ODE TO THE END: A BALLAD OF BROTHERS

CHAPTER 10

"I noticed your eyebrows twitch," said Naomi.

God damnit, Achim thought.

It was alright though, for the boy found reason to persist. People twitched in their sleep all the time. He did not have to be any different to keep up the scheme, so he twitched his brow freely. Even more so actually.

"...I also could have sworn I heard you talking too," said Naomi.

Her smile was suggestive, not that Achim could see. Too wrapped up in his own performance, the boy began to mouth as if in a dream drunk trance.

"...Hmm. I think I saw you do a backflip too, and a summersault," Naomi added.

Achim's brow twitched extra hard before he opened his eyes and found the girl giggling.

"Welcome back," Naomi said with a smile. "I knew there was no way you had fallen asleep that fast. Real people don't rest with all that restlessness."

"Yeah, because you've slept in a slave pen before," said Achim.

Naomi was visibly befuddled.

"Nevermind. What're you even doing here," asked the dark boy.

Naomi's thin lips swirled with a flagrant smug. "If I am remembering this right, I told you I'd be here all weekend. All weekend, just in case you needed help. The question is what are you doing here, Achim?"

The dark boy blushed and stuttered. "I-I-I didn't think you'd be her all day!" Achim set himself upright just to turn his back on the sun-kissed girl. With lips puckered, back hunched, and a hint of fluster on his face, the moon-eyed boy complained beneath his breath "I mean seriously. It's almost dark. Do you really not have anything better to do?"

His question ripped deep, deeper than he intended. Naomi settled in her seat as her small smile faded.  "I just wanted to keep my promise." Naomi spoke in a tone touched by angst and a genuine sincerity.

The dark boy heard the hints and gave pause in his response. No snark or sass spewed from his lips. He simply said, "It's fine. I figured as much anyways."

A moment of silence would pass between them as the two contended with their feelings on the other. It was an awkward little thing that they experienced, but when a nice breeze passed over them, both took in the cool air with an easing spirit.  After relishing the same sensation on different terms, they stole a glance at one another, each trading an adolescent interest before the silence persisted.

Achim knew silence. It was an ever present by-product of his solitude. He no longer minded the quiet. In fact Achim enjoyed few things more, but this girl had become more interesting from moment to moment. He became anxious as the soundless note went without end, and Achim wondered if she felt the same. He did not want to look to confirm, but a mutual draw made them drift closer like slow acting magnets. Soon, they each turned toward the other for a second time, and a shy exchange of gazes followed. The sun-kissed girl and the moon-eyed boy gasped in perfect sync, their tummies filled with fluttering things. He could not hold his tongue anymore. Too much had already happened in his young mind.

"So uhh--" Both spoke at once. "Sorry! I was just"-- Again. "No! That's okay! You can"--

After the third time, Achim was through.

"Alright stop,"said Achim. "Cover your mouth."

"Wait. Why do I have to cover my mouth?"

"Because, I was the one who asked."

His tonal inflection made it clear that he thought Naomi's question was a stupid one. This caused the girl's cheer to drain so fast that she aged forty years. Achim immediately felt her judgment.