Dusk (BoyxBoy)

Chapter 22 - Sandbox

It's 6 am and I'm way too tired to proofread so plz comment if there are typos or errors! <3

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The interior of the house was much different. The tall walls were painted a soothing shade of teal, and there was a minimal amount of furniture. The walls were mostly empty, aside from a few family photos in the hallway by the door. My eyes fell onto one of a young kid and his beaming mother.

I felt an odd sense of nostalgia wash over me as I saw the boy who'd helped me on the playground all those years ago. The photo couldn't have been taken more than a year after we'd met. It was all the same, his light brown hair ruffled in the wind, his adventurous eyes and that wild smile...

Memories of that day flashed in my mind, and I could almost hear his squeaky voice happily telling me that the tooth fairy wasn't real. I remembered how I'd felt slightly superior than the rest of the kids my age after that. They'd all thought this magic miniature flying being was slipping money under their pillows but I'd known the truth. That false sense of superiority had only lasted a few months though, as kids would come to school crying after catching their full grown, non-magical parents in the middle of the night.

My eyes traveled to the woman in the photo. She was crouched next to him, her arms holding her excited son back for the picture while he tried to get away. Her bright smile only enhanced her beauty. She had dark straight hair that matched what Rowans looked like now, in fact, almost all of her features had translated directly onto him- except for her eyes. The light sky blue color contrasted with his auburn ones which now seemed to darken with his mood.

I tore my gaze away from the photo and took my shoes off where Eriks were discarded as Rowan walked past me, hoping he hadn't noticed.

There were canvases everywhere, leaning against chairs, tables, walls, or stacked on the ground. They were of all different sizes and had a diverse array of colors and patterns. They were all placed over tarps which were littered with mixed colors of paint, next to brushes that were neatly placed in jars, as if the artist would be back to continue their work at any moment.

"Where's your mom?" Erik asked exactly what I was thinking and I awkwardly made my way to the kitchen where he was emptying the bag of popcorn into his mouth.

"She's still at the gallery. Has a huge showing tomorrow she's stressed about."

Erik said something that was completely incoherent through his full mouth so Rowan turned to me.

"What do you feel like watching?"

I was taken aback at the sudden, casual way he'd addressed me.

"Um, I'm good with whatever you guys want..."

"Friday night lights-!" Erik yelled as soon as his popcorn was finished. 

Rowan looked back at me, his eyebrows raised slightly as if asking is that okay with you?

"Sure, that's good." I said to them, cringing internally and wishing I'd had more social skills.

There was a light knock at the door. Eriks face brightened with joy and he rushed towards it.

"Finally!"