ambivalence (kellic)

Chapter 2

Vic's POV

I walk with Jeremy back to our lot where Oli stands on a concrete platform waiting for us. We rarely have meetings or whatever at night so this must be important.

"There they are, nice of you to join us. Now, ladies and lads I'd like to discuss something that serves as a little victory for us. They're tearing down some buildings a few streets from here because they're falling apart which means we've got more territory to cover now. This means I'm going to have to trust you guys with some bigger responsibilities. We'll discuss them later of course, but I just thought I'd let you all know since I'd been informed just a while ago." Oli's thick British accent seems to echo and we all have little smiles on our faces.

More space means more power and to Oli that's a big deal. For me, I don't care too much about power but I do desire freedom to roam. It's the closest I could get to running away without actually leaving. I don't want to run away because I don't like my life or anything, I just crave adventure. The crowd disperses into murmurs before Oli calls me over.

"You know what this means right?" his eyes light up as he gets closer to me.

I just shake my head and look back at him. I get that the space is a good thing but I don't get what else he's talking about. Oli has a tendency to get caught up in his own head and I swear his mind races faster than he can handle sometimes.

"We could run these streets Vic! We could start an empire! We could-"

"Whoa slow down there, buddy. I don't think it works like that and we've still gotta look out for the Nightcreepers. We can't let our guard down for anything. That's our rule." I remind him.

"Aye yeah you're right, Fuentes. I got ahead of myself I guess, you know me too well." He lets out a small laugh before hopping down off of the platform.

"Go on and get some rest, yeah? You work too hard." He gives me a little hug before running off to talk to our friend Alex to talk about who knows what.

"Hey bro, ready to go home?" my brother Mike rushes to my side and I smile.

"Yeah Mikey I'm beat."

We walk together in a peaceful silence mostly because I'm not usually one to talk much. Our parents are visiting our family somewhere so we have the house to ourselves for a while. Mike goes into his room to watch a movie and I go into mine to play a few tunes on my guitar. Adventure and music are literally all I'll probably need in life. I'm trying to work on a new melody, but I can't help but think of something or rather someone else.

Kellin Quinn.

I haven't had a real conversation with him in years. He's well known for being the neighborhood trouble maker despite that innocent face of his. I know that most of what happened between us is my fault but there's not much I can do about it now. He's just a memory. For some reason I have to keep reminding myself that that's all he is. More times than none I'd have to stop myself from chasing after him. I always get this strange feeling in my stomach when I see him and it makes me sick. I guess I'm just overthinking.

Kellin Quinn is a memory.

I try to distract myself by playing video games with Mike and I guess it worked because by the time our parents came home we were both loudly snoring from our separate rooms.

I wake up in the middle of the night and stare out my window. I have to be honest with myself that I am restless. I haven't gotten any real sleep in months. I don't know what it is that keeps me from living freely. I'm captivated by my own mind and its driving me crazy. But from the outside no one can tell. I'm just another kid with a fancy jacket. I sit up against my pillows and gaze at the darkening night.

"What's gotten into you Fuentes?" I quietly asked myself. I shifted my body back down underneath the blankets and fell back asleep.

The next morning I feel the same dull feeling but plaster on a smile for Mike. He's always filled with so much energy and I both admire and envy that about him.

I spend the day walking around town and stop when I reach one of my favorite spots. It's some abandoned playground that was too old to be played on but not old enough to be dealt with. I sit on a rusty bench and close my eyes. I started thinking about a lot of things I'd never thought about like maybe there's a reason I keep running into Kellin or maybe there's a reason being a Daytrotter doesn't feel the same or that I'm worried the power's going to go to Oli's head but maybe the silence is getting to me. I continue wandering about and find myself on the bridge. The bridge has always been a nice place to rest and look at the shimmering blue water below. I hear a little thump from the other side of the bridge and turn to my left. There's a girl wearing dark clothing timidly looking around until she freezes when she sees me. I've seen her around before, she's a Nightcreeper for sure and I think she's friends with Kellin too. God I've got to stop thinking about that boy. Even his name just gives me a headache.

I wasn't looking to cause any problems especially since the bridge is known as "no man's land". Maybe I could talk to her. I'm getting kind of sick of whatever this "rivalry" is. I only defend our side because it's what Oli wants and he's had my back since we were kids. I open my mouth to speak and she backs away. "No wait I'm not gonna-" she ran away before I could finish my sentence. I don't blame her. If I could, I'd run far far away and never look behind me. If only I could. I peer over the bridge railings and glance at my murky reflection. Nothing is clear here, not the water and certainly not my head.

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A/N: Let me know what you think :)