Timekeeper

4. He's Broken.

I didn't even bother closing my eyes this time. The dark was dark but it never lasts. In the end, I still ended up in the living room. Chris just stood there in complete silence.  He didn't bother to smile. He didn't bother to talk. I didn't like it. He reminded me of Patton and I never did like seeing the moral trait sad.

It didn't take long to notice it was eerily silent and dark. I looked around to see a lonely figure on the couch. His head buried in his hands, muffling the sobs that echoed through the room. I walked over to see this beautiful tree, on the ground and falling apart. Broken ornaments and torn garland littered the area, gifts crushed under the weight of the fallen tree. Chris grabbed my hand, pulling me away from the crying figure and down the hall towards Roman's room.

"Hey, What's going on? What happened to the tree? What day is this?"I started as Chris lead me down the hall. 

"Christmas Day." His voice was empty and monotone, devoid of his usual cheery nature. We stopped at Roman's door and I noticed it was ajar. This cold chill crawled down my back and I started to get a little nervous. "It's Christmas Logan. This is our future." I looked over at him surprised at his use of our, but more surprised at the lack of emotion when he said it. If it was Christmas where were the lights? Where was the music and the cookies on display that Patton does every year? Where were the excessive laughter and infuriating sound of tearing paper? Where was the mess? 

Where's the happy?

I walked into the room leaving Chris behind and my heart just dropped. It was a total mess. Things were broken and thrown about. His favorite possession was cut and I had to look away. Roman had another attack and lashed out. This time on his own things. I spotted something glittering on the floor and I started to panic. Don't tell me...

"Roman... What did you do?" I asked as I looked at the shattered mess of the glittering white glass that once made up Virgil's gift. It was completely destroyed to the point that there was no fixing it. It was just a powered dust on the carpet, and after he tried so hard for so long to fix it. I heard the shower start and I jumped at the intrusion of sound. I looked over at Chris, who refused to meet my eyes at all.

I slowly closed the distance between me and the bathroom and I froze. It was cold. It was very cold. I had to cover my mouth to stifle the gasp I unintentionally made. Roman was just sitting in the tub in the fetal position as the icy water drenched him completely. His pants were entirely soaked as he just sat there, unmoving and griping his wet hair. 

"This is our future..." I heard Chris repeat as he stood in the doorway looking away for the sorry sight that was the bathroom. 

"He's broken." Chris nodded and I knelt down beside the lost creative side. I tried brushing the hair out of his face but it was no use. "What happened to him?"

"You did." I looked up at him with wide eyes and he once again avoided eye contact. "He finally asked for help and you were so busy you couldn't see the desperation in his eyes. He begged and pushed a little too much and you snapped at him. He left a mess and started lashing out as he does. He accidentally threw something at the desk and well... You saw what happened. It was the final straw for him."

"Logan's right. I'm just a damn mess." Roman's voice picked up through the sound of the rushing water and my heart nearly broke. What could I have possibly been doing that would have made me snap at him? He was asking for help. I would've helped. I thought I would have..."I just can't do anything right. How am I even helpful to Thomas?"

"Roman you stop talking about yourself like that this instant!" I yelled out and Chris sighed. I knew he couldn't hear me. I know it was pointless but... He's like a brother to me. I know I'm hard on him but I still care. I still...

"Moron!" He slammed his head back against the walled and I cringed at the sound. Roman was broken. That much was clear. I couldn't let this continue. I couldn't even watch this anymore. "Shit..."

"I'm sorry, Roman. I should've seen the pain you were going through. It's my fault, not yours." I laid my head on his chest and felt it rise and fall with his labored breaths. This was pitiful for a prince, and I took full responsibility. I got up and grabbed Chris's arm pulling him out of Roman's room altogether. 

"LOGAN!" I heard Chris yell as I dragged him out. When I got into the hallway, I stopped. There was music. I could hear music. It was quiet, so quiet you would have missed it had it not been so silent everywhere else. I glanced over at Chris and he shrugged. I rolled my eyes and started to follow the music down the hall. As the music got louder the hallway got darker and soon I was standing in front of a giant black door... a black door with ornate orange embellishments and a distinct shade pattern that looked like scales.

"Deceit?" Suddenly I felt someone grab my arm and I was plunged back into the darkness. When it was all done I turned around to see Chris standing there, a look of sadness on his face. "What was going on with Deceit?"

"Soon, Logan... soon. First, you have to right your wrong with Roman."