floriography [ stories five ]

carnation || four

[ dragging just like all my other plots

stay safe,
lew. ]

———————

Luckily enough for me, Mason answered the door.

Mason was my favorite family member. My older brother always did his best to make sure I was okay, and I was so grateful for him. But as soon as his girlfriend came around, she was my best friend in the world. Chloe helped me stay somewhat sane.

Mason looked surprised to see me, because this whole summer camp thing wasn't supposed to end for another month and a half. But all it took was a look at my friends, who were almost asleep standing up, and he let us inside. Plus, he didn't question why I was carrying a bronze hoe with me.

"Dad's working late, then he's meeting a friend for dinner," Mason said. "Y'all got lucky."

I really couldn't stop myself from giving him a hug. When I needed him, Mase was always there. And even though I'd only been gone a couple weeks, I missed him. A lot.

"I'll take Logan and Harry up to my room, and then can I crash in yours for a while? I've been driving for like seven hours." I wasn't even aware that I was this tired, a wave of exhaustion sweeping over me as soon as my brother hugged back.

By then, the others were alert enough to look around, and Logan cleared his throat. "I don't wanna interrupt but can we maybe get something to eat first?"

I gave myself a couple more seconds clinging to my big brother before letting go. "I should have some money stashed in my room, we could send Mase after pizza."

"Or we could order some," Mason suggested, throwing his arm around my shoulders. "Or ask Chloe to grab some and come over. I wanna hear about your camp thing and why the hell you're in Huntington instead of New York."

"This is Harry and Logan. They're my friends, and we're on a little side trip. I know I'm dropping by unexpectedly, but this is cheaper and easier than trying to find a hotel room or anything." I then made some dumbass gesture towards my brother. "And guys, this is Mason. Older brother and one of my best friends."

"It's nice to meet you," Mason said, extending his free hand to my friends. They didn't take it.

"Go call Chloe, and I'll show the guys where my room and the bathroom are." I lifted his arm off of me and gave him a smile. "We'll talk, okay?"

He nodded, then went off to call his girlfriend. Logan and Harry followed me up the stairs, and into the first room on the right.

My room wasn't anything too special. I had my guitar hanging on the wall and some artificial ivy pinned above my bed and on the ceiling. Pictures of me and my friends covered the door of my closet.

"Make yourselves at home. The bathroom is right across the hall if you wanna shower, and I can throw clothes in the washer if you want," I told them, throwing down my backpack. I propped my weapon against the wall, then said, "Meet me downstairs when you're done."

I hadn't been home in a couple weeks, and it was safe to say I really missed being around here. The air smelled like smoke, from Dad's nicotine addiction, but it was familiar. As I went downstairs, I kept thinking about how much had changed just within a few weeks.

Mason was just opening the front door when I got down there. Then, my favorite woman in the world peeked in, a little notebook held to her chest. Chloe kissed Mason's cheek, then when she saw me, her eyes lit up. "Lewis! I thought you weren't gonna be back til August!"

I met her halfway for a hug. "Just on a lil trip for camp. My friends and I are gonna leave once we get a few hours of sleep."

"Pizza's out in my car if you wanna go get it," she told Mason, still smiling at me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him leave.

She pulled me over to the couch, and already began giving me the third degree. "What's camp like? Have you made friends? Who's with you?"

I laughed and started answering her questions, only pausing when Mason set the pizza down on the coffee table. I was in the middle of telling her about Bailey when Logan and Harry came downstairs, so obviously I stopped to introduce them.

——

Talking went okay. Chloe kept giving Logan and Harry weird looks, but she was used to being my only friend. I figured at least a little bit of jealousy had to be at work.

Once we ate, I walked the guys back up to my room. "Mase is gonna wake us up in a couple hours so we can hopefully split before my dad realizes that we're here. So, get some rest, guys. Please be considerate and don't do anything in my room."

Harry flipped me off, but hey, it was better than verbally cussing me out. Logan paused for a moment, waiting until Harry had already climbed into bed before telling me, "She's hot, dude. I didn't think rednecks could be hot."

Before I could shove him, he grinned and closed the door.

——

Luckily, we managed to leave before my dad even got home. Mason made sure we had all of our stuff, including the guys' freshly washed clothes and some money for the journey.

I opened the door to our stolen truck right when Mason yelled at me to hold on. I turned and just in time managed to catch a piece of fruit he threw at me. Even in what little light there was, it was pretty clear I'd just been handed a pomegranate.

If you're familiar with the myths, you'll know that my mom ended up living in the Underworld because of a pomegranate. But even before I learned about that, I avoided them. The one time I tried to eat some of the seeds, I ended up having a really bad allergic reaction. It's a wonder than Mason forgot about it, because he pretty much kept a list of what made me sick. If he didn't, then I'd probably be dead by now, seeing how my dad wasn't the most attentive.

So, I was pretty damn confused, but it wasn't the first time.

And on that note... we headed for my least favorite place. Ohio.

———————

[ not my best but it's content.

trying to decide if i wanna tough it out and go ahead and write the last part of this quest deal or if i wanna take a break and write something else, but run the risk of not finishing this