Fog Rising

✿one

"Go! Come on, Matt, run!" Sean tugged at a strand of hair in frustration. "There we go, buddy, now keep going. Yeah, yeah, yeah.... Yes!" He jumped up and down in excitement, "touchdown!"

A man standing a few feet away smiled at Sean. "Do you know him?"

"Yes sir," he replied, "that's my little brother."

The rain started to beat down even harder, making Sean wish he had brought an umbrella to the football game. He pulled the beanie down further, completely covering his hair except for the floppy bit at the front. The referee on the field blew his whistle, signaling the end of the game. The high school student fan section cheered loudly.

"Landry! Landry! Landry!" Sean chuckled at the sound of kids screaming his last name. Matt waved up at the stands from the field and disappeared into the locker rooms. Sean moved to wait outside the door to the school for his younger brother.

Soon, the unmistakeably freckled features burst out of the doors, alive with a huge grin. "Did you see that? I had three touchdowns," Matt boasted.

"I saw, and it was fantastic," his brother chuckled, "good work. You hungry?"

Matt nodded fervently, "famished." He pushed his dark, sweaty hair back from his forehead and began to walk with his brother to the parking lot.

"Good work, Matty," a girl with long blonde hair and a shirt with far too revealing a neckline. She winked and squeezed his arm. As she passed, Sean turned to check her out from behind.

"Dude," Matt slapped his arm and laughed, "gross. You're, like, too old."

Sean shrugged and joined his brother in laughing. "I'm only 21, that's not old. You're too old for her, too, anyway."

Matt smiled and got into the passenger seat. "Whatever, man. Can we go straight home? I'm desperate for a shower." He normally wouldn't care, and usually went out with the team after games without showering, but just wanted to hang out with his brothers.

"Sure. I'll make something at home, if that's cool," Sean pulled onto the road.

//

"See you tomorrow, Tom. Don't stay too late," Andrew waved goodbye to his coworker and pushed a button to call the elevator. It was 8:30, and he hoped he wasn't too late to see his brother's football game. He stepped into the garage and clicked his keys to find his car. By the time he got out of the worst of the city's Friday night traffic, it was already 8:45, and he knew he'd miss the game.

He cursed and slammed his fist on the wheel. Andrew tried to attend all of Matt's games, but had so much work tonight that he couldn't leave the office on time. It was dark and rainy as he turned down a side street in attempts of beating around some traffic, his windshield wipers brushing back and forth quickly. He had just flicked on his high beams to help him see when he saw a long, pale arm laying on the ground. It disappeared into an alley, and Andrew decided that if someone was hurt, he needed to help them. What kind of person would he be if he left someone in the rain?

He quickly pulled the car over and hopped out, not caring that he was getting one of his best suits soaked. The arm tapered down into a slim wrist and delicate fingers, the nails painted black. As he cautiously stepped into the alley, unsure of what was waiting in the dark, he saw a flash of something gold and sparkly. And with one more step, Andrew saw the whole rest of the body.

She was wearing a shimmering dress stained lightly with blood, with one shoe on and the other a few feet away in a puddle. She had long blonde hair trickling over her shoulder. She was propped against a wall, unconscious, with smeared makeup and a gash on her collarbones that was seeping blood into her hair and on her dress. There was an angry bruise on her cheek, but even so, Andrew noticed how beautiful she was. He stepped closer to her and gently shook her arm.