Encore (Prodigy: 3)

I Don't Get You

Two nights later, Locke woke suddenly, his chest tight with a panic he had no reason for. It was like the fear he got right before he went on stage.

But he hadn't gone on stage in weeks and all his coming concerts had been cancelled due to his... stunt.

He had no reason to be so scared.

He quickly looked to his right and instantly felt his chest loosen at the sight of Zane's broad shirtless back, the muscles under the dark skin gently tightening and loosening in time with his sleeping breath.

He lay on his front; his head turned away, his hundreds of tiny plaits knotted with a band at the top of his head, his arms under his pillow, hugging it.

He was clearly sound asleep and nothing was bothering his dreams, other then shifting slightly so his foot touched Locke – it was something Locke had noticed over the last few nights, something Zane always did whenever Locke woke up – even if he was stone-cold out of it and off in La La Land – probably dreaming about basketball.

Usually Locke would just go back to sleep but that night, he carefully slid out of bed and padded across the dark room, banging his toe off the leg of the bed, muttering a vile curse under his breath and sliding out into the living room, closing the door behind him as he turned towards the moonlit room.

He froze at the sight that greeted him.

Sat on the sofa, only lit by the night, silent and un-intruding.

Yet the sight terrifying him in a way no one would understand.

It was just a violin case.

Just a musical instrument.

It couldn't hurt him and yet he slammed back against the door, the door slamming closed with the force as he stood staring, shaking.

"Locke?"

Zane's muffled, sleepy voice drifted through the door to him and Locke whirled around, wrenching the door open and almost falling in as Zane sat up, rubbing his eyes.

"Why is it here?" he shouted.

"Huh?" Zane asked, looking at him through half-open eyes.

"The violin! The violin!! Why is it here?" he cried, "How did it get here? Why do you have it?"

Zane looked blankly at him for a moment before it seemed to click. "Ohhhh that. Jess dropped it off after you'd gone to bed."

"Why!?" Locke shrieked.

Zane raised an eyebrow at him. "It's just a violin, Locke."

"WHY IS IT HERE?!" Locke screamed, tears suddenly flaring up in his eyes making Zane stare and quickly throw the covers off.

"Jess said you needed to practice, even if you were on a break, you needed to practice, but just a little so you don't damage your wrists."

"Get rid of it!" Locke cried, staggering away from the door like there was a monster on the other side. "Get rid of it!"

"How?" Zane staring.

"It doesn't matter! Throw it out the window for all I care! Just get rid of it!"

Zane narrowed his eyes at him. "It's a Stradivarius violin, Locke, I can't just 'get rid of it'."

Locke stared at him, then turned tail and ran back into the living room.

"Locke!" Zane snapped, running after him just as Locke snatched up the case, ran to the balcony doors and hurled them open.

Zane stopped him by grabbing his hair. One hand curled into the locks, panic making him wrench Locke back, the other hand grabbing the case and dragging it out of Locke's hands.

"Are you insane?" he shouted, dropping Locke and backing away from him, holding the case out of reach.

"Yes!" Locke cried, sinking to the ground, not looking at him, "Yes! I'm insane! I'm a mad musical prodigy and people like that do things like this and everyone just puts it down to creative genius!"

He whirled around, diving for the case, Zane darting out of the way.

"Let me get rid of it!"

"Why? What are you so scared of? It's just a violin.... It can't hurt you, Locke." Zane said, his voice lowering, softening at the end as he stared at Locke sat on the floor, eyes locked on the case like it was some sort of monster he needed to slay.

"It's not the violin," he whispered, his body trembling, "It's everything that violin represents..."

Zane stared at him for a moment, then set the case aside and sat down on the floor opposite him.

"What happened to you?" he asked, looking at him.

Locke's twitchy eyes flicked to him.

"What happened?" Zane asked again.

Locke looked away.

"Did you really want to die?"

Locke looked back to stare at him. "It's not something you do for kicks," he said, his eyes darkening, "And I wasn't doing it as a cry for attention or help."

"Does that mean you'll try again?"

Locke pursed his lips and Zane pushed away from him. Locke looked at him in surprise and started at the sheen across Zane's eyes, a pained fury suddenly burning inside them.

"Zane," he started, reaching for him but Zane pulled back and got up.

"I'm going back to bed."

"What?" Locke said, gaping at him, "I just broke down in front of you and hinted at a second suicide and you want to go back to sleep?"

"I'm going back to bed," Zane repeated, opening the safe and locking the violin inside before walking back in the bedroom, Locke stumbling to his feet to follow.

"Why? Don't you care?" Locke snapped, stopping at the door.

Zane just walked across the room, pulling the covers back and slid back into bed.

"Zane!"

"I don't want to think about it," Zane said and turned the lights out.

"What?" Locke said as they were plunged into darkness.

"I don't want to think about it. It damn near killed me to think you had killed yourself. I don't care about any gods but it was like a Godsend when I heard it was a case of misinformation and you were still alive. I don't know what goes on inside your head. I don't get you; I don't think I ever will. I don't have to understand you to know I don't want to lose you so I don't want to think about it. Pretend it won't happen. Pretend it's not there."

"You can't do that to me, Zane!" Locke snarled, walking forwards, feeling blindly in the dark, "You can't abandon me just because you're scared of what might be going on in my mind! Imagine how scared I am to actually know what's in my mind!"

"Then what's in your mind, Locke?" Zane muttered out of the darkness. Fingers touched Locke's and he stopped. "What's on your mind, Locke? What are you seeing and feeling and thinking that makes you scream at the sight of a violin, that makes you swallow dozens of pills and makes you take a blade to your own body and attempt to die?"

Locke was quiet for a moment, before slowly sitting down on the edge of the bed, letting out a slow breath, his fingers still touching Zane's before he looked down at the floor he couldn't see.

"I'm scared of being alone," he said simply.