Clint Dumein

1

Clint Dumein looked up from the book he was reading and gave a cursory glance around the dimly lit room. He sighed when he realized he couldn't find anyone he'd been waiting for. A small sigh escaped his mouth as he leaned back against the cushioned seat.  He glanced down again at the book before glancing once more out the window. There were no people standing on the street outside.  The sky appeared to be empty aside from the stars shining brightly above the dark buildings.  Clint closed his eyes and let the warmth of the candlelight lull him to sleep.
Just then, someone cleared their throat softly. "Sorry I'm late." A soft voice spoke up. The young man sitting near the doorway turned around to look at the new arrival.  His blue eyes widened as he noticed who it was.
"Oh it's you!" he exclaimed. "You're so early. Why didn't you come inside sooner?"
Lois Kippen smiled. "It took longer than I thought," she explained. "I got lost in the crowd." She walked through the door and sat beside Clint. "What are you still doing here though? I thought we planned on going shopping today. Didn't you say you would call me if everything worked out?" She glanced around the room curiously, noticing the books strewn all over the place. "Did something happen while I was out?"
Clint rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Um, yeah. You know how I said we could do that later this week? Well... it didn't work out so great.""So why did you wait all day for something to go wrong?", Lois asked in exasperation.
Clint shook his head. "Honestly, I'm not exactly sure," he admitted sheepishly. "There was some kind of mix up between the schedule and my phone and... well..."
Lois raised an eyebrow inquisitively. "Well what? What happened?"
"Well... we were supposed to have been meeting at 7am this morning, but we got there early and it was 11:30."
"Clint, what is this about?"
He shrugged helplessly. "It doesn't matter. I've just gotta find out what happened. That's the only thing that matters right now."
Lois sighed in frustration. "Alright. Just promise me you won't get distracted."
"Yes ma'am." Clint nodded solemnly. "Promise."
Lois sighed again and turned her attention back to the book in front of her, ignoring Clint for the time being. The young man sighed internally as he watched Lois. If there was one person he admired in the whole world, it was Lois. She was beautiful, smart, and very talented with computers and engineering; she even had her own company someday. And yet there they were.  She was his best friend, and he adored her with every fiber of his being. But he knew she wouldn't ever feel the same way toward him. She loved Andrew and was happy with her life. So he just had to suck it up and wait until things would eventually fall apart. He really wished he knew why Andrew was gone. Maybe he could ask Lois or her boyfriend if he knew anything about it. He sighed again and picked up his book. It seemed that nothing else mattered but finding Andrew. After all, there was only one way to find out the truth about why he was gone.  One way or another, he had to find out where Andrew had ended up. And there was only one person he could go to for answers.
"Where have you been?", Andrew demanded angrily as he slammed his bedroom door shut behind him and stormed across the room to stand next to Clint. "What have I told you about leaving without me?!"
Clint flinched and held up his hands defensively, backing away slightly. "Calm down, Andrew. It wasn't intentional. I tried to contact you but-"
Andrew cut him off with a shake of his head. "Don't lie to me Clint. I'VE spent hours tracking your location using our latest technology. We should've been together a lot earlier in the day!" The older man paced in a slow circle around Clint, gesturing with both hands animatedly. "When am I going to get to see you again? This time maybe we'll get to have lunch somewhere other than the canteen, or go somewhere fun like a roller coaster or aquarium. Or-"
"Okay, okay," Clint interrupted quickly as he grabbed onto Andrew's wrist gently and stopped his frantic pacing. His brown eyes stared steadily at his brother.  "Listen, I don't understand why you're upset." Andrew continued to pace, and Clint continued his attempt to pacify his agitated sibling.  "And why do you think we were separated? Do you really believe I would purposefully cause trouble by staying away all night and then coming home to find you missing?"
His older brother stopped pacing abruptly. His eyes darkened as he met Clint's gaze. "That's exactly what I was afraid you would do." he said with a heavy breath, taking a step closer to Clint. His green eyes searched Clint's for any signs of deceit. Clint stood his ground, although he felt himself begin to tremble. Andrew's intense stare unnerved him, and made it difficult for him to meet Andrew's penetrating gaze.
After several moments passed without either of them saying a word, Clint finally broke the silence. "Look Andrew, I'm sorry I didn't want to involve you in all this, but you were the last person I expected to show up. I swear, you're the only person I can talk to about all of this."
Andrew shook his head. "No you don't understand," he insisted with growing anger. "This isn't about talking about stuff! We haven't spoken since the last time we saw each other at Thanksgiving. You disappeared on us. You abandoned us and went back to your old friends. And now when we need you, you don't respond.  No, you aren't the reason we've become separated. You're just the catalyst."
Clint looked down, shaking his head sadly. "If you hadn't left, I probably would have stayed home. I wanted to talk to you about something, but then I realized I didn't actually know how to find you or what I was supposed to say to you. When I came back home the next day, you were gone, and Mom told me you weren't feeling well."
Andrew frowned and placed his hand on Clint's shoulder. "Look, I'm sorry for abandoning you guys, okay?" He paused for a second before continuing. "The truth is that Mom and Dad were right. We shouldn't have been so close. They never taught us to share things with each other. Our relationship has always been based solely on sharing information with each other. When they left, we learned what it means to truly be apart from each other. Now because of you two, Mom is sicker than ever. Dad is dead and gone forever. We're forced to grow up much too fast. I don't want to spend the rest of my life running around in circles trying to find someone I don't even know."
Clint squeezed Andrew's hand. "Hey don't worry. I'll stay as long as it takes, alright? If I had to leave for a couple days, you can bet I'd try hard to make it up to you. I love you."
Andrew smiled wanly. "Yeah I know you do. It's kinda funny to hear you say it. You're always telling us we need to grow up, but it seems to me that it's more like we need to change ourselves. Sometimes change scares us, Clint."
The younger boy frowned. "But you don't have to change yourself. You're perfect just the way you are."
"I guess you're right. Anyway, I've got to go. My mom will kill me if I keep you any longer."
Clint nodded. "I hope you'