Sense of a Foreshortened Future : THIAM

Worst Mall in America

"Will you stop that shit?" Theo asked as he looked over the top of the Dread Doctors book. The tone wasn't particularly harsh for Theo, but to anyone around, it would sound like he was being an ass. Liam paused the strumming of his fingers. He hadn't realized how loudly his fingertips had been hitting the linoleum table top. Liam put his hands flat on the table and tried to distract himself with something else.

None of the conversations from the other tables around them were particularly interesting, and Liam was doing his best to ignore the scent of grease coming from the kitchen. In the end, he pulled out his phone and let Scott and Mason know where they were. Liam was grateful that Theo had finally pulled over so they could have lunch, but the first McDonalds off the highway wouldn't have been Liam's first choice.

The distance from Klamath to Boise was over double what they had driven from Beacon to the first lab. They got a later start to their drive, although it wasn't hard to start later than 3 a.m., so they weren't even halfway. Theo had been in a better mood that morning than he was the day before and had let Liam pick out one of the CDs as they drove. Liam cursed himself for picking David Bowie, and he hated Theo for stopping the truck mid-song. Teenage Wildlife was stuck in his head, blaring loudly. He wanted to keep strumming his fingertips against the tabletop, but reading the Dread Doctor book seemed to put Theo in a testy mood, and if they were going to be stuck in the truck together, Liam didn't want to worsen that.

Liam settled for humming it under his breath, which blended into the noise around them seamlessly. He got a glance from Theo, but no glare, so it must have been less annoying. It didn't satisfy his brain in the same way that the tapping had, but he decided once they got back into the truck, he would play the track again. Going through Theo's CDs was all he really had to look forward to.

Sure, he could text Mason or Corey, but they were going through their first lab, and he probably wouldn't get a response till later that night. Scrolling through social media had gotten old fast, and he refused to touch the book. He had read it once, and that was enough. Liam wasn't desperate enough yet to play road trip games, and he didn't think Theo would appreciate it if he tried.

So music was what he focused on. He had the feeling he would have every song memorized by the time they were done, but it was better than silence. The volume of his thoughts seemed to be amplified in the cab of the truck. Even during the small moments between switching albums, his mind attacked him. What was Theo's favorite album? was the first thought to creep into his head. It seemed innocent enough, but it led to other, more uncomfortable questions like When Theo can't sleep, does he put a CD in? and Is it uncomfortable when he sleeps in the truck?

Liam hoped that he had kept the sour smell of guilt out of his scent when he thought of Theo being homeless. He shouldn't feel that guilt, though. It wasn't Liam's fault that Theo was homeless. Sure, he had been the one to pull Theo from Kira's prison, but he didn't force Theo to sleep in his truck. He was fifteen when that happened; how was he supposed to know that Theo didn't have a place to stay? Liam was sure that if Theo had just reached out to Scott, everything would have been sorted. Scott was too kind to let Theo live in the cramped inside of his truck, and Liam knew that Chris could get things like fake birth certificates and IDs.

He's my responsibility.

The words he had said to Scott years ago were thrown to the forefront of his mind. Liam was right, he shouldn't have to feel guilty, and it wasn't his fault, but he had been the one who pulled Theo from Kira's prison, and maybe he should have paid more attention to Theo's issues. Liam couldn't even begin to think of all the problems Theo must deal with on a daily basis.

"You said you don't have an ID, so how are we getting into Canada?" Liam wondered. Theo looked uncomfortable with the question and put down the book.

"Argent got me a driver's license and passport for this," Theo said carefully and narrowed his eyes.