2006
The fingertips of Nico's left hand drummed the surface of the desk as the pencil in his right tapped inconclusively at the paper, thus leaving tiny grey marks on the otherwise blank sheet. The fleet of chemical equations waiting to be balanced seemed to sneer back at him— as if numbers could taunt and snicker along with the mound of other assignments waiting to be completed.
Six chapter reviews. One and one-thirds of an essay for Intro to Political Science, and not to mention the hours upon hours of studying which never seemed quite enough, regardless of how long his eyes spent scouring the page, his lips silently mouthing the material back to himself.
Thunk.
His pencil paused on the page at the sound. He was still as he waited.
Quiet. Listening. Nothing—
Thunk.
He sprung up. The beads shook on the lampshade beside the clunky computer monitor, and the old leather chair slid back collided with the opposite wall. He was halfway up the basement stairs when the third THUNK nearly caused him to lose his footing. The chorus of young voices bellowing an ominous 'oooooOOOOOOOH's caused the dread to swirl in his chest as he finally made it to the tops of the stairs. He burst through the door and he braced himself for catastrophe.
Nine year old Leena was the first one he saw. She rounded the corner just as he emerged, her frizzy brown hair floofed around her like a lion's mane, her dark pupils bugged with panic, magnified behind the large glasses.
"It wasn't me!" She exclaimed, "It wasn't me! Claudia did it!"
-"I didn't make her do squat!"
The second voice chimed in right on cue, her voice carrying through the corridors of Floyd Manor just mere moments before the young teenager made her appearance around the bend. The two dark pigtails swung like whips from underneath the backwards turned baseball cap. Olive green eyes beamed lasers aimed at the other girl, who promptly hid behind Nico as if to avoid the wrath of the rays.
Nico sighed, his lids fluttering in mild irritation before finally speaking.
"What are you guys doing up here?" He asked, exasperated as he alternated a look between either of the girls. The air was sans the smell of smoke, so at the very least he could be thankful to rule out a house fire— this time. "What was all that noise?"
Neither child spoke. Laser beams had cooled to a much milder heat setting— and the lion's Mane deflated into its usual, sheepish mess of tangles. Leena glanced up at Nico from over her glasses before mumbling.
"Claudia broke the couch."
"What?" Nico wasn't sure he heard right.
"What the fuck, no I didn't!"
"Hey, language—"
"She did! It's true! Go on, go look! I told her it was a bad idea, and I told her the twins weren't strong enough to hold on to the other end and—,"
"Shut UP, Leena!"
"Don't tell me to shut up, you shut up!"
"You're a SNITCH, this is why nobody wants to fuggin— I mean—friggin' play with you!"
"I already said I wasn't GONNA play with you guys! I don't WANNA play fort! I said it like FIVE TIMES— you didn't HEAR me? You can't HEAR?"
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Before You Go | A Prequel
General Fiction[OLD TITLE: EVERY PLACE BETWEEN] "PSYCHOS AREN'T ALLOWED in the pillow fort." Nineteen-year old Nico Floyd has the world on his shoulders. After his freshman year of college is brought to a devastating halt by the death of his father, Nico is left p...
