Revelations of a Grey Coat Hunter

10

     Maddy had a long, restless night. What little sleep she had was filled with undefined nightmares about being trapped somewhere dark and claustrophobic. By the time she showered, changed into a fresh onesie, and trudged after Arthur to breakfast, she was stumbling, half-asleep and fighting a stress headache. She was incredibly annoyed when her brother met her on the way out, carrying a loaded tray in each hand and whistling cheerfully. "Maddy!"

     "Monty?" She stopped, staring wide-eyed at the mounds of food her brother was removing from the cafeteria. "What the hell are you doing?"

     "Conrad asked me to bring us back breakfast," he explained, still smiling. He appeared well-rested and bright-eyed. "That way, he wouldn't have to deal with any more assholes."

     Arthur made a noise in his throat as though he were choking on something. He turned to Maddy, opened his mouth, closed it without making a sound, and clenched his fists. Then he scowled horribly and stomped toward the food, ignoring the jeers and stomping on the leg stuck out in hopes of tripping him.

     Monty eyed him, wincing when someone's hand slapped against Arthur's ass, resulting in his sister's trainer tossing a cup of hot coffee into the offender's face. "Um, maybe you should just come back and eat with us?" he suggested, raising his voice to be heard over the shouting and cursing from the cafeteria. "I think Arthur's going to be in a bad mood, and you might want to avoid him for a bit."

     Maddy immediately took one of her brother's trays. "We'll share," she announced. "There's plenty of food here."

     "Um, ok, sure." Monty started back down the hall, wincing again at the sound of something crashing behind them.

     Conrad's room was on a whole other floor. Maddy followed her brother onto an elevator, where they went down three levels before walking again. All the levels were the same, or at least they looked that way. If she hadn't just gotten off an elevator, Maddy could have been convinced they were going in circles.

     "So, how's life with Arthur?" Monty asked.

     "Quiet," Maddy reported. "I don't think he said more than half a dozen words all night. He just lay there in bed and read from his tablet until he decided to roll over and fall asleep."

     Monty hummed. "Must be nice. Conrad kept me up half the night with his music. They sure are different, aren't they? I can't wait to see Arthur's room."

     "What's to see? It's empty."

     "Really?" Monty was looking at her strangely.

     "Yes, really! If it weren't for the furniture in it, you'd think..." She paused, hearing loud music coming from ahead. "Wow, you're living in the party section?"

     "Not exactly," Monty admitted. "That's Conrad playing his music."

     She frowned, listening to the music. "Conrad listens to disco music?"

     Monty grimaced. "Oh, Maddy, you have no idea!" he groaned. Hurrying the last few steps, he reached the room that was the source of the music.

     The door was open. The first thing Maddy saw was a spinning mirrored disco ball hanging from the ceiling. Tearing her eyes from it, she saw the figure dancing around beneath it. Conrad was in his underwear. White cotton briefs shook with his hips as he danced like John Travolta. He was lip-syncing into his thumb the whole time, held up like a microphone.

     "Tragedy! When the feeling's gone, and you can't go on, it's a tragedy! When the morning cries, and you don't know why it's hard to bear, with no one to love you, you're going nowhere!"