After Fire - Dreamnotfound

Eighteen|back in the sunshine state

November 11th
Today's the day of Drista's home game, and I was afraid we were going to miss it. We've been driving tirelessly the past couple of days just to make it in time. And as the sun had begun to set and Drista's game had begun, Clay and I had stopped by his house to find it empty.

Thunder clouds filled the sky, leaving behind very little of the ongoing sunset. It saddened George to see that they had returned to the sunshine state, and yet could not catch the sunset despite arriving just in time to see it. Standing out on the driveway, the wind brushed through his hair. If there was anything he didn't miss about Florida, it was the intense heat and even worse humidity.

He felt a hand on his shoulder, and he turned to see Clay standing behind him with a saddened smile. "Welcome home."

George grabbed his backpack as they reached the front door. Clay crouched down and grabbed the spare key they kept under one of the rocks by the porch before standing back up and holding it up between the two.

"You'll be okay, Clay," George reassured.

"For the next eight months you're here, I will." He held out the key. "Wanna do the honors? I don't know if I can."

Taking the key from the taller boy's hand, George unlocked the door and pushed it open. The hinges squealed loudly, and as they flicked the lights on, the rest of the house awoke from its dormancy. Everything was exactly where they had left it. It was as if time had stopped the moment they left the city. Except this time it was peaceful and quiet. As the two boys entered the house, all the tension seemed to be left at the door.

Clay immediately swept down the hallway while George stayed behind in the kitchen. Dropping his backpack by one of the chairs, he picked up a piece of folded paper left on the counter. The edge was frayed as if it had been ripped from a small spiral notepad, and inside contained a list of every location they had made a withdrawal from. From their first withdrawal in North Carolina to their most recent one on their way home in Virginia, they were all written down with the dates and times.

From underneath the table darted out a small cat, and she caused George to leap out of his skin as she bolted down the hallway. Following the cat's trail, he entered Clay's bedroom to find it was cleaned up, though the closet was empty. Clay turned around, and his eyes glowed like the moonlight as he scooped up the small cat.

"Patches, my girl," He spoke softly as he stroked her head. "I missed you so much."

"You almost left her forever," George replied.

"I wanted to take her with me, but I knew I wouldn't be able to care for her." She nibbled on his hand before licking it, and she purred faintly. Clay's lips split into a fond smile as he laid down on his bed. Patches crawled over his chest before laying herself down on top of him. His fingers ran through her short, dark and orange fur as he lifted his head to look up at the older boy in front of him. "Have you properly met her?"

He shook his head, and Clay sat up and gestured for George to sit next to him. He petted the cat, and she pushed her face up against his hand.

"This is Patches." Clay spoke gently. "I adopted her without telling my parents. Karl volunteers at the animal shelter sometimes, and occasionally, I stop by to help him. One time, I went to help Karl clean up after the dogs, and I saw her being brought in. The moment I laid eyes on her, I knew she had to be mine."

"So this wasn't your first time stealing your parents' money, huh," George remarked.

Clay chuckled softly. "Here, let her sniff you. She'll love you. She loves everyone."

George brought his hand up to the tiny cat, and she sniffed his scent before trilling and rubbing her face against him. Clay grinned.

"See, she loves you already." He let her go, and she crawled onto George's lap. He froze. He hadn't had a pet since his first pet cat died when he was younger. Patches rubbed up against him before resting on his lap. "You're good with animals, George. You know, that says a lot about the person."