The Academy, Part Two

Twenty Two

Matthew:

Gods in high Olympus, we all we having parent issues, and I could tell Ester was trying to play it off like he was okay. (That boy needs to learn to stop acting tough around us!) James was looking at him with the same worry I was trying to conceal so after we agreed to continue with this trip we went to our own rooms to pack and get ready to sit in the car for what was sure to be another long trip.

I was quietly folding up my clothes trying to bring up how he had just you know, had a breakdown on my shoulder. In all of my years knowing Ester Briant, I'd only seen him cry twice. When he thought James and I had died (that's a story for another time) and now. Each time he tried to play it off like he was happy like it would somehow make him so and it killed me.

"Ester...?" I asked glancing up from my bag as I finished. He didn't look up from his duffel bag and he sighed, "Yeah Mat?" "Are we going to talk about this?" "Talk about what?" he asked, now looking at me and I stared right back before dropping my gaze. "Absolutely nothing." I muttered, zipping my bag and slinging it over my shoulder as I walked past him.

Ester has a bad habit of sweeping dust under the rug. If he got bad test grade in Spells, he'd delay telling his parents just so he wouldn't get in trouble. It's a bad habit of his that I knew he'd been trying hard to break and we'd tried to help him numerous time too.

Then I remembered my mom, what was happening with her? Was she okay?

This was the first time I'd actually left home without permission, call me a momma's boy all you want. I just care about her, and she'll kill me. And then Ester and James will have to dig me up for the Academy!

"Matthew!" Ester called as I got out into the hallway on the way to tell those two love-birds in the other room I was headed to the car. "What?" I asked in an exasperated tone. Ester stared at me, "Are you really all worked up about earlier?" "Yes!" I said in a slightly raised voice, since I rarely yell even this was enough to make him wince slightly.

"You shouldn't Ester, I'll be-" "I swear on the Styx, if you say 'I'll be fine' I'm going to punch you." I told him crossing my arms and he laughed. "You wouldn't." "Want to try me??" I asked in a serious tone. His smile fell and he looked at the ground. "Sorry, okay. Give time I'll be fine." I walked over to him and punched him in the shoulder.

"Hey!" he exclaimed, rubbing his arm and I looked up at him, (curse you height difference!) "Stop acting as if this is your burden to bear alone you moron! I may not have gotten the problem but it sure as hell is mine now!" I told him and he looked at me surprised.

James burst into the hallway, "Am I actually hearing Matthew yell?!" he asked and I sighed. "Yeah, that was me." I said as my voice dropped back down to it's normal quiet state.

Ester smiled down at me. "Okay, I'll let you shoulder it too." I frowned at him and pointed up at him, "I'll hold you to that." "I'm sure you will."

His phone rang and he sighed. "Speak of the devil, it's my mom." he replied with a sigh and I looked at James, gesturing madly for him to come over here while Ester was preoccupied staring at the phone in debate of if he should call or not.

James walked over and put his hand on the shoulder. "You'll have to talk to her eventually." "I know." Ester replied sighing as he answered the phone.

He started pacing the way he always does when he's on the phone. He always joked about how when people would call him it was "tour-the-house-time".

"Hi."

"Yeah mom, I'm with the guys. And Samantha."

"No mom, she's with James. And why the hell do you care?"