seen his moves at the disco with his fellow Satanist friends. .
He asked me to dance with him on the stage but I had to decline 'cause Howard's not good with an audience. Might make him puke out the jambalaya Mamaw made for us, haha!]
Harker's eyebrow raised. "Huh. So you think G.G.'s got a thing for Mom? Oh, and he's a Satanist? What the fuck…"
"It's pretty obvious he likes her." Chloe crossed her arm. "G.G. also apparently sent her a letter asking to speak with her alone. Isn't that a little suspicious?"
"That was when we learned that your mother was pregnant."
Their dad suddenly came, still looking tense. Harker quickly closed the diary quickly.
"Josephine's not the only one. G.G. talked to me first, before also having a word with her. Don't get it twisted, kids. G.G. was my first and only friend after I moved from Nebraska to New York for college." Howard told them. "He was worried about my studies once Josephine was pregnant with Harker. I had a scholarship for Fine Arts back then."
Harker frowned since he never learned about this. "Did you lose the scholarship?"
"I did. And I have to stop studying in order to find work and raise my wife and son." Howard looked a little regretful. "G.G. means well. If not for him, I never would have a job in the first place."
Harker couldn't help but notice his father's voice cracking every time he spoke his old friend's name.
" Where is he now? Because I didn't see him at mom's funeral, or even on any of your birthdays for that matter." Harker said. "Do you not keep in touch anymore?"
Howard sighed, slumping his shoulders. "In '75, just a few months after you were born, a G.G. had a drunk driving incident. He drove at a 70, maybe even reached 90. Either way, he wasn't wearing a helmet either, and crashed into a tree."
Howard's eyes fell in deep pain and sadness.
"G.G.'s gone now. George Gordon Faust, my greatest friend."
Harker's eyes widened. "Faust?"
"Yes. He is Mr. Faust's younger brother, but he was the black sheep of the family. Got kicked out since he was 16, but still given an allowance. He wasn't publicly disowned either. It was through his connections that I became the driver for the Faust family."
So that means…..
This man was Roland's uncle, who died even before Roland was born.
Chloe frowned. "I don't think he means too well as you believed. Because you see, in this certain page he—"
She suddenly started coughing, her breathing rough and ragged. She held her chest, and the whole family went by her side.
"Chloe! Are you alright?" Harker watched her condition, checking her temperature. "Should I get you something to drink? How about your pills—"
Chloe suddenly coughed up drops of blood on her hand. She was shivering, and her eyes rolled over to the back of her head.
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