CHAPTER THREE
ପଓ
What are the odds?
•••
It was a beautiful morning in New York.
The sky had flecks of pinks and oranges as the sun rays started to look over the tall buildings.
The sounds of the city waking up could be heard outside the window.
The passing people and cars, going home from a nigh shift, a late crazy party, or getting ready for a new day, making their way to the wonders that awaited them out there.
The birds started to sing, and the fresh cold air could be felt.
It was a wonderful morning. A wonderful morning to be asleep.
At least, that was Lysander's plan—Emphasis in was.
"Lysander, wake up!" A very annoying voice said.
"Five more minutes" Lysander complained, hugging his pillow even more.
The figure whose annoying voice came from moved towards the window and opened the curtains.
The sunrise light illuminated his room, shining directly in his face.
Lysander whined and covered himself with the blankets.
The annoying figure pulled the blankets away, "Get moving Lysander! I don't have the whole day!"
Lysander turned around and checked his clock on the bedside table— 7:28 a.m.
"It's seven in the bloody morning!" He turned away from the figure and covered his face with the pillow he was previously hugging.
"Come on! Look, the sky looks so beautiful, don't you want to watch the sunrise?"
"But it's a Saturday!" Lysander complained yet again.
"WAKE.UP." The extremely annoying figure said, while hitting him with another pillow.
"Alright, alright!" Lysander exclaimed, sitting up to stop the figure from hitting him more, "I'm up, I'm up!"
Lysander squinted his eyes due the light. He blinked a few times before seeing correctly.
For a moment he thought a shapeshifter was standing in front of him, then he remembered he has a twin brother.
"Blimey Lorcan," Lysander yawned, "what's your problem this morning?"
"My problem is that I got an extra shift today, and I'm going to be late if your lazy arse doesn't move!" Lorcan reproached as he made his way towards the closet.
"Late for what?" Lysander asked as he stretched.
"Don't tell me you forgot!" Lorcan threw him some clothes from the closet.
"Well I wouldn't be asking if I knew what are you talking about." Lysander retorted while getting the clothes Lorcan threw his way off his face.
"Today I'm running the investigation of the Nebula Plant without the assistance from a superior, and you said you would come help me with the papers!"
Lysander stared at Lorcan. He hadn't exactly forgotten about it, he just had other things in his mind— things that were not bothering him at all.
He laughed awkwardly, "oh... that was today?"
Lorcan glared at him as he went to pick up the dirty dishes Lysander had in his bedside table, "Yes, it is today. I have been reminding you the whole week. And for Merlin's sake, how many days has this been here?"
Lysander made a face to the a-month-old dirty mug, "Do I have to go?"
"You promised!"
Lysander groaned and changed his shirt for the hoodie Lorcan had previously thrown.
"It's way too early for this!" He complained, "I doubt you'll even need me."
"I would have left without you already, if it wasn't because I really need your help!"
"Help on what?!"
Lorcan huffed and turned towards him, "I need your help with revisions over old investigations that might help me.
"Some of those involve other creatures' interactions with the Nebuliousa, and you have always been better in understanding magical creatures!"
Lorcan and Lysander grew up surrounded of magical plants and creatures, so they both knew how to handle them very well.
However, Lorcan always had a hobby of sitting in the dirt and singing to plants, while Lysander ran off and played with creatures in their backyard.
Each of them developed a love for what they have always been better at, and after all this years that hadn't changed a bit.
Nevertheless, Lysander knew Lorcan could handle magical creatures very easily on his own.
That is why he couldn't understand why Lorcan was so persistent in getting his help.
Lysander scrunched up his nose, "Can't you just leave the papers here? I'll go over them."
Then he launched back to bed.
Lorcan threw a pillow to the back of his head, but Lysander just took it and hugged it to his chest.
Then a shoe hit him.
"OUCH!" Lysander turned around rather aggressively, "What the bloody hell is your problem?!"
"Careful" Lorcan had his brother's other shoe ready to throw it, "your British is showing." He smirked at his brother's unintentional change of accents.
Lysander huffed, with one hand rubbing the back of his head— where the shoe had hit him— and threw the blue converse towards Lorcan.
Lorcan dodge it and said, "Even so, I need you to come with me to the grocery store later on."
"Why?"
"I need your credit card"
Lysander frowned, "Why don't you use your own?"
Lorcan raised his eyebrows at him, "I don't know, care to explain why?"
Lysander gave him an annoyed-confused look as the memory flashed back to his mind.
Last week Lysander had lost his credit card, so he asked to borrow Lorcan's. No more than 24 hours later, he lost that one too.
The next day, Lysander found his under some of his magi-zoology materials in the disaster of his room, but Lorcan's credit card remains lost.
"I already said that I'm sorry!"
"By saying sorry you'll find it?"
Lysander huffed, "Do we really have to go to the Academy?"
Lorcan frowned, "What's your problem with the Academy this days? It looks to me like you are avoiding the place..."
"What? No!" Lysander stood up from the bed like a flash, laughing awkwardly, "What are you talking about? I'm not avoiding going out or anything... haha"
Lorcan stared at Lysander burrowing his eyebrows, "Aha..."
Lysander just— kind of— smiled at him, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head.
"Well..." Lorcan straightened up and went towards the door, "We are not going to the Academy anyways, I run the investigations at M.A.C.U.SA. Laboratories."
Lysander's look of relief was too obvious.
"Wait, isn't the apparating area for that building closed due 'remodeling'?" He frowned, "Does that mean we have to walk there?!"
"From the closest approved apparating area, yeah, like two blocks." Lorcan nodded.
Lysander groaned, "I rather go back to sleep."
As he prepared to get back into his covers, Lorcan raised the shoe that still was in his hand.
"Whoa! Alright, I'm not going back to bed then" Lysander raised both of his hands to the sides of his head, "Someone woke up a little cranky this morning."
He went to get some jeans and a pair of clean socks, and raised them over his head to show Lorcan he was getting ready.
"Good" Lorcan replied, dropping the shoe. "Don't take long, we already wasted a lot of time on you."
"Yeah yeah, get out so I can change."
As Lorcan went out of the room— with Lysander's dirty dishes in hand —he stopped at the doorway and turned around.
"Lys?"
"Yeah?" Lysander turned towards him.
Lorcan was observing him, a glimpse of worrisome in his eyes.
"You okay?"
Lysander stared at him for a moment, analyzing Lorcan as much as he could in his sleepy state. After a moment he answered, "Okay."
Lorcan gave him a small smile, "Okay" he whispered. With that he turned back around, and went down the hallway.
As fast as he could, Lysander dressed up in his— what he thinks —clean jeans, and sat down to put on his blue high tops— the ones he and Lorcan were previously throwing at each other.
He went out of his room towards the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth. Then, he paused to watch his reflection in the big mirror.
As the sleepy state was fading away, Lysander realized what had Lorcan acting this way. All worried and anxious.
Lorcan had always been like this, aggressively attentive and loving. He liked to take care of his loved ones as much as he took care of a plant. With love and affection, always checking on them.
And in some way, a very annoying way, he always knew when something was wrong, when something was off.
Lysander hadn't been quite himself, he was nervous, distracted—more than usual. Lorcan had caught up in this recent strange behavior of his.
Lysander didn't meant to avoid the Academy, nor to not get out of the house at all. He was exhausted of overworking himself, that was all— at least that was what he told himself.
He wasn't trying to avoid the inevitable. There was not a thing that troubled Lysander. Not. A Single. Thing.
"Lysander!" Lorcan shouted from the kitchen.
Lysander broke his trance from the mirror and hurried up to the door of their flat.
"Your thermos is in the counter." Lorcan pointed it out to him, "Close the door when you get out."
He grabbed his coat and headed out the door.
Lysander sighed, reached out for his thermos bottle, and grabbed his coat from the rack besides the door.
Before stepping out of the flat, he breathed in.
He repeated in his head that 'it was okay' all over again. He didn't have to worry about anything. It's not like the chances of bumping into someone he knows in the streets were high.
Stop being paranoid.
New York is a big city after all.
He walked out, closing the door behind him. Repeating himself the same words.
I mean... what are the odds?
ପଓ
a/n
fun fact: I had this chapter ready in February, just didn't post it. lmao.