The Half of It

The Tree Song - REWRITTEN

{A/N}: Greetings! This is the first rewritten chapter of the new project called The Half of It (Ex- Demon's Pet) which will keep some of the significant parts of the old one. 

Every rewritten chapter will be marked in the chapter title!

Take care of yourselves, I hope you enjoy the content and drink a lot of water! 

Bangor was the city of mysticism. Lance couldn't put a finger on it, but ever since he was a child, he thought that the trees were singing. Calling, talking, pulling him in. The wind was the messenger. Lance loved to listen, he loved, loved and loved, despite not knowing what was being exchanged in the enigmatic spaces between the treetops and imposing trunks. He was a delicate figure in a music box, endlessly pirouetting to the tune that spoke the raw language only his soul understood. It was bigger than him, bigger than what he called life, and one day it would make itself known. The raw languages took their time traveling from the inside to the outside. Lance had all the patience in the world.

When he thought of returning to Bangor, it was not him coming back in favor of his recovery. He was sitting in the back of his Ford Galaxie with Hunk behind the wheel and Pidge in the passenger seat. Hunk was trying to be discreet about watching Lance fidgeting in the rear view mirror every now and then. Pidge was less subtle, they asked questions, performed the full head turns and were extremely open about vocally expressing their concern. When he thought of returning to Bangor, it was not him coming back as a fragile tea cup. He pressed his forehead to the cold glass. The intoxicating smell of gasoline he secretly enjoyed restored some of the lost toleration for his current condition.

''Take a turn there,'' Lance suddenly shifted and leaned forward between the two seats to watch the road. It was pale, bumpy and gravelly, flanked by the thin and long white spruces. Whenever Hunk would accelerate, the clouds of dust would arise and throw the veil at the path behind them. When Lance looked back, it was as if the world was being erased. Gone. Lance clung to the thought.

The radio stations were starting to get mixed up, the speech sounds all indistinct and slurred. Pidge turned it off.

''It was going on my nerves. Sorry,'' they said, looking over their shoulder at Lance.

Lance just shook his head. All he could think about was being back. About what could happen. There was always something in the air that made Lance hope. Hope for something from the fairytales, so grand and his that it had no name for anyone else. He wasn't a child anymore, but he still nurtured the same desire - to hear the trees sing, and know what they were singing about.

They continued down the road until they approached the two identical maple trees planted at both sides of the narrow trail winding to Lance's cabin. The car couldn't go past them, so Hunk slowly pulled over to the side of the maple tree gate and killed the engine. They sat in silence for the moment, taking in the dominant idyllic greenery coated by the raging and laser-like sunshine. Lance's log cabin came with a second floor and a green metal roof. The sunny day highlighted the warm and deep honey color of its wood. It seemed like the cabin was glistening. Lance fondly smiled.

They exited the car, and when Hunk tested the doors to make sure that they were locked, he handed the keys to Lance.

''Here. No scratch on your Baby,'' Hunk gestured towards the vehicle.

Lance stuffed the keys into his pocket, softly nodding. ''Thanks for driving us here,'' he mumbled, and turned toward the cabin. The mere sight of it made him forget how dejected he had felt earlier for not being allowed to drive his car. And now, he was home. It was the only thing that truly mattered. He was where he longed to be. In his grandpa's will, it was stated that Lance was the one to inherit the cabin. Where the rest of his family members saw the retreat, he saw home. It was Lance's first visit as a legal owner. He was sad and happy at the same time, thinking of his grandparents.