Those Cold Eyes ✓

Chapter 9

I don't even remember how I got home, but there I was, thrashing my room beyond recognition. I'd been throwing around stuff for quite some time, and it was getting seriously messy. Not that I cared. I didn't care about anything.

"Dylan?" Lily's voice broke through my haze. She sounded worried. I'd never heard that tone in her voice before. She walked in front of me, crossing her arms, looking at me insistently. "You alright?" she asked. I blinked a couple of times, trying to focus.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I answered, my voice tense.

"Sure you are... I'll get you a cup of tea." She lingered for a few seconds, as if she was afraid I would start again as soon as she left. Tea? I never had tea...but for once it didn't sound too bad.

After a few minutes, she came back, holding a steaming cup in her hands. "Careful, it's hot!" she told me, handing it over into my fidgeting hands. The cup burned against them, the pain somehow comforting. She led me to the bed and sat me down, putting an arm around me without saying another word. I don't know for how long we sat there, but in the end I calmed down.

"It's Friday, right?" I asked after a while.

"Yes..."

"Good." I didn't think I could have handled seeing him again tomorrow, already.

"Would you like something to eat?"

"No," I answered automatically.

She didn't listen. She rose from my bed, and I could hear her walk downstairs, then faint sounds as she opened and closed cupboards in the kitchen. She came back with a bowl filled with ice cream. I couldn't help but roll my eyes a little at the cliche.

"I'm gonna have it if you won't," she added.

This time as she sat down next to me, I put my arm around her, hugging her close to my side. "You're a wicked sister Lil," I said, grateful for her gestures. She didn't answer, just cuddled closer.

We sat there for hours, watching one movie after another that she picked out from our long lost collection of kid's movies. I heard Mom walking in to check up on us a few times, but she never said anything. She was good like that. She knew when someone needed space.

The next morning I woke up in my clothes from yesterday. I'd obviously dozed off. I heard some strange noises from the kitchen so I walked downstairs, my duvet still wrapper around me. I gaped as I met the biggest breakfast I'd ever seen. Mom smiled when she saw my face, headed over with a concerned smile on her face and gave me a hug.

"Tyra and Sebastian invited themselves for breakfast. Are you okay with that?" she asked. I really wasn't, but I knew I would feel better once they were here.

"Sure, I'll go and take a shower," I answered, my voice still strained and hollow.

I really wasn't the guy who sulked, and after a shower and a new set of clothes I felt much better. I even managed to put a smile on my face as I saw my two friends digging into the breakfast delicacies.

"There you are." Tyra beamed. There was a slight spark of concern in her eyes, but after that first slip, she hid it quite well. Sebastian didn't hide his at all, he just looked at me worry apparent in his soft features.

"Yeah, sorry I woke up in my clothes just a while ago. My head obviously got a bit overloaded with Disney yesterday," I said, trying my best to be cheerful. Tyra laughed, and the sound was pretty liberating. I took a deep breath and decided that this was going to be a great day—starting with an awesome breakfast.

"So what are we doing today?" I asked, munching on a pancake drenched in maple syrup.

"Dylan," Mom scolded, "don't talk while you're eating. It's disgusting!" Tyra laughed again and Lily chimed in as she took a place next to Seb.