This is a work of fiction. The author retains all rights. Reproductions are not allowed without the authors consent.
There are no explicit sexual acts contained in this work, it is a story of love and the strong bonds shared between two guys.
This is the first story I have submitted. I would love to hear from you (I have received a lot of emails so keep sending them, and if you haven't already, I really want to know how I'm doing; I just love reading support mail!) so email me on exuinoxneo@hotmail.com and be honest with what you think (but not brutally!). You can even email me if you have any questions - which overseas readers may wish to do as I am Australian and you may not understand the meaning of certain slang words. Enjoy.
SIX
A scream pierced the tranquil evening with the sharpness of a knife. The quiet shattered into pieces as the screeching turned into a mournful wail. I swiftly rose from the chair where I was sitting with such speed it began to tilt backwards. I was out the door before it could fall, running to the bathroom where I believed the scream originated from. Julie stood in front of the sink staring at the open medicine cabinet. Her face drained of blood and her knuckles equally as white gripped the rim of the basin.
"What's wrong?" I asked concerned and slightly bewildered.
Slowly, Julie turned to face me, she pointed to something in the medicine cabinet and said, "It's gone."
"What's gone?" I said stepping inside to take a look.
"The jewellery," She struggled to say, "It's not in the jewellery box. It's gone."
A buzzing sounded in my ear, disappeared, and then a voice, ("Do you mind if I use your toilet I've been having some bad stomach aches man.")
Chad.
"March?" I heard Julie call to me, yet she sounded distant.
I looked at Julie as I remembered where I was. I said, "Sorry, what did you say?"
"I asked you if you've seen the jewellery," She said.
I shook my head.
Julie's face was gradually returning to its normal colour. She strode out of the bathroom leaving me there.
"Nooo!" Julie shrieked from mum's bedroom.
I leaped out of the bathroom into mum's room. Julie was searching the jewellery boxes on the makeup stand.
"Are they gone too," I asked even though I knew the answer.
"All of them," Julie said angrily, "Even the heirlooms!"
I leaned against the door to support myself, I didn't trust my knees to keep me up.
"How did this happen?" Julie asked herself, "Who would do this?"
"Chad," the name popped out of my mouth.
"What?" Julie said, "The junkie?"
I stared at the ground and then said, "He was here yesterday."
"In our house!" Julie yelped.
"Yeah," I said without looking up.
"I don't understand," Julie said confused, then accusingly, "You let him in!"
I whipped my head up, defensively I said, "I never invited him and I never asked him to come in either."
"He's robbed us," Julie said, "What are we going to do?"
"Call the police," I told her, "I'm going to take your car and find him."
"Shouldn't you let the police do that?" Julie asked worriedly.
"I wanna hear what he has to say for himself first," I said, "Just call the police, I'll be back soon."
As I drove to Chad's house the reality of the whole situation hadn't sunk in completely yet, I was still finding it hard to believe that he would rob my family. I grew up with this guy, I remember when we used to play around and have fun together as kids. It was just too hard for me to accept, and too much to take in.
It was only a fifteen minute drive to Chad's house and as I pulled up into the driveway, the sun was beginning to set. The smell of a home cooked dinner wafted towards me from the house and I could hear the sounds of dinner being prepared as I walked up to the front door and knocked on it.
Chad's mother answered the door. She was wiping her hands on a tea towel. She said, "Oh, March, I haven't seen you in a while, is something the matter?"
"Is Chad here?" I asked.
"No, I'm sorry," She looked behind her, then said in a quieter voice, "We received word that he left rehab early, but if you see him would you let us know?"
"He was at my house yesterday," I said, I was loath to break the news to her but it was either me or the police who told her, and I didn't want her to find out from the cops, "He robbed my house while I was busy with something in the backyard, he's probably stolen thousands of dollars worth of jewellery."
The tea towel she was holding dropped to the floor as she covered her mouth with her hands. She said in a pained voice that told of the inner turmoil she had suffered with her son's past actions, "I'm so sorry, March, I'm so sorry . . ."
"I have to go," I said before she could finish, "The cops are probably there now."
I left without saying goodbye. I drove home slowly, trying to stretch the time it would take to get there. I was trying to feel angry, but there was only an emptiness inside of me. I knew my blood should be boiling, and rage should be building up inside, but instead I felt only a lethargic numbness throughout my body. I had been betrayed. My trust had been abused. It was a shock to think that this could happen to me. I always believed that everyone should have the benefit of the doubt, and I really gave that to Chad. But he lied. I thought he was different now, that he'd changed. He lied. I was a fool to think that I could trust him again, after all this time.
There was a police car parked at the front of the house. My mum was home and I parked the car behind hers. Mum was sitting with her arms around Julie on the stairs that led to the veranda. Two cops stood in front of them scribbling on their black leather notebooks. The female officer headed towards me as I stepped out of the car.
"We need to ask you some questions," the female officer said.
I answered as truthfully as I could, explaining everything that happened the day before and what I learnt from Chad's mother. It was cold and I hugged myself to keep from shivering. When the officer finished questioning me, she assured me the police force would do what they could to help and I thanked her.
Mum and Julie were crying on the stairs and when I caught mum's gaze I could see the sorrow and loss written clearly on her face. Her stare was haunting. Even though she would never blame me for the incident, I still felt it was my fault. I knew there was no one else to blame. I took a step back. I couldn't bear to see the suffering that I'd caused. I had to get out of here, go somewhere else, anywhere but here; I couldn't stay. Abruptly, I turned around and jumped into the car. I drove off and didn't look back. Driving helped to keep my mind off the current events, and so I drove around aimlessly for a while. On the streets no one cared who you were, no one knew where you were going or where you came from. I suddenly noticed that the suburb I was driving in looked familiar and I realised that Edric lived close by. I knew the area because I dropped him home on a lot of occasions whenever he came over my house to study. Making a quick decision, I decided to visit him for a chat.
The streets were darker in this suburb and there wasn't a lot of traffic. I parked the car in front of his house and gingerly made my way to the front door. I knocked on the door, hoping I wasn't interrupting anything. The porch lights came on and Edric opened the door, smiling as he saw me. When he noticed the grim look on my face he immediately stepped outside, concerned.
"What's wrong?" he asked, worry in his voice.
I didn't say anything for a moment, I was afraid I would break down in front of him.
"March," Edric said softly, "You can tell me."
"It's all my fault," I whispered. I felt helpless, I wasn't sure I could hold the faade any longer.
"I'm here for you," he told me, "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but come inside, it's cold out here."
I stared at the ground. I couldn't make myself look at Edric. I was ashamed and he was too good a friend for me to burden my troubles with. Then it came, the emotions I tried so hard to suppress until now, and I covered my face to hide my shame. Tears wet my fingers as I cried standing there. I sobbed with the pain of all my sorrow and all the anguish that I denied myself since my betrayal.
I felt arms envelope me, holding me tightly and I held fast to Edric in return. I cried on his shoulder, feeling weak I thought I would fall, slip from his arms and I knew that if I hit the ground I wouldn't be able to get back up, but he held on to me firmly, supporting my weight. He spoke no words; instead, he stood with me in my moment of weakness, never letting me go. I never knew anyone as understanding as Edric, I felt naked with him, there was nothing I could hide from him, he knew my pain and felt it too. Gently, he rocked me back and forth, soothing me, letting me release the hurt. I cried harder, another surge of emotion was sweeping through me, and still he held me. When it felt like I could cry no more, and the pain I felt was chased away by the warmth of his embrace, I began telling him what had happened.
Exhausted, I said into his ear, "Someone betrayed me."
"March," he said soothingly, "I'm here."
Shutting my eyes I said, "He was an old friend that I hadn't seen for a long time. He turned into a heroin junkie a few years ago and I never saw him since."
"Go on," Edric said.
"He came over my house yesterday and acted like everything was normal," I was struggling to get the words out, Edric caressed my back in encouragement, "I . . . I never let him in, he came in . . . and . . . I didn't ask him to come in."
"It's okay," Edric told me.
"But that's the thing!" I said in frustration, "It's not okay, he stole my mum's and my sister's jewellery while I was fixing the hot water system outside!"
"Oh God no," he said, shocked.
"I know, and it's all my fault," I could feel the tears that I thought were spent returning again.
"Hey," Edric said, "You shouldn't blame yourself, it's not your fault."
"It is, I was stupid to trust him and leave him alone, and I even lent him a hundred dollars, but I guess I'll never see that again" I said, I couldn't keep my feelings under control and cried again.
Edric pulled me back half an arms length to observe me. I couldn't meet his gaze, so I cast mine downwards. He wiped the tears away from under my eyes, cupped my face with his hands and turned it to his. I was too ashamed to make eye contact.
"March," Edric said, "Look at me."
I couldn't do it.
"Look at me," he repeated more firmly.
Tentatively, I did so. His face radiated with a concern that seemed to pierce my defences. For a moment, the invisible walls around me dissolved and I felt his presence enter the private place that was my sanctuary. I was vulnerable here. This was where I shielded myself from everyone, yet he penetrated those walls with delicate care. He stared into my eyes. His glowed like the stars.
"You are not stupid," he said, his voice echoed inside my head as though he spoke there, "None of this is your fault, it could never be your fault."
"I still feel like a fool," I said.
"You are not a fool," Edric told me, "Far from it, you are the kindest and most trusting soul I have ever met. Ever since we became friends, I have never felt afraid to be who I am around you. You showed me that my life is worth letting people into, you taught me that there are people who are worth getting close to, despite the fact that there are so many who don't really care. You don't know this, but I have cherished our friendship, the trust you put in me is something I never have and never will take for granted."
The wind blew softly through the trees as Edric took a deep breath. I knew he was searching for the right words to say.
He continued, "What I'm trying to say is that I feel like I've known you all my life, but it's more than that, it feels like I've known you for an eternity, and I can't think of the future without a friend like you in it."
I smiled, glad that he felt just as I did. I said, "That's kinda funny, I think I know what you're talking about."
Edric laughed, he said, "Now you are being a fool, you know exactly what I'm talking about."
He pressed his forehead against mine and I noticed his green eyes were a lighter colour than I first thought. I felt I could easily lose myself in them. I don't remember how long we looked at each other, but something was changing. No, it felt more like something was falling into place like pieces of an obscure jigsaw puzzle. Then he leaned closer and I tilted my head. Our lips met and the world was lost to me. It was strange, I never thought of myself doing this, somehow it just felt right. No matter how wrong some people thought this was, they would never know how deep the bond we shared was.
When we parted, Edric seemed abashed. He said, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that, I don't usually do that kind of thing."
"It was . . ." I paused to find the right word, though when I couldn't think of one I said instead, "Nice."
"Really?" he said, "You're not angry at me for that."
"Yes really, in fact -," I pulled him to me and showed him again that I didn't mind at all. I broke away after a time and breathless I said, "I liked it. But I have to go."
"Already?" he asked regretfully, "Stay with me."
"I want to, but I should get home and make sure everything's alright," I said, "The car is free so I'll come pick you up for uni tomorrow though."
We said our goodbyes and I left smiling at the unexpected but positive turn of events.