The Complete Crimson Forest series

Bryxx: Chapter 5

We pull up to a gas station roughly an awkward hour of silence later. What do you talk to your long missing, immortal brother about? Kai goes inside the store to get a snack and Daniel begins filling the tank. Kai returns with a bag of chips and stops at the pump to chat with my brother. It isn't until then that I realize something strange. I can't hear what they're saying. At all. In fact, I can't hear anything happening on the outside of the vehicle. Is the car soundproof?

I close my eyes and focus on hearing anything but I hear nothing. It is sound proofed. How strange. Could it be for privacy sake since Bryxx can hear so well? It makes sense I guess.

Before I know it, we're on the road again.

To my surprise, Kai offers me a chip, but I decline. So far, I've gotten the impression that he doesn't care for me much.

The sun disappears below the horizon shortly after we leave the gas station, and we continue on the final leg of our car trip. It's another hour until we reach Billings where the airport is stationed.

Daniel and I converse lightly about growing up before talking about our shared love of a cop comedy drama on tv. Even Kai chimes in a few times, and I finally see the bond between the two of them as Kai opens up and relaxes his walls. They joke and tease one another.

"Remember when we were hunting deer last fall and you fell right out of the tree stand and onto your ass? Are you seriously telling me that you have better balance than I do?" Daniel demands incredulously, attempting to put a comment from Kai about his lack of balance to rest.

Kai whistles. "Well, at least I can drive. Do you remember what you did last hunting season?"

Daniel squeezes his eyes shut momentarily in a cringe. "Kind of hard to forget."

"You should've saw him." Kai laughs so hard I think he's about to suffocate. Once he calms down he continues, "He drove the four-wheeler right into the creek, the front tires got lodged in the mud and the thing stopped but he kept going and I swear he flew twenty feet! He landed head first in a patch of thistle!" Kai chuckles. "I've never met someone so prone to accidents. You're lucky you're immortal, Dan!"

Daniel shakes his head back and forth. "It wasn't that funny. You're exaggerating."

"You didn't see it! You just felt it!" Kai snorts and I can't help but giggle at both Kai's uncontrollable laughter and the story.

"Yeah. I was injured, and you were too busy laughing to help me push the four-wheeler out of the damn creek," Daniel mutters in a growl.

I interrupt. "I love how you guys can laugh about the types of normally tragic stories that would have a normal person like me killed." Wouldn't it be nice to not have to worry so much about death every day of your life?

"There are perks to this life for sure, but it's not all good," Daniel reminds me. "I'd rather be what I am now than dead, but if I were to choose between being human and being Bryxx, I would choose being human in a heartbeat."

I am about to ask why but we've parked in front of the airport and there are cars behind us ready to drop off passengers like myself. I wish we had more time.

"Thanks for everything. It was really good to see you again, both of you," I tell them honestly. I reluctantly gather my plane ticket and driver's license so I can get on the plane.

"I wish you the best," Kai says with care. "I hope that you got some closure seeing Daniel again, finally learning what really happened, and knowing that he's alright."

I smile softly and nod in thanks. "I wish you two the best as well." I reach over and hug Daniel over the center console awkwardly and shake Kai's hand. A car behind us honks for me to hurry up.