Ode to Bree

Good Morning,

Unedited Chapter Five [1]

       Nathan marched up to his room, feeling a cloud of tiredness over his head. Upon entering his room, he flipped the light switch that was located right beside his door, and the room was instantly illuminated, causing Nathan's eyes to go blind for ten seconds.

       Just like his life, Nathan's room was a little bit messy: a few torn pages crumpled up into a ball and lying on the floor, a few shirts (probably dirty) on the floor beside his bed. The scent of Febreeze knocked his nose; his dad must have been in here.

       He should clean it up.
       He should really clean it up.

       The wind blew, causing his curtain to fly up in the air. Had he left his window open all day long?

       Nathan walked over to his window, pulling the curtain behind him. The neighborhood was dark, and quiet, except for a few cars passing and honking at each other. He sighed as he pulled the window shut. Kat used to come through his window, sometimes, when they were still friends.

       He's surprised that he went five years without ever thinking about her. That kiss... Nathan unknowingly touched his lips, his eyes gazing out the clear glass window. All of a sudden, he violently rubbed it with the back of his hand.

       He swore he could still taste her, and it was very unpleasant.

       "Nate, you're home." Nathan spun around to find his mother standing in his doorway. She stood with a smile, looked very sleepy. When did she wake up? Did she hear him come in?

       Nathan wordlessly nodded, turning back and fumbling with the curtain.

       "Okay, um, I should head back to my place. It's late," he heard her say. "Nathan?" He slowly turned his face around to look at her. He felt less anger, and more fear at that moment. "I asked your father if you could stop by tomorrow—I don't live far from here...— he said it was okay. Would you come over? Visit your mom?" she laughed nervously, "Just for an hour, or something. How ever long is okay with you."

       She sounded nervous; Nathan could tell she was a little afraid, too. The way she wrung her fingers as she spoke, the occasional 'um', even to her eyes fleeting around the room, looking at everything and anything... but him.

       She left him standing in his room, still fumbling with the curtain strings. A sigh escaped his lips, and his shoulders dropped as he let go all of the tension in his body. He heard their voices downstairs, and then a minute after, the sound of a car door slamming shut, followed by the awakening of an engine.
       Nathan watched as his mother drove away into the night. He pulled the curtains one more time, handling it a little more aggressively. He felt the red hot anger pulsate through his veins for no reason at all.

       "Hey," his dad said, standing in his doorway. He should have locked it after she left.

       "Hey," Nathan replied stiffly.

       "So, your mom told you... about the arrangement?" Nathan nodded curtly, his eyes falling to the floor. Why did he keep doing that?

       "It's fine... with me," he said, walking over to sit on the edge of his bed. The awkward silence fell once more, and the temperature went up at least ten degrees. Nathan's color felt itchy, and his palms sweaty.

       His father shuffled his feet, before muttering a simple good night before he vanished into his room. Nathan got up in a hurry to close his door, not wanting anymore awkward encounter with his father. He just wanted to sleep. Yes, sleep sounded so good to him right now. To lay his head on that soft, feather pillow and shut his eyes; to forget all the day's events and all the headache it brought him.