Reap the Earth at Which you Stand [boyxboy]

Chapter XII

~Thursday 16th November 2017~

"De, are you sure this is a good idea?" Mylo fidgeted with the hem of his shirt whilst Dakota collected his phone from where it had been charging on the bedside table. Of course, the second it was in his hand, the screen switched on, revealing the multitude of texts and missed calls that the boy had ignored from his siblings. He would explain when he got home, or, at least, he would attempt to provide a good enough excuse.

"I can't stay here forever, Mylo, mom and dad will start a war. It isn't worth it," at least Dakota had his parents as a way out of that damn penthouse, no one could deny their reaction. It was bad enough that Dakota had stayed away from the house for almost a week, he was lucky his siblings had only pestered him over the phone, rather than trying to search for him in person.

"But what about Vas? You can't just ignore your bond to him, De," sighing, Dakota turned away from his twin, chewing on his bottom lip whilst he thought about some way to change the subject of conversation. He didn't want to talk about Vasile, he didn't even want to think about the man, that was one of the many reasons he had to get home. Away from there, in the hopes that he might finally be able to think straight once again.

"He has my number, he can call me if he needs to," or if he wants to, Dakota added in his mind, not wanting to admit that he wouldn't mind speaking with Vasile more than he already had. It was nice to get to know the man, especially if they were bonded so severely to one another. They would have to get close sooner or later.

"De, you know that's not going to be enough. Is this about what happened the other night?" Dakota grimaced, rifling through the sheets of paper on the desk opposite Vasile's bed, searching for his sketches. He had thought about leaving them there, however considering he couldn't even bear for Vasile to know about them, he doubted he would be comfortable with the man seeing them. It was strange, Dakota had never feared others seeing his artwork before, then again, he had never drawn with such intimacy. He drew what stuck in his mind, his thoughts, his emotions; he didn't want Vasile knowing that he was all the boy could think about.

"I shouldn't be here, Mylo," Dakota admitted finally, folding over the three sketches he had hidden under the stacks of letters Vasile kept littered around his room, "this isn't who I am. You grew up here, this is your life, it isn't mine. What happened the other night... It can't happen again, alright? Don't go getting your hopes up, I can't be with Vasile the way you are with Akos," he didn't deserve it. Dakota knew that was the real issue in his mind. He didn't deserve to be happy, not when he had caused so much pain over the years. He deserved agony, loneliness and sorrow. That was to be his punishment for his crimes.

"Dakota, you can't just deny him, that isn't the way the bond works. You're made for him, not in some teen drama way, I'm serious. Your soul was carved for his-" Dakota was growing tired of constantly having someone tell him how to live his life. First it was his family, now Mylo, he was beginning to lose it.

"How do you know that, Mylo? How can you possibly be sure that you haven't been lied to all your life?" Dakota was aware of his own temper, and knew the trigger points to set it off. He should have found a way to warn Mylo, or at least followed what Kalvin always advised and removed himself from the situation. He still had time, if he could just make the right choice for once.

"Akos wouldn't lie to me, Dakota, he loves me. He risked so much for me."

"What evidence do you actually have that you have any sort of bond to him, Mylo? Other than what he's fucking told you over the years? Words mean nothing, anybody can lie, and it doesn't take a damn genius to figure out that you've been conditioned to want to stay here," and there it was, Dakota's true colours, his true feelings about the entire situation with Vasile. All the anger he harboured toward the gargoyles, it was slowly seeping out, and Mylo was receiving the brunt of the overflow.