Anguis ➳ FP Jones

VIII - IN THE AIR TONIGHT

word count; 1445

I can feel it coming in the air tonight
And I've been waiting for this moment for all my life
Can you feel it coming in the air tonight, oh Lord  

The skies were getting darker and the wind harsher and colder as the weather was slowly changing in order to adjust to the season. The month of November had begun a few days ago, and it was destined to be a wet one - at least on this particular afternoon in which the rain was falling heavily down from the clouds as if they were crying.

I looked outside my window and watched the rain hit the cold and hard ground. A small piece of silver was wrapped inside my hand with laces attached to it. The silver had the form of a swallow; a most beautiful yet ordinary bird. FP had dropped a hidden necklace accidentally and I never got the chance to give it back to him. I kept wondering if the necklace meant anything to him and if it did, what did it mean?

I went over to my closet hidden behind mirrors and dug deep into it in the search for a raincoat. I wound up finding a dark-purple and thin rain coat that has been in my possession for too many years. Though it wasn't exactly flattering, I put it on and stuffed the intriguing necklace into one of the coats' pockets.

»Hey dad?« I said and walked into the hallway where his office was by, »I'm going out for a bit. Gotta return something.« I put on some black boots while explaining.

»Alright,« my dad replied back while being busy with his typewriter.

I knocked on the entrance to the trailer and waited while I firmly held unto the necklace in my hand. I wondered what it was like living with your family in such a small place. Privacy would be an unknown thing and everybody would be in each others noses. My own house wouldn't exactly be considered big either, though it was noticeably bigger than the trailer. I was hoping that perhaps his family wouldn't be at home. Perhaps he was alone and would invite me inside. Perhaps, only perhaps, these things could come true.

I was wearing a grey and white hoodie along with a pair of loose denim pants. I was holding unto an umbrella in my left hand; an umbrella with the colours of red, white and blue. A patriotic item shielding me from the rain falling down upon me.

As the door to the trailer opened after what felt like ten minutes, the sudden feeling of deja vu hit me. It had been not too long since I last showed up at his home, trying to convince him to go to a party that ended exactly how he had imagined it. Just like that moment in my life, FP was the one to open the door and raise his eyebrows out of confusion and curiosity.

»Can't stay away, huh?« were the arrogant words that flew out of his mouth as he smirked. I looked down on the ground and let out a quiet chuckle as the rain around me was intensifying. I looked back up at him and sent him a smile. A smile that revealed his words had some sort of impact on me.

»Sadly,« I responded. We stood in silence for a bit before I reached out to him and opened my hand, letting him see what I had been holding. The necklace was lying on my hand, looking messy and unorganized. »You lost this,« I said quietly. He slowly let his fingers take the necklace whereafter he let it fall down into a pocket in his shirt.

»Thank you.« He looked into my eyes for a moment before looking up in the sky. The rain was pouring down greater than previously that wet and rainy day. As his eyes were laid upon the sky, mine were laid upon him. But when a sharp brightness appeared behind me, his eyes lit up into a flame, so to speak. He instinctively grabbed my hand and pulled me closer, fast enough to almost make me lose my balance on the ground. »That was too close,« FP said, speaking loudly as the thunder was now making noise, »could've hit you,« he continued. He let go of my hand as he opened the door as a way to invite me in.

»I shouldn't...« I let out and stopped at the entrance instead of going inside. FP looked serious and stubborn as if he wouldn't let me go back home.

»I won't be the type of person to let someone go home in the midst of thunder and lightning. Besides...« his finger caressed my cheek for a second, »you're cold. Come on.« He grabbed my umbrella and closed it before walking further inside and putting it on a kitchen counter. Meanwhile I finally entered the trailer, but let my shoes stay outside so their wet and muddy surface wouldn't affect the insides of the trailer. The trailer wasn't as messy as I would've expected it to be. A few jackets were on the floor and some empty cans were in the kitchen, but besides that, it wasn't a bad place to be in. Each and every furniture looked cheap, however, and the overall vibe of the trailer made it clear that these people wouldn't be able to afford a house better than this. I looked outside and saw not only the train pouring down but also sharp brightness coming from the frequent lightning only to be followed by loud thunder, indicating that it was indeed close as FP had said.

»FP?« I said in a light voice and walked over to him as he was now sitting on the couch. I sat down next to him and looked straight ahead instead of at him. »I'm sorry for convincing you to go to the party. I swear I didn't think Ricky would-..«

»Save it,« FP interrupted me and continued to speak, »you didn't convince me. I convinced myself.« With those words in the air, I closed my mouth. I felt his look on me as if he was studying my facial features. With that feeling in mind, I felt as self conscious as ever. Conscious about every single flaw on my face. I turned my head to look at him and his brown eyes immediately met mine. I preferred him to look at the front of my face instead of the side. I had been insecure about the side of my head for as long as I could remember. The angle made my nose look too big. I slightly pulled up my hoodies sleeve to look at my watch that told me it was half past eight.

»I've always hated clocks,« FP blurted out, still looking at me.

»How come?«

A chuckle escaped him. »Don't you think time is an illusion?« To hear such a theory from a guy like him shocked me. I would've expected him to be at the same intelligence levels as your ordinary jock, and not being bothered to think about subjects that aren't sex or parties. But FP kept surprising me each time we spoke.

»Made to control us,« I said and smiled. He nodded and gave me a small smile back. »Hey, why a necklace with a swallow?« My question was random but I hadn't stopped thinking about it. I had never seen jewellery centred around that specific bird. He reached down his pocket and pulled the necklace back out and folding it out.

»Turn around,« he ordered and I reluctantly listened. I turned my back to him and I heard him move closer to me. Thereafter, the cold necklace gently touched my skin, thus I realized he was putting the necklace on me. The action was done slowly, however, and once he started speaking, his lips were very close to my ears. »Hope. The anchor and doves are usually the symbols for hope, but the swallow is too. I put it together myself. Got a swallow and some laces. After all, hope doesn't just come. You gotta be ready for it,« he explained and stopped talking the same time as the necklace was firmly around my neck. I turned back towards him and let my fingers touch the swallow placed exactly in the centre. He was still incredibly close to me, his lips only a few inches away from mine.

»It's beautiful. I like symbolism,« I said quietly, my fingers still touching the swallow but my eyes looking at him.

»I'd let you have it, but... I need hope.«