Dark Torment ✔

Chapter 2: The Centauri Way

Vincent woke up with the sun in his face. He knew it wasn't time for him to get up since his alarm hadn't gone off, but there was no way he was going to fall back asleep with all the light in the room. With a groan, he rolled off his stomach and looked up at the ceiling of his bedroom. He had a rough night, barely got any sleep. He was exhausted when he came home- couldn't even lift an arm to close to blinds, but the moment he showered and got under the covers, his mind couldn't shut off. He was going to call Ryder over but he didn't want to disturb him since Ryder seemed to be in a bad mood yesterday. Vincent wondered what was wrong, maybe that's why he couldn't sleep. He knew his friend and nothing ruined his mood.

Vincent reluctantly got up from bed and grabbed his phone turning the alarm off before it annoyingly rang. He went straight to the bathroom and showered.

By the time he was done, the entire bathroom steamed up from the heat of the water. He swiped his hand across the mirror to see his reflection and quickly shaved the stubble off his jaw and neck. Raking his wet hair back, he walked out of the bathroom to his closet deciding on what to wear, which was fair to say the best time of the day. He picked out the dark-blue suit when there was a discreet knock on his door.

"Who is it?" he asked.

"Me-" the voice Vincent recognized came from the other side.

"Come in," he said as he laid his suit out on the bed.

The door opened and Ryder was on the other side. A raw strength clung to him as he stood confidently at the threshold. But he was always like that, nothing ever faltered him and he was just as dangerous as his twin brother. Ryder was a towering height, his broad shoulders were sturdy, his clothes cut perfectly to outline his trained physique, which he took great care of all the time. Dressed in a black suit, his dark hair was tousled and raked away from his face, it showed off those icy-blue eyes and structured face; sharp jaw, strong brows and straight nose. His skin golden-tanned from always being out in the sun and going on a run through the property- typically shirtless.

"You're in a suit?" Vincent questioned, since he knew that Ryder preferred jeans and shirt any day.

"That's what I came to tell you," Ryder stepped into the room and leaned on the dresser. "I'm with Gabriel today. Azura will join you."

Vincent's hand froze as he picked out a tie. "Any particular reason?" he asked.

"I don't know," he answered. "River told me last night."

Vincent picked the blue tie to go with the suit. "Okay," he said.

Ryder crossed his arm, standing square in front of the door now. "I don't know how you take such hot showers?" he remarked as he saw the steam coming out of the bathroom.

A smile tugged on Vincent's face. "I should ask how you take cold showers?" he retorted.

"It's refreshing and healthier," Ryder said.

Vincent rolled his eyes. "Of course," he said since he heard that a million times. He turned and faced him. "Are you going to leave or would you rather watch me put my suit on?"

"Just hurry up," Ryder said curtly.

"Wait," he stopped him from leaving and waited until Ryder turned fully back to meet his eyes. "Are you feeling better today?" he asked.

He frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Yesterday," he replied, "you weren't yourself."