The Forgotten Ones

Chapter 18: Rip It Off - Part 1

Friday...
    5:22pm...

"You know how I said you had a nice place...?" Cush's low voice came out slow as he stared at the house in front of him. "It looked better at night."

  Elias smirked, pulling his back pack out of the back seat of Cush's car, remembering his first impression of the house. It was nothing special on the outside, mainly constructed from foundations of dust and weathered walls. It was definitely a jump down from Cush's mansion, but Elias wasn't offended. He didn't bring him there to boast.

He just needed him to see.

  Telling Cush was easy--easier than Elias would have expected. He'd only sat quietly on his bed as Eli told him everything he knew; from the club, to the Neet, to Jade, and to the forest. It took hours, yet Cush just nodded silently with each new piece of information, and it made Elias feel relieved. Telling him was the easy part. However, when the slight chuckle left his lips at the end of it, Elias knew that getting him to believe it would be a whole different story. He had thought that Elias had been making it all up and even applauded his imagination. Eli wouldn't have cared if Cush believed him or not if he didn't need him. With the traumatic experience he and Sunshine shared at Black Water, he couldn't bring himself to put anyone else through it without Cush. There was no time to draw a map or get familiar with the forest, and giving up was never an option. Therefore, Cush became the only one. After a while of Elias trying to convince him it was true, Cush's amusement had faded, leaving him with a blank expression.

  Merely telling Cush that it was all true wouldn't be enough, and to be completely honest, Elias didn't blame him. He wouldn't believe it if he weren't living it himself. Though Cush's skepticism only made him that much more determined to make him understand. With no better way to make him see, Elias invited Cush to join him for the night of the club meeting, and with a haughty grin, Cush agreed.

  Now, they were standing in front of Eli's house under the heavy hood of clouds with Cush pulling out his bag of items from his trunk and Elias pulling out his key. Making his way up the steps and onto the damp wooden porch, he unlocked the door. With a slight push of his foot, it creaked from the hinges, interrupting the soft voice in the living room. The tiny prompted head of Ava popped up from the couch, and with one swift motion, her barbies were tossed into the air as she scrambled to the floor with a thud.

"Eli!" She screamed running over, trapping his legs with her hug. He winced slightly at the pain, but was relieved it wasn't as bad as the days before.

"Careful, careful." He ruffled her hair before pulling away. "You know how dad feels about running in the house."

"He also said no toys in the living room..." she whispered, glancing behind her to the barbie laying in a twisted position against the wood. Giggling, her large eyes looked up at him. "He's in his room." She pulled on his arm. "Do you want to play dollies?"

  The last part went over his head as he stared off towards the unlit, downstairs hall to the one door on the left. He was home? That was rare. Eli wasn't able to inform him of Cush sleeping over, but managed to get Brie's permission. Now would be the perfect time to tell him; at least that's what Elias justified the sudden eager feeling to see him with.

"Eli." Ava dragged his name, pulling on his arm with the weight of her body; her small feet sliding closer to Eli's as her butt slowly dropped closer to the floor. "Do you want to play--" she gasped suddenly letting go. The loud thump of her falling interrupted his thoughts, making Elias look at her. As the pale boy fully stepped into the house, her eyes stared at him from the ground; her head gradually tilting up to his face. Confused, Elias turned to Cush who had an eyebrow raised at her. Quickly crawling behind Elias, Ava gripped his jeans cautiously peeking.