In The Sight of These Hills (Dolan Twins)

Tragic Rabbit

Chapter 23: Tragic Rabbit

"There is no pain, you are receding
A distant ship's smoke on the horizon
You are only coming through in waves
Your lips move but I can't hear what you're saying"

-Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb"

Ethan did not tell him about Aaron. He didn't tell him about Aaron because he was concerned about Grayson more than anything. Grayson hadn't pushed, and Ethan hadn't given. His thoughts were in the deepness of what had happened. Could he trust Aaron? Would he tell? Who would believe him, anyway? It was all so crazy.

He knew that it would just get Grayson to asking, to pushing, if he kept getting nervous, kept thinking about it, kept changing his emotions. The day was uneventful after lunch, besides Grayson getting in trouble with Mr. Asshelmet for talking back to him in seventh period.

"Mr. Dolan, please don't get on your phone."

This was study hall. Most of the students were clearly on their phones. They were in the classroom, Ethan beside him trying to read the required sections for History. His pen was on a passage about the amputees of the Civil War and field medical practices. It was too cold to go outside.

"I wasn't on my phone," Grayson had stated, roughly. Ethan turned to him, and then to the teacher. They were near the back and he had walked all the way down there to them.

Mr. Asshelmet had sighed loudly as though a smartass kid was the last thing he needed.

"Yes, you were."

"No, I wasn't."

He really hadn't been, though. He had been trying to write notes for Ethan for Geometry. He was trying to write each step out with examples, so he could show him later how to do them.

"Yes."

Grayson was positively glaring, his jaw tightening, and was starting to open his mouth again when Ethan quickly said, "Sorry, Mr. Asshelmet. He was just checking it because of our dad. He's sick."

"Oh," said the older male, blinking, a look of regret flashing on his face for a second, "I'm sorry to hear that."

Ethan looked down and felt Gray's eyes on him, "Yeah, he was just texting him to see if we needed to pick anything up."

Mr. Asshelmet nodded and said to Grayson, "Well, if you need to contact him you may step out in the hall."

Grayson didn't say anything, and just turned back to writing the problems down.

Ethan had smiled politely and said, "Thank you, sir."

He went back up the isle again to his desk and Ethan turned back to his History. His eyes traced the words, yet he was somewhere else.

I think I can help-

Is that what he had said? He had been moving out so quickly that maybe he had been mistaken. Maybe he hadn't said that at all. Did Aaron have what he thought he needed? He thought of Susan Carpenter, he thought of her number in his bag on the information sheet. Had he told anyone? Oh, God, he hoped not.

He felt Grayson stiffen beside him and turn his head slightly towards him. He tried to focus on the words, pen sliding under passage and passage, keeping them in the gray matter of his brain. Grayson pursed his lips, but otherwise didn't say a word, turning back to his own task against the quiet of the classroom.

~

The chill bit at everyone outside, and it bit at the trees even; the heart. Peoples' Halloween decorations looked perfectly well-fitted.