Shadows of Iraedes | NanoWrimo 2021

CHAPTER TWO: CHANCES TAKEN

"What are you doing?" he asked. His words fell out of his mouth in a garble that was hard to piece together.

"I was... just out for a walk," she said.

He stumbled forward without having taken a step.

"You don't take walks," he said, his words weaving into one another like a wagon toppling over. He wavered, his body leaning forward. Aurora put her hands out to catch him if he started falling forward.

"How did you get this drunk in the short amount of time you've been out?"

"I'm not drunk!" he shouted. His voice carried loudly down the street causing many to look their way. His body moved forward with his voice as if his head was leading his body. His feet slid backward and Aurora's hands crashed into his chest as his body pitched toward her.

His weight sagged over both of them. His hands roughly grabbed her small shoulders, his palms able to circle the ball of her shoulder easily. He gripped tightly his state of mind as thin as an unraveling rope.

Aurora sucked in a lungful of air. "You... you drank at your sister's house, didn't you?"

"Absolutely. I was angry at you for making us late," he said and straightened with a wobble.

"Stop using me as an excuse for your drinking problem," she hissed. She hated how he never took ownership of the things he did. She couldn't control him if she tried and to say she was the cause of his drinking... She couldn't stand it any longer.

"Stop doing dumb things and I will!"

A sound escaped from her mouth out of aggravation. "I've had enough with you! Go on and stumble home by yourself, I'm done helping you. You won't help yourself and you continue to blame me for everything. Even that the sky is blue, you complain and say it's my fault!" she screamed. Her body rose and fell in rapid succession and her voice echoed down the street. An eerie silence followed as those around them stopped to stare.

Aurora tried stepping back but found she was stuck in place by Gharet's hold on her. "Let go of me."

"We're going home," he said with a glazed look over his eyes. He wasn't even looking at her, his sight staring over her head and down the street but she didn't think he was seeing anything in particular.

"Gharet, you can go home, but I'm not going with you," she said but he steered her with one hand, turning her around and pushing her toward their stairway.

He didn't say anything more and just moved her forward. She was powerless against him with her smaller frame.

"Gharet!" But he wasn't hearing her.

He forced her up the stairs and slammed open the door. He grabbed her arm and threw her inside. She stumbled, catching herself on the thin mattress. He threw the door shut with a bang that shook the walls and even made the glass in the small window quiver.

She pulled herself to her feet and stomped over to him.

"Move, I am not staying here," she said and stared at him. His face had gone slack and he was staring straight ahead. His eyes moved to look down at her, but they were unfocused, large black pupils, and he didn't say anything. He took a stumbling step back, hit the wall and slid to the floor. His legs curled under him and his chin sank to his chest. His eyes stared at the floor like he was lost in thought, but she knew better. He was lost in a dense, unbreakable fog.

She heard his heavy breathing and stared flustered at his flushed face. She stepped into the half circle his legs formed on the floor and tried tipping him forward. His back was right against the door jam and she would need to get him out of the way before she could get out.