Ghost (Second Edition)

Chapter Fourteen--Between the Cracks

Luis

"Bye," Luis whispered as he slipped out of Nathan's warm car. He had gone back with Nathan to get changed and hand his suit back.

Nathan leaned forward and gently took his hand, kissing him gently on the fingers. "See you on Monday," he murmured.

Luis smiled slightly. "See you Monday. I love you."

"I love you too," Nathan whispered, a blush faintly colouring his cheeks.

Luis stepped back, his fingers slipping through Nathan's, and closed the door as softly as he could. He watched as the BMW did a U-turn, the loose gravel crunching under the tyres. When the car was out of sight, he slumped his shoulders before turning back to the house.

The roof was made of tiles, though some of them were missing and weeds grew through the cracks. The house was made completely out of wood and painted white, but the paint was peeling in long strips. The frames around the grimy windows were waterlogged and swollen, the glass fogged up by old cigarette smoke.

When Luis unlocked the front door of his home, the first thing that greeted him was the sharp, fruity tang of brandy. He pulled his lips back in disgust. Mother's been drinking...

His mother got funny when she drank. Unpredictable. He never knew what to expect. Would she be violent, or gentle?

He slipped through the door and shut it with a soft click, turning the old bronze lock.

"Luis?" His mother's sluggish voice called from the living room.

"It's me, Mother," Luis called back as he walked down the grimy hall. it didn't matter how hard he cleaned; the house still looked just as messy.

The living room was small and dingy. There was a small, moth-eaten sofa facing a tiny TV that flashed up an old, black-and-white romance. There was nothing else in the room.

Caty looked over at him and smiled.

Gentle... Luis thought.

"Where have you been?" Caty asked, lifting a bottle to her lips. "You've missed most of the movie!"

She acted as if this was normal as if they watched movies together. Luis wished they did. He wished his mother was always this kind.

"Sorry, Mother," Luis murmured, curling his fingers around the hem of his jumper, "I was at prom."

"Ah, yes! Prom!" Her voice was slow and sluggish. "How did it go?"

"It went well," Luis said slowly, moving quietly into the room. One wrong move and her attitude could change like a switch.

"Come, sit! Tell me all about it!" His mother waved him over, beaming and showing yellow and rotting teeth.

Hesitantly, Luis went over and sat on the hard armrest of the chair. The wooden frame biting into his tailbone.

"Well?" She promoted, lifting the round, green bottle to her thin lips.

"Ah..." Luis fumbled for woods as he looked towards the TV. The couple were dancing. "There was dancing..."

"Dancing?"

Luis glanced at her, then away. "Yeah." He smiled slightly, remembering how Nathan held him. "Like a waltz."

"Hmmm," Caty looked up at the ceiling, the fuzzy light from the TV catching the huge darkness of her pupils. "I remember dancing like that when I was your age..." Her voice was a little distant.

"With..." Luis swallowed and looked at her sideways, "with Father?"

He had to be careful when mentioning him. Sometimes that was enough to make her switch.

"Yes... We danced a few times," She gave him a fond smile. "You look just like him, you know."

Luis gave her a small smile. "Do I?"

"Yes..." She reached out a bony hand and ran a finger down his cheek. "Exactly like him..."

Something dark flashed in her eyes that Luis couldn't place. He took that as his time to leave. He yawned, opening his mouth wide and stretching his arms above his head.

"Wow..." He groaned, "I'm so tired!" He rose from the sofa and smiled down at his mother who didn't smile back. He could see the drunkenness waning from her sharp features. "I'm heading to bed, good night, Mother!"

He left quickly, ready to bolt if she started after him. He reached the hall when he heard her reply.

"Goodnight..." She sounded confused as if wondering why she was saying the word.

He slipped into his bare, stale-aired room and shut the door with a click. He sighed, slumping his shoulders. He wished his mother was always that kind. He never fully understood why she was the way she was, but, all he could do was try and help.

Right?

She needs me...

Luis shook his head to clear it and walked over to the mattress on the floor, slipping under the thin moth-eaten covers. He heard his mother's shuffling footsteps on the wooden floorboards in the hall, then the familiar click of his door lock.

He sighed. It never lasted.

He curled up and shut his eyes, letting the dark, peacefulness of sleep claim him, slipping into the deep sea of dreams.