Late-Night Talks [Solo]
Oct 7, 2019 2:46:38 GMT
Post by Asher on Oct 7, 2019 2:46:38 GMT
3:00 AM, rain crashed against the window panes.
Fingers wrapped tightly around the bed sheets, before throwing them off. Body jolted forward, while golden eyes blindly searched the room. Exhaling sharply, Asher fumbled for his glasses from his nightstand, struggling to catch his breath before putting them on.
"Nightmewres again?" Whiskers mumbled from the foot of the bed, barely lifting her head to look at the young man. "That's nyat healthy." Still, since Asher wasn't responding to her, she would continue lowly talking to the human. Maybe, to bring him around to the waking world? "Mew don't do this when Amew's around, right?"
"Amew"? The fu--
Oh.
Slowly, the teen shook his head, before tugging off a sweat-soaked shirt. "I-" deep breath, "I don't know what that was about." Yes, he did.
He just didn't want to come to terms with the nightmares.
And, judging from the expression that was on Whisker's face, she was well aware that he remembered them, and knew that this was becoming a progressively worsening issue. "Mew should see a head-doctpurr. Or even just a normal one. This stuff isn't healthy." Yes, the feline who lives off of cans of tuna really had room to talk about health. How many times, this week alone, had her own sleep been interrupted by these little sessions? How did Asher continue to function like a moderately normal person on so little sound sleep?
Swinging his legs off the bed, the redhead moved to grab a different shirt, throwing it on before rubbing an eye underneath his glasses. "I should get a glass of water," he deflected, in the worst way possible, before shuffling from the bedroom, down the hall, and all the way to the kitchen. Placing the glass in the sink, the teen turned on the tap, watching the water fill and eventually overflow. Very productive. It was extremely clear that Asher definitely intended to actually drink the water at some point in the eventual future.
"How long do you plan on standing there, like that?"
Apparently, not very. Turning off the faucet, the tired redhead turned to stare at his sister. "How long do you plan on judging me?" He hummed, cracking a small smile.
"Forever, most likely." The girl crossed her arms, standing in the doorway. "Are you sick? You look terrible." Instead of answering, her older brother clicked his tongue to the roof of his mouth, reaching behind him to pull the glass from the sink and take a drink. Really? He was going to ignore her? "Are you at least going to take me to school tomorrow morning? Or, are you going to forget about me?"
Silence.
Yellow eyes met one another across the room, Piper's in an unending glare, while Asher's slowly blinked a few times. And then, he set the glass on the counter. "Since when have I forgotten to take you to school?" Any time it had been his responsibility, he'd done it! Even on short notice, the young man dropped everything for his sister. Just for her to ask something like this? "I can't forget you."
"Why not?"
Was there even a response for that? Fumbling for the glass again, Asher turned to grab the item before it could fall from the countertop.
"Asher."
Deep breath. Just as his sister opened her mouth again, the young man interrupted, "what do you want me to say, Pip?"
Placing her hand on the archway, Piper gave a callous shrug. "That you don't need me any more." Unwavering tone only further agitated her brother, as she continued on, "that your girlfriend is more important. That you're doing... drugs? Street fights? Something probably highly illegal?"
Face scrunched, trying to wrap his mind around everything. Where had any of this come from? Dragging his glass over to the nearby table, he motioned for his sister to take a seat. Granted, it could never be that easy with Piper, who still lingered in the doorway, eyebrow raised, and an almost cocky expression coming over her face. "Sit." And, when she didn't respond, he took a step toward her.
"You know, you're only making this feel way more like I was right by getting all aggressive." Finally, the stern girl's voice had begun to waver, as she made her way over to the table, taking a seat across from Asher. Was she afraid?
Once both had been seated, Asher placed his elbow on the table, resting his chin on the palm of his hand. "Why would you think any of that?" For the first time, his opinionated sister...
...Didn't have something to say.
Instead, she stared down at the table. Sometimes, it was hard to remember that she was only fifteen. Was she afraid of confronting her big brother? He'd watch her take a deep breath. But still, they sat in silence. At least, until he decided to break it. "I don't know why all of that's in your head, but you're wrong."
"And you're a liar." Was it normal for siblings to have such a stern conversation, without outright yelling? Would they be at each other's throats, if it didn't run risk of waking up their parents? "There's no way you're not lying right now." Why? "You're out here, looking like you're having withdrawals. You've come home hurt more than once. I've seen you limping -- or -- or, when there were those cuts on your face?"
"People get hurt, Pip. Haven't you ever tripped and--"
"-Not like that." Lips pressed tight, while Asher debated his wording. At this point, it seemed that anything he said would be used against him. Which, left Piper with the floor a little bit longer. "You look hella exhausted, and you're hardly ever home. You weren't like this before. You were here. And you always told me everything, and now you're." And, the sentence stopped. Hands clasped together on the girl's lap, while she bit down on her lower lip. "You're not talking to me, you know? It's not fair. It's like you don't care about me anymore because you have other things, and you're busy with your stupid girlfriend."
Picking through the options, even Asher knew his response would probably take too long. "Piper. I'm not forgetting you. You have friends, and you're busy studying. I'm allowed to have friends, and leave the house too." Frown was apparent on the ex-actor's face, shifting in his seat. "And, Amy's not going to take your place. She can't." For a lot of reasons, really! Prime example, Asher did not want to date his sister! "I get that you're upset about the last girlfriend. But, she's a different person, in a different country."
"You're different, too," Piper pointed out, again. "You're not the same person from California."
"Is that a good thing?"
Pensively, Piper narrowed her eyes. "Are you doing anything illegal?"
"No."
"I don't know," the girl answered, after another moment. "You've been really weird since we met those brothers from my class." The ones where one of the brothers had originally been in her class, but disappeared, right?
"I know," the spirit user stated, slowly. "I can't really talk about it," he admitted, putting a hand out on the table. "But I'm helping people. Alright?" Apparently, this response had to be somewhat satisfactory, as the sister placed her hand in his, feeling him squeeze it lightly. "I'm working on being better. If that means I'm being a shit brother, you need to tell me before accusing me of drugs, okay?"
Another pensive hum came from his little sister, while she looked away for a minute. "I guess." It was clear that she wasn't a huge fan of the compromise, or the vagueness of the answer. But, it was better than what her imagination had led her to believe thus far! "Do you really need to be dating that witch, though?"
Rolling his eyes, Asher released his sister's hand and stretched. "Probably!" Another only-somewhat-acceptable answer! "I'd really appreciate if you stopped being the witch, though. Amy's being pretty nice, considering how you've treated her."
For a moment, Piper became silent. Perhaps, considering a way to make some sort of compromise. Or, instead, debating a question? "Do you love her?"
Body tensed, while her brother looked to the table. His tongue clicked on the roof of his mouth, before rising from his seat.
"Have you told her?"
"You know," Asher started, giving another stretch. "I keep having some nightmare." Oh. He was changing the topic. "That there's this monster. And it's going to hurt everyone. But, I can't stop it. Because it's me." Giving an awkward smile to his sister, he chimed, "do you think it's something I should worry about?"
Pushing her own chair in, Piper began to follow her brother down the hallway. "If you're the monster, I'm sure nobody needs to worry about it. You're pretty harmless." Ouch. Reaching her bedroom door, the girl looked over her shoulder. "Hey, Asher."
"Hm?"
"I'll try to be nicer. No promises."
Fingers wrapped tightly around the bed sheets, before throwing them off. Body jolted forward, while golden eyes blindly searched the room. Exhaling sharply, Asher fumbled for his glasses from his nightstand, struggling to catch his breath before putting them on.
"Nightmewres again?" Whiskers mumbled from the foot of the bed, barely lifting her head to look at the young man. "That's nyat healthy." Still, since Asher wasn't responding to her, she would continue lowly talking to the human. Maybe, to bring him around to the waking world? "Mew don't do this when Amew's around, right?"
"Amew"? The fu--
Oh.
Slowly, the teen shook his head, before tugging off a sweat-soaked shirt. "I-" deep breath, "I don't know what that was about." Yes, he did.
He just didn't want to come to terms with the nightmares.
And, judging from the expression that was on Whisker's face, she was well aware that he remembered them, and knew that this was becoming a progressively worsening issue. "Mew should see a head-doctpurr. Or even just a normal one. This stuff isn't healthy." Yes, the feline who lives off of cans of tuna really had room to talk about health. How many times, this week alone, had her own sleep been interrupted by these little sessions? How did Asher continue to function like a moderately normal person on so little sound sleep?
Swinging his legs off the bed, the redhead moved to grab a different shirt, throwing it on before rubbing an eye underneath his glasses. "I should get a glass of water," he deflected, in the worst way possible, before shuffling from the bedroom, down the hall, and all the way to the kitchen. Placing the glass in the sink, the teen turned on the tap, watching the water fill and eventually overflow. Very productive. It was extremely clear that Asher definitely intended to actually drink the water at some point in the eventual future.
"How long do you plan on standing there, like that?"
Apparently, not very. Turning off the faucet, the tired redhead turned to stare at his sister. "How long do you plan on judging me?" He hummed, cracking a small smile.
"Forever, most likely." The girl crossed her arms, standing in the doorway. "Are you sick? You look terrible." Instead of answering, her older brother clicked his tongue to the roof of his mouth, reaching behind him to pull the glass from the sink and take a drink. Really? He was going to ignore her? "Are you at least going to take me to school tomorrow morning? Or, are you going to forget about me?"
Silence.
Yellow eyes met one another across the room, Piper's in an unending glare, while Asher's slowly blinked a few times. And then, he set the glass on the counter. "Since when have I forgotten to take you to school?" Any time it had been his responsibility, he'd done it! Even on short notice, the young man dropped everything for his sister. Just for her to ask something like this? "I can't forget you."
"Why not?"
Was there even a response for that? Fumbling for the glass again, Asher turned to grab the item before it could fall from the countertop.
"Asher."
Deep breath. Just as his sister opened her mouth again, the young man interrupted, "what do you want me to say, Pip?"
Placing her hand on the archway, Piper gave a callous shrug. "That you don't need me any more." Unwavering tone only further agitated her brother, as she continued on, "that your girlfriend is more important. That you're doing... drugs? Street fights? Something probably highly illegal?"
Face scrunched, trying to wrap his mind around everything. Where had any of this come from? Dragging his glass over to the nearby table, he motioned for his sister to take a seat. Granted, it could never be that easy with Piper, who still lingered in the doorway, eyebrow raised, and an almost cocky expression coming over her face. "Sit." And, when she didn't respond, he took a step toward her.
"You know, you're only making this feel way more like I was right by getting all aggressive." Finally, the stern girl's voice had begun to waver, as she made her way over to the table, taking a seat across from Asher. Was she afraid?
Once both had been seated, Asher placed his elbow on the table, resting his chin on the palm of his hand. "Why would you think any of that?" For the first time, his opinionated sister...
...Didn't have something to say.
Instead, she stared down at the table. Sometimes, it was hard to remember that she was only fifteen. Was she afraid of confronting her big brother? He'd watch her take a deep breath. But still, they sat in silence. At least, until he decided to break it. "I don't know why all of that's in your head, but you're wrong."
"And you're a liar." Was it normal for siblings to have such a stern conversation, without outright yelling? Would they be at each other's throats, if it didn't run risk of waking up their parents? "There's no way you're not lying right now." Why? "You're out here, looking like you're having withdrawals. You've come home hurt more than once. I've seen you limping -- or -- or, when there were those cuts on your face?"
"People get hurt, Pip. Haven't you ever tripped and--"
"-Not like that." Lips pressed tight, while Asher debated his wording. At this point, it seemed that anything he said would be used against him. Which, left Piper with the floor a little bit longer. "You look hella exhausted, and you're hardly ever home. You weren't like this before. You were here. And you always told me everything, and now you're." And, the sentence stopped. Hands clasped together on the girl's lap, while she bit down on her lower lip. "You're not talking to me, you know? It's not fair. It's like you don't care about me anymore because you have other things, and you're busy with your stupid girlfriend."
Picking through the options, even Asher knew his response would probably take too long. "Piper. I'm not forgetting you. You have friends, and you're busy studying. I'm allowed to have friends, and leave the house too." Frown was apparent on the ex-actor's face, shifting in his seat. "And, Amy's not going to take your place. She can't." For a lot of reasons, really! Prime example, Asher did not want to date his sister! "I get that you're upset about the last girlfriend. But, she's a different person, in a different country."
"You're different, too," Piper pointed out, again. "You're not the same person from California."
"Is that a good thing?"
Pensively, Piper narrowed her eyes. "Are you doing anything illegal?"
"No."
"I don't know," the girl answered, after another moment. "You've been really weird since we met those brothers from my class." The ones where one of the brothers had originally been in her class, but disappeared, right?
"I know," the spirit user stated, slowly. "I can't really talk about it," he admitted, putting a hand out on the table. "But I'm helping people. Alright?" Apparently, this response had to be somewhat satisfactory, as the sister placed her hand in his, feeling him squeeze it lightly. "I'm working on being better. If that means I'm being a shit brother, you need to tell me before accusing me of drugs, okay?"
Another pensive hum came from his little sister, while she looked away for a minute. "I guess." It was clear that she wasn't a huge fan of the compromise, or the vagueness of the answer. But, it was better than what her imagination had led her to believe thus far! "Do you really need to be dating that witch, though?"
Rolling his eyes, Asher released his sister's hand and stretched. "Probably!" Another only-somewhat-acceptable answer! "I'd really appreciate if you stopped being the witch, though. Amy's being pretty nice, considering how you've treated her."
For a moment, Piper became silent. Perhaps, considering a way to make some sort of compromise. Or, instead, debating a question? "Do you love her?"
Body tensed, while her brother looked to the table. His tongue clicked on the roof of his mouth, before rising from his seat.
"Have you told her?"
"You know," Asher started, giving another stretch. "I keep having some nightmare." Oh. He was changing the topic. "That there's this monster. And it's going to hurt everyone. But, I can't stop it. Because it's me." Giving an awkward smile to his sister, he chimed, "do you think it's something I should worry about?"
Pushing her own chair in, Piper began to follow her brother down the hallway. "If you're the monster, I'm sure nobody needs to worry about it. You're pretty harmless." Ouch. Reaching her bedroom door, the girl looked over her shoulder. "Hey, Asher."
"Hm?"
"I'll try to be nicer. No promises."