Halfway From Hell - Chapter 1
This is a short one, but I wanted to put it up because I said before that I probably wouldn't continue this story, but now I think I will because it keeps coming to me. Anyhow, here's Chapter 1, and Casey should be joining us soon :)
Prologue found here: http://community.livejournal.com/lure_atwt/998470.html#cutid1
Chapter 1
A swift kick to the vertebra woke me from my hung-over sleep. I spit out the dirt from my mouth and open my eyes to be blinded by the morning sun sparkling on the pond.
“Luke!” Another kick to my back and I roll over to stare up at my little brother’s face.
“What Ethan?” I groan, rubbing my forehead. It pounds like a million trains roaring at me. I sit up quickly, my breath caught in my throat.
“Ethan! There you are!” My dad runs towards us.
“I found Luke!” He says proudly.
I sit on the pond’s bank gasping for breath, my fingers over my throat. Trains. I still can’t cross train tracks.
“Luke?” My dad bends down on his knees in front of me. “Luke are you okay?”
“Yeah… yeah… Ethan startled me that’s all.” I force myself to suck in a deep breath and everything but the throbbing in my head fades away.
“Ethan, I told you not to wake Luke if you found him.”
“I’m sorry.” He looks down, digging his toes in the dirt.
“Stop it!” I stand up, shoving Ethan back.
“Luke!” My dad scolds. Ethan’s eyes look up at me startled. I’d never pushed or hit him before.
“Don’t mess with the sand.”
“Why not?”
I feel the tears breaking at the back of my throat. Because they’re Reid, Ethan, that’s Reid. You don’t dig your heels into someone. “Please, don’t. Leave me alone.” I turn my back to both of them so they can’t see my eyes that match the glistening pond.
“I want to play with you Luke, you never want to play anymore. We could go swimming?”
“No, we can’t.”
“Ethan.” My father’s voice sounds soothing, understanding. As much as he tries, he can’t understand this. “Why don’t we leave Luke alone right now?”
“I don’t want to.” I can hear the hurt in his voice, but I can no longer feel any pain or guilt.
“Come on, I’m sure mama has pancakes waiting for you.”
“Will you come Luke?” His small voice is hopeful.
“I’ll be right behind you, buddy.”
I hear my father and Ethan’s feet go off in the grass. Once again I am alone; no not alone, Reid is here with me. I bend down and rub my hand over the dent Ethan made in the sand. “It’s okay Reid, he didn’t mean to hurt you.” I coo as I refill the hole. “You’re okay.” I sit back on my heels and let out a deep breath. The pounding in my head is getting louder; I can hear the train tracks being built. I stand up quickly and go to a near by tree. The tree has a small hollowed out cavern. I reach in and grab the 5th of vodka I bought at the liquor store before heading here. I tilt back the bottle and empty the remaining contents into my mouth. That’ll put a dent in the tracks, for now.
I stumble up on my feet, chucking the bottle back inside the tree. I rub my eyes awake and stumble towards the farm. Soon I am giggling my way up the driveway. As I peek into the house, my weight resting on the door, I giggle remembering when Reid surprised me at my dad’s non-wedding. He looked so hot in that suit, and yet, I still didn’t sleep with him. I really am an idiot. A stupid, stupid boy.
“Luke, you came.” My mom plasters on a huge fake smile. I think they all pretend they can’t smell the booze on my breath, see the alcohol in my mannerisms.
“I heard there’d be pancakes.” I slide through the door, hearing it bang against the doorframe. “Hey Natalie, Ethan, how’s it going?” I hiccup on the giggles that want to escape.
“What’s with you?” Natalie scowls.
“Ha, teenagers.” I fall into a seat at the near end of the table. “Where’s the food?” Food, it is a sigh of prayer.
“Here you go baby.” My mom sets a plate of chocolate chip pancakes in front of me with a kiss to my head. I grab the maple syrup and pool it over my pancakes.
Dad clears his throat, “So, what are we all planning on doing today?”
“I’m going over to Jack and Carley’s. Sage and I have to finish a school project.”
“I want to go swimming with Luke!” Ethan exclaimed excitedly.
I dropped my fork angrily. “No one is going swimming. Ever.”
“It’s not your pond!” Ethan sticks his tongue out at me.
“Ethan…” my dad is trying to stop the fight that has already started.
“Yes it is! It’s my pond now and you can’t go near it because no one gives a damn anymore about what’s there!”
“What’s there?” Ethan asks, confused. “Fishies.” He giggles.
“Reid! Reid’s there and you don’t get to visit him.”
“I didn’t see Reid there.”
I nearly throw the table over as I get up from my chair, storming back out the door. Shit, what’s happening to me? I’ve gone mad, completely crazy. I get in my car and drive to the local liquor store. The cashier eyes me suspiciously, but I show him my ID and he rings up my purchase of booze without a word besides the total. Unlike some people, I don’t drive like an idiot, and decide to wait to open the beer until I am back at my mother’s house. I carry the bags up to my room, shut and lock the door, lie down on my bed, and open a bottle of beer. I reach over blindly and put the ends of Reid’s stethoscope in my ears like an iPod. All I can hear is loud muffled swishing of air. I grin for the static nothingness and suck back the booze.
Prologue found here: http://community.livejournal.com/lure_atwt/998470.html#cutid1
Chapter 1
A swift kick to the vertebra woke me from my hung-over sleep. I spit out the dirt from my mouth and open my eyes to be blinded by the morning sun sparkling on the pond.
“Luke!” Another kick to my back and I roll over to stare up at my little brother’s face.
“What Ethan?” I groan, rubbing my forehead. It pounds like a million trains roaring at me. I sit up quickly, my breath caught in my throat.
“Ethan! There you are!” My dad runs towards us.
“I found Luke!” He says proudly.
I sit on the pond’s bank gasping for breath, my fingers over my throat. Trains. I still can’t cross train tracks.
“Luke?” My dad bends down on his knees in front of me. “Luke are you okay?”
“Yeah… yeah… Ethan startled me that’s all.” I force myself to suck in a deep breath and everything but the throbbing in my head fades away.
“Ethan, I told you not to wake Luke if you found him.”
“I’m sorry.” He looks down, digging his toes in the dirt.
“Stop it!” I stand up, shoving Ethan back.
“Luke!” My dad scolds. Ethan’s eyes look up at me startled. I’d never pushed or hit him before.
“Don’t mess with the sand.”
“Why not?”
I feel the tears breaking at the back of my throat. Because they’re Reid, Ethan, that’s Reid. You don’t dig your heels into someone. “Please, don’t. Leave me alone.” I turn my back to both of them so they can’t see my eyes that match the glistening pond.
“I want to play with you Luke, you never want to play anymore. We could go swimming?”
“No, we can’t.”
“Ethan.” My father’s voice sounds soothing, understanding. As much as he tries, he can’t understand this. “Why don’t we leave Luke alone right now?”
“I don’t want to.” I can hear the hurt in his voice, but I can no longer feel any pain or guilt.
“Come on, I’m sure mama has pancakes waiting for you.”
“Will you come Luke?” His small voice is hopeful.
“I’ll be right behind you, buddy.”
I hear my father and Ethan’s feet go off in the grass. Once again I am alone; no not alone, Reid is here with me. I bend down and rub my hand over the dent Ethan made in the sand. “It’s okay Reid, he didn’t mean to hurt you.” I coo as I refill the hole. “You’re okay.” I sit back on my heels and let out a deep breath. The pounding in my head is getting louder; I can hear the train tracks being built. I stand up quickly and go to a near by tree. The tree has a small hollowed out cavern. I reach in and grab the 5th of vodka I bought at the liquor store before heading here. I tilt back the bottle and empty the remaining contents into my mouth. That’ll put a dent in the tracks, for now.
I stumble up on my feet, chucking the bottle back inside the tree. I rub my eyes awake and stumble towards the farm. Soon I am giggling my way up the driveway. As I peek into the house, my weight resting on the door, I giggle remembering when Reid surprised me at my dad’s non-wedding. He looked so hot in that suit, and yet, I still didn’t sleep with him. I really am an idiot. A stupid, stupid boy.
“Luke, you came.” My mom plasters on a huge fake smile. I think they all pretend they can’t smell the booze on my breath, see the alcohol in my mannerisms.
“I heard there’d be pancakes.” I slide through the door, hearing it bang against the doorframe. “Hey Natalie, Ethan, how’s it going?” I hiccup on the giggles that want to escape.
“What’s with you?” Natalie scowls.
“Ha, teenagers.” I fall into a seat at the near end of the table. “Where’s the food?” Food, it is a sigh of prayer.
“Here you go baby.” My mom sets a plate of chocolate chip pancakes in front of me with a kiss to my head. I grab the maple syrup and pool it over my pancakes.
Dad clears his throat, “So, what are we all planning on doing today?”
“I’m going over to Jack and Carley’s. Sage and I have to finish a school project.”
“I want to go swimming with Luke!” Ethan exclaimed excitedly.
I dropped my fork angrily. “No one is going swimming. Ever.”
“It’s not your pond!” Ethan sticks his tongue out at me.
“Ethan…” my dad is trying to stop the fight that has already started.
“Yes it is! It’s my pond now and you can’t go near it because no one gives a damn anymore about what’s there!”
“What’s there?” Ethan asks, confused. “Fishies.” He giggles.
“Reid! Reid’s there and you don’t get to visit him.”
“I didn’t see Reid there.”
I nearly throw the table over as I get up from my chair, storming back out the door. Shit, what’s happening to me? I’ve gone mad, completely crazy. I get in my car and drive to the local liquor store. The cashier eyes me suspiciously, but I show him my ID and he rings up my purchase of booze without a word besides the total. Unlike some people, I don’t drive like an idiot, and decide to wait to open the beer until I am back at my mother’s house. I carry the bags up to my room, shut and lock the door, lie down on my bed, and open a bottle of beer. I reach over blindly and put the ends of Reid’s stethoscope in my ears like an iPod. All I can hear is loud muffled swishing of air. I grin for the static nothingness and suck back the booze.