Chapter 18
I wake to feel relatively refreshed. Maybe it has something to do with the sun shining brightly today, strong enough to penetrate my curtains and light my room – spring is well in force, and it won’t be long before summer is here. The very idea excites me and I leap out of bed into a long hard stretch which makes my muscles tingle.
As I hit the final step, I am greeted by an unusual silence, especially for this house. Which must mean mum has been called into work early and Matthew is either at the gym or rugby training. Moments like these rarely happen around here, so I intend to take full advantage of it. I start by cooking up some bacon, filling the air with that irresistible breakfast smell. Then, accompanied by a freshly made bacon sandwich, I take a seat at the kitchen table and sip a steaming cup of tea while swiping through one of my many photo albums. I’d never be one to wish away my family, even if they are rather loud, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want more time alone in this house.
As I knew it would, the time has already gone, and I find myself sat on the bus, watching as the broken clock tower slowing comes into view.
“Mitch! Finally!” shouts Riley, as I step to the pavement.
He looks different; his hair has been styled and he’s wearing a polo shirt. He must be on a mission to impress Aimee.
“Am I late?” I question.
“Yes, it’s Matthew’s big match today, isn’t it!”
“I wouldn’t know.” I reply. Matthew won’t speak to me, still.
The field is busier than normal, even for a rugby match, with groups of students crowding around the playing field, sitting cross-legged or laying on the newly cut grass.
“Hey, Mitchy Witchy!” cheers Aimee, lifting her head from the ground. She’s also wearing a polo shirt, a pink one.
Have they purposely worn matching his and her outfits? If so, I think I’ll need to have words with Riley, as that’s just weird.
“Are you sure the game’s today?” I ask, “No-one’s on the field.”
Riley glares at me. “Of course it is, do you think we’re all stupid?”
“Yeah Moody Mitchy, chill out.” Adds Aimee.
“Moody Mitchy,” I humour, perching next to Riley. “That’s a new one.”
Since when have these two started hanging out, especially alone. It was only last week they finally spoke to each other, and that was for like five seconds. Feeling somewhat creeped out, I contemplate going to class, it’s not like Matthew cares whether I’m here or not, otherwise he would have invited me. But I spot Mrs Armstrong in the distance with most of the other lecturers, chatting while nursing a steaming coffee mug, so I’m guessing class is cancelled.
Suddenly, Aimee begins to laugh uncontrollably, followed by Riley, although I’m pretty sure his is forced, purely to impress her. Then they both stop, becoming captivated by something behind me. What now?
Slamming his body against mine, Riley whispers in my ear. “Hope you don’t mind but I took the liberty of calling a friend.”
Grabbing the top of my head and squashing the hat I wear in the process, Riley forcefully turns me in the opposite direction. Immediately my heart begins to race before my mind can even register the person in front of me. Miah. “You’re welcome.” He whispers.
Her hair is tied back today, with a red and white bandana, allowing her curls to fall to one side. She looks as beautiful as she did the last time we met, if not more. “Hey.” She greets with a wave.
Both standing in silence, she longingly waits for a reply, but my speech decides to fail me again. This time, I’m able to picture the words in my head, but with my pounding heart, I find I cannot concentrate long enough to pronounce them. “Hey.” I manage, albeit muffled through a choking cough.
And with caution in her step, she joins us, sitting beside me on the ground, while I keep my head down and pick at the grass between my legs. Even she seems nervous, a trait I didn’t think she could possess, but I don’t blame her, she has been put up on a stage for all our eyes to gawk at.
Riley clears his throat. “So, I thought–”
“We thought.” Aimee corrects him.
We! Now they’re a we! Have I been in a coma for the last few days? I know he was finally forced to speak to her, and that has done him some good, but surely he isn’t this comfortable with her already. Although this does give me hope, maybe I too will be able to follow in his footsteps and speak with Miah – without blushing, panicking, or choking.
“Oh yeah.” He continues. “So, we thought it would be a good thing if we all met up on a regular basis. You know, considering what you guys all have in common.”
They both await our reply, eagerly staring at us with wide eyes. “Sure,” Miah agrees to the clapping of their hands. “I know Darcy will be pleased to know you guys will be around more often.”
She speaks in a city accent, one I hadn’t noticed the first time we met due to sheer panic, but it suits her cool, calm persona perfectly as she leans back, resting her weight on her hands. “So Mitchell! Will I get the chance to meet Matthew today?” she asks.
I sink, stuck in a sand of despair that pulls me deeper as she explains her excitement to meet ‘the brother.’ Of course, she’s want to meet him, with him being all muscular, confident and sporty, they’d be a perfect match. “He should be here soon,” I answer in an over the top upbeat way, purely to disguise the sadness beating me from the inside. “I’ll introduce you.”
After that, I lose all interest in the conversation, which is fine as there doesn’t seem to be much of it. Instead, Aimee shows off some gymnastics moves, while Riley looks on in awe, and Miah sits quietly with her jaw nearly hitting the floor as she takes in how flexible Aimee really is. All the while I can’t stop thinking of Miah and Matthew meeting, and how they’ll get on so well, causing her to be around a lot more… with him.
Filtering out of the changing rooms adjacent to the field, the players are greeted by a loud cheer as each player runs in line, giving the crowd a wave. Out of us, Aimee is first to notice and jumps up screaming and waving like a lunatic, followed by Riley who mirrors her. Patrick and Alec are first, leading the other players as they pass us wearing the normal white rugby kit, loving every second of the glory. Patrick even gives a few girls a quick wink, to which they then begin arguing over who it was for.
Finally, Matthew comes into view, running through the centre with his head-guard on. Catching his eyes as he weaves between the applauding students, I’m hit by the normal awkwardness that is now part of our relationship, only for him to give me a wave. And at first I can’t be sure if it’s aimed at me, so I remain ridged staring at him until he waves again. “Is that him?” asks Miah.
Still somewhat astonished he actually acknowledge me, I murmur. “Yeah.”
There was something different about him today, no longer could I see a fear behind his eyes, instead he looked like his normal self, like my brother.
“He is big, isn’t he.” States Miah, peering over the person stood in front to get a better look. “Ya right, ya look nothing alike.”
“Yeah,” I mumble, completely deflated. “Most people think that.” What a fool I was to think she’d ever look twice at me after meeting Matthew. It’s always been this way, Matthew is the popular one, blessed with social skills while I’m just his geeky brother.
Sitting back to the ground amongst the crowd of cheering and wooing students, I fall into my usual trap and begin overthinking the days, weeks and months ahead of me, detaching myself from my surroundings until I’m nothing more than an empty body filling a space.
“This is so cool,” Miah beams, joining me and the others back on the ground. “I’ve never been to a rugby game before. Gotta say I’ve no idea what’s going on.”
“Don’t worry,” Riley sniggers. “I’ll let you know when to cheer.”
Her hazel eyes then return to the game, reflexing a sparkle of light from the brightly burning sun while I slyly watch her, trying to work out what she m
ust be thinking. Is she even watching the game? Or is she watching my brother?
Having been to many of Matthew’s games before, I begin to lose interest as it leads up to the half time mark. Instead, I sway between daydreaming and trying to think up something to say to Miah, anything to start a conversation with her, although nothing comes to mind. And it’s while I’m lost in thought I hear the first scream. On my feet within seconds, I frantically look for the person responsible and find a ginger haired girl half-way up the field pointing to the pitch. Already I know what I’m about to see, but still, I recoil at the sight of Matthew lit up in a golden light, glowing in the middle of the field.
“Mitchell?!” a panicked Riley yells. “What do we do?”
He’s asking me!? There’s nothing we can do, everyone can see it in plain sight, my brother is stood before them mimicking that of a lighthouse shining brightly. I want to run to him, but last time I was thrown away and that would only make things worse.
Hysteria hits the crowd in waves, causing a ripple effect that sends them all running for the main building, pushing and shoving anyone slower in their path down to the ground along the way. And to the distance I see a short girl hit the floor, only to be ignored by her peers as she cries out to them. Even Patrick and Alec ignore her pleas for help as they pass her by at a speed. “Mitchell! What the hell’s going on?” cries Alec, grabbing me by the shoulders.
For someone that hardly notices me on a daily basis, he doesn’t mind calling upon me at the first sign of trouble. If I could, I’d laugh at him. “Mitchell!” he yells again.
“Just go!” I shoot back, not wanting to waste my breath on him.
I don’t need to tell him twice, he’s off, along with the rest of Matthew’s friends, scurrying his large mass of muscles to the main campus. And what was once a busy place filled with excitement and joy, is now deserted and devoid of all life, other than my brother.
“You guys can leave too if you want,” I call out.
Matthew has been abandoned by his friend, teammates and fans, but there is no way I’ll be joining them, I’m here till the very end with him.
“Mitch!” cries Riley with a forced smile. “I’m with you!”
“Yeah Mitchy, we Half-Breeds stick together,” Aimee concurs.
There’s only one person left behind me, one that remains silent, and I can’t blame her, she’s only known us a few days and already this has happen. “I understand if you want to go,” I tell her.
Biting her lip, she sighs. “I don’t know what ya guys have gotten me into, but I ain’t leaving. We stick together… right?”
“Right!” Aimee nods.
Ordering them to stay behind me, we force our way closer to Matthew, pushing against the invisible force he sends out in waves of light. “Can you read him?” I ask Miah.
Struggling to hold herself in place, Miah grabs at my arm for support and within seconds, her eyes turn white as her body becomes like stone. And with my heels dug into the ground, we wait until she returns with a face of terror. “What are you?” she cries, releasing my arm.
A flash of light then follows, one so intense I’m barely able to hold my position under its force and watch helplessly as it sweeps Miah, Riley and Aimee, tossing them through the air to the edge of the rugby pitch. I cry out to motionless bodies, afraid to leave my position just in case I’m next, but luckily they begin to move, Riley first as he then helps the others back to their feet. “We’re ok,” he calls out.
“Mitchell?”
The voice is back, this time coming from where my brother stands.
“Matthew?” I murmur, unable to make out his face under the glowing light.
Gradually it begins to dim, turning a pale yellow before it vanishes completely. Then, we face each other, only his hair is much darker than normal and his body is nowhere near define as it normally is. “Mitchell.” He repeats.
Greeted by his evil grin, I find myself staring into those hollow eyes I’d only ever seen once before, as he towered over me, burning me alive. “Welcome back,” the other me mocks as his body convulses. “I’ve missed you.”
“Who are you!?” I demand, unable to look away.
“You. Of course.”
His voice is intoxicating, and although it sends a shiver down my spine, I want to hear more.
“What have you done with my brother, what have you done to Matthew?” I cry, fighting back tears as my eyes begin to well up.
“Don’t you get it? I am your brother.” He throws his head back, cackling a laugh that is so high pitched, I’m forced to cover my ears to stifle it.
“Stop!” I roar.
“Finally,” he lures, sliding his tongue across his teeth. “You’re finally ready to become who you’ve always meant to be.”
Unable to fight it any longer, my hands propel outward to meet his, only for them to fade into a black mist before we can make contact, which flows into me, followed by his arms, until more and more of his essence infects my body. Nearly completely absorbed, the other me lets out a final cackle before his entirety is one with mine, along with his voice that now reside within my head, a voice I can no longer ignore. “Everyone will turn their back on you.” It whispers.
Having witnessed it all and made no attempt to help me, Riley, Aimee and Miah remain where they landed, looking on at me in fear. Could he be right?
“You see now! They’re all ashamed of you, just like Matthew is.”
Overcome by a rage, I allow the burning sensation to pulsate through my body, tearing at it as it fills my core.
“Yes! That’s it!” He urges. “Feel the anger. Release it.”
Green turns to black as the grass at my feet withers and dies, spreading my darkness like a virus through the ground, consuming everything it touches. The strength of which melts the goal post, causing them to twist and buckle, as does my mind with the little consciousness I have left, dissipating into nothing.
“That’s it, embrace your true self.”
The more I use this power, the more I want to see this place burn to the ground. And with a blink of an eye, the trees out in the distance, burst into flames, becoming burning infernos atop the wooden trunks. Even the sky turns a harrowing black, matching the ground at my feet, trapping this world in a darkness of my own design.
“Let’s not forget… them.”
Turning my attention to the main college building, I scan the many faces glaring at me through the windows. “Do it.” He orders.
It doesn’t take much, just a simple wave of my hand is enough to fill each window with flames; engulfing the building in a cage of fire. The screams of panic, pain and terror should be enough to stop anyone in their tracks, but not me, not now. Instead, I smirk and watch as the roof caves in, silencing them all.
“Mitchell!” A voice? Someone I used to know… Riley? “This isn’t you, you have to stop this.”
Before me, he stands with a teary Aimee by his side and Miah, who can barely look at me. “You can stop this!” He begs.
Staring back at his calmed face, he knows, as do I, what’s to come and accepts his fate. Whereas the girls shout to me, hoping to appeal to the last shred of humanity I might have, but it’s far too late now, the person they call to no longer resides here. So I close my eyes to block them out and with my arms out, I allow the built-up power to be pulled away from my body in a scorching blaze until I’m drained and there’s nothing left but an empty darkness.