Glitter and Hate

New Plan

Dyson drove Caleb's car home and sat in it for a few minutes before getting out. Every time he thought they were getting closer, the moment seemed to be ripped out from under him. All he wanted was to be able to speak to him without waiting for the other shoe to drop. He wanted to go back to having a carefree life.

Bethany's car was still parked on the side of the street where he had left it before jumping in front of Caleb. He pocketed Caleb's keys and started to walk to her car but stopped. His fingers tapped against his thigh as he thought. Then, in a flash an idea hit him and he ran to his house to grab his bag of spray paints.

Dyson walked carefully so as not to be seen by the many people Ruth had over. When he got to the back of their house, through the side gate he got the ladder that he probably used more than all of the Rykers combined. He climbed it quickly and walked around the roof to Caleb's window. It was locked, but Dyson easily opened it. It was so strange to be in his room.

Everything was the same while being completely different. He stood on Caleb's bed and ran his fingers over the holes they had made in the ceiling with pencils. A couple of stars glowed between the holes and it made him smile. He wanted to just stay there, taking it all in but he had a mission to complete.

Dyson quickly got off the bed and dug through his bag. He rubbed his chin as he thought of what to actually paint and where. He hadn't gotten past the idea of painting something before acting like a crazy person and sneaking into Caleb's room.

There was a sound outside the room and Dyson froze. There was laughter followed by Ruth yelling for a guy named Josh to get back downstairs. He let out a sigh of relief and smiled at all of the "Good Job!" stickers that were still on the door. He really had put a lot on there.

"Ha!" Dyson pulled out a couple of cans and got to work laying down a tarp from his bag over Caleb's bed. He jumped down to grab a pencil and then started drawing outlines on the ceiling so he'd have a map to follow as he painted. Looking at how much he needed to paint he realized that Caleb would surely get home before he finished.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Bethany demanded instead of greeting Dyson.

"Hey, sorry, your car is parked on the street outside and your keys are in it," Dyson said before asking her for yet another favor.

"Are you okay?" She asked, back to the loyal friend she always was.

"You really are the best person I know." Dyson smiled, knowing that he'd sound sweeter. "So beautiful, sweet, perfect."

"The compliments are great but what do you want?" She demanded with a chuckle.

"I need just a tiny bit of help." He winced, waiting for her to say no even though he knew she'd always do whatever she could to help him.

"I'll need to tell Adrian." She said and Dyson wasn't surprised.

"Only as much as necessary. It's not your secret to tell." Dyson nodded his head as if she could see him. "Caleb is at our tree, well, I assume he's still there. I need you to go and make sure he stays away from his place until I give you the all-clear."

"Anything in mind?" She asked and Dyson was once again struck with how great she was for not even asking why. He didn't give her enough credit. "Never mind. Adrian has an idea."

"Thank you," Dyson was relieved to know that Caleb wouldn't be alone for even just another hour or so.

"That's what 3 am friends are for. We're there for you no matter what time with no questions asked." She hung up and Dyson got back to work.

He had planned to use spray paint, but it would take far too long for the fumes to disperse so instead he went to Caleb's closet. In the very corner, on the top shelf, he saw his extra set of paints that he always kept there for when the mood struck.