In The Sight of These Hills (Dolan Twins)

Tomorrow Would Bring

Chapter 21: Tomorrow Would Bring

A/N: I wrote this while listening to a lecture on Whitman. And who says I can't multitask? (I really, really can't). LOL.

~

Aaron sat in the basement, his mind in another place altogether.

He was burning it, liquefying it to the amber. It felt hot, but, then again, it was an open flame. He knew Chemistry would come in handy someday, but he wasn't thinking of that when he dipped the needle into the warmth of it. Goggles were strapped to his face and the black cloth gloves covering his hands felt heavy.

Thoughts were racing in his head and he couldn't catch onto one. They were all blurring, shifting. He was playing music from his phone from his portable speaker. The vibrations of it moved the mahogany table lightly, and he felt it in his arms.

He was thinking about Nate Garnier and Grayson Dolan. He was also thinking about how it was Wednesday, and either he nor his twin had been at school the whole week. He was thinking about how the police had never found The Beast because it was wearing a human face, using a human voice, walking around like a regular person. He was thinking about the expression in Ethan Dolan's eyes when they stood outside the dance that Saturday night.

"Aaron!" Susan called from the basement steps, and he turned his head sharply to the sound of her voice.

"Yeah, Mom?" He called over the music, his hands stilling on what he was currently doing.

"Have you seen my Monkshood?" She asked, and he could see the shadow of her motorized wheelchair against the stair steps. He paused what he was doing, heart clenching.

"No, Mom, I haven't."

There were a few moments of silence. He saw her move slightly in her chair.

"Make sure you are using gloves, Aaron," she said finally, and he watched her shadow as she turned around, the sound of the motor like a low buzzzz.

~

On Wednesday they stayed home as well. In the early morning hours, before the sun rose its head from the Eastern sky line, Grayson woke to Ethan lying close to him. He didn't even know that he had pulled him to his chest in the dark.

That night he had a dream he was running through the Morrison woods, chasing something. His bare feet hit the ground as he moved through the rich greenery. It was like he could feel all of nature deep within him, even more than any polaroid picture he and Ethan had taken. It was spring time, and everything was alive. He felt that aliveness deep in his own body. It was like he could run forever if he wanted to. He was thrilled and could feel it deep within his bones.

He was hunting something, but he didn't know what it was. It was moving through the woods and he was backing off in his strides, even though it was slower and weaker than him, and he could easily over power it. He moved to the side, not quite catching its scent, even though it knew what it was chasing, Grayson did not. He woke up with a gasp, even though there was nothing particular about the dream. He had stranger since he was attacked.

Grayson was on his side and had Ethan curled at his chest, his back to him, and his arms around were around his bruised waist, his nose pressed against his nape. The hunger pulled at him as he woke, and he clenched his jaw.

Grayson closed his eyes tight, wrapping his arm tighter around his mid-section. His brother made a small noise of discomfort in his unconscious state at the move and Grayson realized that was probably hurting him. He lessened his grip, feeling guilty.