Falling into the Badboy

Eight

I look up from the sidewalk at the house now in front of me, it's big but not too big. More a middle-class family big. I turn and walk up the sidewalk and I start up the steps as I can see the lights on in the house.

I open the door since Tom texted me to just come in when I got here. "Tom?" I ask. I don't hear anything as I slowly walk down the hall. I turn my head as I approach what looks to be the kitchen, I see Tom his back to me as he leans over picking up some pieces of glass from the counter. "Tom?" I ask again.

He turns to me suddenly and looks relieved when he sees that it's just me, "what happened?" I ask.

"Brian happened. He called me saying he needed to talk but showed up wasted as fuck." He dumps the glass into the trash and looks back up at me. "He comes in yelling and throwing things. Luckily my parents are out of town, and he didn't break anything too valuable."

I shake my head. "I'm sorry. I'm just, confused. Why did you call me?" I wonder.

"He was yelling about you. I guess he doesn't remember too much, but he's sitting outside in the backyard now. Laying in the yard." I look to the kitchen door leading to the backyard, then back to Tom.

"I'm sorry that this happened," I say to him.

Tom shakes his head, "it's just weird. I've never seen him like this. Somethings changed with him, something different." Tom walks past me and wishes me luck before I walk to the door.

I slide the door open and step outside closing the door slowly behind me. I can hear the crickets and smell the night in the air. Looking up I see the full moon and billions of stars surrounding the sky. I turn back to Brian who's laying on the grass his face reflected in the moonlight as I start towards him trying to be as quiet as the night.

I stop a few yards from him and watch him, as he watches the stars. "What are you doing here?" He asks as he interrupts the quiet.

"I was worried about you? I came to make sure that you were okay." I walk over to him and sit next to him laying down on my back. Laying my hands out next to me as I look up at the stars. 

I glance over at Brian as he continues his stare into the galaxy he doesn't look at me but he sighs, "did you know, that stars may look close from the human eye, but in reality, their closest neighbor could be hundreds if not millions of miles away." He turns and looks at me. "They are all alone, in the darkness. Forever."

"You're wrong." I look back up at the sky. Every star encounters different objects in its lifetime. And the lucky ones meet other stars."

I look back to him and he smiles, "yeah, but when two stars meet and they collide they burst into a supernova." His smile falls, "only one survives." I watch as his face creases into a frown and he sits up.

"What's wrong?" I ask pushing myself up.

I look at Brian and he looks from the sky to me. "He's going to try and kill you again. Isn't he?" I sigh and turn away pushing myself up to stand.

I brush off the grass from my pants and lick my lips sighing as I turn back to the house. "Grace?" I can hear Brian as he stands. My breathing becomes heavy and I can feel him standing directly behind me. "Grace." This time it's more of a whisper and I feel his hand on my shoulder.

"Yes." I turn to him suddenly and don't realize how close he really is to me. I look up in his eyes and quickly glance to his lips, "part of me hopes that he does..." I stop and can feel my heart beating at a lighting pace.

Brian leans down just a little almost touching my nose with his, "and the other part?" He whispers, setting a hand against my face.

I look back up into his eyes grabbing ahold of his hand along my face, " the other part wishes that...my family was still here." I look to his lips and back to his eyes. I pull his hand away shaking my head. "I can't." I take a step back and feel my throat squeeze and shake my head. "I can't, I'm sorry." I turn around and run away, back to the front of the house and down the sidewalk going far away from here.