Love My Wings

Chapter 24

Rory playfully shoved Lei as they brushed their teeth and stared at their reflections in the mirror. Lei laughed, but Rory failed to get any other reaction from him.

"You didn't sleep last night, did you?" Lei shut the tap and turned to look at him.

"How did you know?" He replied. The same question he had asked him a hundred times. How could I not know?

"Well, for one, your dark circles are DARK, and for two, you tossed and turned like a worm the whole night. I could barely sleep myself."

Lei paused. "So you were awake when you-" Rory giggled.

"You make a great little spoon." Lei flushed with a sulky expression, ignoring Rory's words. "What kept you awake so long?" Lei shrugged as he looked at the floor.

"Just a little overwhelmed," What could I say that's believable? He thought to himself. "I get a bit nervous sleeping next to you." Rory's expression hardened. Had he messed up? Would he take that as an offense? Was that even believable? But it's not a Lie, he thought. It just wasn't the whole truth.

Rory sighed and exited the bathroom. "So I still make you nervous, huh?" He replied haughtily. How long is it going to take him to tell me the truth? Doesn't he know lying will only make it worse?

"What do you wanna do today?" Lei asked, dodging the topic.

"Well, you said you had practice, didn't you?" Lei nodded, with light returning to his face. He scurried to the wall and reached for the guitar on his tiptoes. Rory was enjoying seeing him struggle before coming over and unmounting it for him. "If you can't reach why did you hang it up so high?" He asked.

"Xion did it on purpose when my mom asked him to put the hanger up." He said bitterly.

"I'm sorry, I can fix it for you if you'd like." Lei's eyes glittered as he edged towards him.

"REALLY?!" Rory laughed.

"Yes, of course. I'll have it done when you're back." He replied, giving Lei a tiny kiss on the forehead.

"Be safe." Lei nodded.

"I'll be just fine. I'll call the house phone when I head back. It will only be a few hours. There are lots of good books on the living room shelf, I'm sure you'll find one you like."

"Okay. Does Broccoli soup and chicken nuggies sound good for dinner?" Lei scoffed at Rory's words, revealing a gleaming row of teeth. For a moment, he couldn't be more grateful to have him there.

"Yes, that sounds lovely."

The silence in the house was eerie without Lei. Rory could hear every step he took. "Why do I have this odd foreboding feeling?" He asked himself out loud. He turned around to see what was behind him the way people do in horror films. His eyes narrowed in disbelief at what he found.

"Lizu," It glided mystifyingly in the air to approach him with large blinking eyes. "Long time no see."

Rory was surprised at its mellow attitude towards him. "Not really?" He replied with confusion.

"I have a message for you," His heartbeat raced as they spoke. Why would Lizu still want to help him after he had disobeyed its orders? Was he hallucinating?

"You are safe. Make your decisions carefully. If you make the right choices and follow your path, you will find what you are looking for. You will find what you most desire."

He shook his head without understanding the meaning behind a single word. "But- I have already found that."

Lizu's face was that of an animal, yet it looked as if it were smiling. "Oh, Rory. You are just a child." Was the last thing Lizu said before vanishing.