December Boys (BxB) | ✓

Chapter 8 - Linger Longer

"Get out!"

"Oh, yeah? And what will you do without me? Who's gonna pay the bills then?"

"How dare you speak to me like that?!"

"You'd rather I lied?"

The fighting was audible before I even entered the house. I stood awkwardly on the doorstep, hair dripping to the porch and feet shuffling erratically. I was partial to a shower and a restful nap, but my evening seemed to be swerving in another direction. My mom and my brother were fighting, like they usually did when stuck in each others company for longer than what was advised. It happened every weekend now, like clockwork, ever since Eric quit his job at the gas station.

I sank into a crouch in front of our door, sigh spilling out of me. The entrance area was dark and uninviting, a direct result of our outdoor lamp kicking the bucket two weeks ago. My mom hadn't gotten around to fixing it yet, so coming home was like entering a gloomy cave these days. To make matters worse, our porch was chipped in more than one place, and avoiding the holes was like playing hopscotch.

Our home was situated in the outer perimeter of the city, and was part of a small suburban area next to the freeway. It was a small box of a house, squashed between other identical boxes in various states of disarray. Our house featured a rundown shed and a driveway so narrow my mom couldn't fit her car in it. Her faulty Honda was therefore parked on the street outside with its front smashed into the neighbor's hydrangea bushes. Eric's bike was mounted on the roof.

I shook my head and felt my pockets for my phone. Recognizing the rectangular shape, I quickly retrieved it from an inner pocket. It had stayed dry despite my extended stay in the rain, bless its heart. I unlocked it and pressed speed dial for Seth. It felt like it rang forever.

Click.

"Yo!" Seth's voice reached me. "What's up, man? How was your date with Lily?"

I heaved a sigh of relief. He had picked up. He was available.

"Good, good," I said. "But listen, I need a favor. Got a bit of a crisis back home. Any chance I can crash at yours?"

I could hear voices and laughter in the background. Seth seemed to be moving away from the ruckus.

"Are they fighting again?" he asked, voice low. "Isn't this like, the third time this month?"

The noise on Seth's end picked up in volume, and someone seemed to be calling his name. I frowned, suppressing a shiver as the wind tugged at my body. Was Seth in the middle of dinner or something?

"Look, can I stay over or not?" My voice came out snappier than I intended, but the temperatures were dropping, and I was still sopping wet after walking in the rain. My skin felt like ice, and the doormat proved to be a rather prickly seat.

"Oh, uh... I'm actually at my uncle's right now," Seth said. "He drove me out of town on his new motorcycle. It went so fast, man! I thought I'd fall off, but —"

"Dude!" I interrupted, heart plummeting in my chest. "Focus! You're not going home tonight?"

When Seth opened his mouth again, he sounded apologetic.

"Sorry, Nao... It's my aunt's 50th this weekend. We'll be partying all night."

"Oh, man," I muttered.

"But hey! Why don't you phone Eddie? That guy's never busy."

I sighed but nodded to myself.

"Alright... Thanks, anyway. Congratulate your aunt for me."