Drawn To You (boyxboy)

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Peter

The house was unnervingly quiet. Probably because it was still seven o' clock on a Saturday morning.

I sat dead still on the couch opposite the television. It wasn't on, so all I was staring at was my own reflection. Normally, it would be too far to see properly. But now it was as if the television screen was the slightest bit closer, and I could just make out the words Registered Coffee Addict on my white-and-brown t-shirt.

Once again, I'd had another sleepless night. Only this time, it wasn't because I was deciding which form of crazy I was. It was because I now knew I wasn't crazy, but was really hoping that was the case. No, I was now a part-boy, part-wolf mess, who could smell and hear everything within a twenty-foot radius, whether I wanted to or not.

Even now as I sat in the living room, painfully awake, every chirping bird and rustling leaf I heard took me by surprise, and I could smell the little presents that the neighbors' dog had so kindly left us on our front lawn. Needless to say, the previous night had been long and nerve-wracking, and filled with the many ominous sounds that always seemed to reside in the dark.

After about almost an hour of endless torture, I decided to turn on the television, decreasing the volume out of respect for the sleeping. It was almost eight, which meant the reruns of the week's episodes of my favorite show were about to play. I'd seemed to miss the last three anyway, so maybe there was a feeble silver lining to my sleepless night.

There was a commercial about some sort of hair product, and then a promotional clip about another series on the network, before the familiar theme song began. I sighed and folded my legs underneath myself, watching the slides and scenes of the main characters go by.

The episode had barely started when a vexatious grinding sound began somewhere outside. I shut my eyes in exasperation. Just when everything was starting to settle, someone decides to mow their lawn, I thought heatedly. I leapt up from the sofa and walked to the front door, flinging it open. I stepped outside into the cold morning air, a little way from the entrance, and faced the neighbor's yard. "For Peter's sake, would you please keep it down?!"

I waited a few moments. The sound did not cease. If anything it was louder now that I was outside, as if it was right at my ear. My immediate thought was to run over there and claw his hands until he wasn't able to mow anymore. But, reminding myself that it would be illegal and very out of character, I settled for heading back into the house and slamming the door behind me.

I threw myself onto the couch, highly annoyed, and increased the volume by a few levels. It did nothing to dull the mower's sound, but at least I could actually hear the television now. Throwing the remote onto the table, I tried to calm myself, and focus on the scene, but soon enough I heard footsteps at the staircase.

Payton wandered into the living room in a daze, rubbing his eyes, seeming like an animal coming out of hibernation. He eventually came into reality, and his gaze landed on the television. He rolled his eyes. "You've got to be kidding me."

"My, my, sound the trumpets," I scoffed, returning my attention to the television. "Aloysius the Great has graced us with his magnanimous presence."

"Okay, we may basically hate each other," he muttered darkly, "but you still have to honor the pact. No using each other's middle names, ever."

I sighed dramatically. "Fine. But don't, even for a second, think you're going to get me to leave the living room."

He gestured at the television screen. "You watch your little chick shows every day. Saturdays are my time. I could be looking for a soccer match, or a baseball game right now."