Red Wine (ScotFra)

New things

A L L I S T O R

Arthur got home just as I did, his car pulling into the driveway as I stepped up onto the porch.
I waved to him as he walked up to me, throwing his bag over his shoulder.
"Hey Artie," I said.
"Don't call me Artie,"
I pushed him as we walked through the door, Arthur collapsing on the couch.
"How was the new school?" I asked, grabbing an apple from the kitchen and throwing one to him.
He took a bite and shook his head. "Not as horrid as I'd originally expected,"
Coming from him, that was as good as it was going to get.
"That's good to hear I guess?" I sat down on the couch and then threw my feet on his legs, using him like a foot rest.
He pushed my feet off of him, complaining about my muddy shoes.
"Anyone special take your eye?" I asked, raising my eyebrows. "Anyone make you feel a little ho-"
"Absolutely not," Arthur interrupted me. He folded his hands across his chest, taking another bite from the apple. "Don't be so vulgar,"
"Nobody at all? Cmon, there's gotta be someone. At least someone who you want to friends with? I mean there's gotta be someone out there willing to at least tolerate you," I joked. "Why don't you try and look for them?"
I may have joked with him, but I was serious. As his older brother, it was kind of my job to make sure he wasn't a social outcast or a total asshole. I failed at making him not an asshole, but I could still help him to not be an outcast. Arthur has always shut himself off from people, and he never had many friends. It wasn't that he couldn't make them he just didn't want them. I guess it had something to do with him wanting complete control of himself and his thoughts, and he believed that having friends prevented that. Not only that, but he didn't believe in love, either. That was the saddest to me. Sure, he was uptight and stuffy and kind of egotistical and a real prick sometimes, but he was a good kid. He could find somebody nice. He's been on dates before, plenty of them actually, but that was just because he felt that it was rude to turn someone down when they asked him. He was perfectly able to find love, but he was just too stubborn to go out and find them. Now I, on the other hand, didn't bother to look for love. It just wasn't something I thought I needed, or really could ever achieve. I wasn't a "lovable" guy. But it didn't bother me much. I was okay with what I had now. My family and friends and of course Melanie. Melanie being my pet sheep, of course.
"Shut up Allistor, we've been through this, I don't need friends, much less someone to try and control me," Arthur replied, huffing. "Besides, there wasn't anyone who really captured my eye anyway," He averted his eyes as he said that, playing with the strap of his school bag.
I raised my eyebrows. "There was someone,"
He whipped his face back to me. "No there wasn't-"
"Yes there was, you were lying when you said that I can tell, your nose did that twitch thing," I smiled deviously, scooting closer to him on the couch.
He consequently stood up, his face very red, the stick up his ass stiff as usual.
"No I absolutely was not lying, I met no one and everyone at that school is a blithering idiot, I even choked someone with a scarf today, I have no patience for you right now, Allistor," he said, flailing his arms angrily as he spoke.
Choked someone with a scarf? For someone so high and mighty you sure have a violent streak. I wonder if you remember that one time you broke Patty's nose because he said you were too young to play monopoly with us. That was funny.
I shrugged, taking a bite of my apple.
"Whatever you say, Artie,"
He groaned and then wandered up to his bedroom, huffing.
Just as he did that, my other brother, Peter, ran into the room. He had on the usual sailor's hat he wore everyday and he was chasing Melanie through the house, who was bleating loudly.
"ALLI HELP ME GET HER OUT," He yelled to me. I sat back and watched him chase around that sheep, a small smile on my face before I stood up and grabbed Melanie and took her into the backyard, Peter trailing behind me and catching his breath.
"Thanks, Alli," He said, wiping a bit of sweat off his forehead.
"No problem, Petey,"
He looked up at me and gave me the grin of a child and then waved.
"Well I've gotta go look over my maps again,"
"Be safe," I said, saluting him. "The seas can get dangerous, Captain,"
He saluted me back, his young face turning into as serious of an expression such a young boy could make before sprinting off into the house.
He's so young... Thinking that he's the captain of some great exploring ship. I hope he stays that way. Happy and innocent. There are things he shouldn't have to see in this world.
I sat down on the steps of our back porch, lost in thought for a long time. At one point my mind wanderers to my other brother. Patrick.
He's been gone for awhile now. After we kicked him out... He hasn't shown back up. I hope he doesn't. The way he's been acting, what he's been doing... I don't think I could stand to have him anywhere near mum or Peter or Arthur. I... I don't know what I'd do if he hurt any of them again. I'd probably end up in prison.
I glanced up at the losing light of the sky and watched as its colors faded from orange to a deep blue. Soon after that, the stars decided to shine bright. I looked up into the sky, losing myself in the vastness of it all. This world was huge. There was so much space, and so many people.
I stared at the color of the sky right around the moon, where its light reflected into the blackness of the night. I looked at it carefully, the blue, almost purple, color of it reminding me of something. Or someone, rather.
The guy from the market yesterday.
But what about him?
I kept looking, and then it hit me.
It was his eyes. The color that the light of the moon is making right there is the exact color of his eyes.
...
Jesus Christ.
what is wrong with me?
More importantly why do I sound like a poetry book?
And why does my mind keep traveling back to him?
I shook my head. For the past two days, that guy from the market, Francis I think his name was, kept coming into my mind at the strangest times and it made me so angry. I didn't want to think about him, I've had one conversation with him. It wasn't even much of a conversation. I mean sure, he was attractive, but I've met plenty of attractive people before. They've never kept returning to my mind before though. I found it annoying, so I decided to retire and head up to my bedroom, crashing onto my bed and sleeping, not even bothering to change my clothes.
My sleep was dreamless and my mind was empty.