The Curse of Thelonious [✓]

twenty eight

CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT

Atlas hadn't had very much good in his life, the eighteen years most often highlighted by misery. With every small ounce of joy, there would always be double the amount of emptiness. He had gotten to the point where he no longer expected anything good to come and when it did, he was waiting for it to end.

He should have expected it really; after the brilliant meeting with his dad, step mum and little sisters. It had been such an amazing day, knowing they all wanted to be a part of his life. It warmed his bones. He had never felt so content before, a skip in his step.

He should have known it wouldn't last. With every high, there was always a crashing downfall as he soon realised.

He had woken early the following morning, grateful it was the weekend and he had no school. He laid in Lera's sofa bed for a few minutes, a smile etched upon his face, his dimples peeking out. The sky was clear and he could hear the birds sing outside, their chirps echoing along the fields. Lera was snoring slightly, a soft sigh escaping her lips as she turned in her sleep.

Pulling himself up, Atlas yawned. He rubbed his eyes with the palm of his hand and sat up, looking around as the sunlight streamed in from behind the eggshell blue curtains.

He bounced up, humming to himself as he made his way to the bathroom. His reflection was a bit of a surprise; his hair lay messily and his narrow eyes were widened and glossy in excitement. His lips were upturned and something about it all made him giggle. He giggled!

A pink tinge spread across his cheeks, slightly embarrassed to see himself so happy even if nobody else was around. "Shut up," he murmured to himself, trying to push down the happiness. It wasn't good for someone like him to expect so much: someone who'd never had it before.

And he was right.

After a quick shower, he stood in Lera's bedroom, only a towel around his waist. The water drops trickled down his chest as he surveyed the room, smiling when Lera mumbled to herself in her sleep. Atlas needed more clothes but he'd been delaying it for a while. The previous day, his stepmother Mei had shoved some notes into his pockets with a wink. He had tried to protest and refuse the money but she didn't give him much of a choice. Despite not being a hair over five foot, it was crystal clear she was the one in charge.

Although he needed more clothes, he didn't want to spend any of her money. Having never allowed himself to rely on anyone before, it made him uncomfortable to think about it now. Instead he decided he would pay a visit to his old house to pick up the rest of his stuff. He didn't have very many possessions in the first place but most of the few he had were tucked away neatly in his old bedroom in Mad Manning's house. Quickly pulling on a t-shirt that was too small for him and jogging bottoms he'd had forever, he crept out of Lera's bedroom as quietly as he could, not wanting to wake her. The last thing he wanted was for her to come with him and have to face Manning Sinclair again.

He pushed that thought out of his mind with a shudder as he made his way to the forest, the leaves a source of comfort as soon as he saw them. He'd been feeling tense for a while but the minute his shoes stepped on the familiar dirt, he felt his muscles relax simultaneously. This forest had always been a part of him.

With a determined march, he climbed the small hill beside the rickety house and quietly pushed open the side door. It was dark inside the kitchen, his eyes narrowing to adjust. He scanned the dusty surfaces with a scrunch of his face, the musty smell invading his nose. He listened for any noise but it was silent as he padded across the hallway, barely making a sound. Although it had been a while since he had to be entirely silent everywhere he went, his body was able to slip straight back into character - a fact that scared him. Perhaps he'd always be an extension of his house and therefore a part of Mad Manning. Perhaps he was only deluding himself into being a new person around Lera and the new family he had only just discovered.