How It Should Have Been: Sokeefe AU

Episode 28: (Keefe's POV)

Keefe snorted. Of course, she cared about people seeing them. Gossip. But he allowed himself to raise his hand and loosely grip her cold fingers, letting her leap him back to Candleshade.

As soon as they materialized, he dropped her hand and turned towards the house.

Gisela made no move to stop him, to talk to him, to comfort him as he strode to the tower.

As he walked away from her, as she stood there, saying nothing as she always did, the last fragments of hope that he'd held onto throughout the years faded, fluttered away until there was only anger and disappointment and knowledge that however much he tried, his family would never love him.

"Are you really applying for a match fail?" Keefe asked quietly, his eyes on the floor. He already knew the answer.

"Yes." Cassius's eyes still flashed with anger whenever he looked at his son, but the green color in his hair had faded in the days since what Keefe had decided to call the Great Sencen Splitastic Disaster. Or, from one of the movies Dex liked to watch, the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day.

Quite possibly the worst in his life, although he was sure that it could get worse. At least after the initial yells and threats to send him to Exillium, Cassius had calmed down and simply grounded him, taking his imparter, all of the drawing notebooks that he could find in his room, and every privilege he'd ever had, as well as all of his prank elixirs.

Well, all the ones he could find.

The fury still simmered in Cassius, Keefe knew, but this was the first non-yelled conversation they'd had since.

"Fine," Keefe chewed on his lip, searching for anything to say. "When?" It didn't matter. His life was fracturing, and every nugget of information added wedges that drove the fissures farther apart.

"As soon as possible," Cassius answered. "Gisela's going to the Matchmakers in Atlantic today."

Keefe sucked in a breath. "That- that soon? Okay."

He'd thought his parents would have waited a bit, cooled their heels before deciding whether or not to go through with the match fail. Sure, it was a long time coming, and overdue for that matter, but Keefe had still been harboring a secret little hope that his family would stay together.

He should have known better.

Lord Cassius and Lady Gisela's marriage had been splintering since Keefe was born, and the cracks had been spreading every day, every hour, every minute since. It would take a miracle to get them back together, especially since whatever their relationship was, it wasn't love.

They didn't even have a love/hate relationship. The Sencen's marriage had been built on annoyance and isolation and ignorance and anger. Not like what the Ruewens, or the Vackers, or even the Songs had, which was love and trust and sharing and support.

Keefe realized he hadn't been breathing from the burn in his lungs, and he sucked in a breath.

He had to leave, get out of this house, this tower that was suffocating him, squeezing the air from his lungs and closing in on his chest, blocking his airways and crushing his throat-

Keefe fumbled for the notebook he kept in his pocket, not to open it and let his father see, but just to feel the comforting weight in his hand. He rubbed his thumb over the smooth gold surface, taking deep, calming breaths until his heartbeat slowed and he could inhale and exhale normally.

He couldn't stand this much longer.

He brushed past Cassius, ignoring his growl of annoyance, and headed for the leapmaster. He called out the name of the meadow, not caring if his dad heard him, and closed his eyes as the light swept him away.