Lost in Technicolor

An Awkward Dinner

Dinner was very awkward. It was mostly silent as everyone slowly ate away at their food. Drake felt slightly sympathetic for Jade, who was squashed between Damien and Dane because Damien was clearly in a terrible mood and Dane seemed to hate Jade as it was. He leaned away from her and glanced at her every now and then as if he expected her to disappear.

Finally Damien spoke, "Drake," Drake immediately looked up with wide eyes. What did he want now? "I'm leaving in . . . well tomorrow actually, to attend to some mildly important business."

"So what?" Drake growled, raising an eyebrow cockily. He knew that Damien wanted something from him, otherwise he wouldn't have spoken to him, but Drake would play along and pretend that normal conversations took place at the table.

"So," Damien let the sound of his voice string out on that o, "the two of you must come with me."

"Great," Drake rolled his eyes that's what he wanted. However once they fell back onto Damien's cold glare, he was forced to look into his lap. Sometimes he thought that Damien could kill people just with his eyes.

"Sounds good to me," Jade said all too happily, "more opportunities for me to escape from your hell."

Damien turned his eyes from Drake onto her, "No," he smiled easily, "I don't think you will ever be able to run away from me."

Drake glanced at her. Didn't she remember that he could control people with his words? Why was she acting so boldly?

"You don't think that my will to leave is stronger than your words?" She laughed at him with a small strand of frustration. Possibly she knew that he could make her do whatever she didn't want to do, but still didn't want to admit to it aloud.

Damien raised his eyebrows at her as the corners of his mouth tipped upwards in a devilish smile. "I'd certainly like to see you try, my dear."

"Where exactly are you going?" She asked cautiously, biting down hard on her bottom lip.

His smile finally blossomed into an eerie laugh as his eyes spilled their hatred onto her. "We are going to . . . hell where to begin. The Red Deserts, Kingsbury, End World, Earthsea and pretty much everywhere that isn't Monorail."

"Why?" She asked, refusing to take a bite of her food, maybe starving would be better than staying with Damien and his accursed family, Drake thought.

"I," he smiled hatefully again, "I have no reason to tell you. Now finish your damn dinner and get out of my sight."

"Damien," Dane finally spoke. He sighed, watching her begin to eat, "Enough is enough. She is a person, after all."

"Can you actually look at her and tell me that!" He exclaimed softly, keeping his temper under his control. Although he seemed to be struggling greatly.

Dane's glare softened as he then turned his eyes towards Jade, who was slowly finishing her food, "Damien tell her she can stop for a moment or so," he did and Dane asked her, "love," he then took his knife and dragged it into the skin of his wrist just enough to let it bleed. Drake frowned, what the hell was his uncle doing.

Jade immediately went pale and put a hand over her mouth, scrambling out of her chair and turning around to face the wall. Drake glanced at her. What was the matter now? All of the drama was making him irritable.

"See!" Damien growled, standing up himself and leaving the room. "You deal with her because I cannot. I can't look at her anymore."

"What's his problem?" Drake laughed, "And what's with her? Has everyone gone completely mad?"

"Don't test Damien, Drake," Dane said slowly walking up to the trembling Jade, "darling, you're fine," he spoke to her, nearly making her jump straight up into the ceiling with fright.

She turned towards him and began to sob into his dark shirt. Drake expected to see annoyance flash through Dane's eyes at first, but instead of being annoyed, he wrapped his arms around Jade, stroking a hand through her hair, muttering to her, "It'll be all right dear. It's not going to be all that bad, I promise."

"I just want to go home," she cried even harder. Drake rolled his eyes for Dane. This was pathetic.

"I'm going to my room," he sighed deeply. He was bored of all of the commotion and she was about to get on his last nerve.

"Na uh," Dane said in a disapproving tone, "come here and help me with her. You two are going to need to help one another to get through this all right."

"Get through Damien's inferno!" Drake laughed hard until Dane literally slapped some sense into him, leaving a pinkish red mark on his cheek. Drake glared at him hard.

"Pick her up," Dane commanded him. Drake looked around the room at the many paintings of people hanging on the wall. All of their eyes seemed to be directed onto him, staring him down. The three chandeliers hanging from the ceiling were making the room too bright. He suddenly felt as if he really were in hell. "Drake!" Dane snapped him back into reality.