Madison - An AJR Fic

Witching Hour

"You're sure it didn't follow you?" Ryan asked.

The three sat in a circle on the floor in the living room, the fire crackling softly in the fireplace beside them. Adam tried to hide his quivering hands as he poured himself a glass of merlot.

"...I don't know," He shook his head. "...I don't...think so..."

"Describe him again," Jack demanded, eying his brother curiously. "What did he look like?"

Adam squinted at Jack as he set the bottle down. "It looked like me. What else do you need to know?"

"Well...how did you know it was one of them?" Ryan asked. "And not just...someone who looked like you?"

Adam stopped, his eyes on the rug beneath him. He pursed his lips. "...It was identical to me...in every way, physically. But...it had this...uncanny feeling to it, even before I saw its face. It was like...it was trying really hard to be human, but it...didn't quite know how to get it right."

Jack's eyes widened. He shivered. "...Can...can I have some of that merlot?"

Adam slid the bottle across the floor to Jack, who caught it with a slight stumble.

"...When I first saw it, it wouldn't take its eyes off the road..." Adam continued. "It only saw me when I was in its field of view, after the thunder struck. And when it spoke..." He paused, "it...sounded strange. It sounded like it was...glitching, almost."

"Glitching?" Ryan repeated. "Living things don't glitch, Adam."

"I know they don't," Adam huffed. "But...this thing did. I don't know how else to explain it."

An uneasy tension filled the room. Jack and Adam watched the fire crackle as they sipped their wine. Ryan sighed as he crossed his arms.

"...I have a confession..." Jack spoke up through the sounds of fire and silence. He looked at his brothers with a saddened glance. "...I've...seen some things."

Ryan furrowed his brow. "Jack, we talked about this-"

"No," He interrupted. "Real things. Things I couldn't explain."

Adam and Ryan exchanged worried glances, then let him continue.

"...When we first got here...I lied about being okay. When we were in the car, I lied too. I just... didn't want to ruin the trip for us. But the truth is, all of this, for me, started almost as soon as we got to...what is it, Madison county?" The nods of the others confirmed this to be true. He continued on. "Madison county. Anyway...as far as I could see, it was all highway, fields, and telephone posts. It all looked the same to me...until something...didn't."

"What do you mean?" Adam urged.

"I saw...something...it was at least twice my height, maybe more. It was...thin and skinny, it had limbs that were...too long..." He shuddered, his eyes welling up a little bit. "It was hard to see as we drove by, but...that's what I saw."

Ryan frowned, his expression turning a bit fearful. "It wasn't a telephone pole? Or someone standing by the road?"

"A telephone pole wouldn't have arms and feet, Ryan!" Adam hissed. "And I don't think the average human is twelve feet tall with half that length in limbs..." His face turned into an expression the others hadn't seen before. He was...afraid. No, not afraid. He was terrified. He seemed to be almost shaking with fear as his gaze darted around the room. "...I want to go home."

Jack nodded. "...Me too."

Ryan sighed. "I do, too. But...this is reality right now..." He tried to be comforting. "We have to just...take whatever we're dealt, and adapt to it. Right?"