Cold Lust

11: I'm A Masochist, Ain't I?

♫|--Dark City - Cry of Fear--|♫

At the dinner table back home, the only person that seemed to eat their food was Rose. Eddy gazed silently at his faint reflection formed on the spoon he held, almost as if he saw horrors beyond comprehension tonight. Rose however, offered a scowling face, much different from the cheerful attitude she used to keep before.

"You seemed to have been absent during Jeremy's session," she began, her voice intimidating than before. "Was there a reason behind it?"

Eddy, who kept staring at his spoon for half an hour, began. "Oh really? That's strange." he answered, his mind elsewhere as he spoke.

Her expression turned more stern. "Eddy, answer me properly" she demanded, her concern evident. "Where have you been all day!?"

Eddy was still lost in thought, contemplating if he should answer or not. "Where'd you find that I did so?"

"He told me," Rose responded. "Now tell me what happened."

Eddy sat there silent, his heart fastened as he hesitated. The mere thought of telling Rose that he hooked up with another girl made his legs shiver. He lost himself in thought again as Rose waited for a final answer with a face much scowled than before. After what seemed to be an eternity of aimless inactive interrogation, Rose was more disappointed than ever since she found her brother smoking again.

Only just a few seconds have passed since Eddy spoke up, Rose's patience wore thin, which she let him knew with a subtle groan. Suddenly, she hunched forward and swiftly snatched the plate of food from him, prompting Eddy to lunge forward across the table in a desperate attempt to take it back.

"Hey hey hey, give it back!" Eddy yelled as he stretched his hand forward.

Rose calmly lifted the plate away from him and placed her finger on his lips, deescalating the situation. "First you tell me what happened," she murmured, her tone gentle but firm. "Then you'll get to sleep in your own bed tonight."

Eddy felt defeated in this matter. He knew he had to reveal the truth to her or else he's not getting his food tonight. "Alright alright, I went to the nearby arcade down the road!" He confessed, offering a flimsy excuse before slumping back on his seat.

After a moment of silence, Rose expressions softened as she slided the plate back to him across the table. She searched his eyes to see if he's lying or not. "Oh really?" she answered, doubting if she's hearing the truth. "How long have you been there, may I ask?"

"I don't know, seven hours?" Eddy replied shakingly, hoping that she believed his silly excuse.

Rose gave a subtle sigh. Her eyebrows furrowed after seeing that her brother is still indulged in old habits. "How can I help you if you're just not willing to get it?" she questioned, as she looked down on the floor and crossed her arms. "Literally, the second day!? Huh? How could you be so inconsiderate!?"

Eddy felt guilty as he witnessed Rose's reaction. He knew he disappointed her greatly, but he couldn't bring himself to confess the hard truth about where was he gone for so long. "I'm sorry, sis," he said softly. "I just needed some time for myself, ya know?"

Rose's scowl numbed as she heard his words. She knew that he struggled quite far, and is taking some space for himself. She couldn't help but feel sympathetic for him. "If I hear that you did something like this again," she put forward, her voice softening. "Then I don't know what else has to be done next"

Eddy nodded as he began eating the leftover food on his plate. He couldn't shake off the guilt that stayed in the air, which was lying to his own sister. He wondered about how long can he keep up the facade before she found out the truth.