The Ed Who Played with Fire

A Little Ed Goes a Long Way

I needn't burden Eddy, thought Double D as the shower steamed up around him. The warm shower began to relax his tense muscles. But no amount of water and soap could scrub away the image of Eddy's brother grunting above him. It was indelible. Double D got lost in the pattering of the water landing on his skin. He just wanted the untainted friendship back.

Eddy sat against the door, his impatience turning into worry. "What's he doing in there, starting his own space program?" Pressing an ear to the door, Eddy heard nothing except the water. Eddy shook his head, "Heh heh, I hope he's not so upset he did something stupid." The obsessive boy was the smartest person Eddy knew, but Eddy also knew that powerful emotions could completely overtake Double D.

THUD. Eddy heard something hit the tile floor in the bathroom. Already primed to think the worst, Eddy leapt up and used the "key" to his brother's room, a large crowbar, to open the door. When he burst into the room, he could see nothing for a steamy fog, but he could hear Double D shriek in terror. When the steam cleared, there was Double D, standing in the shower, the water droplets on his body glistening. In his hand was a bottle of shampoo. Finding nothing out of the ordinary, Eddy tried to play it cool. Which was difficult, as he found himself confronted again with Double D's exposed body. "Oh. Uh, what the hell? This isn't my room. Ed must have switched the doors on me, you know, as a prank. That crazy lump."

"Eddy, you gave me a fright!" Double D scolded. "Can't a person drop the shampoo without being ambushed?"

Even though the naïve Double D wouldn't hear the cruel irony in his words, Eddy had to turn away to hide his beet-red face. He'd heard his brother throw the phrase around after doing time in juvie. The last thing he wanted was for his expression to give it away and give Double D something else to trouble him. "I didn't mean to," sputtered Eddy. "I just..."

"Just burst in to gawk at your brother's latest conquest?" Double D demanded, his voice rising.

Eddy spun back around. "Chill out, Double D."

"Easier said than done." Double D wanted to rewind the evening back to drinking sodas and watching Ed scarf down pork rinds. One of many good times. But now he feared that Eddy would never see him as his friend anymore, only as one of his brother's faceless victims. It would be better to walk away while the memories were still good. "Bid Ed farewell. I am going home where I may be free of prying eyes... and hands." Double D added, seeing Eddy extend a towel towards him. He was on guard to treat any hand as a threatening hand.

Eddy sighed and hung the towel over the side of the shower stall. "Take your time. I'll pack up your stuff for ya and leave it by the door." He knew that there was no sense pushing Double D, but that didn't make it any easier to let go of his longtime friend. He silently cursed his brother, who had managed to ruin the most important thing in Eddy's life, even more important than the acquisition of jawbreakers. Eddy would never see Double D as damaged, but he feared that the friendship was irreparable. Without another word, or even turning to look back at Double D, Eddy headed back to his room, where at least he would have Ed around.

Alone in the shower again, privacy didn't feel as good as Double D had expected. He had pushed away his friend, and for what? So Eddy wouldn't reject him first? Double D turned off the water with one hand and pulled the towel down with the other. He quickly dried himself and tied the towel around his hips, then timidly followed Eddy.

Across the hall in Eddy's room, Double D saw Ed greet Eddy and wrap him in a circulation stopping hug. It looked like it felt warm and cosy. Ed was excitedly sharing a story with Eddy and holding up some shiny objects dangling from a string. Eddy might have been listening, but was more focused on gently packing up Double D's belongings in the sleek shoulder bag, leaving labels undisturbed. This was especially significant to Double D, who had grown accustomed to Eddy's friendly mocking of the labeling compulsion, but was now following the ritual perfectly to ensure that Double D was at ease.