Drive

ii. stories

     Lately Julian has been spending more time at Brendan's rather than at his own house, though Brendan can't really blame him. He understands that Julian needs to stay out of his own house sometimes—it's pretty much the only way for him to cool off and not blow up at his parents. Besides, it isn't like he's not welcomed here. As far as Brendan's parents are concerned, he's like a second son already, and Brendan assumes that Julian sees his place as a second home.

     And for most of the time, Brendan is alright with Julian's presence in his house. In fact, it's nice to have someone to talk to when both his mom and dad are away for work. Except that with Julian practically living here, it means that he doesn't need to call if he needs a drive. All Julian has to do is knock on Brendan's bedroom door if he wants a night driving around town.

     What a fucking drag, Brendan thinks.

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     His best friend knocks on his door just as soon as he gets into his duvet cover. Snarling, Brendan marches up to his door and yanks it open. He raises a hand to silence Julian before he could say anything. "Yes, I know. You want me to drive. Go fetch the car keys and ignite the car. I'll be there in a sec." And with that, he slams the door shut again.

     A part of Brendan wants to just lock himself in the room and sleep. But this is Julian, and Julian will kill him tomorrow if he bails. And though he would never, ever admit it, Brendan is terrified of what Julian could do if he's furious. It scares him to think that his best friend might just leave if he doesn't comply tonight. So with no other choice, he sighs and begins to get dressed, preparing himself for yet another sleepless night.

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     They're in Brendan's car this time, and for once, Julian is actually talking. He talks about anything and everything and yet it seems like nothing at all. Or maybe it's just that Brendan doesn't understand what he's saying. He tries to listen closely and makes sense of them, but all he gets are random quotes and meaningless sentences about how life sucks. He doesn't need Julian to tell him that.

     But he lets Julian go on and on. He knows that this is Julian's way of letting off steam, and he pretends that he's listening. Brendan drives and taps his fingers on the wheel while Julian rants, resisting the urge to turn on the radio. As an alternative, he tries to imagine that Julian's words form a story that he simply can't decipher. He can make out the anger and bitter disappointment in his friend's voice as he tells his tale, but Brendan doesn't comment.

     Until Julian says, "My dad wants me to come home."

     Brendan tears his eyes off from the rode for a little while, shooting Julian a wary look. "You can't stay at mine forever, man," he tells his friend. It's another way of saying, You should probably go home—your family is probably worried sick, but Brendan doesn't say it in that way because he knows that Julian will be mad if he does. The one thing that Julian hates the most is being ordered around by someone else.

     "I know," Julian blows out a sigh.

     They're silent after that, because neither of them knows what else to say.

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     Brendan drives the two of them round and round the town, passing Julian's house twice already. But he doesn't stop—doesn't even spare the house a glance. He knows that encouraging Julian to come home will only prolong his stay at the Harts'.

     When he stops, it's at the 24/7 Café. It's open even at one in the morning, but they don't enter. Instead, they sit in the car and watch the late night customers come and go. They don't talk to one another, but they're thinking of the same thing. This café was where they first met back in middle school. Whatever friendship they have goes way back to this café.

     It's probably pointless to stop here just to reminisce, but Brendan can't help but wonder if the Julian he knows now is still the same Julian he met in this café. He steals another glance at the boy seated beside him. Brendan decides that he hasn't really changed that much, except this Julian has more problems than just anger management issues.

     Hence, their late night drives.

     As they pull away from 24/7, Brendan hopes that their drives would somehow solve Julian's problems—however impossible that may be.

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     To his surprise, the drive tonight doesn't last very long. It's only 2:11 AM when they arrive at Brendan's driveway. They enter the house without saying anything to one another, but just before they part ways, Julian stops Brendan.

     "I—I'll come home in the morning," he says, nodding his head.

     Brendan grins, but only replies with a tired, "Night, Julian. Go get some rest." There's nothing else than he can say, because he's well aware that Julian isn't looking for more encouragement from his side. He simply wants Brendan to know that he is going to try fix things. Which, of course, is a start. For now, Brendan thinks, that's good enough. It's definitely better than the unbearable silence during the late night drives.

     "Will do," Julian's voice breaks him out of his reverie. And with a mocking salute, Julian turns around and the two boys stumble into their respective bedrooms. Letting sleep overcome them, neither of them gives the morning much thought. Whatever happens will happen tomorrow.

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     A/N: Picture on the right is Julian!