Double Or Nothing // C.T.H

27 ~ Thomas

I emerge from my bedroom for the first time since the other night quietly, wanting to leave without being noticed.

It shouldn't be hard to leave at 2:30am without being seen, but this is the Hood family we're talking about, half the time we lay awake anyways.

I skip over the 5th step, I had caught Calum doing this last year and ever since then I've noticed the loud groan the stairs give out when you step on it.

This would have worked well if my heel hadn't slipped off the edge of the 6th step, the gap I had tried to step over was to wide causing my bum to slam down right onto the 5th step, making it groan and cry out loudly feeling the sudden weight.

I bit my lip, my lungs deflated from the lack of air that had been knocked out of me by the force of my fall.

My eyes widen as the soft creek of a door filled the anxious silence, someone had heard the stair.

I stay frozen, one hand grasping the railing tightly, the other pressed against the wall, my butt still sat on the 5th step because if I moved off it would scream again.

My eyes connect with the squinting ones of Mali. A overwhelming mix of emotions washed over me.

I was still angered, which then made me sad,and a pinch of regret swirled in my stomach, not to forget the heart racing  anxiety and fear coursing though me.

What if she was still spiteful from our quarrel and didn't hesitate to tell our parents? What if she started yelling at me again?

We sat there, our eyes still locked, both of us have many thoughts and emotions running through our minds before she slowly closed her eyes, as if she didn't want to fight or scare me off.

They stayed shut for a moment, before she lifted her hand, tilting it in a small wave, silently telling me to go do what ever I was going to.

My eyes soften and I give her a grateful grin before shifting my weight off the stair, which causes a creek of release to echo down the hall.

Mali whips her head around, listing for any sign that my parents had woken, yet to my relief the house stood still and silent.

We share one more look before I step softly to the door, my shoes barely taping the ground, and slipping out into the freezing air.

I zip my jacket up to my collar bone and shove my hands into my pockets, thankful that the wind had left and the cold air was at least still now, not harassing and pulling at you violently.

I've  always preferred walking, and usually do so. Calum and I, we do have a car that we share, however neither of us use it much.

I used to carry weights in my pockets, wanting to gain some more muscle mass. It didn't work well.

By the time I've made it out of the neighborhood, my body was now fully awake, not that I ever really was asleep, but my eyes adjusted to the dark night and my limbs loosed their stiffness.

In all honesty, no one knows just who I am, really. Everyone's got a story and I don't think I've ever told mine, not that it's a good one anyway.

I sigh, shoving my hands deeper into my pockets, coming steadily closer to the small city, buildings like the mall and the few restaurants line the sidewalks.