The Consort (MalexMale) 《COMPLETE》

Chapter 31

Chapter 31

Evening approaches. My feet lightly scrape across the wooden porch as I rock myself back and forth on the porch swing. The noise quickly becomes lost to the chilling wind. Everything around me is engulfed by darkness.

I huddle the blanket around my shoulders and pull out the folded picture from my pocket. I've tried to study it half a dozen times today as something to do while waiting for Kelly and Fiona's return. Every time Bogdan interrupted me, though, unaware of my hidden discovery.

The moonlight casts slivers of light against the fragile picture. I study the contours of the man staring back at me. My fingers trace around his still face, his warm eyes, his square jaw, and his calm expression. He's beautiful.

I flip the photo over, squinting at its pale back until I notice a small bit of worn cursive scrawled across the bottom. The year is missing, but the date says November 28th. A name and a message are scribbled beside it, and my heart pumps with angst as I try to get a better look.

Arch_r R_bbins – Rec_iving fi_st pl_ce medal, hig_ jump

The missing letters are too smudged to read. Either that or the moonlight is playing tricks with my mind. I try to fill in the lost information, piecing together the note as best as possible. Only a minute passes before the front door swing opens. If it wasn't for the slightly squeaky door hinge, I wouldn't notice it at all.

I quickly fold the picture and stuff it back into my pocket as Bogdan noiselessly steps through its threshold. His red eyes scour over stretch of land surrounding us. Only when assesses the coast is clear does he take a seat beside me. He plants his feet firmly on the ground and begins rocking us back and forth.

The swing bends to his movement, the speed much greater than I managed to produce only minutes ago. I lift my feet and balance them on the swing, nonchalantly moving closer to my vampire. Our shoulders touch. He stiffens at the contact but doesn't move away from me.

"They're still not back," I whisper.

"I see that."

"Weren't they supposed to be back?" I press.

Bogdan's red eyes continue to survey our surroundings. Then he grunts out a simple, "yes."

"Are you worried?"

"Worry is not an emotion I feel, human."

I let out an exasperated sigh. As much as my emotions get the better of me sometimes, I can't imagine not being able to feel any at all. It must be so hollow – going through the motions of daily life without feeling the emotions that go along with them.

It's far too dark to see the weeping willow, but I swear I can hear her long, wispy branches aching in the wind. The sound reminds me of sitting on the lawn at one of the Fall festivals I attended last year around this time. It was one of the ones where Kelly played, if I remember correctly. Fiona and I cleared our schedules for the night, watching him play while eating to our stomach's delight.

The memory stirs up a bittersweet feeling of nostalgia. Music was such a big part of Kelly. It was as if the notes themselves wove into his soul, creating the threads of his being. The man had a gift in the arts. I remember watching the eyes of listeners every time he took the stage. The songs practically radiated from his fingertips every time he played.

"Bogdan?" I whisper, staring at the dancing branches. "What are we doing here?"

He frowns. "What do you mean, human?"