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Chapter Text

Most humble pedestrians and passers-by would argue that the prosperous private lot,(which indeed did possess a firm quantity of acres of fine British land) was a tranquil possession of a high rising nobleman, who indulged in all kinds of exquisite activities. Oneself could have speculated that they were; golf every Sunday morning at the hill up Northeast- to private tuition for horseback riding at the fields down south- to perhaps, sipping Dom Pérignon champagne at the leather backseat of a well maintained and mantled coat of a Chevrolet, which glistened with vigour in the youthful moonlight.

However, behind all the well groomed greenery; neatly trimmed hedges, done by an anointed loyal landscaper who had a wary eye out for symmetry and precision. Cautiously chiselled marble statues with soft melancholy faces of weeping angels, which stood high overhead protecting the house's corner eaves; and behind the precisely lined muted currant brickwork which encased the mullioned white windows which dutifully guarded the inhabiting residents from the smoke-filled streets, and bustle of the general public, and of the low-laying beggars out on the soiled asphalt, roamed something far more sinister . Per say, it wasn’t what roamed within it.

A grim, murderous and violent thunderstorm would befall the eerily desolate streets of Central London which were usually swarming with enthusiastic and hectic pedestrians; an Ear-splitting strike of the sharp bolt of lightning would resonate through the uncomfortably chilly, and sparsely decorated house. The interior would suggest that the place had been devoid of all sorts of life; one would argue that there had been an evident  lack of competent chaste housewife to make it a notch more inviting! On February 1st 1981, a set of misfortune twins would be born exactly when the mahogany grandfather clock strikes half past one at midnight.

The future heirs of the Prosperous and Noble House of Leland had finally arrived after nine excruciatingly exhausting months of incubating the fatigue provoking and energy consuming beasts. Direct words from the conceited, narcissistic wife of Mr. Leland. The woman had complained consecutively how her statuesque figure and splendid demeanour had been utterly stripped away from her, and tossed to heaven knows where. Ever since the well anticipated birth of the heirs, the woman had let her noble public-image slip (somewhat in her eyes). Dark unflattering circles enclosed around the rim of her daunting pale steel eyes. Loose chestnut strands of perfectly straight hair draped down her stoic lengthened face. Slim fingers which hadn't done an ounce of physical labour, tightly enclosed around the refined stem of the narrow wine glass. Crimson liquid inhabited three fourths of the cup.

Perhaps, the Lelands weren’t sinister people. In all honesty, they didn’t practise satanic rituals nor indulge in extremist groups and beliefs. Neither did they take any pleasure in torturing and terrorising innocent pedestrians. They surely did not look sinister. They did not have devilish appearance; nor horns sprouting from the sides of their heads, nor uncharacteristically long canines nor pits of black to call eyes. Goodness no! The family looked like any other high-rising patricians. High cheekbones placed upon a supercilious face with their turned-up fox like noses stuck high up in the air. Busting housemaids ran around the house keeping the old Victorian house clean and upkept up to the critical eye of the sneering Mr Leland.  Perhaps it had been the unbecoming black Victorian vests, silk shirts, silk veils and Supima cotton dresses, along hand, the unforgiving patronising cold glare that was sinister about the Lelands. Mr. Leland had no problem calling his wife all kinds of foul names and consecutively having quarrels with her. On the other hand, the unwelcoming woman had no problem drinking her sorrows away, and abusing her children for petulant misunderstandings, which could barely be interpreted as provoking her to lash out in such an unbashful manner. It was the toxicity and utter hostility that was sinister. Especially, when it was directed towards your children.

Chapter Text

Upon the mullioned grand white windowsill sat a boy, of merely fifteen years. Adolescence prominent in his features. His pale forehead vaguely pressing against the bar on the left of the window. Although too early to determine for sure, a prominent mark of beauty grazed the boy's face. He was indeed quite a dashing specimen. Medium length hair, which just barely fell over his eyes and tucked loosely behind his ears, was straight and slightly curved at the edges as well as it being a very peculiar colour- colours, one should say.  It fell in vertical streaks, some platinum blond, others a dark contrast of a chestnut colour. What was even more dazzling was that his eyebrows and eyelashes displayed the same phenomenon. A solid part of the eyebrow would be blond and a bit further down it would be brown! Beyond the motionless eyebrows was a set of gunmetal grey eyes, encased by a deep set of exhaustion-stricken eyebags. long eyelashes fluttered in the moist yet chilly room. He wore a dark silk shirt which hung loosely on the boy's lithe ghostly body. Long limbs and joints awkwardly bumped into each other, the boy hadn’t much physique, but he was of much grace. Long sleeves which were a notch too enlarged at the forearm had a loose cuff at the wrist encasing the shirt with fine satin lace. Fine trousers enclosed themselves neatly on the boy's extensive legs.

Audibly the heavy wooden oak door creaked open. The boy leisurely turned his head to peer at the intruder. It was a girl. A girl that looked exactly like the boy; age and face wise anyways, she had lengthy straight blonde and brown streaked hair which draped over her limber figure. She was still lounging about in her satin nightgown which clung loosely down to her knobbly rosy knees, the girl leaned graciously against the heavy wooden door.

‘’Father requires your company by the greenhouse.’’ she uttered lazily while longingly peering around the uncanny formal room which was sparsely decorated and lacked the clear personality of the inhabitant who currently resided there.

‘’Did father say why he needed me?’’ the boy questioned, now giving the girl his full attention.

‘’No. But I hear it's quite important, plus I can’t be loitering with a loser like yourself much longer anyway, I’ve got ballet class to get ready for.’’  The girl flashed a playful toothy grin with a cheeky gleam in her eye, indicating that she had been merely joking. With that, she left.

The boy smiled to himself while lightly shaking his head, at least he had his twin sister to distract him from all the expectations and mannerisms he was expected to follow day and night. It could get quite vexing  at times.

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

The boy indulged in an effortless stroll towards the lavish greenhouse. In full fairness, he was feeling quite jittery and restless being called by his Father in such an informal manner. Usually, his Father would send a housemaid to go fetch him. Not his sister. Unknowing of he had managed to get considering the fact she was still in her nightgown. Per say, he was overthinking situations which, frankly, did not need such thought and effort to be poured into them.  He crossed the ever so familiar stone masonry path, kicking pebbles along the way, he flushed a bright red colour as mortification settled along his face once he realised how infantile and petulant that was of him. Thank God there wasn’t his immodest Mother to scold him for it. He marched inside the oppressive greenhouse. He hated the greenhouse. It made him break out in an intolerable sweat which was quite foul for his public image considering his social status.

‘’Everett, at last. I’ve been expecting you for ages boy.’’ Mr. Leland announced in his booming rich voice. Mr. Leland was a sturdy man, not too bulky but neither scrawny. He indeed was a handsome man - well into his late forties, grey hairs had already begun to set in. The man bore high cheekbones placed atop hollowed cheeks. Platinum hair fell cleanly over the man's piercing, fox-like, intruding pale clear blue eyes. A slight stubble made its way out down his jawline. A heavy cigar was closely held near his sneering lip.

‘’Forgive me Father, I had to make myself look presentable, I couldn't saunter out looking like a vagrant’’ Everett lied unskilfully. He tentatively massaged his left wrist; there had been an unpleasant sting which he didn’t quite know where it stimulated from.

He shuffled uncomfortably; he couldn’t quite understand how his father managed to smoke in this heat. Frankly, he couldn’t understand smoking at all! Once at a tedious political gathering discussing the unavoidable question of democracy and communism and how they either tore, or benefited society. broke out into a heated argument and either side of the party began to ceaselessly shout their points out across the rectangular conference table. Everett's elder cousin – who he hardly knew on a personal level, leisurely leaned back on his authentic leather chair while giggling at the quarrel breaking out before him. He hoarded a cigar in his pudgy right hand, and once he had been caught eyeing down his elder cousin's cigar, he got offered a puff.  Reluctantly the young boy took a tentative inhale, only to befall into a truly unfortunate coughing fit! His eyes stung and Everett could not get a good rich breath of oxygen. Which, inexorably caused everyone to befall deathly silent as they trailed their eyes in his direction. Poor boy.

‘’So be it then. But I didn’t call you out here to merely discuss your poor lying habits or your dwindling around the house delaying this conversation.’’ Mr. Leland announced while taking a meaningful drag from his cigar as he scoffed.

Everett spontaneously stiffened up. ‘’For-’’ the young boy began.

‘’Silence.’’ Mr. Leland shut him out. He exhaled an agitated huff of smoke which made the already oppressive greenhouse even more intolerable. Everett’s eyes began to sting from the smoke and heat and his breathing became undeniably more difficult. Everett gently tipped his head back and drew his lips to a thin line. Nimbly he began picking at his fingernails. Anticipating the worst

‘’I have concluded that it would be best for both you and your sister to be sent away. To a quality boarding school which shall provide elite stable education, and assuredly secure both of your futures. Tis in North Yorkshire, and it is the St. Louis Boarding School of Advanced Politics.  I suppose you cannot be locked up in this estate and London forever for that matter; and I really do believe you have to improve your persuasion and your ability to rule and control. Your mere cheek and petulant antics are simply not good enough of a standard. As you probably already know I anticipate you to be the overall successor of the Leland House and our family company.  Behaving like a bashful mouse won’t get you far in life now would it? After all, you’re not a chaste housewife to be quite so reserved and muted are you? I know you can be very persuasive when you set your mind to something, or simply desire it enough.’’ Mr. Leland chucked to himself. ‘’ Whenever I take you out to Galas and meetings you strive to be as far away as possible from our family and superiors; huddled somewhere in the corner, now that’s not a very good impression on my behalf, is it? I value your appreciation towards humbleness, but it simply won’t do.’’

Everett blankly stared ahead, trying to fathom the burst of information he had just been told. The underside of his eye twitched ever so slightly as he remained in silence. His father slowly turned around as he patiently waited for an answer, which inevitably didn’t come.

‘’ I trust you can still talk, no?’’ his Father prodded at in an unfriendly manner.

‘’Father, I must protest, why must we go? Can you not afford private tuition any more, a private tutor can be just as sufficient plus, I’m in the comfort of my home - why must I go to some lousy, atrocious school?’’ Everett cut in abrasively and swiftly began to make up an argument and get his point across before he was unavoidably shut out, yet again.

‘’Manners, you insolent child, it would appear that you have not been disciplined well enough.’’ Mr. Leland yelled out at his son. ‘’Now, no more of this pettish talk. I shall discuss this with you at further notice, for now get out of my sight, as you are a right nuisance;  and make sure to inform your sister. After all, since you’re twins you have to compete for the family jewels and wealth once I am too old to carry on. I expect it to be you, not that silly love-ridden girl. Don’t disappoint me boy.’’ The man took a final drag from his bulky cigar.

Everett dashed out the greenhouse, the sudden chill of the fresh air suddenly overwhelmingly nauseating. His head stun violently. That jittery feeling that never really left him by now it had intensified by a dozen times, neither he nor his sister had been to a proper school before. Always home-schooled and taught at the leisure of their rooms. Never had they really intermingled with other children that weren’t of their class or status. Everett had always been forced by his Father to intermix with other children, who he had  deemed were of a  proper enough class; he had attempted to introduce his son to a multitudinous quantity of fine girls in order to match early on. However, Everett always found himself with chills running up his spine and an irrevocable dread whenever it happened. At one point, his Father gave up on his futile endeavour and just assumed his son was way too diffident to indulge in the privilege of dating.

Just the mere thought revolted him. To be forced into an uncomfortable classroom with an impossibly miniature desk, shoulder to someone else, who God forbid didn’t shower everyday! Furthermore, what was the problem if he was reserved and kept to himself? In all honesty he found those qualities much more reliable for his status, his Fathers rhetorical questions indeed did drive him out of his mind. The poor poor boy – and girl of that matter! She hadn’t been informed at all, Everett couldn’t quite wrap his head around the idea of his sister pursuing politics. Everett liked his sister. No doubt about it. However, he didn’t view her to possess much practicality besides dressing up alluringly, and being a hostess for an heir in the near future. In his opinion her main mission was to bear a child and find a nice enough husband to stand her. Not politics. Goodness no! Afterall, she had been far more intertwined in the arts of philosophy and history. Never politics. The girl simply despised it with all her matter. He pinched his eyes to a close, the anarchy in his head providing a steady headache in the frontal lobe to form, the boy dashed for the arched and finely engraved front door of the house.

Chapter Text

‘’A boarding school, huh?’’ Everett’s twin sister was slouched leisurely in a pleasant armchair, long hair lazily trailing down her pale well portioned face as her smooth cheeks flushed a light rosy blush. Her eyes were staring at the polished pale mauve wooden floorboards; almost as if calculating the situation. She wasn’t anywhere near as panicked as her brother, not an ounce of worry, she almost seemed.. Relieved. Waiting a decade and a half to finally be let out of the confines of this dreary under-decorated house, which lacked clear homeyness. 

‘’Nana, I’m failing to sense your distress.’’ Everett spat out in a rush as he paced around in obnoxious circles around his room which provoked the abused floorboards to creak vexingly; which had been going on for a prolonged period of time now. Evidently creeping up the girls’ nerves.

‘’God! Would you mind stopping walking around in circles like it’s the end of the world? It’s making me have a migraine.’’ Nana , Everett’s sister hissed as she cradled her temples in an over exaggerating manner. 

‘’Me me me me, always about you, do stop acting in such a nonchalant manner and read the situation from my perspective.’’  Everett spat and mimicked out at his sister, annoyed at her lack of understanding. Although that had been the case for many generations at the Lelands. They all lacked compassion and understanding, more often than not described as cunning mathematicians and political viruses which calculated the situation based on logic and profit rather than the general well-being of the public and themselves. The twins had been told many times how it led most of their great relatives to their demise due to over-ambition and an unsatiated hunger for power . He stopped pacing abruptly around the room and crossed his arms, gripping himself by the elbows, as he stared at the great grey clouds outside, inexorably worsening his mood. The boy could sense that a storm was steadily approaching, nothing uncommon for London.

‘’Do forgive me dear Evie, I’m just failing to see where all this anxiousness is coming from.’’ Everett’s sister continued to speak in her teasing childish tone. ‘’I know you hate this house as much as I do. We’ve both been dying to get as far from it as possible, dreamed of it even, so what’s got you so.. Upset ?’’ she no longer held disdain in her voice. It shifted to concern, as she tasted the waters for an appropriate word to use at the very end. 

‘’Don’t call me ‘’Evie’’, it’s not my name. Plus it makes me feel like a girl. And I’m not a girl’’ he quickly shot out at the end. Everett resumed to stare out the window with his crossed arms, back to his sister.

‘’Pardon me, Eves, I'll keep it in mind.’’ Nana cheekily giggled out, as she continued to twist around in the armchair trying to find an enjoyable position. Which looked utterly obscene from Everett’s perspective as she was tossing and turning in an inhumane manner, which hardly deemed appropriate for a Lady of her status.

‘’You’re a right foul headache you know that?’’ the boy calmly announced, as if to imply that he didn’t mind all that much. ‘’To answer entirely truthfully, I don’t know why I’m so upset, normally I wouldn't be, I should be thrilled. It’s just we’ve spent so long encaged within the gates of the mansion it’s almost impossible to imagine living beyond it.’’ his expression looked utterly sombre and in distress. ‘’I can’t imagine myself not being..  Browbeaten into doing our parents’ deeds and not following someone's lead. I’d feel lost.’’

‘’Eves, you’re too obedient. You follow your superior's lead without so much as a doubt regarding whether it's right or wrong. You’re too used to being..’’ she tentatively paused and looked into her brother’s sleep-deprived grey eyes. ‘’A tool.’’ an eerie silence enveloped them. ‘’I’m sorry, but it’s the truth. You need to let live a little, not everything is about pleasing others and acquiring infinite success and status, there’s so much more to life than that. I wish to not invade however, what have you done in life that you feel thoroughly fulfilled by?’’ 

Uncertainty, the boy brought his hand to his lips and began to thoughtfully chew on the cuticle around his fine nail, as if buried in deep thought, concentrating on his sister's words. Although what she had said was harsh, it was true. This really rattled the young boy's nerves.

‘’Don’t you dare talk to me like that. Know your place in society.’’ Everett spat out with finality. Nana’s eyebrows came to a melancholic pinch as she opened her mouth, as if to say something, but then stopped. She made her way to the heavy wooden door and silently closed it behind her. She never usually closes his door, in most cases she just intended to annoy him. It really was odd how she did close it on this occasion. 

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

Everett drowsily lay on his side on his deluxe, plush queen sized bed, in which his body comfortably sunk into the deep depths of goose feathers and fluff hidden inside the bed components. Mellow cotton duvet rested atop his arm as the exorbitant grey blanket hugged him atop the duvet; providing extra warmth as the house tended to get quite chilly upon nightfall. Slumber swallowed him whole as his vision clouded up and his eyelids fell heavily over his eyes. It was only six o’clock. His sleep schedule had gotten so incredibly disorganised and unstable as his adolescence creeped up, he had great troubles falling asleep until great hours after sunrise and failed waking up hours after sunset. The more youthful housemaids would tease him and call him nocturnal. 

‘’Sir?’’

‘’Sir, wake up.’’

‘’Young master Leland?’’

Who is that? The young boy vaguely thought. Couldn’t have been his sister, she would never call him that! It was peculiar. An amiable warm hand gently caressed his hair down to his face, admiration and consideration evident in the gesture. A thumb softly stroked down his jawline, brushing unruly hair from his face. Everett infinitely wished that it had been his Mother, who was stroking his face. Although, he knew that his mothers would never allow them to get quite as hefty as there nor so calloused.

His eyes defensively flickered open. Exquisitely coloured eyelashes fluttered open as he stared around the room in a fright. Everett had entirely forgotten that he had gone to bed early, and was highly unused to being awake when it was still dark outside. For some bizarre reason he felt oddly clammy as if he had awoken from a night fright. Pliant strands of hair clung loosely to his forehead. A comforting canaria yellow night light was turned on, as a fruitful variety of stars and dots littered the ceiling reflecting off of the nightlight projecting onto the ceiling. Everett recoiled slightly with embarrassment as he realised how childish that light had been. Just then,  he noticed a housemaid’s face peering at him with ever growing concern.

‘’Oh, good evening Edna. Are you okay?’’ Everett cleared his voice, still quite bewildered, ‘’what is the time?’’

‘’Young Master Leland, are you okay, darling? Never mind old Edna. your father asked me to fetch you for dinner but once I entered you were squirming and lashing out in your sleep, love. I assumed It’d be best to wake you sir. You were mumbling incoherently and whining, to me it appeared to be a night terror. I’d know my children used to have them all the time when they were still young.’’ Edna had this infuriating tendency to not stop talking; it drove the family members out of their minds. Poor old Edna just fancied talking! 

‘’Edna, please, call me Everett. I’m not your master and that title frankly makes me feel much older than I actually am. What was I saying, in my sleep. Do you remember?’’ Everett sat up on the bed that was now much too stuffy and overly soft to be in. a silky strand of chestnut hair limply fell down, his mouth was slightly agape. Almost like a dog. Truly ignominious.

‘’Well dear, you were babbling about your father and consecutively repeated no. It was mostly incomprehensible, I wouldn’t be too worried, my love. Just that  jittery feeling most youngsters get before school.’’ Edna reassured. A warm yet subtle smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. Although, deep down he knew it wasn’t just any jittery feeling as Edna had described it.  A calloused hand reached over and lightly held Everett’s slim digits which had never handled an ounce of physical labour in his fifteen years of living. Everett couldn’t believe he had assumed that calloused, senescent palm which had no polished nor extravagant nails. Which had indeed very bulky digits which were permanently coated in oil and ink as the substances engraved themselves in the cracked skin. He had assumed it was his Mothers. 

The boy felt close to ashamed of how his parents were forcing such an elderly person to resume labour. She deserved to be snugly situated at home with her family on the couch, on her pension. Retired. Other than the excessive talking, which gave everyone a severe headache; Edna had been one of the most hardworking yet loyal servant, to the House of Leland. She had been within the family walls ever since his Mothers pregnancy. The woman had spent a good portion of her life observing the cruelty and narcissism which happened behind closed curtains.  Knowing Edna, if she was to go out and start telling all the obscenities which happened at the Lelands, threatening his parents status and political image; she would most definitely be murdered. Everett felt harrowing palpitations torment and course through his heart as he knew that his parents were well capable of such inhumanity.  The woman had seen a little too much. Everett supposed it was a good thing Edna knew what to mention and who to mention it to.

‘’Tsk tsk, look at yourself boy, you didn’t even change out of your formal attire, your Mother ought to have your head for crumpling and damaging all that silk!’’ Edna tsked with evident annoyance, after all it wasn’t easy maintaining silk. He felt especially responsible as he reminded himself that Edna had been in charge of ironing all their laundry. ‘’ As I had been saying, child, you’re required downstairs for dinner. I fear we have already wasted more than enough time. Chop chop now! I shall take care of your bed, you go on Young Master.’’

What a forgettable thing Edna had been. Mere minutes ago the boy had told her to not call him Master. The word even tasted oddly in his mouth. He steadily made his way down the well lit yet chilled corridor he stepped along the lavish carpet which was a bright burgundy colour. Satin had been threaded subtly to give it that glossy rich look. The housemaids cleaned it almost daily. All that work for a carpet Everett thought!

 ꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

He had finally sauntered into the well-maintained dining room. The room was much too large for four residents. And the occasional servant. An eloquent, grand chandelier hugged the sky-high ceiling, which was shaped like a hollow dome with a multitudinous quantity of paintings littering it; the main one had been The Creation of Adam which was centred with the chandelier. Giving it the unmistakable image of a cathedral. Like the Sistine Chapel, Everett thought. All the way in the Vatican City. The Lelands had been dutiful and loyal followers of The Christ, Religious Studies is not a topic that  was unfamiliar with Everett; he had been quite attentive to the philosophy of religions and its teachings. A grand pillar would be either in the corner or the middle supporting the grand room. Everett hadn’t ever liked the paintings atop his head. It’s not that it wasn’t charming enough, in fact the artist who had been hired to do it replicated the painting of Michelangelo near perfectly. It incorporated a substantial amount of intricate detail as well as elegance.  However, looking at nude men and women wasn’t in his preference whenever he was forced to attend one of many marvellous house parties which his parents hosted every now and then in their grandiose dining quarters. Or whenever he was getting dragged and thrashed around the room whenever his father or mother believed he had committed an act of dishonour or sin. It was truly ghastly and sickening to be tossed around like a mere ragdoll and ill-treated as his whines and gasps echoed in the great room, God himself became witness to the dehumanising scene painted before him. Everett wondered how God could ever allow something so vile to happen to one of his children. If God had been real and listened to all of Everett’s prayers, then he wouldn’t let his flesh and blood that he created be treated in such a monstrous manner.

He settled down at the far left hand-side next to his sister, who peered at him with wide, fearful eyes. As her knuckles went a sickly white with how firmly she was gripping the cutlery. Something seemed wrong. Something was indeed wrong with how violently his sister was shaking. Something was wrong. Very wrong.

Everett held his head down low. Knowing all too well how bad mere eye contact could provoke either of his parents into lashing out. He must know his place in the hierarchy; once again, he began to pull and twist at his cuticles. Knowing it would surely bleed and bruise later on, spits of blood would trickle and insignificant wounds would open. Perhaps, even callousing his ever so perfect fingers. He daren’t meet his Mother’s patronising gaze, for she was a cold, callous and conceited woman. She was the only woman who could strike irrevocable fear into his body; even as she sat there simply not even touching him. A few seconds of silence were needed before it all erupted into anarchy. Their mother tossed her cutlery. A fine silver fork continuously clattered onto the fine porcelain plate, quite a vexatious noise resonated through the room which had a tendency of echoing. Everett drew his lips to a tightly pressed line. Giving his mouth the appearance that he was a cartoon character. Not that he had seen many cartoon characters on the television much throughout his childhood; he had been so focused and fixated upon learning new skills and developing techniques and literature, that he had forgotten all about the simple joys of childhood. 

‘’ Boy. ‘’ she seethed. An uncanny silence suffocated the room, with tension so thick you could almost cut it with a butter knife. ‘’Look at your Mother when she’s talking to you.’’ 

Unsurely, he trailed his gaze hesitantly upwards towards the inimical stare of his Mothers cold ice blue eyes. He could clearly see that the woman's unpleasant dark glittering eyeshadow encased her eye; in contrast to that pale blue. Cat-like eyeliner narrowed her already glaring eyes, as she oughtn't break the contact. She sat erect upon the chair. Chin high up in the chilled air, her jawline jutted out from the side. Her hair was in a bouffant style as a braid ran horizontally at the back. Lose strands of stark chestnut fell down eloquently as they curled. 

‘’I hear you’ve been strutting around the house. Lying while you’re at it. Quite the filthy habit, no? ‘’ The last word came out harsh and cutting. ‘’I’ve been told, you do not engage in your studies by your mentors. You don’t do what your tutors tell you to do and neither do you complete your work to the best of your ability. You've been going astray, loitering aimlessly; pathetically. That mouth of yours has been getting quite abrasive, talking back and forgetting your position in this house.’’ her tone steadily rose to a higher decibel. The more the woman's voice rose, the more the boy closed in on himself and shrunk, praying silently it would only be a scolding.

A sudden clatter caused a deathly silence to befall the household. His Mother had risen to her feet, hands balled into fists as she threw a wine glass in his direction; the glass ricocheting off the sturdy wooden table eliciting a sharp break. The sheer amount of force had caused Nana to yelp out loud in shock. She slammed her hands over her mouth as her eyes went as wide as a saucer. However, Mrs. Leland had been solemnly concentrating on her son who shook and twitched ever so slightly, his eyes firmly planted on the jagged pieces of glass which gently clattered on his right hand side, pure fear evident. He couldn’t keep his head steady nor suppress his breathing which was rapidly gaining in speed. Firmly, the boy clutched either side of his dining chair and refused to let go. Mirroring his sister’s face; he swiftly looked over at his father who was sneering at him as he held yet another cigar in his refined hand, ignoring and observing. Everett’s heart felt heavy, quite like it would burst right out of his chest. His entire physique quaked and pounded. It screamed at him to get out of there as soon as possible. 

‘’I shall teach you how to behave like a nobleman, refraining from soiling the family name.’’ his Mother spoke out evenly. She pushed her chair which made an ear splitting screech as it slid along the polished wooden floorboards; surely leaving an unpleasant scratch afterwards. Storming towards her offspring, who was still frozen in his chair, eye trailing after the figure of his infuriated Mother. She gripped him by the collar of his silk shirt, and started to strike him fiercely. It started as mere slaps at first, raising her solid, unforgiving hand at him and striking surely with precise aim. Swinging his face left then to the right, evenly distributing the harsh slaps. The slapping sound would resonate throughout the hall – once she was quite satisfied with the vivid red that spread across her son’s face and the hazy confusion which blurred his eyes; she began to thrash him against the table, back firmly plastered all over the rich dining table made of hardwood. She was clutching onto his shirt, pulling the high-priced silk apart. Consecutively, she slammed his back against the table which shook with vigour. Cutlery and refined wine glasses clattering and toppled over, smashing and crashing onto the floorboards. Mrs. Leland sunk her well manicured fingernails into Everett’s scalp, tightly clasping his hair, as she then proceeded to smash his head and face into the table. A look of pure hostility nestled its way onto her features, a pool of black hatred was concealed behind her dilated pupils.

Throughout all of the cruel bashing, Everett’s sister cowered on herself and dared not intervene, for she’ll be next. Silently she gaped, her hands trembled violently. She was witnessing this beating first-hand. Tears spilled down to her situated thighs and arms. The urge to leap at her brother's abuser was profound, instead she gaped at them like a rabbit cornered by predators. The woman continued to pound the boy's head into the table as pitiable whines and whimpers barely tumbled out his lips, he was lucky to get the occasional gasp of oxygen; seeing how much crimson thick liquid was spilling out his ruined nose and split lip. The scene was utterly ludicrous, blood seeping its way steadily onto Everett’s forehead and hair. His Mother wasn’t pounding his cranium into the table, Goodness no! She knew the future heir of the House of Leland needed to be of good health and with all his mind; she concentrated the impact onto his nose primarily, which absorbed all of the force. The poor boy was losing a substantial amount of blood. Carmine red painted the colocasia tomoimo brown table. It trailed like a waterfall down into the floor and across Everett’s face. He rasped for air like a beggar beseeching for spare scraps of food and coins.

‘’Mother, please.’’ he sobbed out weakly. ‘’I, I shall behave, I swear. I promise. I’ll be the best version of myself. I beg of you – please stop.’’ desperation writhed out of the boy as he barely stuttered out his words, he now clutched his Mothers delicate wrists, blood soiling the cuff of the precisely hand embroidered silk dress. ‘’mère, s'il te plaît, –je t'en supplie s'il te plaît?’’ he sobbed desperately.

‘’I didn’t quite catch that my precious, you’ll have to be louder,ou je ne peux pas m'arrêter.’’ she surged with such hostility, shaking her son's palms off her wrists. 

‘’I’ll never misbehave ever again, while I am in this house! I will know my place and won’t challenge you ever again, so please, I’m begging you,’’ pleads tumbled out his blood-filled mouth like waterfalls, spits of thick carmine liquid crawled out. He inhaled as much air as possible before he was thrashed again. ‘’Stop, Mum please.’’ he whined out one last time pathetically.

Mrs. Leland’s demeanour twitched slightly. As the twins never called her ‘mum’ it seemed to evoke  evident confusion out of the woman, only to be masked behind resentment in a split second. Mrs. Leland tugged him by the back of his head tilting his head backwards so that it rested next to her shoulder. She brought her fine face next to his ear and whispered, ‘’you shall do well to remember this lesson, dare make a fool of this House again, and I ought to do much worse.’’ Everett gasped for breaths exhaling rapidly – gurgling sounds resonated through the room as he violently coughed out blood. Warm pools of blood trickled down his shirt and face, smeared on his forehead and crusting in a few loose strands of blond hair. Her breath fanned lightly on his jawline as she pressed a chaste gentle kiss on his cheek. ‘’You know I love you my best boy.’’ she cooed mockingly. The apathetic woman threw her weakened boy to the ground where he lay, as consciousness rapidly vanished. The last thing he shall remember is his sister dashing with all her might to fetch Edna, while screaming her name. 

Chapter Text

Everett felt nothing like himself. Steady drowsiness and light-headedness danced around his abused bruise-filled body. Consciousness slowly seeped back to him. His eyes remained firmly glued as he was still enveloped in a dreamless sleep. Once the poor boy began to awake more steadily, just as fast he wished he hadn’t. Nausea creeped its way up Everett’s throat as a headache acutely began to formulate at the back of his head. His upper lateral cartilage in his nose pulsed with excruciating pain which made his swollen eyes water. The misfortune soul had been utterly disorientated. The faint taste of metal in his mouth resided; increasing the unwanted need to vomit. He could feel that his bottom lip had split near the right hand side, and had grown considerably in size. It ached to move, therefore talking would be quite a hassle to the boy. A white steri strip bandage tightly held his lip together – preventing further damage and swelling. The boy had lost a substantial amount of blood, after such an unanticipated beating the most humane thing by far was to let the poor child be. Everett opened his eyes, which felt like a ton to lift. The room wasn’t in full focus. It spun obscenely around itself, the bars, features and hinges of the mullioned windows distortedly swayed to and fro  before him. It was a bright morning outside, the sun stood high and proud in the ageless skies within. A bright summer morning. The faint chirp and lullaby of the sparrows made their way to Everett’s deprived ears. He assumed one of the windows was opened providing a steady summer breeze to refresh the room.

‘’I can see that you have rested well.’’  that voice. All too familiar, had been the one of his Mother.

Everett’s eyes spontaneously briskly widened. Fatigue suffocated him, limply there he lay; movement proved to be much too impossible to accomplish at the moment. He feared that his cerebellum had suffered some kind of damage as his coordination was highly off and he greatly struggled to focus on an object for a prolonged amount of time. Frozen, besides from the quick exhales and inhales and shallow gasps which left his mouth, that feeling that he couldn’t get a lungful of oxygen had returned. No matter how hard he inhaled, it was never enough. Coldness surged through his body settling in like an electric shock, stripping his will to move away. Burdensome, he managed to turn his pounding head to the left where the source of the voice came from. 

There she was. His Mother. In a black ankle long dress with long sleeves which brought out her slim arms, cutting around her cleavage supplying the eye with an image he didn’t wish to see. Especially of his Mother. Around her waist a tight corset set itself there accentuating her small waist, as intricate patterns swam around her dress, ruffles and cuffs provided volume to the already flattering dress. His Mother was seated on a plush leather armchair observing him. 

‘’Don’t look quite so scared darling, I shan't touch you. For now. I don’t want the heir of the House of Leland dying after all, your father certainly wouldn’t be amused with me.’’ Mrs. Leland announced unobtrusively. Not an ounce of worry lingered in her jeopardising tone. spontaneously, Everett noticed the glass of wine that she was holding in her left hand. Three fourths of the glass were filled. ‘’Do you see this glass boy? This is how worried sick I was for you. I’ve been drinking my sorrows away, while thinking of how my beautiful boy sobbed and begged for me to stop last night. My hands, stained with your blood and tears. It was quite displeasing to touch.’’ Everett stared blankly at his Mother, a look of befuddlement smothered his features.

‘’Yes. I spend fifteen minutes continuously sulking about how blood soiled my favourite dress. But, you do realise that it wasn’t my fault, right darling?’’ her gaze saddened at her eyebrows came in a sombre pinch, her tone soft and harmonious. ‘’You know that if you hadn’t behaved like you did before, then I wouldn’t be upset, right? You realise I did that to protect you, I only want the best for you, and this is how you repay me?’’ his Mother resumed to calculate his obscured, bruised, but nonetheless handsome face.

Everett’s eyebrows came to a sudden halt. His peering woeful eyes couldn’t tear themselves from his Mothers gaze. It hadn’t been her fault? Was it his? How ever so? The storming headache intermingled with his senses playing cruel jest on him. The sumptuous wine glass resumed to swirl and twirl, uncharacteristically so. Black spots impaired his already maimed vision. 

‘’You knew you were going to chastise me that night..’’ Everett paused haltingly taking the risk that his acerbic comment might just earn him another week impaired in bed, ‘’ So why did you wear your favourite dress?’’ Everett groggily whispered out with great struggle, but enough to be heard.

Mrs. Leland’s face hardened that melancholy expression no longer evident. Her lips came to a tight close as she squeezed her hands into fists, her knuckles whitening. ‘’Even when you are in such atrocious health, I see you can still run that foul mouth of yours.’’ she paused briefly before the woman added in a hushed tone, ‘’if your father wasn’t so persistent on keeping you alive, I wouldn’t hesitate to smother you. The mere look of you infuriates me.’’ the woman got up from the armchair and leaned over her son, ‘’you look so much like him it’s sickening.’’ his Mother gripped his jaw in a vice like grip. The firm grip compressed his lip uncomfortably which caused the steri strip to break off, the wound began to spit trickles of blood once more.  To Everett's aid, Edna came into the room with a tray full of food and bandages at the side.

 ‘’Don’t forget. I love you. Infinitely’’ the woman gave the boy's jaw one last vicious squeeze, digging her nails into his soft skin. The boy winced as his eyes narrowed and he glared at his Mother in protest. Before Mrs. Leland left the room, she turned to Edna and lastly said, ‘’I don't quite believe that the boy’s deserving of breakfast. Do withhold it until dinner if you wish to sustain your job. ’’ she gave one last curt smile before sauntering out of the room. A soft gasp escaped Everett’s maimed lips as he peered down at the shirt he was wearing. He was still in his long sleeve silk shirt which was irreparably stiff and drenched in blood. Good, he had made it explicitly clear that he did not wish to get changed on an occasion in which he may be unconscious. He made it clear to Edna and some of his other main servants. Good. 

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

It frankly had been a delightful morning. Everett had been situated on the balcony outside at the centre of his room , just where the mullioned pristine white windows met with the matching set of mullioned glass doors. He was seated on a wooden dark wood chair. Nothing too comfortable; as a well built chess table with neat rows of sixty-four squares arranged in eight vertical rows called files and eight horizontal rows called ranks, were engraved into the table and better yet polished! Opposite Everett another chair resided, however it didn’t possess an inhibitor. Leaving him solitary with his thoughts to quietly ponder on them. Verdant vines sheathed the outer currant brickwork of the imposing mansion. Well aligned and groomed bushes alongside hedges surrounded the outer paths and the lengthy gates of the house. High amongst the skies the burning bright sphere stood proud as it coated greenery and architectural, antique buildings  in a warm embrace. Metres of hyacinths, periwinkles and dangling datura bushes coated the edges and many acres of land.

 Busy gardeners could be seen below maintaining that harmony and perfectionism that surrounded the house. Of course, these were only some of the flowers in the house gardens. Everett hadn’t been taught much about flowers, he only knew these ones thanks to Edna’s inescapable rambles and babbles. However, bizarrely enough, he was glad to know.

A quaint knock came right behind him. Tentatively Everett spun his head around (with much effort), to notice that it had been his sister. 

‘’Nana? Good morning, you look a bit pale, is everything okay?’’ her brother inquired, half teasingly as they had always been unpleasantly pale. In a flash of an eye his sister dashed and flung her arms around him, encasing him in a rib-shattering embrace as she clutched onto him almost as if she’d never see him again. ‘’Nana?’’ he prompted. His arms awkwardly raised in the air beside his sister's sides.

‘’Evie, I’m sorry. I just stood there, while that happened I didn’t dare to intervene, I feel immense guilt, I– I didn't even try to protect you.’’ at the very end her voice cracked disgracefully. Her arms still tightly encased around his torso. He could feel her slightly shaking as she took weak breaths. He wished to comfort his sister to the best of his ability, however he had never been the soothing type. 

‘’Nana, you know that it wasn’t your fault, right? You couldn’t have intervened, otherwise she would’ve done that to you too. Plus, I’m stronger than you, I can handle myself.’’ he declared at the end, the truth was that he wasn’t much stronger. However, he wouldn’t fall quite so badly to rely on a woman to protect him. He was trying to lift the girl’s mood. He grabbed her by her lithe torso and returned the embrace.

‘’You know you’re an arse right?’’ Nana half sniffed half smiled at her brother. She finally let go of him but lightly held his hand in hers. ‘’I really thought that you were going to.. Die. with the amount of sheer force that she used. There was so much blood everywhere, and – she just left you there after she was done. Didn’t even bat an eye.’’ her eyes firmly plastered on his. Concern evident.

‘’Nana, you’re a clever girl, there’s no point crying over spilt milk, what’s done is done. So don’t cry.’’ he commanded her, voice barely over a whisper. He wished to no longer resume this conversation. It frankly made him feel useless and not of worth, he was a man he should’ve handled the situation in a much less piteous manner. ‘’Do be useful and help me walk. Let’s go on a stroll around the garden. Hm? Fancy that?’’ Everett squeezed her hand lightly.

‘’Yes. I would love to.’’ she hesitantly decided at last, noticing that her brother no longer wanted to talk about the situation. Just as fast,  she went to fetch a walking cane.

Chapter Text

The stroll around the garden had been quite enchanting. Sparrows sang angelically and the continuous melody pirouetted in the atmosphere, quite like a record player. The twins took their time walking around the acres of fine British land. Everett was heavily supported by a walking cane, which he clutched in his right hand while his sister held his left upper arm. Leisurely they explored and examined all the flowers that came in their direction; even asking some of the gardeners about them! By the end of the walk they had found out that the Leland garden consisted of thirty-four different sapling, seed, flower and bush varieties, plus twenty-four more in the greenhouse which weren’t always seasonal. The gardeners scattered around the land were more than ecstatic to educate the curious children. 

As they were ambling down the neatly arranged stone walk a young housemaid; which Everett and Nana hardly knew, came rushing outside as she clutched her long apron so that she did not topple over. Unwaveringly, she got to them and did a hurried cordial bow.

‘’Mr and Miss Leland, there you are! I am here to inform you that your company is required in the living room, your parents wish to see you. I hear that it is urgent and cannot be delayed.’’ The housemaid gave the twins a thoughtful smile. As she rushed back to the house to resume whatever duty she had left unattended.

The twins eyed each other warily, without uttering a word of protest.

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

Upon entering the grand living room, the pair noticed their parents. Their Mother was standing, arms crossed with a scowl planted on her conceited face. She was erect behind the prime wine red couch at the far right hand side, where their father was seated examining a newspaper. 

‘’Sit.’’ he quipped. ‘’ You don’t me to tell you to sit at your own house, do you?’’ the twins’ father smirked dismissively.

‘’It has only been a night, but you seem to be recovering well. Darling.’’  their mother brusquely remarked in a measured tone. 

‘’Please, we don’t wish to distress the boy more than necessary, after last night I’m sure he’ll remember how to act like a proper noble.’’ Everett’s father put down the newspaper and mockingly eyed his son, raising his eyebrows inquiringly, who looked utterly piteous. A woman had to support him upwards, as well as a walking cane. It gave the image that the young boy was either feeble or severely maimed. (which he inevitably was.) Everett straightened his back and shook his sister's hand off his left arm, as he whipped his chin up. A familiar sense of dizziness and nausea whipped over him, swirling in his head like a thunderous storm. 

‘’So be it then.’’ his father dismissively answered in a monotone voice. ‘’I said sit.’’ which the children did, Everett struggling much more with the simple task given at hand. A troubled silence followed as their father continued to examine the paper.

‘’I’ve called the pair of you here to discuss your leave.’’ Mr. Leland narrowed his eyes as he examined their faces, which lacked any sign of excitement nor distress. ‘’Well then. You shall depart on the 1st of September. My private driver will escort the pair of you, I’m afraid neither me nor your mother shall be able to come. St. Louis is in Harrogate, not too far off Leeds. The ride will be approximately four and a half hours long. No complaining, I'm simply not in the mood to hear it. Since it is a boarding school, you will go there early by a few days as the school term starts on the fourth of September. You’ll have time  to unpack your belongings, get your living accommodations sorted and explore the campus you shall be attending for the next term before Christmas break-up when you’ll return to visit back home for a week odd.’’ Mr. Leland waited for a response from either of the two children opposite him. 

‘’I see.’’ Everett spoke, lacking much enthusiasm as he stroked his temple up and down with his middle and index finger, clearly pretending that he was buried in thought; however he was merely trying to get his pounding head to settle as he felt himself swaying gently back and forth, betraying his façade. 

‘’Will you ever visit us Father? Mother?’’ Nana questioned, prying the attention away from her brother who seemed in clear distress. Everett remained silent but observant. He did not wish for their parents to visit them.

‘’I fear not, beautiful. You know that I am much busied by work, I cannot be wasting time getting to and fro North Yorkshire. It simply is too far, but letters via the post will suffice just as fine.’’ their Father answered dully, giving it little to no thought. 

‘’Likewise your Father. I am much to busied to be dandling four hours one direction, never mind eight to and back.’’ the twins’ Mother shot out.

‘’Well then, I believe it is best for you to start packing slowly but surely. A week is merely not enough to gather enough things that you’ll require for months on end. Start by gathering necessities, leave clothes until last.’’ their Father dismissively re-opened his newspaper and the twins knew this was his way of subtly telling them to go away.  

Chapter Text

It was an early dazzling September morning. Six on the dot. A cool breeze ruffled the hairs of the heirs as leaves had steadily begun to fall and flowers began to wilt.  Their baggage was being loaded into a cherry red Dodge Viper SRT, which possessed four hundred and six horsepower; two thick black lines ran down vertically on the front of the high-priced sports car. One of his Fathers most prized possessions. Everett couldn’t wait until the day his Father drove it off a ten foot cliff while intoxicated. However right now, a farewell was in order rather than praying upon his Fathers downfall.

‘’Behave yourself, one complain from the school and wait and see what I’ll do to you.’’ Everett’s Mother frowned down on him as he could tell that she wasn’t just threatening him, she was warning him. ‘’Go on then, I wouldn't want to be the reason why the Noble heir of the Leland household were late. I impaired my sleep to bid you goodbye. Make it worth my time, won’t you?’’ She dismissed him. Now he inevitably wished it was his Mother who drove the car off of a cliff.

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

The car ride was deemed to be even more dull and dreary than what Everett had initially thought.  Fields upon fields. Sheeps, cows and horses dominated the fine land as they got more rural. Frankly, Everett couldn’t say anything much too controversial to his sister as the driver had been his father’s ears and right hand man. If anything alarming was said, he wouldn’t hesitate to inform back. It was better to remain silent than to spend a week maimed in bed. His lip had gone back to its original size, and had healed considerably well, a faint scar resided on the right hand side of his lower lip. As for Everett’s coordination and concentration there was still room to improve. Occasionally, he would bump or clumsily trip over an object. But it wasn't quite as bad as what it had been at first. He no longer needed a walking cane for support nor an extra hand holding him upright. 

The car ride came to a sudden halt as the boy was suddenly whipped out of his thoughts. Mr. Leland's personal driver announced that they had arrived. Nana leaped out of the vehicle like an imprisoned man being released onto free land again. She stretched from left to right and scanned the perimeter, observing the surroundings. Everett likewise his sister, got out (in a far more graceful manner.) and the first thing that caught his eye was the sheer amount of limousines, sports cars, and well maintained limited additions Chevrolet Beretta’s bestowed the finely aligned stone paths which lead to a bewitchingly stunning stone and red brickwork of the archaic architectural building before him. It stood grand on several floors. Four or so, Everett would’ve assumed with tall wall height. It was evident that the establishment  held an impressive long-lived history. Vine covered the edges of the white perpendicular windows and imposing large doors which stood erect with confidence. Vast pillars with finely engraved and sculpted patterns and statues held the school upright. Upon looking up, the boy noticed that there, in the very centre was a high dome with mullioned prestige glass probably lit a firm portion of the interior. A few metres before the stairs which led to the entrance of the structure was centred a grand fountain which seeped crystal water in thin trickles as lavish marble koi fish statues squirted water out their pursed lips. On either side of the building the British flags were attached to poles as they proudly swayed in the wind.

‘’Mr and Miss Leland, I have unloaded your luggage and left it off at the main entrance where all the baggage of the students is situated. I wish you both a successful semester and all the best until I come to pick you up again around Christmas time.’’ the driver gave a quaint smile and  headed for the vehicle once more.

‘’So much for being escorted.’’ Nana scoffed out once the driver had been safely tucked away inside the car away from earshot. ‘’Goodness. There are so many children our age hoarding into the building. So many.. Cultures and interesting new faces.’’ Nana finally finished off, searching for the appropriate word choice.  ‘’C’mon then, we wouldn’t want to miss the introductions now, do we?’’ she smirked in his direction as she broke into a power walk, ‘’come on loser, racing you!’’ Nana giggled away in a childish manner, not very lady-like. Everett had at once realised that they were away from their parents. For a very prolonged amount of time, they were free to act however they pleased. This will indeed be a very interesting semester Everett thought and lightly smiled to himself as he walked to catch up with his racing sister.

Chapter Text

Upon entering the grand splendid double doors, Everett’s first impression was that the establishment was filled to the brim with antiquity. Right in the middle of the white marble flooring was a matching marble statue, positioned atop a moderately sized pedestal which had a presumably silver plate on which was engraved in fine print,  

 ‘’Here the spirit of

 St. Louis IX of France,

 may he guide the misfortune and misled,

 let the woeful and sombre seek guidance, 

and let the fortunate guide.’’

              1226 - 1270

How utterly monotonous. How utterly inspirational. Everett brusquely thought.  He shall  do well to remember to seek help from a marble statue when times get unbearable. He rolled his eyes to himself. The statue was nothing of virtue in his opinion. It consisted of a rather ridiculous stubby man without an evident chin who held a long sword upwards, as his long trench coat hugged his sides and armour sheathed his (rather groggy) physique. What a truly odd looking little man. Everett pondered. Upon tearing his eyes away from the man who supposedly inspired the secretion of the school in near mediaeval times, he noticed that he had been quite palpable. The boy stood out like a sore thumb. No one had quite as exquisite hair as his, let’s say. Upon further notice he saw that he was already attracting a few looks from girls close by his left hand side, who giggled as they proceeded to give him a few more curious stares. He wasn’t quite accustomed to dealing with situations such as these ones, so he simply averted his gaze elsewhere and pretended that he did not see them.

‘’Gosh! There you are.’’ his sister scoffed,’’ I simply assumed you ran away. Goodness me, what an ugly little man!’’ She inspected the statue in mortification.

‘’I suppose the supplementary incestual breeding finally caught up to the bloodline and this poor chap was the one punished for it.’’ Everett plaintively reasoned.

  ꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

Continuous chatter of children all alike in age surrounded the mass main entrance of the hall located just below the glass dome. All these specimens were finely groomed and dressed. Some wore hand embroidered suits and tuxedos while others ranged from high-rise designer brands, in a more casual manner. Everett’s sister wore a denim mini skirt which clung to her hips in a provocative low-rise way, which he dared not tell her because she’d accuse him of being misogynistic and narrow-minded. She wore a black skin tight woven long-sleeve sweater which clung off her shoulders, revealing a pale neck with a slim collarbone. She had a diamond heart shaped pendant which wasn’t too big nor too conspicuous. On her feet she had frizzled white socks and a pair of high top Mary-Janes to finish the look. Nana looked much like all the other girls. 

‘’No way in God’s name, Everett and Nana Leland?’’ a voice called out, which forced itself to be much more deeper than necessary, sounding almost boastfully foolish.

Everett and Nana spun around at the mention of their names, only to notice their older male cousin who was matured by two mere years.  The boy had grown horizontally twice since they had last seen him, he was almost unrecognisable. Simply put, the boy looked like a fool! He had Gucci branded sunglasses on and a black Gucci lapped logo track fleece jacket to match, only problem was, he had no neck! It was overtaken by ounces of chin fat. The bizarre boy had a bulky gold ring on nearly each finger and a matching metallic chain to match. He wore black baggy shorts, unknown of brand. As Everett had a look of utter disbelief plastered on his face, (which should surely be seen as disrespectful,) his bulky cousin leapt and encased the much more physically undeveloped boy in a bear like headlock, and proceeded to ruffle his hair as he sweetly kissed Nana on her cheek. 

‘’Augh! Get off of me you swine!’’ Everett tried to desperately shake his bear of a cousin off, with no evident success. Their cousin broke off in a contagious laugh. ‘’What are you tattletales up to? God, I’ve not seen either of yous in years!’’ The rings really dug into Everett’s head as Nana tried talking their older superior out of choking him. 

‘’Roscoe, how’ve you been? You’re right we have not seen each other in a very long time.’’ Nana tried to desperately avert Roscoe’s attention from Everett.  He did eventually let go. ‘’Posh as ever, I suppose it’s inevitable. Aunt and Uncle have been nagging yous, haven’t they? I’m doing fabulous, have you not been eating you two? I see you look ready to snap!’’ he exclaimed with a broad cheeky smile plastered on his pudgy face.

‘’I see you’ve been eating quite well by the looks of it.’’ Everett snarled back as he feverishly tried to get his ruined hair under control.

‘’Snarky as ever, I thought once you grew it’ll get beat out of you, I guess it’s just in your nature.’’ Roscoe teased back, utterly unrattled by Everett’s snarky remark. Roscoe had melon coloured blond hair, the sort where it was too dark to be platinum but too dark to be dirty blond. He usually had bright light blue eyes, if they hadn’t been obscured by these ridiculous branded sunglasses. 

‘’C’mon, c’mon now! Let’s go over to my friends, they’ll love you Nana. I mean who doesn’t love a good frail girl, no?’’ he mocked while bursting off into a laugh as he dragged Nana by her puny wrist, as she started going into a livid reasoning how she was so much more than that. Which Everett supposed she was.  Everett followed in pursuit he couldn’t leave his sister, God forbid the girl will get pushed and knocked around nonstop! 

‘’Roscoe, let her go. She isn’t a mutt, she doesn’t require dragging.’’ Everett sternly scolded, as he trailed in close pursuit shoving their cousin to the side which was hardly deemed proper. They sped walked and pushed their way through the enormous crowds. It was quite easy for Everett to get past as his cousin was the size of a premature bull.

‘’Well yes mate, she isn’t a dog but you know how girls are, if a man ain’t leading her on then you never know what she’ll do or who.’’ Roscoe boastfully laughed out loud in that make pretend deep voice of his.  Before either of the twins could protest they had already reached a circle of boys, likewise in age as Roscoe thrust Nana forwards. ‘’Ei lads! Meet my baby cousins, they’re twins. The one with the short hair who looks like a girl is Everett, and the actual girl is Nana.’’ he introduced his cousins in a mocking manner. 

The group erupted into jeers and laughs as they lightly smacked Everett’s arm and neck. Everett blushed profoundly at being introduced in such a belittling way. However, the boys couldn’t be interested any less in Everett as they had their sole attention on Nana; shaking her hand, swarming her with compliments and wrapping their arms around her shoulders. The girl seemed utterly dumbfounded at the sheer amount of attention that she was receiving. Contemplating between twisting her head left or right.

Nana pleadingly looked in Everett's direction which was getting obscured by the amount of people in front of him who pushed and nudged him from side to side. Everett was ready to knock someone out the way, his nerve running short since the second he had woken up. Praise the heavens above for what happened next.

‘’Ladies and Gentlemen! May I please have everyone's attention.’’ The booming voice of a male rang out on a microphone. Suddenly the roar of unstoppable chatter of numerous children died out. ‘’Ladies, Gents; welcome to yet another school year at St. Louis, where we strive to make the best politicians and people out of all of you!’’ the man exclaimed joyfully, who Everett could now make out as he was standing at a slightly elevated podium. He was dressed in a long sleeve shirt and a burgundy vest with a bowtie. He was well into his late fifties, as he bore greying hair and a fine grey beard. To top it all off, across his cheerful face a loose frame of glasses which held on the tip of his nose. A bright white set of aligned teeth glimmered in the altered light which fell on the man. ‘’Most of you who have attended here know me, but for those of you who do not, I am the deputy headmaster Mr. Howard. I am in charge of the new set of students that join us. So, can the freshly arrived stock come forward!’’ Mr. Howard joked in a manner which Everett assumed to be friendly. 

Everett spun around on his heels and clutched his sister's hand as he dragged her away from the crowd which was Roscoe’s supposed friend group. 

‘’Pft, mate, what's the deal with your cousin?’’ one of Roscoe’s friends jeered loud enough for Everett to hear.

Nana and Everett feverishly made their way to the front with a flock of other fifteen year olds; who inevitably looked thrilled to be there, most of them whispering amongst themselves. Those who had already made friends, seemed utterly bizarre to the twins. 

‘’Hello handsomes and beautifuls, it’s great to see new faces around here, liven up the atmosphere eh?’’ he questioned the crowd as he came down from the podium. ‘’So  as you’ve heard I am Mr. Howard and I am in charge of all the new pupils who arrive. I’ve got over here a list of names and when I read it out please step forward, you and another person will be sharing a room. Of course, boys and girls are in separate rooms, we don’t want any mishaps to occur, do we?’’ He turned to Everett who was on his closest left hand side and gave him a cheeky wink, at which the boy could only scoff at, entirely refusing to find that joke amusing as he heard a few snickers and giggles from around him. The man began to read out names; presumably the first name would be in alphabetical order, while the second would be chosen at random. It would be a while until Nana’s name was called up as boys went first. 

Monotonous minutes passed by slowly as the twins observed their ‘soon to be’ classmates. 

‘’Do I have an Everett Leland?’’ Everett took a self-assured step forward as he whipped his chin upwards, his poker face remained as his arms were folded. ‘’Yes, here.’’ he announced. Mr. Howard looked him up and down before giving him a reassuring smile and looking at the clipboard for the name of Everett’s roommate. ‘’And do I have a.. Niccolo Perlmann?’’ a boy with a much more refined physique stepped out from the crowd. He wasn’t half as lavishly dressed as all the others. He wore a navy blue and black ‘The North Face’ hoodie, with a pair of baggy jorts. On top of that, he wore trainers. The boy wore Nike trainers, to an institution where you were meant to be learning how to be a politician. Everett eyed him with much disgust as he looked absolutely appalled. 

‘’Now now, Mr. Leland don’t look quite so scandalised.’’ Howard laughed aloud; almost as if the man had read Everett's exact thoughts. Everett spun around to look at his sister, the look of disgust still plastered across his face. To his astonishment, the girl was head first into a conversation with another girl and was hardly paying attention to him at all! He tsked and whipped his head around as Mr. Howard announced for the boys to follow a member of staff who’ll escort them to their living quarters.  

The boys dutifully followed their escort up a flight of stone stairs at the far west end, Everett inspected the establishment.  This end of the school had evidently last been touched up since the Victorian era. Portraits and paintings of various individuals littered the walls, plates of a presumed shiny metallic had their names and nobilities engraved as they rested in finely polished glimmering metallic frames. They ranged from photographs the size of a palm to portraits the size of a door. The floor had no longer been marble; instead it was now a fine dark yellow ocher coloured stone. A splendid black metal chandelier swayed from the ceiling. Candles embedded themselves as they submerged themselves with the metal. The ceiling was high rise and it had a variety of intricately engraved patterns and designs resting atop; judging the passing children below.

Everett averted his gaze away from the interior of the place in which he shall reside for the next months or so, as he focused his sole attention to the inappropriately dressed boy in front of him. 

The back of his neck was neatly shaved as dark chestnut brown, unruly  curls encased his head like a halo. Long enough to just about cover his forehead; it shone in the dim light. Everett had noticed, but upon closer inspection he found that the boy had been a staggering head taller than him; he was much more stronger in appearance than Everett; the boy had broad shoulders and firm calves. He assumed he played some sort of sport. Looking at his hand; he noticed that the boy was tanned, a pleasant slightly dark olive tan, like the one where the sun gently left its mark on your body, like the boy had spent all his life free. Roaming the gardens, feeling the sands, running, running and running . Everett whipped his head out of his deep philosophical overanalysis of a stranger he hadn’t even properly seen the face of. 

‘’You gentlemen, are on the second floor up the west wing. In room A22; this will be the room you share until your eventual leave, or until you get expelled.’’ The escort gave a curt smile, evidently trying to scare the young arrivals. ‘’You’ll each receive a pair of keys. Do try not to lose them. Or you’ll have to pay for a new pair.’’ Another unpleasant smile, the man explained how their things had already been situated, so they didn’t require fetching as the room assortments had been made in early August; and with that, the escort had gone off.

Chapter Text

The room had been nothing endearing nor intriguing. It was about the size of Everett’s room back at the manor, however now it was split between two inhibitors, making it half smaller. Two single beds were positioned at the back wall near the centre as grand, prestigious white wooden frames encased a set of considerably sized windows. Enlightening the room in pleasant natural light. To the right hand side was an unyielding polished oak desk with a matching chair to match. At the side had been two identical bookshelves,(if either of the two boys had any books or belongings to stack there) central to the desk another set of windows hung. They had been quite lucky to get a corner room, as Everett assumed not all rooms had two sets of upscaled windows. Opposite the desk was a plain dresser and wardrobe with a heavy wooden door at the far corner. He assumed that it was the bathroom. Everett looked up and noticed that the ceiling was in a dome like shape, and a variety of hand painted religious imagery were symmetrically plotted atop him. Roscoe hadn’t lied when he previously announced that Jesus was always watching. On the centre of the dome like ceiling hung a splendid chandelier which had a dozen anachronistic light bulbs, which Everett suspected hardly worked judging by the state of them. 

‘’It’s so big.’’ the other boy suddenly spoke out; a definite accent accentuated his words, perhaps somewhere from South-West Europe. Perhaps Italy? Or maybe Spain? The sudden remark startled Everett, his mask of impassivity gently dropped. He quickly gathered his condescending demeanour back up and briskly replied;

‘’My room back at the manor is bigger, this miniscule box is hardly the size of my pantry.’’ he defensively crossed his arms and stared up ahead as he returned.

‘’Hm. You must live in a pretty big house, no?’’ the other boy inquired, Everett could feel his gaze piercing him, frankly he didn’t enjoy being gawked at. Hence why he spent a ridiculously long time locked up at his house. 

‘’Big enough.’’ a hostile response left his lips, as neither did he like being interrogated by a mere stranger as he whipped his head around making eye contact with the tanned boy; a glare evident in Everett’s fine features. 

‘’Hey, I was just trying to spark up a conversation, don’t get snappy with me.’’ in an unobtrusive manner which indicated he hadn’t really cared that Everett was being short-tempered. He lazily stretched his arms and walked over to the left bed closest to the bathroom door where he ungracefully flopped down. ‘’What’d you say your name was again?’’ the boy laying on the bed with his palms behind his head questioned.

‘’I didn’t.’’ Everett spun around and began to fiddle with the top button of his silk shirt, twisting the small black polished button left and right. ‘’Everett.’’ he stated after a brief pause.

‘’Huh, Everest? Like the mountain?’’ the boy gave a look of disbelief as his eyebrows shot up.

‘’Eve RETT !’’ the other boy growled out with disbelief, ‘’No, not the bloody mountain, you insolent fool.’’ Everett scoffed, not sure if he was genuinely this deaf or simply just unfathomably stupid.

‘’Everest sounds better, so I’ll call you that.’’ the other boy teased with a friendly smirk, it was pleasant teasing. It wasn’t like Roscoe's patronising jeer or his Mothers hostile comments. The smirk tugged the left side of his face; revealing an uneven set of canines and central incisors. Everett could see at the side a pair of metal retainers peeking out of his canines. He scoffed again as he massaged his temples. The boy had evidently not been paid much attention while growing up, judging how his parents hadn’t made an effort to get him braces earlier on to save him the embarrassment of wearing that silly wire now!

‘’What is your name then?’’ Everett shot out, impatiently waiting to return the mocking favour.

‘’Niccolo.’’ his smirk broadened into a smile as the entire retainer peeked out now, displaying just how utterly disarranged his top teeth were. Everett narrowed his eyes as his brain conjured an unholy amount of insults and jeers to throw at the boy, who sat perked up on the bed nodding his head with his raised eyebrows, prodding Everett to give in and annoy him back.

‘’I have conjured up an immense amount of jeers and taunts about your name, however I shall be the bigger person and refrain from escalating the situation any further.’’ Everett quirked an eyebrow at Niccolo and crossed his arms defensively. Niccolo sat there as his eyes darted up and down Everett with that same exasperating smirk plastered on his exasperating face. 

Niccolo raised his palms in defeat as he announced, ‘’okay, I’ve come to terms that I’ve won this argument then.’’ 

‘’No you have not won anything! This was never an argument to begin with.’’ Everett grabbed a lungful of air as he couldn’t believe his own ears what he was going to say next.

‘’Nick The Dick!’’ he exclaimed, as it was the worst one that popped into his brain. Because frankly, Everett feverishly scavenged his brain for an insult that either didn't come or didn’t rhyme properly. So therefore, he had lied about making an immaculate amount of insults. Livid mortification rushed to his face, at disbelief at his own words. Everett simply refused to make eye contact as visible embarrassment tugged at his gut. He hadn’t ever acted in such a deplorable manner before, losing his grace or running a filthy mouth around.

Just as Everett had been rethinking his choices in life, a booming laugh ruptured through the room. Niccolo was giggling and suppressing laughs as he barely spoke out through all the giggling, ‘’why are you so ashamed over that? It– Ha, it was so bad it made it funny. Your face cracked me up.’’ he continued to laugh that contagious laugh of his as Everett spun around his back to Niccolo as he suppressed a smile himself which was tugging at the corners of his lips.

‘’You nobles are some weird people, with your manners and superiority, but I suppose you’re bearable.’’ Niccolo chuckled out as he had finally calmed down. ‘’You can call me Nick if you want, most people do anyway.’’ 

‘’Thank you very much for your cordial courtesy, however I’m afraid I’ll refrain from even uttering your name.’’ Everett gave a smile as he eloquently placed himself down on the desk chair, which really dug on his tailbone.

‘’Qualcuno è un po’ arrabbiato’’ Niccolo mumbled out in a jejune manner, rolling his eyes. Everett’s suspicions had been confirmed; the man was Italian! He made a mental note to praise his splendid intuition. 

‘’à peine.’’ Everett retaliated as he hissed out his words in an unamused fashion, his eyes so narrowed by now he probably looked foolish as if, trying to decipher a particularly bewildering maths question.

Niccolo raised his eyebrows in acknowledgement. Clearly started by the foreign comeback. ‘’You’re French?’’ he leaned back on his palms against the darkwood polished headboard. Clearly intrigued.

‘’Bred and raised in an English household, however it is mandatory for me to know at least three languages fluently. French is my second language as most of our sponsors and company upholding relatives live in France. You could say that I have French lineage.’’ he sighed in a monotone. He was perked up on the desk chair, arms resting on the desk; head in hands inspecting for any blemishes on his perfect digits and forearms. 

‘’Hm. Interesting.’’ Niccolo acknowledged again. 

Everett supposed his roommate wasn’t as infuriating once he had settled down with the snippy comments and the ‘get to know’ teasing. One of them had to ease the mood in the air. Afterall, if Everett had been paired with some self righteous boy much like himself, then he might as well have been living with a ghost. At least with this primate he made somewhat of an effort to keep friendly and on even waters. He would soon find out that Everett Leland was much more unpredictable than what was deemed normal. 

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

A large portion of the bright breezy morning was spent ventilating the room, by stretching the obsolete windows as far as they could stretch. Sorting and shuffling belongings around; bed sheets being slotted against pillows and duvets, arranging and folding clothes as they bickered on how much space they should each have. Everett had brought an absurd amount of clothing; almost as if he was going to fashion school or non-stop galas! Whereas, Niccolo had hardly brought any official clothing, a large chunk of it was hoodies, t-shirts, coats, jeans, trainers, sweaters and God knows what more. Everett vigorously barked and argued that he should have more space as he had more clothes, however Niccolo simply mimicked his tone and nagged that it would just have to remain in his leather suitcase. No way in God's name was he having silk and satin in a suitcase for more than six hours which had already passed. The fool probably hardly knew how many instructions Everett had to keep a track of so his silk doesn’t get ruined. At last they agreed to keep clothes of less importance in their suitcases while they hung up their necessities. Everett certainly wasn’t pleased, however it was better than not having any clothes hung up at all.

They had found a valuable job for the shelfs, which were at the sides of the wooden desk. Everett had stacked an impressive amount of literature books and exercise books for the upcoming semester. It had been readily organised and spectacularly aligned. Whereas Niccolo had stashed all his trainers on the bottom end, shoved all his worksheets and books on the two top ones; the paper had been scrunched and disarrayed,(which made Everett’s eye twitch involuntarily as he observed the boy compress and shove books one on top of the other.) he could almost swear that at the corner of his eye he had seen Niccolo shuffle a questionable magazine onto the shelf; however he wasn’t sure and neither did he fancy asking him. The boy had looked restless enough, just trying to shuffle it out of his suitcase.  Right after, they bickered some more as to why shoes should not be placed on a shelf which had been clearly designated for books. Everett takes every thought back of saying how his roommate wasn't all bad. The boy had been an utter nightmare. Peculiarly enough, to Everett’s complete astonishment Niccolo got a particularly heavy looking leather bag and toppled over a dismantled record player onto his navy blue and white bed sheets. Everett’s jaw fell unhinged as he gawked at the tanned boy opposite him, who worked feverishly to mantle it back onto life. 

‘’Why in God’s name have you just got a record player in your bag lounging about?’’ Everett finally stuttered out as he was still in evident shock, he masked it by giving a quaint cough. It hadn’t been an astounding record player by any means, in fact it had been a tatty old thing that Everett hardly believed worked! Certainly it hadn’t been a Thorens TD160; if anything he considered it to be Thorens long lost abandoned third cousin, or something of the sort.  

‘’Well you see, a record player is used to play music and there’s no music in this building, no? So I got myself a record player, you should be thanking me, if anything.’’ Niccolo spoke sarcastically like it had been a very obvious answer. ‘’I don’t understand how someone could live without music.’’ he added plaintively at the end.

‘’You see, no normal person I've interacted with just had a dismantled record player in their bag, do you even have any gramophone records with you?.’’ Everett shot out at last.

‘’Of course I do, what kind of a silly question is that? Why bring a record player if you’ve no vinyls.’’ He answered more of a statement than a question. Niccolo had successfully managed to assemble the record player back into its original state with his little toolbox he had brought along; he whipped his head around as he obviously analysed the room for something. The vinyls. 

‘’Prepare for the best musical experience of your life.’’ Niccolo warned as a cheeky grin tugged on the corners of his full lips. Everett assumed that he had brought about fifty different gramophone records. He got down to eye level and gently placed the tonearm onto the engraved plate. A quick static noise played before the tonearm picked up the finely engraved lines. 

A synth-pop style song started playing. Something about west end girls; Everett hadn’t been entirely sure. However, he was sure that his so-called ‘best musical experience’ couldn’t be quite classed as the ‘best’. In Fact he considered it to be the worst one in his fifteen years of living.

Niccolo gazed up at him with encouraging hazel eyes, which upon closer investigation Everett saw that they were mainly an amber brown with a deep forest green centred around the pupil. Oddly enough, Everett lost his trail of thought. He didn’t know why his brain had simply gone blank. It took a few seconds of consecutive eye contact as the other boy prompted him by raising his eyebrows and nodding his head. Everett suddenly managed to rake his brain enough to realise what the other boy had been implying. 

‘’This is the worst musical experience that I've experienced.’’ he blankly announced, without giving the song so much as a second chance. 

Niccolo rolled his eyes as he signed in an over exaggeration. ‘’I knew you nobles were goods for nothing, I mean, how do you not like Pet Shop Boys?’’ Niccolo genuinely looked appalled. 

‘’Who–? Whatever, it frankly does not matter. You should try listening to some classics. Perhaps, piano sonata no.14 by Beethoven, more commonly known as Moonlight Sonata; or maybe The Four Seasons by Vivaldi.’’ Everett quirked an eyebrow and encouraged Niccolo to get a sense of actual good music. 

Niccolo’s face was scrunched up in utter disbelief as he finally spoke, ‘’Who the fucks Vivaldi?’’ as his lashes fluttered in a befuddled manner. He was kneeling by his bed opposite Everett, record player at eye level as he cranked his neck upwards to gaze up at Everett.

‘’I beg your pardon. Language! Don’t utter such vulgarities, and neither make it a common practice.‘’ Everett puffed out in a state of incredulity. ‘’God, how do you not know Vivaldi? He's literally Italian.‘’ He chimed in once again after a brief pause of silence.

Niccolo studied his features for a few seconds which Everett felt like it had been hours. Loose dark curls fell lawlessly down Niccolo’s forehead obscuring his eyebrows as he analysed Everett's eyes. His lips slightly parted in the centre revealing that God awful metal wire! Everett had a clear view of the boy’s face now. He noticed how a light scar from his nose to his left cheek had turned into a mere blemish. He could now notice how Niccolo had light freckles atop his hooked nose as a few acne scars were surely on their way to fade. 

‘’Stop staring at me, you mutt.’’ Everett scoffed, as he steadily turned around and started sauntering around the room. He stopped before the window closest to the desk and began to ponder on when they’d be getting dinner, or seeing his sister. He was beginning to miss her company dearly. 

A disconcerting silence lapped around the room; almost awkward. Everett sat perked up on the rigid chair head in his left hand as he longingly gazed out into the grand nurtured greenery that stood proud before him. He began to gingerly twist around to see what his roommate had been up to when their front door flew wide open. Evidently propelled by a rather big force, which caused Everett to slightly tense up in clear shock.

Not a second later Everett’s cousin, who had an over-abundance of flesh strutted inside, as other male voices laughed out and cackled in the near distance. You could hear other doors being banged open as ineligible shouts and talking faded into the background. 

‘’I beg your pardon, but what are you doing knocking the door down?’’ Everett seethed annoyance evidently engraved in his scowling features as he raised his eyebrows. It had been quite a bad habit of his, his mother always scolded him, claiming that he would get premature wrinkles if he didn’t stop. 

‘’Have you not heard?’’ he boasted as a humorous grin distorted his face in an unpleasant manner. A bulky digit flew to the left-hand side of his chest. Everett squinted a good lot before finally noticing that the sunlight reflected a small silver badge that read ‘PREFECT’, it was almost impossible to tell with the amount of ludicrous Gucci print obscuring all detail in front of Everett.

‘’You’re a prefect?’’ Everett questioned once more as he very slowly nodded his head up and down in acknowledgement. 

‘’Good then, you can read after all.’’ his cousin whipped his chin upwards as he tugged on his jacket gloating. ‘’Whatever, I'll tell you all about it later, since you’re so eager to know. For now all the prefects have been told to collect you sheeps in a herd and shoo you off to the Main Hall.’’ With that, he sauntered out the room whistling to himself in a self pleased fashion. 

‘’Friend of yours?’’ Niccolo inquired, as he straightened up his clothes.

‘’Hardly.’’ Everett retorted in his usual frigid way. ‘’I met him this morning.’’ 

Chapter Text

The Main Hall really was brilliant; Everett noted. Like the rest of the building it had a profuse archive which consisted of finely engraved marble pillars which stood soaring overhead with dignity every few metres away from each other. The Hall had high rise walls which overstretched beyond, like a cathedral. Immaculately polished quartz window frames and door hinges. Some of the quartz edges still had raw uncarved surfaces, jagged crystals jutted out of the symmetrical structure to display how the institution greatly valued nature and the sources it had to offer. Neat circular tables were scattered around the glistening floor as a long veil cloth covered the surface of the tables. Prestigious sets of cutlery were symmetrically aligned with a porcelain plate as it stood empty. He noticed that all the girls his age were seated and waiting; presumably for the boys to arrive. They had been ushered in a much more tranquil and collected manner. He cranked his neck upwards to observe the ceiling which had trims along the top coated in a metallic paint gold in appearance. In the centre of the room swayed a piercing grand chandelier; which was presumably much larger up close. Its gems flickered and twinkled in the blinding white light. Centred with the chandelier was yet another painting! This time Everett recognised it as the ‘Wedding At Cana’. Frankly, he didn’t quite know why he had so much knowledge on religion. Everett had never been too pretentious or insistent on religion. Perhaps it had been Edna the Housemaid’s work, she had been quite intermingled with religion. Everett witnessed her on multiple occasions in silent pursuit of liberty and peace as she mumbled and whispered out. Her hands clasped over her myocardium. 

As he gazed upwards, Everett felt a hand grab him by the arm and they pulled. He cocked his head around ready to reprimand whoever had yanked him in such a crude fashion. To his pleasant surprise he saw Nana! She was seated with a group of girls, Everett hadn’t paid close attention to any of them as a genuine smile crept its way onto his relaxed face. 

‘’Nana.’’ he greeted with contentment, but still remained composed. 

‘’Hi Evie.’’ she smiled back. ‘’Sit here, we’ve saved you a chair the feast is about to start.’’ she giggled as she tugged his arm so he sat on her left hand side closer to the wall. He was glad for that; it made him feel less conspicuous. 

‘’So you’re the handsome boy we’ve been hearing all about.’’ a husky female voice called out next to him. Everett tilted his head to his right and saw an exquisite girl. She had finely maintained black curls which had staggering volume to them, they surrounded her head in an enveloping bush as it fell down to about her chest. She also had a curled fringe to go along with her hair. Fair skin was engraved onto her muscle and tissue as smoky dark,(however glittering) eyeshadow and eyeliner encased her similarly Stygian eyes. Angled eyebrows raised in acknowledgement. The girl wore a skin-tight lengthy  gothic dress which demonstrated exposed collarbone and shoulders as the sleeves got progressively wider and more see through near her wrists. Well-manicured fingernails tapped on the surface of the table in a steady fashion.  As Everett began to open his mouth to formulate a response she leaned over him close to his ears, warm breath ghosting  over his jawline, heat radiated off of the warm-blooded distinctive girl. A fine refined hand barely grazed his skin as she leisurely brought it up to cup his jaw.

‘’Nana was right, you are a dashing specimen.’’ she giggled in a teasing manner as the girl slumped back in her chair in a much inelegant manner than before. A provoking smirk stretched her rosy lips as she finally announced; 

‘’My name is Gwendolyn Lynd, I believe you’re called ‘Evie’, no?’’ she giggled out.

‘’It’s Everett to you, Miss Lynd.’’ he narrowed his eyes as he didn’t offer a hand. Counter that, he in fact crossed them defensively over his chest. 

‘’Your darling sister warned us that you would be hostile, I wonder how you two could ever get along with that personality split.’’ she dared, Gwendolyn had been a tease. She wanted to rattle Everett’s nerves as much as possible. To the poor boy, it seemed that’s all these barbarians fancied to do! Annoy and infuriate him. 

‘’Well I suppose if I get to call you by first name, then so do you.’’ Gwendolyn exhaled in over-exaggeration. She was twirling a fine black curl along her index finger, spinning, twisting and distorting it. 

Everett was going to have to give his sister a good kick in the carcass once they were alone. Introducing him around with that silly girlish nickname and telling people that he was hostile. He wouldn’t consider himself hostile, he just believes everyone is below his maturity and intelligence levels.  He averted his gaze elsewhere as that pompous chin of his shot upwards in ignorance. 

‘’Mummy and Daddy never told you it’s rude to disregard others when they are talking to you?’’ Gwendolyn snickered in disbelief as she continued to trail her eyes around his upper body and face.

‘’I just don’t believe that our personalities are compatible enough, nor do I believe you’re any fun to talk to.’’ he smiled with great force as he proceeded to face away from the girl. He rolled his eyes in the process; subconsciously, he mimicked the girl as he started to pull  and twist his own hair about. 

‘’Pft, you’re just like my brother, he’s a nuisance, a right pain in the arse to talk to.’’ she leisurely huffed out. Everett spun around as he tsked, ‘’Don’t be so crude! That language hardly fits a lady of your status.’’ he warned appalled in utter exasperation. 

‘’Well, perhaps you’re just a prude.’’ she offered with unobtrusive simplicity. Gwendolyn grinned to herself; satisfied with the damage done.

‘’I am not a prude.’’ Everett half snickered with disbelief. He could already feel the inescapable heat flood his pale cheeks, betraying his sense of embarrassment. ‘’ I just don’t think a girl such as yourself should be using that tone of voice or that choice of words.’’ he plainly added.

‘’I’m not your wife, so don’t tell me what to do. I’ll talk with whatever tone and words I want to.’’ Gwendolyn eyed him curiously as to why he was commanding her and instructing what she should be saying. Frankly, it was her decision alone and no one else's.  

Everett stared at her, his eyebrows were scrunched ever so slightly as he looked at the girl with bewilderment. She hadn’t an ounce of obedience nor respect for him. It startled him unpleasantly. He decided it was best to change the topic of conversation; and to do it quickly.

‘’Where are you from, Miss Lynd?’’ he narrowly questioned, Everett's eyes squinted as she stared off dismissively. 

‘’I believe we’re on a first name basis. Everett.’’ she answered cheekily. ‘’Once you call me by my birth name maybe then, I’ll consider answering your question.’’ Gwendolyn flashed a smirk in his direction as her murky eyes locked with his silver ones.

‘’Where are you from then, Gwendolyn?’’ he questioned again.

‘’Germany. I’m from Dresden, however my family insists that we’re from Berlin.’’  she lazily swirled her curl around and picked at the dead ends. ‘’Of course, that’s where all the money comes from, naturally my family wants to operate in the capital.’’

‘’You don’t sound it.’’ Everett finally acknowledged. She paused, her thin eyebrows came to a halt and she gave him a bewildered look. ‘’You don’t sound foreign. I meant.’’ Everett corrected himself swiftly.

‘’You don’t sound too French yourself.’’ Gwendolyn returned. 

‘’So you know too then.’’ he briefly halted, ‘’High rise noblemen have to know a few languages, trades would be impossible if you only kept to one. Moreover, my lineage is too faint for me to consider myself French.’’ Everett confessed plainly. 

‘’I never liked the French, load of pompous bastards.’’ she gave a half-heartfelt smirk as she teased him, slouching back in her chair as her arms crossed.

‘’Truth be told, the Germans haven’t been quite liked throughout this century, have they?’’ Everett enquired. A baleful grin creeped onto his face; eventually it grew into a sly smile. Gwendolyn scoffed and turned away with adamant distaste towards the boy.

Everett grinned to himself pleased with the damage he had inflicted. Gwendolyn’s ego would be quite fragile for a while now. He averted his gaze and only just now happened to realise there were other girls on the table with him besides Nana and Gwendolyn. He supposed he was so intermingled with the girl that he forgot to notice the very plainly placed girls in front of him. They did not seem to spare him much thought however, they were head first into their own conversations, about God knows what.  Everett assumed clothes and make-up. Typical girl stuff which he heard about at the many galas which he and his father attended. Men whinged  and complained how their wives wouldn’t stop talking about how their eyebrows were not even or how their blouses made them appear fatter,  like a clump. A true tangent. 

The speech, which was delivered by Mr. Howard had been quite monotonous and tiresome, Everett had nearly dozed off for the fifth time now. However, his sister’s pointed solid elbow firmly dug into his ribcage and managed to wrench him out of his overtaking slumber each time. The speech continued for a solid hour and a half. A grand clock atop a window on the opposite side of Everett ticked in a dreadfully prolonged motion. Mr. Howard blathered about the policy of the school, what behaviour had been expected from them, mannerisms and much more; the boy preferred to keep as far away as possible from everyone his already sizzling brain couldn’t handle much more. After the dull speech a flock of waiters came out from a set of great grey double doors with all kinds of trays, plates and cuisines which awaited to be devoured. 

Everett however has never been interested in food.  He loosely held his fork with his thumb and index finger; swirling his supper idly around the finely decorated porcelain plate. He had gotten himself a Sous Vide duck breast which was a classic in France, the literal translation had been ‘under a vacuum’, Everett found it extremely amusing how each and every single one of his peers managed to fumble the name of the dish. The lack of accent or forced accent made him snicker disgracefully. Sous Vide was something he and his sister had at least once a month back at the manor. Without a doubt it was an ethereal taste of sweet and savoury - steamed in a fine broth which had been prepared hours beforehand, which was marinated with a variety of herbs and light spices; the taste of Rosemary prominent. Everett had the dish so often that he grew to detest it, however somehow he couldn’t bring himself to not order it when spotted on the menu.

By now Everett had made a rigorous mess of his food. He had ruined the finely placed sauce and smushed a majority of his peas, distorting their precise circular configuration. Aside from the visual disarray he had managed to make out of his food, none of it had gone anywhere near his mouth. The boy had only been keen towards seeing if the dessert would be of any more virtue.  Everett had been slouched in his plush dining chair, head lulling to the left hand side. The boy had been in his own world of mindfulness disregarding the noise which swerved around tediously in the atmosphere. 

‘’I’m sorry, are you finished with that?’’ a faint female voice barely called out from behind, startling him out of his peace. Everett lightly jumped as he peered behind his shoulder to only find a woman with an official suit and a tray of plates. 

‘’Yes I’m finished, thank you.’’ he answered with pure distaste as he eyed his plate down. A pinch of guilt began to formulate and knot in his chest as he realised he’d wasted fine food. That could’ve been someone’s dinner for the day. He brushed the thought away, averting his attention to other matters. ‘’Do you mind bringing me dessert?’’ Everett politely requested. 

‘’Of course, however if the main wasn’t up to your liking I can always bring something else.’’ a sincere smile plastered itself on the woman's ruddy cheeks.

‘’I am fine, now can I please have dessert.’’ Everett folded his arms around his biceps as his fingers twitched in evident impatience. He did not like being interrogated, hostility was now more prominent in his voice as he raised his eyebrows expectantly.

The waitress was taken aback by his sudden callousness, however the woman composed herself almost immediately. ‘’Yes of course, I apologise.’’ she bowed ever so slightly as she scuttered away.

As the woman proceeded to speed walk towards a set of doors which Everett presumed was the kitchen, his lip came to a sneer and his eyebrows came to a halt as he glared at the way of where the woman had gone, who was now long gone. 

‘’Jesus Christ, what’s up your ass?  She was just doing her job.’’ Gwendolyn snickered from beside him; this indicated that she wasn’t all that bothered. Everett whipped his head around to now glare at Gwendolyn who had her elbows prepped on the edge of the delicately clothed table, her chest jutting outwards as she sat there grinning like a buffoon. ‘’No need to be so..’’ she rolled her eyes, fishing around for the perfect word, ‘’impudent.’’ Gwendolyn finished with a click at the end. 

‘’It’s her job to serve me, not to question me.’’ putting it simply as he figured Gwendolyn's lacked  too much intelligence to understand. Once again, the boy slouched in his chair as a preeminent growl announced itself out of Everett's stomach. Swiftly, he reached for his glass of lemonade to compose his rioting stomach. 

‘’Gosh you sound starved!’’ Gwendolyn remarked sarcastically, amusing herself. She brought a forkful towards her mouth, nodding her head while rubbing her stomach to display how utterly amazing her food had been. ‘’Mmmhm! you should've definitely had some.’’ the girl teased.

‘’Ugh, no wonder you got sent away. It’s hard to believe anyone can actually live with you.’’ Everett massaged his temples as he sighed in disbelief. Unable to fathom the girl’s brassiness. He attempted his hardest to block out Gwendolyn's jeers and taunts, however she was quite an infuriating individual.

‘’Well, your darling sister doesn’t seem to mind me too much.’’ Gwendolyn cooed ‘’right Nana?’’

 Fortunately for Everett, Nana had been much too invested in her conversation with another girl that she simply didn’t know what was happening. ‘’Huh?’’ she very ungracefully questioned.

‘’Well, Nana is just nice to everyone.’’ This was Everett’s splendidly thought out counter argument. As he raised his hands imploringly. 

‘’Or maybe you’re just an arse to everyone around you.’’ Gwendolyn yawned out. The clock was steadily ticking to ten o’clock now. He was beginning to get drowsy himself. Suddenly the waitress arrived with his long awaited dessert. His face instantly contorted into aversion as he realised what he was gawking at was fruitcake. Everett sat there with his lips slightly parted and turned into a sneer. Likewise, Gwendolyn also paused to stare at the repulsing flat cake which had raisin and plum bits jutting out of its blondie corners. Goodness it wasn’t even chocolate!

‘’Ew.’’ was the well articulated response which made its way out of Gwendolyn's gaping mouth. She scooted her head towards Everett’s as they prodded the flat, stony cake with a minuscule pastry fork.

‘’Ew would be an understatement.’’ Everett added. ‘’I’ll be damned if anyone likes that degradation of a dessert.’’ Everett rolled his eyes sky-high in annoyance. He couldn’t believe how long he had anticipated dessert only to be a putrid stale fruitcake. He averted his gaze to the right where to his absolute astonishment he noticed Niccolo stuffing himself with that same exact fruitcake like a turkey!

Chapter Text

Once the grand clock struck eleven post meridiem, the soon to be inhabitants and students were ushered off to their living quarters. Everett eloquently pranced through a variety of desolate corridors and deserted staircases, concealing his evident physical exhaustion. A singular thought transverses through the boy’s head, and it was to collapse into the comfort of his (exceedingly miniature) bed, which hadn’t even goose plumage into the pillows, duvet nor mattress. 

Everett jostled the hefty wooden door of his dorm with great effort. An inescapable feeling of agitation tugged in his gut. He’d eagerly awaited dinner with an indescribable keenness, only to be thoroughly disappointed by a collection of unappetizing dishes. Truthfully, Everett could not recall the last proper time he had three warm meals in a day. Not that his family was financially incapable of affording it. Good God no! It was an acute case of simply not being allowed. His Mother had explicitly made it clear that Everett and Nana are to not overeat and are to upkeep the graceful physique which enabled them to maintain their supercilious appearance. 

Everett had been visibly startled to see Niccolo already in the room sauntering around the with a very conspicuous magazine in his hand,(which Everett had a vague idea with what, or who was on it.) with his upper half uncovered. He wore a pair of baggy grey and black classic pyjama bottoms which appeared a notch too long. Everett’s breath halted involuntary as he soaked his gawking eyes at the sight before him. Niccolo had refined toned muscles which painted the appearance of a healthy diet. He could see that Niccolo had some evident abdominal muscles forming, (probably from frequent sport and exercise) upon further inspection he noticed that the other boys pyjama bottoms were riding provocatively low on his hips revealing the waistline of his boxers which had ‘adidas’ plastered all over the white elastic in black calligraphy and a symmetrical V-Line which jutted out delightfully. 

‘’Do you always feel this comfortable around people you’ve just met?’’ Everett scoffed as he briskly averted his reddening face to look anywhere else but his roommate. He attained his habitual stance where he folded his arms around his sides, enclosing himself. 

‘’Are we both not men? What’s there to be so embarrassed of?’’ Niccolo snorted in disbelief as he tossed the magazine onto his bed which Everett could now make out had a rather tantalising, provocative blonde woman with her legs obscenely stretched wide open. Everett thanked God; if he really was somewhere out there, at least the young lady bore a pair of knickers.  Everett however, ignored Niccolo’s question as he proceeded to remain at the doorway scandalised.

‘’Please keep your vulgarities away from my side of the room.’’ he finally shot out as he slammed the door shut and strutted over to the wardrobe where he got his Sea Island cotton long sleeve pyjamas out and steadily made his way towards the bathroom. Ignoring Niccolo. 

‘’Do stay in there for fifteen minutes or so, I need aaah.. What do you British call it? A wank.’’ he teasingly laughed out as he gently nudged Everett. 

‘’That’s absolutely disgusting!’’ Everett shot out unequivocally mortified, disgusted and embarrassed. 

‘’Pft, acting as you’ve never done it.’’  Niccolo now vocalises his utter disbelief. Everett could practically feel how he was now rolling his eyes sky-high towards him. He slammed the bathroom door behind himself, he flung his head in his hands utterly appalled at the conversation he’d just had. What mortified Everett even more was, how abnormal he was. He was nearly sixteen and had never once in his life even thought about erotic fantasies, or doing anything with anyone. 

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

Once fully settled into his opulent, plush pyjamas, Everett tentatively nudged the door open and poked his head out with great uncertainty to inspect the perimeter of the room, unsure whether or not Niccolo had been acting like a fool, or genuinely keeping to his word. To Everett’s relief, he saw that all the lights were turned off and it was primarily a pitch stygian shade which enveloped the room in tranquil blackness. However, the mullioned window right above their beds  had been left unclothed leaving a wave of moonlight to sway and pirouette around the considerably sized room. 

Everett gazed at the single oak bed closest to the bathroom door; which had been Niccolo’s bed. He was facing away from the firmly positioned chestnut coloured wooden door, Niccolo’s calves and thighs were uncovered from the duvet and his pants were riding up his legs, distorting and twisting themselves resembling a pair of doltish pantaloons by now. Everett stifled a giggle. He vigorously crossed his fingers and prayed that Niccolo did not have an unresolved snoring habit, otherwise he would be complaining for a new roommate by tomorrow's first licks of dawn and sunshine.  Niccolo’s arm had been under his plenteous pillow with his arm sticking upwards. 

‘’per l'amor di Dio, Turn that damn light off.’’ Niccolo mumbled out raspily as he shifted over ever so slightly. 

‘’Don’t be so querulous.’’ Everett scoffed as he turned the bright blinding white light off. At least the bathrooms were renovated and had proper electricity running through them. He steadily made his way to the window curtain as he was reaching for the tarnished white curtain, he heard a rumble.

‘’Don’t pull the curtain.’’ Niccolo sluggishly mumbled into his pillow, face buried.

‘’Why not?’’ Everett’s voice raised itself an octave as he invaded with much impatience and incredulity evident.

‘’ ‘m scared of the dark.’’ The half-asleep boy slurred as he indolently turned to lay on his back, limbs limply flayed around without much coordination. The duvet tangled itself like a python around the boy’s waist enclosing him in a firm grip.

Everett deadpanned at the other boy for a few solid seconds as he tried to break down and fathom the information he had just been struck with.

‘’You’re fooling around, aren’t you?’’ he tentatively enquired.

‘’Please.’’ that was all that tumbled out the other boy's mouth. Everett figured he was too enervated to come up with an articulate response. He proceeded to clutch onto the rough fabric of the curtain. For a second, he contemplated disregarding the request of the half conscious boy. However, he could not help himself but leave it. It was only for tonight. No more, tomorrow he’ll pester Niccolo further to elaborate on what he had meant by ‘’ ‘m scared of the dark.’’ Everett situated himself onto his new bed, which was surprisingly and pleasantly velvety, snuggling and nestling the exuberant duvet and blanket up to his chin as he curled himself into a ball, facing Niccolo. Drowsiness steadily crept its way up to Everett’s eyes. His eyelids heaved as he could not help but spiral into a dreamless profound sleep. Moonlight lightly reflected itself off of their furniture, as the silhouette of the barred window slanted itself towards the left.

Chapter Text

It was laughing. Who was laughing? It was a callous, patronising laugh, one was rising a pitch higher than the other. Pure blackness and desolate nothingness swerved itself nauseatingly around him. He fervently spun around whipping his head to and fro in a frantic manner, endeavouring despairingly to get a glimpse of the source which was mocking him. Instantaneously, a great force surged him forwards, stumbling, his breathing shallow beseechingly begging  for his maimed heart to slow down and give his lungs a chance; a yelp startled him. The yelp had been high and ephemeral, lasting hardly seconds. At once, it all spiralled into havoc. Familiar voices began to bawl, shout and nag at him without much direction. A branch of insults mangled and strenuously pierced at his chest. Agonising throbbing affliction pranced a mocking dance down his spine, he frantically searched for the object responsible for his pain, however nothing was to be spotted. A chilling sensation enveloped his quivering limbs as consciousness betrayed him. 

With a gasp Everett jolted awake. He soon realised that he was hardly breathing, he forced his withered throat to inhale a lungful of air; he did not wait to exhale. He just inhaled and inhaled until it physically nauseated him. 

Once his breathing had somewhat reclaimed its customary rhythm, Everett sat up slouched gracelessly forwards as he gaped at his open palms and digits that quivered piteously. His sight blurred as the clear image of his palms turned into a mere mirage. Undoubtful tears began to form hastingly, threatening to spill and roll down his flaming face. Blunt incisors began to pierce through his abused bottom lip. Metallic liquid started to trickle down his chin and flood his shrivelled dried out throat. Abruptly, he broke down. A sob escaped Everett’s throat. A heartfelt guttural noise fleeted. A wail followed, then a yelp, then a weep. Then it overflowed; like a thunderous invading cloud. Prolonged inescapable bawling followed. He plastered his attenuated, muscleless arms over his face, clammy carmine liquid smeared all over his mouth now, violently convulsing fingers and soaked cheeks. A string of saliva trickled down to his resting, situated blanket mixed with the rich blood, diluting it. 

Not long after, an overwhelming desire to vomit took over him. However, there was nothing to vomit. He gagged on air. He could taste the searing, salty tears mixing in his mouth with his blood. He tried wretchedly to compose himself. It was utter embarrassment to be seen in such a psychotic, deranged state. But the tears won’t stop. Crocodile tears proceeded to roam free as pathetic whimpering noises sauntered out his throbbing lips. 

Peculiarly enough, Everett felt a pang of emptiness. As in– the room was deserted besides himself. He gazed in a perplexed manner at the perimeter of Niccolo’s bed. Although, the boy wasn’t spotted anywhere.  The bathroom door had been left ajar, so he positively wasn’t in the bathroom (hopefully). Everett lightly swatted himself across his face, actively attempting to persuade himself to calm down.  He inhaled a lungful of oxygen and slung his, ever so lightly quivering limbs out of bed, darting towards the bathroom, hastily bolting it shut. 

Insubstantial palms plastered themselves at either sides of the sink, latching firmly into the shimmering, pristine white sink hopelessly attempting to regain composure as clotted blood smeared havocally almost like a murder scene. Everett just intensively glared at the reflection before him. He pondered if he was in fact deranged. Intertwining primrose and chestnut knotted strands of hair established an unruly anarchy atop his head. Discomfiting prominent dark circles engraved themselves into the fibres of his skin just below his eyes. His bottom lip, severed once again trickled a spider-web thin string down into the sink drain. The cut had been miniscule, but it did trickle a good deal. He scrambled to turn the tab on, draping his face in glacial waters. Numbness engulfed his digits, palms and arms prancing steadily down the cotton sleeve, stained red. 

He hadn’t one coherent thought as to what time it was. Dusk surely around the corner. Last thing he remembered before bolting it to the bathroom was the faint hue of pink that coloured the usually grim grey sky of England. An uncertain exhale, which was much closer to a sigh, escaped his throbbing lip. Everett hadn’t an idea why such an extraneous, foolish dream set him off into such immeasurable anxiety and frantically knocked him astray. He hauled his feet sluggishly towards the door, a chilling knot in his chest formulated. He barely felt real; like it was a lucid dream. Upon inactively pushing the door open, he noticed a brown, curly-haired figure inspect his bed. 

‘’Mio buen Dio, what in fucks name happened to your bedsheets? It looks like a murder scene took place here.’’ Niccolo’s eyebrows shot sky-high as he loosely held up Everett’s stained vivid red pillow. 

‘’Mind your language.’’ was Everett’s only comment. His voice came strained and half stuttered the first word, as he massaged his temples; much like he did when distressed. 

‘’I had a nosebleed, it’s nothing important.’’ he stated a moment later gazing at the polished, yet chipped wooden boards. 

‘’What kinda explosion of a nosebleed did you have? It looks like you burst an artery–’’

‘’God, do you ever shut up? I’m feeling so bad right now, and your constant infuriating back talking is definitely a million times more infuriating, you– you.’’ 

Everett was so frustrated and muddled in his own mental murky waters, that he was at a loss at forming coherent sentences.

‘’Calm your pasty transparent ass down, I just assumed that my roommate got stabbed to death in his sleep. It’s called being worried. I'm not sure if you’ve ever experienced it in your isolated, faux life.’’ Niccolo shot straight venom back at him, throwing his hands up in disbelief. 

‘’Oh, do stop with your insolence, it was only a nosebleed and I doubt that you were ever worried. If anything you finally get to have the other half of the wardrobe for your ludicrous, half eroded trainers, that you call shoes, and your stupid, half-nude, bimbo blond featuring, erotic magazines!’’ Everett half-yelled in distress. 

‘’Why are you bringing my shoes into this? What have the magazines got to do with it?’’ Niccolo stressed his point as he visibly contorted his features into disdain.

‘’Oh mon dieu, tais-toi, espèce de salaud ennuyeux!’’ Everett felt a vigorous surge of contempt to leap forward and strangle Niccolo half out his wits. 

‘’Ficcati il tuo ego su per il culo!’’ Without much thought the pair began to viciously spout a variety of insults in French and Italian, Everett occasionally losing a word in the process and resolving to english substitutes. The pair hadn’t much clue of what they had been saying to each other this early at dusk, presumably somewhere around 7 o’clock as the golden rays steadily creeped into the chilled morning horizon. 

Not long after the pair halted their insults and began to deeply inhale as the rapid spewing of vulgarities, frankly, tired them out. 

‘’You need a bandage?’’ Niccolo phrased that like a query rather than a statement.

‘’Yes.’’ was the simple response that Everett mumbled out. 

Niccolo sauntered over to his rucksack and pulled out a simple first aid kit, as he fumbled a bit mazed at it, not quite sure what he was doing either. Everett sat perched cross-legged on his dishevelled bed as his bed covers and duvet mangled themselves like a python. Spaced out with mind adrift he stared up ahead at a concentrated point on the wall, his lip steadily oozing a fine trickle of crimson liquid. 

‘’Jesus, mate have you taken something or what?’’ With a notch of uncertainty Niccolo went and gently sat beside Everett, facing him he had a shirt scrunched up in his palm that he raised up to his battered lip.

‘’Don’t you dare get that filthy thing anywhere near my face.’’ Everett was yanked out of his trance with the never ending staring contest with the wall,  as he realised the boy opposite him planned to use a shirt as a towel. Everett backed hesitantly a few centimetres and proceeded to raise his right palm with alarm as he stared, eyebrows pinched at his roommate. 

‘’It’s brand new; I've never worn it. It’s not dirty, I promise.’’ the brown haired boy reassured, but nonetheless waited for Everett’s permission. For a few moments he didn’t react. Until he lowered his slightly shaking palm down to his thigh and leaned in. 

Niccolo  deemed himself to be quite a good medic, considering how reckless and spontaneous he was, it truly was a miracle. A feather-light pressure and dabbing was delicately applied onto Everett’s lip which seemed to be a hot-spot for injuries. The brown haired boy wrapped his free hand around the back of Everett’s neck in order to stabilise himself while wiping away the copious amount of blood which stubbornly refused to stop trickling, and disinfecting the pierced area. The disinfectant had an uncomfortable sting to it which caused Everett to stiffen up and pull backwards as his eyebrows came to a pinch. However, Niccolo didn’t inflict any other unnecessary pain or harm onto the sensitive wound. 

‘’I would’ve never assumed that you’d be any good as a medic.’’ Everett stated with a notch of mockery concealed in his tone. 

‘’My father is a physician.’’ Niccolo seemed to not pick up on the taunt as he answered swiftly, focusing his sole attention on attending to Everett. He was softly dabbing ointments and soothing gels into the livid sore wound which made the other boy relish in the cool smooth sensation which spread all around his overly-hot face. 

‘’What does your father do, hot-shot?’’

‘’My Father is a deputy prime minister, he substitutes the prime minister when he’s absent and manages all the civil services and executes the direct orders of the state. He is considered the most experienced one there.’’ Everett boasted. He whipped his head up with excellence while giving Niccolo a proud smile which concealed a notch of condescending superiority. 

‘’No wonder you’re such a snob.’’ Niccolo chuckled as he tossed the bloodied t-shirt into the other boy's hands and took off to put the first aid kit back to its designated place. ‘’Toss that in the laundry basket and I’ll see when wash day is, I’m not hand washing your mess.’’ 

‘’How very noble of you.’’  Everett scoffed, he didn’t bother thanking Niccolo. 

And Niccolo didn’t bother pointing out how he had just attended to Everett’s pierced lip, and not his nose, when he supposedly stated that he had had a nosebleed.

Chapter Text

Everett briskly scuttered along the corridor eager to see what was going to be served for breakfast. Frankly, he had been utterly disappointed with last night's pathetic excuse of a dinner; who even still likes fruitcake? Well, he vaguely recalls that his Mother was quite fond of fruitcake, she did indulge in it every once in a while. However, he wasn’t too keen to think about his Mother just yet. Surely you wouldn’t wish to think about the thing, which was the root cause of all of your complexions and uncertainties. He whipped his head with distaste just by the mere thought of it.

 Not too long ago, he recalls his Great Aunt who preferred the humble life in the outskirts of Lake District far north Cumbria, questioning him about how his Mother treated him, and how their dynamic was. It had been a truly unpleasant, nerve-wrecking conversation which he had to lie for the majority of. He could not risk having his Great Aunt whisk him away from his well lived life of comfort and force him to prance around in fields milking cows. The mere idea made his skin crawl. In full honesty, he’d rather live the remainder of his lonesome wretched little life with both his parents, in the confines of his manor, rather than have to sit another hour with his Great Aunt sipping Oolong tea which messed with his taste buds for an unbecoming amount of time, and tasted of nuts and watered down fruits. 

The polished stone ground had an disconcerting echo to it, which he frankly did not wish to walk on during nightly hours. Everett felt as though the patronising eyes of the oil and acrylic aged paintings seemed to follow him; a surge of paranoia washed over him as he shook the lousy feeling off. This brought him onto the subject of how he loved to reminisce about his heritage. It reminded him just how many nut-cases his family really consisted of! Unless he managed to seize a splendid education and diploma in the arts of brainwashing and money laundering, then he’d turn out just like his Great Aunt; and possibly Mother. Everett couldn’t quite wrap his head around how a woman could puncture and evoke such an abundant amount of anxiety out of him. 

Instantaneously, Everett was yanked out of his insightful philosophical remembrance by none other than the fury provoking, vexing Gwendolyn Lynd who sauntered out of her room, with her hair which seemed to have gained volume in curls overnight.

‘’Evie baby, how’ve you slept on an empty stomach?’’ Gwendolyn swerved her arms around his neck, pulling him to the side throwing him off-balance. In his professional opinion, Gwendolyn reminded him of a watered down Morticia Addams. She was wearing a black gothic corset which had intricate patterns embroidered into it, and bore a loose ankle long skirt which resembled rags stitched together in obscure directions rather than a skirt. Her shirt was cut out around her chest and accentuated her collarbone finely. However, her jeer wouldn’t be left unreturned. 

Everett simply ignored the question and decided to prod at her nerves, just to see how far he would get, ‘‘Have you grown over-night? It appears that the corset can barely tie around your waist since I last saw you.’’ 

Gwendolyn stared at him for a considerably long time before she got back to her senses, ‘’Are you naturally this hostile, or did you just not get enough love as a developing child?’’ she was alongside him now, curling around his bicep like the life-sucking leech that he deemed her. 

‘’I believe I’ve received a considerable amount of attention while growing up.’’ Everett answered drily. ‘’I can’t possibly state the same about some other individuals though.’’ he puffed out with incredulity and distaste. 

‘’Pray tell. I’m starting to believe this is aimed.’’ Gwendolyn purred with glee and seemed to latch even tighter around Everett’s arm, like the python that she was. 

‘’Well, one’s breathing down my neck, suffocating me with a highly unpleasant stench, she dares to call a perfume, and one’s striding right towards us.’’ Everett snarled out through gritted teeth as his older cousin leapt out of the murky shadows just like the devil himself. A reptilian-like grin tugged the corners of his mouth side to side. His pearly arranged teeth glistened with malice.

‘’What’s this Everett? You’ve found yourself a girlfriend already?’’ Roscoe snickered in a thick London accent with disbelief. His double chin seemed to wiggle every time he opened his mouth to spout nonsense out at him. 

‘’More like a poltergeist.’’  Everett scoffed and  rolled his eyes sky-high and successfully managed to yank his left arm free from Gwendolyn's unyielding grasp.

‘’I’ll be sure to inform Aunt and Uncle of your cheeky business.’’ a cacophony of jeers and mockery exited Roscoe’s mouth. His parents certainly wouldn't be pleased if he’s prancing around campus collecting girls left and right. Afterall, he has been sent here due to his irrevocable distaste towards studying at home, not to be chasing girls (even though that was hardly the case).

‘’As if I'd ever date this prick.’’ Gwendolyn piped into the conversation, startling both him and his cousin with her brusque response. 

Before this unfortunate conversation could resume any longer they had already reached the Main Hall, and Roscoe branched off with a laugh, clapping Gwendolyn on her shoulder and stating how he wouldn’t mind having her as a girlfriend. In Everett’s professional opinion he believed that those two would make the perfect jarring couple.

     ꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

Everett sat slouched beside his bubbly twin who indulged in a fastidious conversation about the rights of all people, and controversial opinions on feminism which frankly, irritated him to bits. Why should he have to listen to such blether and rubbish this early, past eight o’clock,  this fine autumn morning? It further vexed him that the only person whom he could converse with was Gwendolyn who sat beside him picking at her dead-ends, pulling them apart. 

‘’Do you mind not shedding where food is being served?’’ Everett glared at the scruffy girl next to him piercing daggers at her. He further scooted towards Nana while crossing his arms with adamant aversion. 

‘’It’s not like you’ll be eating.’’ she did not even make the effort to look at him as she resumed to pick at her voluminous permed opaque hair.

‘’I beg your finest pardon?’’ Everett sat up as his tone pitched. That girl was seriously provoking him. In his personal opinion, she deserved to be slapped across the face and possibly– have someone tape her exasperating mouth shut. The less that she spoke the more Everett found himself happier. 

Before the situation could escalate in a rather grim fashion, a waitress scuttered towards their table an array of dishes balanced atop an intricately sculpted stainless steel tray. Before him was a pristine ceramic plate with two rather small avocado toasts. He actually quite fancied avocado toast. Whenever his parents were out the house he would dash and would always bag Edna to make him some. Which she always did, even if she would get dreadfully scolded by his parents who proclaimed it was unbecoming and fattening. Majority of the snarky comments throughout his childhood evolved around food. They embedded themselves into him, like spears piercing his skin leaving a stinging, searing, everlasting scar.  Everett’s appetite faltered as he recollected fragments of his rather unfulfilling childhood; he gazed at the plate before him. One toast had mashed avocado with a finely steamed egg with a runny centre placed atop. Its centre bubbled with fragility and liquid yolk as spices were littered on top. The other one was more or less the same, however it had crisp bacon to go with it and enhance the salty flavour.

Everett forgot all about Gwendolyn’s insolence and spiteful adolescence as he fizzed with eagerness to dig in and devour the toast.

The boy averted his gaze suddenly, just then he made eye contact with Niccolo who was a few tables down who was undoubtedly staring at him. Everett quickly narrowed his eyes and glared at his roommate; an active attempt to spite him, and passively mime, ‘why are you gawking at me?’. Nonetheless, much like himself, Niccolo returned the gesture, even if he was a bit taken aback by his initial reaction. He also pulled a face at him before he also stuck his tongue out and began to perform ill-mannered hand gestures at him. Everett whipped his head around with dismay as he began to leisurely cut his grandiose breakfast into miniscule pieces. Alongside him, he unfortunately witnessed Gwendolyn stuffing her mouth; not bothering to use cutlery, devouring that toast in less than four bites. Everett glanced down at his plate as he’d counted fifteen pieces he managed to cut only one of his toasts into. 

Everett was thoroughly enjoying his drawn-out breakfast as Gwendolyn seemed unable to avert her gaze from the remaining toast on his plate. She silently pleaded with him through a melancholy look; begging him for some of his food.

‘’Are you still hungry?’’ Everett questioned. Gwendolyn nodded her head with a notch of hope.

‘’Awh bless, because I'm also hungry.’’ he cooed with glee as he very slowly brought the fork to his lips.

‘’You insufferable bastard.’’ she scoffed as she got up and hurriedly took matters into her own hands and hurried to the kitchen, checking to see if the menu had anything more to offer. Everett, entirely satisfied with himself, leisurely took his time chewing. An amused smile tugged at his lips as Gwendolyn returned empty handed. She scoffed as his lips slightly ached with the elongated grin which made him almost look like the Cheshire cat. 

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After breakfast, the remainder of the day passed quite finely. A vast majority of it went towards exploring the campus and getting accustomed to navigating the extensive routes to class; and foremost, socialising with your peers and getting to know the people with whom you shall be spending the next few months with. The institution consisted of a diverse variety of professors; each with their own cultures from around the globe. Twenty-five or so students were called out to a class and explained how this would be their group for the first six months and then everyone would get regrouped. The professors explained that this would be the perfect opportunity for them to get to know all of their new students individually. Everett was distraught that Nana was not in the same class as him, nor was Gwendolyn. He couldn’t help the frustration that was building up within him. He did not exactly like Gwendolyn's company, but it was a company nonetheless. Everett was entirely alone in a room full of people. Distinctive chatter bounced around the room as the professor was fixated upon rummaging numerous piles of paperwork rushing to find the assigned seating plan. 

The classroom appeared pretty generic, cobbled walls, dark polished wooden floor, neat row of three expansive windows hugged the right hand-side of the wall. Wooden desks the same dark wood as the floorboards were evenly distributed with two per table. The classroom had rows and rows of shelves scattered around the wall with various trinkets and folders scattered about. Everett swore that in the far back of the class he could make out a jar with something that has been long dead inside it which was being obscured by other objects. He averted his gaze and decided to not dwell upon it for too long. Everett was seated closest to the window in the middle row. Next to him was placed quite a tomboyish girl. Everett wondered what was up with the universe and placing him next to females. 

Whenever he met someone it seemed that he always got off on the wrong foot. He did not really understand why. The girl had short hair that hardly tucked behind her ears as dark blonde chunks stuck out in all directions. She had a pair of light blue baggy shorts and a multicoloured sports sweater that was surely a few sizes too big for her. Everett lost interest quite quickly as instead focused on the swaying trees outside. Clear sapphire skies were littered with light and pacific as the autumn breeze ushered them to the East. Just then a finger tapped him on the shoulder.

‘’Is your hair dyed, because it looks proper cool.’’ the fair-haired girl questioned him with a sparkling grin as Everett noticed her rather big front teeth.

‘’It’s actually not, just some genetic mutation.’’ he shrugged.

‘’Shame, I was seriously about to ask what dye you use.’’ the girl smiled. ‘’I’m Denice by the way.’’

‘’Everett, it’s my pleasure.’’ the pair shook hands, Denice yanked Everett forward in the process. He had to admit that the girl had a pretty firm grip. 

‘’Everett, Denice, refrain from interrupting the lesson unless you wished to be sent outside, all I can hear is you two whispering.’’ their professor interjected, clearly irritated.

‘’I know for a fact she’s not taking it out on us for being on a minimum wage, where’s she got all that sass from?’’ Denice leaned in and whispered as she suppressed a giggle. Instantaneously, Everett’s hand flew to his mouth as he covered his smile so their professor wouldn’t yet at them anymore. 

‘’Christ, She’s going to hate us before she even gets to know us.’’ he leaned his right elbow on the desk, slouched as he attempted to hide his mouth. Everett was now facing Denice, disregarding his professor's introduction and rules which she wrote on the chalkboard. 

Denice was likeable. She was not vexing like Niccolo, nor as monotonous as Gwendolyn. She had a sense of humour and was not fussed when it came to gossiping. Everett believed that they could be acquaintances.

Their professor explained the rules she expected her students to follow and warned them how she wouldn’t hesitate to call up home if someone disobeyed them. She shot a look directly at Everett’s and Denice’s table and she raised her eyebrows imploringly. 

‘’I expect you all to live up to the standards set by me and the other members of staff.’’ The very second the woman turned around, Denice got back straight to talking. To Everett it seemed that Denice was quite a chatterbox. 

‘’D’you play an instrument?’’ she inquired.

‘’Violin, but I haven’t touched it in a very long time. Everything got too hard too fast.’’ Everett rolled his eyes as he recalled how insistent his Mother had been and how she forced him to practise even great hours after dark. On some vexatious occasions he would be locked in an uninhabited room which was devoid of all sorts of furniture and coerced into playing that damned instrument all night until he got the entire melody correct; note for note. He grimaced slightly at the memory.

‘’What, were you like, forced to be like– Beethoven or something?’’ Denice snorted.

‘’Something of the sort. I haven’t liked the violin since.’’ 

‘’Playing an instrument shouldn’t be about competing. You should do it because you like doing it. I remember when I was forced to play the flute; hit some poor chap across the face while we were performing once. Haven’t got over the embarrassment since. That’s why I play the drums now.’’ she grinned, displaying a full row of teeth. She reminded him of Lola Rabbit. ‘’You should join the music club. You don’t have to play the violin, but there’s many other instruments that you can try out.’’

‘’I’ll–’’ Everett began before he was very rudely interrupted. 

‘’Denice step outside for a moment, I'll speak to you in a bit. I don’t wish to call your parents as the school year hasn’t even begun yet, but you're too disruptive.’’ their professor shook her head with disappointment. 

Denice gave a dramatic sigh as she dragged her feet across the floor. As she was about to exit, she looked at Everett and they both grinned at each other. For the remainder of the lesson Everett pondered if he should join The Music Club, or any club of that matter. It appears that, even though it’s been a day everyone was already branching off into groups and clubs. He made a mental note to see what other clubs there are. Music club did not sound that bad if he was being entirely fair. Now that his iniquitous Mother wasn’t present, it meant that he was pretty much free to indulge in whatever activities he wished to indulge in. Perhaps  reconciling back with music would deem to be a fulfilling hobby while he was stuck here.

Twenty or so minutes later the bell rang. Everett sauntered out and reunited with Denice once more as they walked towards their next class. They snickered and talked along the way, he was sure that Gwendolyn and Nana would also find her company likeable. 

Chapter Text

Everett lay in bed that night as the early licks of dusk crept and settled onto the vast skies. Fresh linen bed sheets were given to him as he lied to a laundress that he had suffered a rather atrocious nosebleed during the night. The elderly woman seemed sceptical but provided him with spotless new sheets nonetheless and did not press for any further details. The sheets reeked of detergent, it almost made Everett nauseous with how concentrated the smell was. He had his digits interlocked and placed behind his head as he stared at the intricately painted dome-shaped ceiling atop him. Faint flashes of white light escaped from beneath the wooden door as a slight crack prevented the bottom of the bathroom door and floor from completely connecting. Niccolo was preoccupied wasting all of the warm water as he had been showering for ages; in Everett’s opinion. He was in deep thought about how he should spend his time at St. Louis. Tomorrow is a Saturday which meant that he had all the time in the world to explore all the different clubs and to discover what was worth participating in, and what wasn’t.

At dinnertime he had introduced Denice to Gwendolyn and Nana, and surely enough, they liked her. Everett made a mental note to praise his splendid intuition. Denice sat at their table, and for the next hour she could not stop herself from telling jokes and making everyone laugh. Gwendolyn had started to cry out of laughter at one point. He grinned at the recent memory as the grin turned into a lopsided smile. He was glad to know that Denice could intergrade with people quite well; he however, was the opposite. Everett was whipped out of his thoughts as he felt a foreign fabric brush against his skin.

A rather tatty shirt loosely clung to his torso, a few sizes too big. Everett was not particularly thrilled but it had to do for a night. It was actually Niccolo’s. After his ‘nosebleed’ his pyjama top was severely stained with blood. As the blood clotted and dried out the fabric became stiff and overall, quite repulsive to look at, never mind wear. The laundress was not amused one bit and her scepticism increased further. She had yanked the top out of Everett’s hands and instructed him to pick it up tomorrow morning. He surely was not going to ruin his outdoor attire by sleeping in it, nor was he going to ask his sister for a shirt of hers since it was obviously womens clothing. It took him considerable time to convince himself to push his ego and pride to the side and to just ask his roommate for a spare shirt. The shirt was nothing of much speciality. Dreadfully poor if he had to be honest. However, it was that or nothing at all. The shirt was black and had some band on it that Everett has never heard of in his life. ‘The Cure’, or something of the sort. The lettering was in orange as a distorted green-blue  image of a face muddled with other muddled images in the centre. Nonetheless, Everett gave Niccolo some credit; the shirt smelled quite nice and was oddly comfortable for something so worn out.

Niccolo finally walked out the bathroom, to Everett’s great astonishment he only bore a pair of boxers as he lethargically looked around the room.

‘’Christ! Put something on.’’ He half yelped as he spun to face the wall opposite his roommate and wrapped the pillow around the back of his head in embarrassment. This surely had to be a case of public nudity or flashing or something along those lines!

‘’I really don’t understand how you could be such a puritan. I’m not even a woman.’’ Niccolo snickered as some fabric shuffled. He then proceeded to fling himself onto his bed.

‘’I am not a puritan, it’s just socially unacceptable to be so– I don’t know! Provocative and invasive with someone you met mere days ago.’’ Everett tentatively spun around to check if he could finally turn around.

‘’So you find me provocative?’’ Niccolo interjected swiftly as he stifled a giggle, as he faced Everett who busied himself with staring at the ceiling.

‘’Don’t twist my words, I never explicitly said that YOU are provocative. I just said your actions are.’’

‘’But they’re my actions so therefore, I’m provocative.’’ Niccolo was now chuckling steadily and did not attempt to conceal his amusement.

‘’Just go to sleep before I smash your face in with a book.’’ Everett scoffed as he faced away from Niccolo once again.

‘’You’ll smash me, yeah?’’

‘’Shut up, you swine!’’ Everett groaned as he threw a pillow directly at Niccolo’s gleeful insufferable face. Niccolo started to laugh as he tossed the pillow right back at his roommate. The pair bickered a bit more before they eventually settled down for the night.

‘’Niccolo, are you asleep?’’ Everett tentatively whispered out, not really anticipating an answer.

‘’About asleep, what’s up?’’ He grumbled.

‘’Why are you still scared of the dark?’’ Everett was facing away from Niccolo as his duvet encased him in a tight embrace all the way up to his chin. He wasn’t too engrossed with his roommates general well-being, he supposed he was just being nosy. Perhaps, he was also vexed at how he could not fall asleep properly with the moonlight shining down on him. Niccolo stayed silent for a second Everett simply assumed that he did not wish to answer him.

‘’Dunno, childhood fear that just never really left.’’ he leisurely turned around to face the other way; away from Everett, limbs sprouting in all directions. ‘’Everyone’s scared of something.’’ he added in a faint, sleep-ridden voice, but loud enough to be heard. Everett guessed that he was right, he surely was still scared of many things and people of that matter. 

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

The first licks of dawn began to seep into the endless skies, the gentle glow of the sun softly illuminated the horizon. The last stygian remnants of night gradually disappeared as pacific muted hues of yellow and pastel pink engulfed the land. Everett’s eyelids lifted and closed back up with great fatigue; it took multiple attempts before he was somewhat properly awake. Leisurely, he sat up and proceeded to rub his eyes for a prolonged period of time, desperately attempting to push his drowsiness to the side. He glanced over to the right where Niccolo’s bed was, just to find him knocked out cold.

Everett took no time loitering around, he grabbed some proper clothing attire and claimed the bathroom first, in order to sort himself out as his roommate took absolute ages. It was amusing how Niccolo spent more time getting himself ready, yet he claimed that he wasn’t fussed about how he looked.

Everett stood in front of the bathroom mirror and observed his healing lip. It was slightly swollen and still had a significantly long way to go before it was fully healed. A hideous scab had formed where the cut was. It was an unbecoming sight and it greatly irritated Everett. He stared at his reflection in the mirror; the more that he stared, the more unproportionate and blemished he became. He had sickly pale skin with prominent blue veins which snaked underneath and protruded in a ghast way. He had the identical deep set purple eye bags as his Mother and his Fathers cold unfriendly scrutinising eyes. His collarbone jutted and hollowed out which made him appear like a starved animal. Everett filled the sink with freezing numbing water up to the brim as he plunged his face into it and waited for the cold to numb his facial muscles and carry his scathing self hatred away.

Upon exiting the bathroom, he noticed that Niccolo was still asleep. Everett contemplated waking him up but decided against it. He doubted very much that Niccolo would miss anything if he slept in for a few more hours, plus he could not be dealing with his roommate this early in the morning. The boy glanced at the miniature anachronistic grandfather clock which was mounted on the cobbled wall as it ticked monotonously. The time read eight-thirty.  It was a Saturday, so naturally breakfast was at a much later hour. On a non school day, brunch would be served at ten till twelve ante meridiem. Everett highly doubted that anyone would be awake at such an early hour, especially on the weekend. He did not fancy staying in pure silence whilst Niccolo slept, neither did he wish to remain unproductive for the next hour-and-a-half. What better way to utilise time than by going on a walk?

The corridor stretched out in a great expanse, a testament of evident anachronistic charm. Everett observed the multitudinous quantity of portraits and faces of unknown people encased within glass frames and mounted on the wall. Aligned smooth cobbled floor, gleamed slightly by the soft glow of the morning rays, reflecting a bygone era's grandeur. Each step echoed faintly, a reminder of the many footsteps that have; ran, walked, sauntered, jogged this hall over the many centuries. He was not exactly sure of where he would go, but made a mental note to refrain from nearing teacher infested areas. He was glad to find that all of the classrooms were marked and labelled, displaying what service they provided. A few floors up he stumbled across the ‘Music’ section of the school. He had been thinking about it a significant deal the night before, so he might as well check it out while he was there. 

Everett flung the sturdy oak door only to interrupt a small-scale orchestra which only consisted of four to five members; they were all significantly older than Everett. His breath instantaneously halted as his heart dropped to stomach.

‘’I am really sorry, I did not realise someone was in here.’’ an intense scorching sensation overtook his cheeks as he turned to shut the door.

‘’Oh my God! Everett you came.’’ a familiar voice called out as he was about to close the door. He spun around and spotted Denice with a pair of wooden polished drumsticks clutched in her right hand.

‘’Denice? Pleasure seeing you at this early hour.’’ Denice clutched him by the arm as she pulled him towards the centre of the room and began to introduce him to all of her music friends,(one of them being her brother) and displayed the astounding amount of instruments. She babbled about how if anyone wanted to participate in a club they could at the early hours of the morning, however the problem was that you were only permitted to leave before official morning hours if you were an older student. Usually year tens had to sneak around the designated rules, until they reached sixteen.

‘’Well, what if you get caught?’’ Everett scoffed. He did not exactly fancy the idea of sneaking around corridor corners for the entirety of the academic year.

‘’Honestly, tough luck. I dunno what to tell you, better have some good bloody excuse.’’ she laughed as she shuffled to go fetch something from the very back of the extensive room. Everett raised an eyebrow as he shifted left to right in order to see what she was doing. ‘’I’ve a favour to ask you.’’ briskly, she spun around as she clutched a violin and a violin bow in both hands and steadily made her way back to him.

‘’Please can you play us something, it doesn’t have to be complex. I’m just curious to hear you play it.’’ The girl looked almost desperate as she thrusted the violin and the bow into his open palms. Everett stood there quite motionless. He had not played the fiddle in a considerable amount of time, he feared that he may have lost some of his grace and practice. ‘’Please, I promise no one will make fun of you even if you do bad.’’ Denice made a futile attempt to reassure him, which led to Everett raising both of his eyebrows as he gave her an inquiring look. 

‘’So be it then. Just stand back, I don't wish to elbow you in the process.’’ Everett grinned at her as Denice went over to a chair and  slouched in it. Prompting him by nodding her head consecutively and waving her hand in a monotonous circular motion.

He positioned the feather-weight, polished wooden instrument against his right shoulder; his palm securely, but gently cradled the neck of the violin as his left wielded the bow with precise control and discipline. A sharp high note resonated through the room, hypnotising his audience. Everett thrived off of other people's attention and admiration for him. He lived off of the thought that he was being the centre of attention, a delicious shiver danced up his spine as he was being watched and observed. A great boost of overweening self-admiration surged at him and penetrated deep into his ego. He might not enjoy playing the violin, however he did enjoy the admiration and respect that came with it. With each stroke of the bow, a cacophony of sounds oozed out. The music flowed effortlessly as Everett played the instrument with much dexterity. 

With great dexterity came great pain. A slight stinging sensation sliced at his fingertips, sores from the rough strings and pressure wasn’t uncommon. For Everett, it happened all too much when he was forced into regularly playing the violin. It was uncomfortable, but it was bearable. The praise and the applause would surely compensate later on for the pain he was enduring now. With each sweep, the violin sings, producing a melody that is both haunting and beautiful. The notes rise and fall, weaving emotion that speaks directly to his audience’s hearts. The musician's body sways slightly, in tune with the rhythm, every gesture and nuance perfectly timed. A sly grin plastered itself on his pale face as he bathed in their adoration. With a final note, he lowers his violin as he gleefully whipped his chin up with vanity. A crescendo of applause broke out as Denice jumped up and cheered him on.

‘’You have to join the school orchestra.’’  she went up to him as she congratulated him on his flawless performance.

‘’I’ll see. I prefer to play solo.’’ Everett stated as that sly smile refused to leave his face.

‘’You’ll make a fine addition to the team, we’ve been looking for a competent violinist for a while now.’’ one of the older boys in the back said, vocalising his opinion. Everett didn’t want to be a mere addition, he wanted to be the star of the show. He wanted an audience all for himself. Perhaps, if his Mother came to see him she would finally be proud and satisfied with his skills; she would see  that he was proficient and talented. 

‘’Like I said, I will see.’’ He went over to the violins stand and placed it back at its designated place. He will definitely join the orchestra. However, he’ll make sure to be the most influential and the most dexterous one there. He will not get outshined in something he had practised all his life.

He glanced at the wall mounted clock and realised that he had spent a considerable time in the Music room as the clock read nine-fifty. 

Chapter Text

September had gone by like a heartbeat. Everyone had been so engulfed by school work and social life that they hardly noticed the ticking minutes that seamlessly went by. The calendar had already reached the 29th. The heart-warming marigold and vermillion rays which greeted England in the morning were steadily being replaced by great grey clouds as the mornings became duller and night time became longer. Everett had not written to his family even once in that span of twenty-six days; he wondered what Edna was up to, or his Mother. Was she finally at ease now that she did not constantly have to see his face? Or rather, was she upset that she did not have anyone to actively scold and take her anger out on? An abundance of questions came and went throughout the passing weeks. 

Everett had been highly devoted to the Music club; he went there on a regular basis with Denice. They pair tested out numerous instruments as they refrained from simply utilising one. Everett did try to teach Denice how to play the violin, however, it ended as a pure failure as Denice managed to rip each and every single fine horse hair which were embedded onto the violin bow; resulting in a bowless violin. They would sometimes bring Nana, Gwendolyn and Niccolo along. However, that strictly depended on everyone's schedule. His friends also indulged in various extracurricular activities. Nana and Gwendolyn joined the Drama Club together, as Niccolo joined the St. Louis Youth Football Team. (what a mouthful; no one could pronounce the entire name properly just from the top of their head. Or rather, only Niccolo could pronounce it three times in a row without stumbling over his words.) 

More often than not, Everett had to stay awake alongside Niccolo during the late, tranquil nights of the weekdays in order to assist him with his staggering amounts of unattended assessments. The boy had been so occupied by football training and catching up on class work, that it appeared, by the time he had finished one assessment, three other ones were due for the following day. The sole reason why Everett helped his roommate was not that of sympathy nor deep blooming friendship. He simply could not bear to sleep when the light was on or when Niccolo was busy scratching away with his pen like a madman. He supposed, if he helped then this vexing ordeal would be over faster and sooner. The sooner that Everett could go to bed soundly, the more the irresistible urge to help Niccolo increased.

Everett is intelligent. He thanked the Lord, if he really was somewhere up there that he had bestowed him with the natural ability to excel in most of his subjects. The intricate and complex theorems of mathematics and the interlinked curiosities of science did not seem to stumble him nor pose a problem for him. He was witty enough, alright; however, something about the deep analytical studies and hidden metaphors in Religion seemed to mess with his head. Why had St. Augustine deemed it was necessary to write Enchiridion and explain the origins and meanings of Evil? Why is Privation a lack of good? Does evil really help you appreciate the goodness in life? Religion was a concept which revolved around Philosophy. Philosophy was not straightforward, it consisted of thought provoking queries and unexplainable, hard to answer principles which challenged human morals. Why should he forgive someone who has wronged him? The more he thought about religion and its concepts, the more he began to despise it.

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

Everett gazed out of the window on the first floor head in hands as their mathematics professor was on a painstakingly intricate tangent about Pythagoras. Amber and geranium leaves fell to the ground creating a canopy as branches danced and impending gusts of wind blew to the East. 

‘’Leland, eyes on the board, for the second time.’’ Professor Maxwell nagged at him, irritation very evident in his frowning features as he shook his head with disappointment. ‘’I highly hope that the majority of you have been paying attention in the past two weeks as you have an upcoming test.’’ Maxwell sent a disapproving look in a few pupils direction as he resumed, ‘’Naturally, it shall be on our most recent topic; Trigonometry.’’ Nonetheless, the class groaned collectively as they began to sluggishly gather up their belongings as their last bell of the day went. Unfortunately, the day was far from over.  

From three to four post meridiem, Everett was in an English Literature catch-up session. In the last two weeks he hadn’t a clue on what they were doing. They were looking at Macbeth by Shakespeare, however, what actually had they been analysing? He stared at his notebook then back at the chalkboard continuously, he wondered how his answer could be so far South compared to their English Professor. He supposed it didn’t matter as long as they did not have an assessment anytime soon. Suddenly, he remembered that Nana and Gwendolyn would be participating in a school play about Dracula the day before Halloween. Everett couldn’t care less about Gwendolyn and Nana’s fruitless acting careers, but his sister had insisted that he attended. Nana wanted him to attend merely so she could get encouraged by seeing a familiar face in the crowd. Who was Everett to deny the girl? He highly doubted that anyone would enrol her in the Elite Mathematics Challenge, she was far too simple-minded in his opinion. Why not grant her this one wish and attend. Plus, he would get a real kick out of someone getting stage fright mid scene, he hoped that it was Gwendolyn. 

He glanced at the octogenarian polished grandfather clock behind him. Twenty minutes had never passed so sluggardly before in his opinion. He slouched forward on his elbow as pretended to listen to his Professor. Once he was finished with his revision, he would head over to the Theatre Club to meet his sister, going to the Music Club everyday began to turn quite repetitive and monotonous.

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

‘’Ugh, don’t you dare touch me with that vile thing.’’ Everett scoffed defensively, stretching his arms out in front of himself as Gwendolyn threw dusted, dated prop costumes onto him. Grime and dust pranced around the room as the pair fought. 

‘’Scared of a little bit of dust, Evie?’’ Gwendolyn mocked him as she swung sooty, unkempt costumes even more vigorously at him. She giggled viciously as she proceeded to chase Everett. Her rather voluminous loose hair was pulled into a tight ponytail. She pulled the skirt of her uniform indecently high, displaying her milky thighs to as many people as possible (her skirt should've been just above her knees, for the record).

‘’Disgusting! Just because you’re a scruff doesn’t mean that everyone else has to be.’’ Everett's voice rose an octave as he distanced himself from Gwendolyn. He circled the room multiple times, cautiously glancing at the vexing girl who followed in pursuit. ‘’Stop it, you vile swi–’’, with a loud yelp, which was then followed by a thump, Everett tumbled through the floor, at least a solid metre-and-a-half down. It appeared that dust would be the last of his worries as of now; a substantial quantity of soot clouded the spot where he had fallen through.

‘’Oh shit– Everett, are you okay?’’ Gwendolyn yowled as she dropped the tarnished clothes as Nana yelped and dashed to the other girl’s side.  Niccolo had walked in a mere second before the whole ordeal had occurred,  he stood motionless next to the door, as he was still clutching the door handle as he gawked at the two girls and the evident hole in the floor. 

‘’What’ve I just walked into.’’ Niccolo blurted, much like a statement rather than a question. He scurried next to the unmoving girls as he crouched down and waved the dust away with his palm. Everett groaned with despondency and fatigue as he coughed due to the dust particles invading his lungs.

‘’You okay down there?’’ Niccolo inquired as he peered into the hidden compartment underneath. 

‘’Just about, would’ve been nice if one of you helped.’’ he coughed drily, he whipped his head around to observe the littered compartment around him. ‘’Ugh, what kind of a basement has a hatch that opens from the inside?’’ someone thumped down next to him, Everett prepped himself up on his elbows as he stared around the desolate shallow basement. He looked up and saw Niccolo stretching his broad hand towards him. Everett stared at the other boy for a split moment before he went to grab it. With ease, Niccolo hauled him upright as he dusted him off.

‘’Mind your head,’’ Niccolo said as he was hunched over, knocking on the wooden ceiling,’’ very low.’’  

A dull ache began to spread through Everett’s lower back as he massaged his left hip, his face distorted with discomfort as he blinked away tears which had accumulated from the grime and dust. The miniscule compartment was over-littered with boxes as they stacked up impressively one atop the other. Unsurprisingly enough, Gwendolyn had already begun to shred and rip cardboard apart revealing the mystery items which rested inside the box.

‘’Woah! Check this out, it’s brimming with VHS tapes.’’ The group circled around the box and Gwendolyn as they examined the tapes.

 It appeared that this specific box was stacked with horror movies, Nana was busy dusting herself and Everett off as he picked up ‘Nightmare On Elm Street’. Everett examined the paper cover, a rather grotesque man in appearance smiled grimly as he flashed his elongated metal talons, his face was thoroughly scorched. Crazed eyes as wide as saucers stared back at him. He grimaced, he instantaneously thought of his Mother, he believed that it would be amusing if a spin-off was made of the movie called, 'The Nightmare of Everett Leland’ the main antagonist would’ve been his Mother as he pictured her scowling, elegant face distorted into some hideous entity with bone-chilling demonic features. 

Hurriedly, he tossed the VHS back into the box. He scoffed whilst rolling his eyes and turned to walk away. 

‘’You guys, we should, a hundred percent, have a movie night. We have to tell Denice too.’’ Gwendolyn looked around in an exaggerated manner, her eyebrows raised sky-high as she consecutively nodded her head. ‘’It would be a waste to not put these perfectly fine VHS tapes onto use.’’ 

‘’And, I suppose you just happen to have a VHS player idly lounging around inside your suitcase?’’ Everett spun around as he questioned, voice filled with mockery.

‘’ No, but I'll figure something out.’’ 

‘’What do we do with all those tapes until then?’’ Nana examined the overwhelming amount of boxes as her eyes darted around the group.

‘’Nothing, we simply leave them.’’ Niccolo stated simply. ‘’You seriously don’t expect us to take them, do you?’’ he gave Nana a coy, charming smile as the girl spun around and giggled.

Everett stared at the pair with profuse aversion. Who does Niccolo think he is to be flirting with his sister? He’s been observing them, ever since Niccolo had met Nana, he found it exceedingly difficult to focus when they were in the same room; never mind room, radius, in fact! He found it repulsive that his roommate was trying to get with his sister right in front of him. The pair continued to chat and laugh nearby, pure bile boiled within Everett, can’t they just stop? It was an abominable scene to witness. He despised the thought of his roommate dating his sister. He supposed Niccolo was a player; he was flirtatious with every breathing, walking, talking organism, every other day he would be swooning another girl. He did not wish for his sister to be sombre and grieving for when he does eventually lose interest. 

‘’Why do you look so distressed? C’mon now,  help me climb up.’’ Gwendolyn lightly smacked Everett’s arm withdrawing him from his disruptive thoughts.

‘’No way, you are not putting your grimy shoes anywhere near my uniform.’’ Everett stared at her with incredulity as he looked utterly appalled. ‘’Ask Niccolo, his uniform is always filthy anyway.’’ 

‘’It is not?’’ Niccolo, having heard his name piped up at the insult. Nonetheless, he did help Gwendolyn climb up like the gentleman that he was. Once she was up she scurried to find a ladder, or anything that could be of remote help to get them all out.

Niccolo and Nana resumed to laugh and talk, their conversation was easy-going and smooth. Everett stood at the side with his arms crossed. Nana continued to babble away as he turned around and locked eyes with Everett. Everett gave him such a cold, impassive stare, that Niccolo couldn’t help but turn around. He felt judged and uncomfortable. So much so, that he simply stopped engaging in the conversation with Nana all together. 

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

In the early hours of night Everett hogged the bathroom before Niccolo got the chance. He stood under water which felt scorching in contrast to his chilled skin. The day had been windy and numbing. Silky drops of water cascaded down his hair and face as he stared at his feet. Leisurely, he glanced at his hip; a rather displeasing bruise had begun to form, it painted his side with a faint hue of bluish-purple colours. It appeared that violence followed him even after he had left the confining premises of the house. Lightly, he traced his fingertips along the bruise; it sent an electrifying sting that travelled through his body. A heavy pant escaped his gaping mouth. Everett’s eyebrows came to a halt, it hadn’t exactly hurt. In a sense, it felt oddly satisfying. Again, he grazed his fingertips a bit more firmly into the bruise. This time a wince escaped his tightly clamped lips. At this point he was panting, Everett pressed his head against the tiled wall as he let the cool surface clear up his clouded mind.

Why in the Lord’s name does something like that feel good. Everett shivered. He was surely going to hell.

A while later, he lay half sat up in his bed reading, 'The Catcher In The Rye’ he had merely got to page twenty before he began to dislike the protagonist. He was depressive, hypocritical and highly cynical. Moreover, he found it quite difficult to understand the slang and dialect. Whenever one of the main characters spoke he had to flick to numerous pages in the dictionary in order to decipher what ‘dough’ or  ‘phony’ meant. Niccolo was hoarding the desk as he consecutively bounced his foot making the chair creak and rattle. It aggravated Everett greatly as he attempted to focus on his fruitless read. Nonetheless, he considered himself a man of literature and did not give up on his read. 

For a while he stared at nothing as a multitude of questions swerved around in his thunderous mind. Why was there a hatch in the props room and why was it disguised so well? Were those perhaps confiscated movies from other students throughout the years? But no, that would make sense, there had been movies there which had been released earlier this year. Perchance, it was for the Professors to watch something for when they got bored? However, it still seemed illogical; the room looked like no one had cleaned it in the past decade. So why were there relatively new movies there? Do Professors even have spare time? Everett groaned as he tossed the book carelessly on the floor next to him. He’ll pick it up in the morning when he isn't as agitated. With a soft thump on the pillows he shifted.

Niccolo stopped rattling the chair as he hesitantly peered at Everett. He was turned away from him and ready to go to sleep. Niccolo felt a pang of disappointment that his roommate wasn’t going to help with any of his school work and assignments, maybe he had grown spoiled to the persistent help.

‘’Hey Everett?’’ Niccolo paused to lick his lips. ‘’Will you help me with my essay on economics?’’ 

‘’To hell with that.’’ Everett called out with hostility, clearly uninterested. It appeared that it would be a rather long night for Niccolo. He wasn’t sure what he had done to irritate Everett so much, but he desperately needed to get back on his good side.

Chapter Text

In the tranquil stillness of the night, stirring disrupted the quiet hours of darkness. Slowly, Everett’s eyelids opened as he blinked with impending drowsiness. The soft glow of the moonlight awakened his senses as it filtered through the curtains which were left ajar for Niccolo’s sake. The room was cloaked in shadows, it felt both familiar and foreign, its crevices and furniture distorted by the dim moonlight. 

Everett blinked his sleep-ridden fatigue away as he drew in a deep breath. Filling his lungs with oxygen that seemed to ache with the effort. His heart, which was previously lulled by the gentle rhythms of rest, began to beat with a slightly quicker pace which was more wary of its surroundings. There was an awareness of the body lying still, every sensation amplified by the silence that pressed in from all sides. Everett was not entirely sure why he had woken up; the room seemed to be in utter silence as he cocked his ear to listen. 

There! 

Everett jerked upright in his bed as he cocked his head this time to the faint noise. A grinding noise to be precise. Something was grinding; almost like a herb grinder. However, the noise barely stayed for over a second. It was soft and difficult to decipher where exactly the repetitive noise was coming from. Everett remained sat up in his bed for what felt like hours as he forced himself to solemnly concentrate on catching the perpetrator who was disrupting his sleep. 

Perhaps, he was deranged. Perhaps, there was no noise. Perhaps, he requires a visit to the doctor. He highly hoped that that wasn’t the case; otherwise, that would be a serious cause for concern.

He peeked over at his roommate. Niccolo had finished his assignment faster than what Everett had anticipated. Whether that be from giving up or simply understanding the assignment quicker than usual. Frankly, Everett did not care. Niccolo was stirring in his sleep, maybe he also heard the aggravating noise which tugged on his nerves subconsciously. There he heard it again! Everett stood up on bare feet, his eyes still glued on Niccolo, he stared at him.

The grinding noise was coming from him. Niccolo was grinding his teeth in his sleep. He was gently turning his head, as if grimacing at a particularly sour memory. Soft yet sharp puffs of air made their way out through his nose as he turned.

Everett stared at him exasperated. His sleep is getting severely disturbed. He will be drowsy and groggy in the morning, and it would be solemnly Niccolo’s fault. His eyebrows pitched  as he opened his mouth to speak.

‘’Shut up.’’ Everett uttered out apathetically. He waited a few seconds, however the message did not seem to sink in. ‘’shut up.’’ he spoke out clearly this time. No difference. ‘’I told you to shut up!’’ he struck Niccolo on the arm as hard as he possibly could. With a soft groan, his roommate appeared to still; for a few very long minutes Everett just stared at him.

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

At breakfast, Everett sat expressionless next to Denice, his head heavily supported by his hand as he had his hand positioned on the underside of his jaw. He lazily peaked at his full plate. For the past week he couldn’t seem to muster up the appetite to properly eat, a few bites and he would already feel satiated and frankly quite ill. Sometimes, he would not believe that he was worthy enough of having breakfast or dinner all together. If he had performed poorly in class or on an assessment, he believed then that he simply was not deserving of going to bed full. The food looked tasteless and minging anyhow. It was no loss in his opinion.

Suddenly, Everett was whisked out of his murky thoughts by loud thumping footsteps which were approaching him, worryingly fast. He glanced up and noticed his bulky older cousin nearing him as a sly devilish grin stretched the corners of his mouth side to side. Everett feared that an earthquake might come upon them with the vigour that his cousin was approaching.

‘’Everett, Nana my favourite baby cousins; what a fine morning it is, don’t you agree?’’ Roscoe slammed his palm on Everett’s back repeatedly as though he was patting him, however it felt more like his older cousin was trying to wind him.

‘’What do you want.’’ Everett ignored his cousin's attempt to spite him as he felt the underside of his eye involuntarily twitch.

‘’Don’t be such a spoilsport, prefects are delivering mail.’’ he paused. ‘’of course, if you are loved enough to receive any, that is.’’

‘’And I presume, you are loved enough?’’ Everett questioned indifferently as he felt someone boot him in the shin underneath the table. His eyebrow twitched as he saw his sister penetrating through him with such a disapproving look, that he might as well begin calling her Mother.

‘’And this is why I've always liked Nana more than you.’’ he dashed them each a letter as he bore them adieu with much discontentment. 

‘’I thought you said that you didn’t know him?’’ Niccolo instantaneously spoke up as he eyed Everett with bewilderment.

‘’I don’t.’’ 

For a while Everett stared at the sealed envelope; for the first time in weeks he felt a rush of anticipation course through his nerves like an electric impulse. His parents had finally decided to check up on him. And his sister, of course. The envelope was crystal white and sealed with crimson wax which had an imprint of the family's slogan.

‘’It’s a relief they haven’t forgotten about us.’’ Everett glanced at his twin as she had already opened her letter.

‘’What are you talking about? I’ve been receiving mail every other day.’’ his sister gave him a puzzled look as she tilted her head sideways to stare at him. Everett felt his grin disappearing as he registered his sister's words. She has been receiving mail every other day? This was the first time in weeks since he had talked with either of his guardians. He stared at Nana expressionless.

‘’Forget I ever said anything.’’ Everett returned to opening his letter as he turned away.

Dear Everett,

I hope that you and Nana are integrating well into your new environment. I have been wondering for a while now how you two are; I sincerely wish for the pair of you to excel academically as inspiring individuals. Perhaps one day, I hope to see your name in the newspapers, much like Mr. Leland! Afterall, I have been with the Leland household since before Madame Leland was even pregnant. I have witnessed your parents achieve great things. Great things indeed. My boy, the house has been so lonesome and vacant without your presence and young Miss Leland. 

I simply cannot wait for the Christmas Holidays when you come back. I have been praying to The Lord that the pair of you are doing well and that no one bothers you with infantile matters. I would love to receive your letter once in a while, old Edna has been feeling quite forlorn as of late. You know just how quiet the house can get.

Have you been eating well? Have you found any trustworthy friends? How are the older children treating you and Miss Leland? This, I'm afraid, isn't even a fraction of all the multitudinous amount of questions that I wish to ask you. Now my child, I do not wish to waste your precious time too much; I know how much you younglets cherish it!

Love, Edna

Everett stared at the succinct letter with a deep tingling sense of disappointment. Of course, he was happy that someone bothered and cared enough to write to him; however, he had expected a letter from his Mother or Father at least. Afterall, they wanted him to be their ultimate successor and keeper of their wealth. However, they could not even be bothered enough to write one, singular letter to him? How come his sister gets letters every other day? Everett’s jaw clenched as pure bile threatened to spill out. 

Hurriedly, he stood up and without a word to anyone, Everett evacuated himself from the Main Hall before he lashed out at anyone unfortunate enough to cross paths with him. He choked back bitter enraged tears which were accumulating at an alarming rate. He is the successor. He is the more competent one. Not her. It was never about her. 

Everett pushed back his tears and the overwhelming desire to vanish off of the planet and decided to compose himself instead of looking piteous. He hadn’t an idea where he was going, he just needed to go somewhere. He sauntered over to the nearest bin and ripped the letter to shreds so that it was utterly impossible to piece it back to its original state.

‘’Evie,’’ a soft female voice called out, ’'what’s the matter with you?’’ it was none other than his sister’s. She questioned him softly; tentatively. How hadn’t he heard her when she was trailing right behind him?

Her brother slowly turned around to scowl at her. To Nana, he looked exhausted and thinner than he’d ever looked. She wondered what she did wrong. ‘’Go back, I just need some time to be alone.’’ her brother ordered in an authoritarian voice which significantly reminded Nana of their Father. She stood slightly hunched, but nonetheless determined and fidgeted with her fingernails. She wondered how to go about this whole ordeal so that Everett didn’t erupt.

‘’Evie, tell me what’s bothering you, have I done something wrong? Is it about the whole letter thing?’’ she began but was very quickly drowned out.

‘’You stupid girl, how many times have I told you to not call me that demeaning joke of a name. Keep out of matters that do not require you, nor your input.’’ he half shouted at her, it echoed in the desolate grand hallway. A bewildered hurt look washed over Nana’s eloquent soft features. She knew that this would be the end result, however she still held onto that flickering light of hope. She looked at her brother for a moment before taking a deep breath of deep disappointment as she turned around to walk away. Afterall, where she was not required, she would not intervene. Since when did her brother turn into such a cold, unfeeling human? Her brother. 

The remainder of the day went smoothly enough. Everett, however, found it hard to concentrate on any of the subjects at hand. At economics he would think about his Parents disapproval and disappointment, at sociology he thought about his lashing out at his poor sister, at English he would be ridden with guilt, at mathematics he thought about anything else other than maths. Denice had obviously tried to help him, but it was fruitless.

Once the last bell of the day rang, Everett raced straight up to his dorm, he swallowed down guilt and vexation which simply wouldn’t leave him. He ignored the fact that he would be missing an entire after school lecture; however, today had been too bad of a day. The moment he got inside of his dorm he tossed his school blazer onto the chair next to the desk, bag aside onto the floor, scattering a variety of different textbooks all over the dilapidated yet polished floor. Everett collapsed onto his bed with a disgruntled groan. He curled into a ball-like shape as he buried his face deep into his pillow, with a substantial amount of shallow breaths, he finally managed to succumb to the pleasant, familiar state of sleep. 

Instantaneously, Everett was yanked out of his slumber by some sort of a nightmare. In all honesty, it was undecipherable; the nightmare contained so many different fractions of negative emotions and accounts that they simply merged into one big ball of fear. The centre of the nightmare consisted of a faceless figure which lacked any sort of identification, it stretched its hand out to grab him as it laughed in a mocking, jejune manner. The second Everett had begun to feel as though he was going to pass out from  being suffocated, that’s when his eyelids fluttered open. He inhaled sharply like a drowning man beseeching for air for a few moments before getting up. The room by now was pitch black and the only source of light happened to be the dim moonlight which came… from an open window?

Everett hurriedly rubbed his eyes and forced them to adjust. The chilled autumn breeze rushed into the room stealing their warmth. At the window closest to the desk, the curtains gently swayed askew  as Everett saw Niccolo perched up on top of the desk leisurely smoking a fag. Being the son of a doctor you’d think that he would know the health risks that came with smoking.

Niccolo glanced at Everett who was visibly leering at him, ‘’Oh hey, you’re awake.’’ he shot him a sincere smile; in the dim moonlight his metallic braces gleamed and his crooked teeth peaked out.  

Everett remained silent as he recollected his composure, he calmly stood up and made his way over to the desk where he also perched himself up and sat on the opposite side of the miniature window. He stared at the vast hills and scattered cottage houses up ahead which were covered in a blanket of darkness for a few silent moments. 

‘’Don’t you dare tell an adult that I smoke.’’ Niccolo shot him a trenchant look which could only be described as threatening.

‘’Don’t plan to.’’ Everett mumbled out, unbothered. He stared up ahead expressionless, not a single thought concealed itself behind that head of his. A gentle gust of wind ruffled his untamed locks which seemed impossibly silky. A long pause of silence lapped between the pair before Everett finally spoke once again.

‘’Does it feel nice?’’ he finally asked in a croaky bed-ridden voice. ‘’You know, smoking.’’ he gave Niccolo the same impassive look as he locked eyes with him.

‘’Hm, it doesn’t taste like sweets if that’s what you’re asking.’’ he chuckled ‘’quite bitter actually.’’ 

‘’I’ve only ever tried a cigar. It wasn’t the best experience.’’ Everett grimaced at the memory.

Hesitantly, he stretched his hand towards Niccolo and beckoned him to give him the cigarette. Niccolo did. Everett inhaled with determination just to cough all the smoke out within a second. The smoke scratched and irritated his throat and made his eyes water unpleasantly. 

‘’Pft, try again. That was horrendous.’’ Niccolo smirked at Everett who just scowled in response and continued to fervently suck on the cigarette. After a few more futile drags, Everett finally began to get the gist of it. On the other hand, Niccolo lit himself a new cigarette. 

‘’I didn’t take you as the smoking type.’’ Niccolo finally spoke up after a prolonged minute of silence.

‘’I’m not.’’

 A long silence lapped between them. For a while neither of them said anything, they just exchanged glances from time to time and watched the tranquil scenery of the sleeping town. The more Niccolo looked at Everett the more he absorbed how handsome he really was; Everett had a defined jawline, plump lips and a pair of gorgeous deep set grey eyes, it’s no wonder that Nana’s friends were always looking and talking about him. Suddenly, the wall mounted grandfather clock quietly chimed three times which signified that it was officially midnight. Whenever Everett did sleep, the melodic chime always drove him up the wall as he was quite a light sleeper. At times, he even considered smashing the clock with a particularly firm hardcover book.

‘’How’s your day been, bello ?’’ Niccolo grinned at the last word. Everett did not have a clue as to what it meant; he certainly did not speak Italian. However, he presumed it was some sort of insult which affected him more than it should have. 

The familiar lump from a few hours ago began to form in his throat and choke him up. No matter how many times he tried to swallow it away, it simply wouldn’t leave. Everett casted his eyes down towards his hands as he hid his shameful, glossy, watery eyes away.

‘’Fine.’’ a mumble escaped him which disguised a million different emotions. He felt his lips clamp downwards as previous, ignored emotions resurfaced and threatened to spill. Everett lifted an unsteady hand as he brought it up to his face. 

Unexpectedly, he felt Niccolo shift over next to him as a hesitant broad hand settled on his back as it rubbed soothing circles with just the right pressure. The movement was unrushed and delicate, almost as if it were testing the waters first. Still looking down, Everett saw that Niccolo had aligned himself next to him. Warmth radiated off of Niccolo which calmed Everett a bit now that he wasn’t completely freezing in his jumper vest and long sleeve shirt. Niccolo softly mumbled a plethora of reassurances as he gently rocked them to and fro. Everett clamped his eyes shut and bit his lower lip in a futile attempt to contain his volatile emotions which threatened to combust out of him any second. 

A few moments later he tentatively put his head on Niccolo’s shoulder. Niccolo couldn’t see his roommates face for sure but he could sense the slight jerks of his back and his shaky breathing. He thought it would be for the best if he simply did not say anything. He continued to lull Everett just like how his Mamma used to when he was sombre or afraid of something. 

Last night Niccolo had an odd dream last night that a distant voice was telling him to ‘ shut up ’. The voice sounded oddly familiar and yet so foreign. He supposed it was his inner subconsciousness telling that he talked too much and that others didn’t really want to listen to him all the time. Nonetheless, he brushed the dream off and deemed it to be spazzatura . He had never been self conscious in his life, nor did he see why he should start now.

‘’Don’t be upset. Tomorrow is a new day. Tomorrow you will have all the time in the world to make peace with those who you’ve wronged.’’ Niccolo paused for a moment, ‘’the bravest thing that you can do as of now is to apologise.’’ Niccolo seemed to know what Everett was upset about, and it frustrated him even more that his sister was telling him.

Everett didn’t know for how long they sat like that; with Niccolo’s arm around him whispering comforting words and phrases, but it was for sure, the most congenial comfort that he had ever received in his entire life.

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

Kakaw, kakaw, kakaw!

That God forsaken clock! Everett’s eyes instantaneously flew open accompanied by a jerk of his shoulders. A frown obscured his tranquil, youthful features. He had woken up in his bed, he doesn’t exactly recall when he had gotten into it since, last night he was half delirious with eruptive emotions and nicotine. Everett planted himself on his elbows as he saw Niccolo hoarding the desk completing assigned work from a few days ago and postponed revision. Everett vigorously rubbed his eyes in an attempt to rid his never ending drowsiness. 

‘’What in God’s name are you doing up? It’s hardly half six.’’ Everett scoffed.

‘’Aren’t you a bundle of sunlight? How are you feeling?’’ Niccolo spun around on the creaky, tarnished chair as he faced the still, exhausted Everett.

‘’Fine.’’ a monotone reply exited the somnolent boy who was gathering his uniform and already sauntering over to the bathroom. 

For the remainder of the morning, Everett and Niccolo didn’t talk. Neither of them wanted to talk about the events of last night, Everett felt ashamed of his piteous behaviour and Niccolo simply didn’t know what to make of his roommates behaviour. Deciphering the nature of Everett Leland had to be one of the top ten human mysteries of all times. One moment he would be lashing out and acting solemnly based on spite, and another moment he would be weeping cradled in someone's arms. Niccolo wondered if Everett had Borderline Personality Disorder; but he had never seen or talked with someone who had a Personality Disorder, so he could not say for sure, he simply assumed so because of his emotional dysregulation and unsatisfiable mood. 

Back in Italy, his Padre had a lot of cases with mentally unstable people. He was always diagnosing someone with something. His Padre would sometimes talk about his cases and the type of illnesses that he had to deal with, so even when he pretended to not listen to his Padre, some information still did creep in and embed itself onto his subconsciousness. Niccolo stared at Everett from a neighbouring table midway through breakfast. 

He vowed to understand the strange case of Everett Leland and why he insisted on being such a pain in everyone's carcass.

Nana and Everett did eventually make up after a few (rather awkward) silent group meetings. It was rather unfortunate, Nana was a pure heart and found it exceedingly hard to hold grudges against anyone, which was peculiar considering her relatives and bloodline. Everett however, found it quite hard to own up to his mistakes and to muster up the courage and to seek forgiveness. 

Early October rolled around, the sky was often cloaked in a thick, unbroken layer of grey clouds, diffusing the sunlight into a muted, dim glow that barely pierced during the day. The trees, stripped of their vibrant leaves, stand as dark silhouettes against the overcast sky, their bare branches reached out like skeletal fingers as unmerciful gusts of wind swayed them to and fro. 

Everett sat in maths class utterly spiritless. Professor Maxwell was passionately talking them through a cosine rule question which seemed to stumble the majority of the class. Denice hadn’t thought that time could go so inexorably slow before as she glanced at Everett’s work from time to time; just to make sure that she was along the right track with her questions. Plus he didn’t mind so it was okay. Everett’s working out and answers were horrifyingly  sloppy for someone who thought so highly of himself. It looked as though he had used his non-dominant hand whilst wearing a blindfold. She grimaced at the scattered numbers along Everett’s page.

Gwendolyn and Nana’s performance was no more than two weeks away, and as promised Everett and Denice were going to go and support them through it. Denice had looked away for a few minutes just to notice Maxwell handing out papers. Their trigonometry tests. 

‘’You know, as long as I receive half or over– I'm fine.’’ Denice piped up as she gave Everett a look of approval.

‘’Gosh, don’t you have great expectations for yourself.’’ he mocked her whilst chuckling. Clearly, he wasn’t surrounding himself with people too ambitious. His parents would have a fit if they met Denice. However, they weren’t here, were they?

‘’Leland, you came second to first, very well done considering that you don’t pay attention half the time.’’ Maxwell handed him his paper as a vibrant red pen circled 37/40. ‘’And next time please make your working out more clear, or I'll grade you down for imprecision.’’ Maxwell gave him a pointed look.

‘’Who the hell got first?’’ Denice and Everett scanned the class but no one seemed to be boasting; for now.

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

After their compulsory one hour revision after the last bell of the day, Denice and Everett made their way to the generously sized theatre and the Drama Department. They pushed the firm, grand wooden doors wide open to the theatre, they creaked with great antiquity as the sound resonated through the desolate auditorium like a chilling crescendo. The lights were dimmed and it was overall quite dark. The pair gave each other a sceptical look as not a trace of Nana nor Gwendolyn could be seen.

‘’Ladies first.’’ Everett half jokingly outstretched his hand, signalling for her to go in front. In all fairness, he had never liked the Athenaeum. Particularly the one in St. Louis, there was just this rather odd sensation whenever you walked into it.

‘’Is this your way of telling me that you’re a scaredy cat?’’ Denice scoffed dismissively as made her way down the slim carpeted path.

‘’Please, I’ve got the heart of a lion.’’ Everett frowned at her rolling his eyes.

‘’I’m sure you do mate, don’t worry.’’  They made their way over to the prop room where they assumed Nana and Gwendolyn were, but when they got there they saw the polished dark wood door covered in explicit signs that read ,’DO NOT ENTER ’ or ‘ OUT OF SERVICE’. 

Everett stared at the signs with evident confusion. He stood motionless, stuck in place, Denice nonchalantly disregarded the vibrant yellow tape and proceeded to try and  rattle the door handle. 

In a flash, someone roared with great emotion whilst flinging themselves onto Everett as he stumbled out of balance and proceeded to yelp in the process. He whipped his head around and noticed a fierce bush of untamed black curls press against his face, as if, trying to suffocate him. He instantly recognised that it was Gwendolyn.

‘’God, what is your problem, you scared me half to death.’’ Everett scowled, but he wasn’t particularly annoyed. After a while of knowing Gwendolyn, she turned out to be tolerable enough (sometimes) and didn’t pester him as much as she had at the beginning of September. Everett gently shifted her off of him.

‘’Finally, took you two a while.’’

‘’What’s up with the prop room?’’ Denice pointed a limp finger at the door which evidently wasn’t going to budge anytime soon.

‘’No idea, we got here a few minutes ago and also tried rattling the door handle, but it was useless.’’ Nana shrugged dismissively, clearly not contemplating it too much.

‘’So we’ve no way of opening it?’’ Denice interjected as she glanced from person to person expectantly.

‘’Unless one of you can pick locks, I see no reason why we should stay here.’’ Everett rolled his eyes whilst tapping his foot impatiently. 

Suddenly, Gwendolyn gasped dramatically as her hands flew to her head. She pulled out a bobby pin which seamlessly came out of nowhere and started to deform the fragile metal until it became vaguely straight. Everett looked at her hair, which appeared to look no different than it did when she had the pin in; frankly, he didn’t know why she bothered pinning her hair if it made no difference.

‘’ du Klugscheißer! ’’ Gwendolyn cheered, visibly ecstatic. Everett noted that this was the first ever time he had heard her speak her native language. He himself was purely relieved that his parents hadn’t forced him to learn German. Otherwise, he might have imploded. 

‘’What?’’ 

‘’Don’t worry about it, now, move aside and let me handle it.’’ a self assured grin plastered itself onto Gwendolyn’s face as she busied herself with twisting the bobby pin around with precise dexterity. ‘’Just watch, we’ll be in that door within seconds.

Fifteen minutes later, Gwendolyn is still vigorously battling with the deteriorating door lock. She has gotten so irked that at this point, she is occasionally swearing quietly under her breath in a mixture of German and English, she had tied her hair in a rather untamed bun that clearly had a mind of its own and did not fancy staying up. Everett, Nana and Denice have sat down all around as they waited for Gwendolyn and occasionally sighed.

‘’I thought that we were going to be in that room within seconds.’’ Everett interrupted the silence that seemed to lap around the auditorium with transparent vexation now.

‘’You come and do it then!’’ Gwendolyn snapped at him exasperated. The pair proceeded to bicker across each other. Jeers and taunts echoed around the tranquil theatre. Everett was mimicking Gwendolyn as he sat slouched in a chair, hands crossed as Gwendolyn threw an occasional vulgar hand gesture at him. With a final slur of finality, Gwendolyn booted the firm oak door quite hard on the verge of rage quitting; just then, something cracked. 

‘’Don’t boot the door down!’’ Nana jumped up alarmed as she hesitantly scanned for any cameras.

Gwendolyn paused momentarily, as though contemplating something; she rattled the door handle with vigorous aggressiveness as the door proceeded to be locked but the hinges appeared slightly askew. With a deep inhale, she booted the door a second time, but harder and after a few futile attempts of kicking and propelling, surely the door flew open but so did Gwendolyn accompanied by a yelp.

‘’Well, she did open it like she promised.’’ Denice jumped off of the floor and headed into the prop room along with Nana and Everett. The prop room looked exactly as they had left it a week ago. Chairs still in the same spot, costumes scattered around on the wardrobe rod limply hanging off of hangers, play props littering each corner of the moderately sized room. It was simply illogical as to why they would shut it down.

Nana rushed to Gwendolyn’s aid as she helped her back to her feet and sat her down on a chair, ‘’Gwen, are you okay?’’ Nana hurriedly questioned her with great concern ridden in her voice.

‘’My toes hurt.’’ Gwendolyn grumbled out, dispirited as she massaged her right foot.

‘’Naturally.’’ Everett glanced at her appalled. 

He spun around to scan for the hatch in the floor where he had fallen through the previous week. Everett circled the room and tentatively pushed the discreet hatch with a single leg; he was clearly disturbed from his last encounter with the hatch. However, it didn’t seem to budge. At least, not with the weight of a single leg, It’s almost as if someone had purposefully boarded and locked the prop room up. Sceptical, Everett beckoned over a guinea pig. 

‘’Denice, stand right here.’’ he pointed to the floor, the hatch itself was pretty well disguised. You could not tell that there was an inbuilt hatch into the floor unless you gave it a thorough close inspection.

‘’Why?’’ 

‘’Oh, no reason.’’ Everett smiled innocently, when the group told Denice that they found a stack of VHS tapes a while ago, they never exactly specified where the hatch was or that it was prone to unexpected breakage; therefore, she didn't know that the slim, miniscule door was right beneath her. Denice stood in front of Everett, facing him, both legs steadily on top of the hatch. She glanced around bewildered as her fair eyebrows came to a halt. The floor then suddenly creaked, menacingly close to them.

‘’Everett, what’s the po–’’ like magic, Denice also tumbled through the floor with a shriek. A strange sense of Déjà vu penetrated Everett as the hatch noisily snapped open as the metal structures around the wooden hatch banged against poles underneath the abused floorboards, which kept the floor from collapsing. Sawdust and soot travelled up to the surface like an invading colony as Denice coughed through a dense sheet of dust particles. Nana and Gwendolyn also gasped at the commotion nearby as they rushed beside Everett.

‘’What the hell, you arsehole?!’’ Gwendolyn screeched at him, as she swatted him as hard as she could on the arm. ‘’She could've been seriously hurt.'' Gwendolyn proceeded to nag at him exasperated. However, Everett remained unphased. 

‘’Works like magic each time.’’ Everett smiled to himself self-assured as he scanned the room for a ladder nearby. 

Chapter Text

They’ve been found out. Well, not literally. But they have been found out. 

Everett spent a significant fraction of his days in the library where he busied himself with English Literature and Language. Frankly, he had no clue how he was supposed to pass his English GCSE when the most that he achieved was a D. The ever growing, looming dread of ‘A Christmas Carol’ and ‘Macbeth’ will certainly haunt him for the next two years.

Everett sat in a stiff oak chair which rattled frustratingly as he continuously bounced his leg. He was situated at a miniscule, polished table which matched the mahogany hue of his chair. Opposite him was Niccolo who was preoccupied with scratching away, scrambling to finish his essay on Sociology and how Marxist sociologists argue that families continue to perform a key role in maintaining capitalism. The table that they were at was so incredibly compact that only a handful of textbooks and stationery could fit on it.  Football practice had been cancelled due to wuthering, appalling weather. The rain outside could only be described as minacious. Thunder would surely follow within the next hour. 

He only agreed to help his roommate with his coursework solely because he abhorred the idea of Niccolo spending time alone with his sister. He highly doubted that they would do anything, however, something deep in his gut stirred at the thought of them together giggling and laughing. He was simply looking out for his sister, he didn’t want anyone to take advantage of her.

The vibrant colours of the grand stained glass window which was positioned in the middle of the grandiose, démodé athenaeum. Intricate designs carved Mother Mary into the window with curved yet pointed pieces which captured her sombre, forlorn expression. The coruscating multitude of colours appeared to have lost its spark, reflecting the current weather. It illuminated the saint in a dismal manner as livid droplets of rain pounded onto the glass.

Everett’s leg began to bounce more viciously as he recalled when he was in the prop room a few days ago. All the boxes with the tapes had vanished. Not a single box nor tape was left. Unsurprisingly, it had been Gwendolyn’s fault, in the spur of the moment she admitted to having swiped a couple of cassettes when they had first stumbled across them; for when she got herself a VHS player, of course. Because the boxes would disappear, as if  by magic if she hadn't gotten her grubby, purloining, itching hands–

‘’Everett.’’ Niccolo softly spoke, whisking him out of his internal turmoil as he paused, ‘’you’re rattling the table so much. I can’t write.’’

‘’Excuse me.’’ he gritted out, Gwendolyn’s insolent actions were still freshly engraved into his mind. Frankly, he wasn’t bothered about what happened to the cassettes. He was bothered about what would happen to him if an adult had found them snooping about. Intentional or not. 

‘’Gesù Cristo, if you’re that hot and bothered about some cassettes we can go out this weekend to the VHS store and get you some.’’ 

‘’That’s so not the point.’’ Everett sighed exasperated. 

‘’Pft, what then? Are you annoyed that you might have missed a stash of the best  pornographic films ever buried somewhere amongst the other cassettes?’’ Niccolo teased him as he gently nudged him with the edge of his shoe, evidently trying to lift Everett’s mood which was now as foul as the weather outside.

‘’One, that’s vile, you swine; and two, still not the point.’’

‘’What is the point then?’’  Niccolo questioned him with that same quiet, monotone voice once again. 

For a second Everett just looked at him. Niccolo sat opposite, yet so close to him that Everett could make out the exact shade of green in his hazel eyes. Neither of them broke eye contact as Everett processed the situation. 

‘’Tsk, nothing.’’ Everett dismissed the conversation as he gathered his blazer and school bag and evacuated out of the library. 

Everett needed to spend time with someone who he knew, someone who he could have his guard down around. Someone whose presence was so humble that you wouldn’t even realise that they were in the same room with you. Someone whose very presence calmed and soothed you. What other person could he go to, but his sister? The situation with Nana appeared to be resolved on the surface, however, he knew deep down that she was still hurting. 

He feels immense guilt whenever he manages to wrong someone who least deserves it. It's like a dull ache which sets in his ribcage and simply refuses to leave. Guilt is a burden which weighs down on his heart and mind. It started as a gnawing sensation in the centre of his very heart, an uncomfortable tightness that spreads and tightens his chest, making every breath feel slightly  laboured. His mind became a whirlwind of regret, replaying the moment of wrongdoing over and over, each repetition more torturous than the last. 

It is hard experiencing guilt when you have such a time apologising for it. Truthfully, his apology had been quite pathetic, it consisted of a simple ‘sorry’ which was masked behind a façade of apathy and nonchalance. 

Everett lay on Nana’s bed half perched up as he examined the stolen cassettes. They had already been taken, there was no point in lamenting over it. What was done was done, if everyone that Everett had wronged were to keep a grudge against him then there would be no people left within the diameter willing to talk to him. 

Everett flicked through the cassettes with a clear lack of interest. He primarily wanted to know if Gwendolyn had nicked any good films, worthy of being caught for. It appeared that she had swiped anything in hindsight. There were some films that he recognised such as; Friday the 13th, The Shining, IT and a bunch he didn’t recognise. As he was flicking through the cassettes, he stumbled across one that lacked a paper cover and on the side, someone had written with a thick black marker, ‘PROTO’. 

‘Proto’? What does that mean? As in prototype? Would this be a prototype of a film? But what sense would it make for the institution to own a prototype of an unreleased film? Surely that had to be illegal due to copyright, even then, how does someone manage to find the raw footage of an unreleased film. That would cause the producer to lose thousands of pounds, if not, millions if it was released to the public. Everett flipped the tape from left to right, and right to left as he stared at it bewildered, his eyebrows came to a halt forming an evident frown. Nana and Gwendolyn were preoccupied with their own doings as they mindlessly chatted away the evening. The archaic clock arrows struck seven twenty-eight. 

‘’Gwendolyn?’’ Everett waited for her to acknowledge him as he questioned, ‘’what is this cassette?’’ He tossed the cassette towards Gwendolyn who caught it mid-air and much like himself, also inspected the tape for a second before pausing to look at him.

‘’What’ve you done with the covering?’’

‘’There was none. Can’t you read? In bold it quite literally says, ‘PROTO’. Everett stared at Gwendolyn, evidently appalled at her simplistic response. 

‘’Well no Sherlock, really? Wouldn’t have noticed if you hadn’t told me.’’ Everett continued to stare at her in silence through his eyebrows as he waited for her to continue. ‘’If we had a player then we would’ve been able to play it but, alas.’’ she shrugged dismissively as she tossed the cassette back onto the bed.

Everett exhaled with disappointment. If Gwendolyn, who seemed to have an answer, excuse or explanation for anything, couldn’t help then what chance did he face?  He silently examined the cassette once again. But after a little while, Nana asked thoughtfully, ‘’why don’t you two try the Computer rooms? They have all sorts of computers, players, radios and who knows what else in there.’’

‘’That’s… ‘’ Everett began carefully, ‘’actually not a bad idea.’’ his eyebrows came to a curious halt as he looked over at Gwendolyn, raising an eyebrow.

‘’It’s not a bad idea, but it’s practically impossible.’’ Gwendolyn scoffed as she resumed to plait her hair, rather poorly and loosely with great trouble.

‘’Why's that?’’

‘’The teachers love those crappy, run-down computers from the seventy’s more than their wages, I swear to God. The computer rooms are always locked unless a teacher is teaching or supervising a lesson. Plus, only year twelve and thirteen are allowed in there when they’re being taught statistics or writing an essay based on worldwide news and information. It’s useless.’’ she tied off her plait as she stood up and looked at Everett, waiting for his response.

‘’Perhaps, you ought to boot down the door. You seem to have a talent for it.’’ Everett replied with mock admiration. Everett brushed the cassette off, eventually he will be able to view it, it was just a matter of time when; he didn’t let it plague him too much.

‘’Piss out the dorm, you prat. We can talk again tomorrow once you actually have something useful to say.’’ Gwendolyn snorted as she ushered the boy out of the room. ‘’It’s quarter to eight anyway.’’ The trio said their goodnights as Everett went out of their dorm room.

The second that Everett was out of the cosy, welcoming dorm, he realised just how utterly dark and eerie the hallway really was. Not that, Everett was frightened of the darkness or anything, but it wasn’t exactly pleasant strolling down a poorly lit and desolate hallway in the soundless hours of the night. He glanced both left and right, pure nothingness engulfed the far sides of the hallway as he contemplated knocking on Nana and Gwendolyn’s door and asking for some sort of a light source. Afterall, he had quite a way to go before he eventually got to his dorm which was located on the West side of the vast institution.  Somewhere in the far distance, Everett heard something very much a solid thump and echo. The universe needn’t give him anymore warnings; with that, Everett spun around on his heels and desperately knocked on Nana and Gwendolyn’s dorm door. 

Everett settled with a pathetic scented candle, as it seemed that that was his best option. The miniature light source was appreciated nonetheless. It was either that or nothing at all, and he didn’t fancy walking in pitch blackness. Occasionally, fragments of moonlight would illuminate the vacant hallway from a nearby window. However, the light would vanish as swiftly as it had appeared. Thick masses of condensed water would obscure the moon, hence, leaving Everett in darkness once more. By the time he had reached the West side of the institution, he was practically sprinting. All composure within him had evaporated, he felt as though someone was following in close pursuit, but whenever he spun his head around there was nothing. He huffed with exertion as his hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway. By the time Everett had reached his dorm room his candle had lost its flame due to his running.

Everett slammed the door shut behind him as he proceeded to lock it. He did not dare look back in fear that there might actually be something there. He exhaled dramatically as he turned around and found his roommate looking at him quite puzzled.

‘’Have you been running? And why are you holding a candle?’’ Niccolo asked him in a curious tone. He was hoarding the desk once again, however there were no textbooks there. Only a blank piece of paper with some writing on it. Perhaps he was writing to his parents; that reminded Everett that he still hadn’t written back to Edna. If only he remembers what she had asked him in the letter. ‘’Also, that candle stinks, get rid of it. Cristo , lavender is not supposed to suffocate you.’’

‘’Shut up, it was the closest thing that I could get to a flashlight.’’ Everett scoffed at his roommate who was comfortably situated in his pyjamas.

‘’Where did you even go?’’ 

‘’Here and there, wouldn’t you like to know.’’ he snickered at Niccolo as he went over to see what he was doing. Everett prepped himself up on the desk as he inspected what his roommate was writing. It was in Italian and was indeed a letter. It read, ’cari mamma e papà’ he supposed the letter  was addressed to both of his parents.

‘’I can’t wait for the Christmas Holidays, I'll finally go back to Italy.’’ Niccolo sighed with anticipation. He leaned back on the stiff wooden desk chair as he peered up at Everett who was sitting on the edge of the rigid desk.

‘’I’ve only been in Rome, and it was for less than a week. My Father had some work to take care of, figured he would take and introduce me as his future successor.’’ Everett seemed to have a problem with only ever talking about himself. 

‘’Must be tough being the successor of such an upstanding important man.’’ Niccolo considered thoughtfully. 

‘’He’s tolerable, I hardly see my Father anyhow.’’ Everett squirmed uncomfortably on the desk now that the conversation was revolving around his parents.

‘’You’re lucky, and Nana, of course.’’ Niccolo began, ‘’you’ve nice parents, you live a good, comfortable life, you can have anything that you want and on top of that you’ll inherit a fat sum of money in the future.’’

Everett stared at Niccolo incredulously. Does he hear himself? His parents are the furthest thing from nice, his life is the furthest thing from comfortable and on top of that, he hardly gets what he wants. Niccolo doesn’t know about the panic ridden nights when Everett would be locked in a chilled, vacant room begging for hours on end to be let out. Niccolo doesn’t know how utterly frightened Everett is of his Parents and how much he dreads seeing them again. Back when Everett still lived at the Manor, in the dead hours of the night, he would be awake and fantasising; sometimes he wished that his mother would hurt him to the point of hospitalisation. if he was to get hospitalised then someone would at least come to visit him. Won't they? Maybe someone would come and nurture him back to his full health. He was ashamed to admit that he still had daydreams such as those to this day. Niccolo doesn’t know that it’s always been about what his Parents want from him and never what he wants. 

‘’Yeah. Sounds brilliant, doesn’t it?’’ Everett limply nodded his head looking away from Niccolo.

‘’I envy you.’’ the curly haired boy gave a swift snort as he stood up and walked over to his school bag.

Everett envied him too. He envied Niccolo so extraordinarily much that it hurt. He wanted the freedom and thoughtlessness that Niccolo had. He wanted to have parents that let him do whatever he wanted. He wanted to morph into an entirely different person altogether. 

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

It was already the end of October, however, the school remained coated in heavy Halloween decorations of hand carved pumpkins scattered around the institution, handmade garlands which dangled from the hallway ceilings and who knows what else. Everett and Nana never celebrated Halloween, their Parents always used to say that it was an ‘immature, money-wasting, excuse of a holiday’. Their house was never decorated with frightful monsters or dim flashing lights. He supposed that the marble statues of the weeping angels in his garden were enough of a fright, as they lurked there all year round. 

Nana and Gwendolyn’s performance had gone considerably well, it was on a Saturday at one post meridiem. Neither of them forgot any of their lines which Everett was quite disappointed by; he hoped to see at least one of them stumble and jumble up their words. In all honesty, the play was quite good. Everett couldn’t pry his eyes off of the stage. All of the actors did a fantastic job acting as well as, keeping the audience involved, he should go to plays more often, they were quite interesting. Nana and Gwendolyn had saved Everett, Denice and Niccolo seats at the very front where they observed every little detail of the play. Despite praying on someone to mess up their lines, Everett clapped the hardest for his sister and friend when the play ended. He clapped so vigorously that his palms were stinging and a dull red colour when he did eventually stop. 

To celebrate their success, Nana and Gwendolyn organised a little get together where a handful of their friends would assemble for a horror movie night. Everett’s eyebrows came to a halt then. A movie night? She needed a VHS Player for that; did that mean that Gwendolyn managed to find one? Everett jerked with excitement that very moment, he tried to be nonchalant about the mysterious cassette, however, he felt himself become slowly infatuated. He was in his dorm at this moment in time. After the play, everyone had ran off in their own ways, rushing to finish off any postponed work before the start of November. 

The haggard opaque curtain in his dorm swayed soothingly, occasionally swerving outwards a bit more briskly with the unpredictable blows of the wind as mild autumn breeze encased the oddly humid living quarters. Beyond the bygone wooden mullioned window, a bold melodic cacophony of chirping lay hidden within a mass of grandiose well-portioned oak trees. A mesh of vermillion, terra cotta and marigold canopy littered the soggy, water-logged ground. Everett sat crossed-leg on his bed nibbling on a blueberry muffin; hesitant to not actively eat a blueberry in the process as he fished the dry, shrivelled miniscule fruit out, only leaving the chocolate. On his lap sat a hardcover book which was deemed to be quite tarnished. 

Everett was alone in the noiseless room. His roommate had scurried off right after the play to resume his postponed football practice. Niccolo usually went out early every Sunday to kick a football around; like a mutt chasing its tail. He spent the majority of his time training vigorously since he had a tournament coming up. He wasn’t quite sure why he was fixating on his roommate so much; frankly, he couldn’t be any less interested in Niccolo’s fruitless football career which was beyond any reasonable reach. 

A distant rumble of thunder heralds the storm's approach, a warning echoed by the quickening pulse of the wind. With each passing moment, the atmosphere grew heavier, it was charged with electric energy which crackled and sparked. The first drops of rain began to fall, fat and heavy, splattering against the earth with a sound like distant drum beats. The weather had been quite unpredictable in the upcoming months of winter, so he wasn’t entirely surprised at the arrival of yet another storm. Suddenly, an ear-piercing strike hit the ground all too close to Everett’s opened window, it shot an ominous white light which illuminated the dimly lit room alight, eerie shadows danced around the candle lit room. Normal objects distorted and malformed as they contorted dauntingly. The hairs at the back of Everett’s hair stood to an end. He presumed it was around four o’clock now. Niccolo should be steadily on his way back to the dorms from football practice. Everett just hoped he hurried, he despised being alone in menacing weather. The sky had considerably darkened as vindictive clouds crashed and thrashed sprinkling sparks of lightning. A vile belligerent rain thrashed against the ground.

As another striking lightning bolt smashed against the ground, a violent gust of wind sent the tarnished curtains askew– suddenly the sturdy heavy wooden door flew open against the back of the stone wall as aching white light illuminated a hunched threatening well-built figure which stood motionless at the door. The figure was clutching an obscured item in its left hand. The intruder’s face was hidden by the enveloping darkness. At that moment Everett yelped at the sight of the ungodly slumped figure.

‘’Woah, woah! Why are you yelling for fucks sake? You’ll attract half the corridor.’’ a familiar strident voice, ridden with a heavy Italian accent called out. As the figure approached, Everett’s tensed body relaxed at the sight of soaked chestnut hair, striking hazel eyes and muddied drenched clothes came into clearer vision. It was Niccolo. He was carrying a rucksack in his left hand. Blood rushed to Everett’s cheeks as he realised he had screeched at the sight of a bag.

‘’Christ, Niccolo! You scared me out my wits, why did you just stand there like a freak?’’ Everett puffed out as he stared in disbelief; eyes as big as saucers. At first glance, he wanted to smash the hard-cover book in Niccolo's face; perhaps, that would finally straighten out his misaligned teeth. However, he figured that he didn’t fancy having his parents called up by the school for physical assault.

‘’I was getting you into that Halloween spirit. The play didn’t seem to do its job so I’m taking it upon myself.’’ Niccolo chuckled out as mud and water dripped all over the wooden planks, dirtying the floor. Furthermore, it was Everett’s side of the floor. 

Everett grimaces as he swiftly stood up and started ushering Niccolo towards the bathroom. ‘’Hurry up Niccolo, we’ve somewhere to be in an hour!’’ Everett scowled the other boy who reeked of post-rain and looked like a dirty mutt. By the end of it Everett’s palms were soaked in muddy rain water. He grimaced as he hurried to wipe them clean.

By the time the oak wall mounted clock struck five o’clock Niccolo was primarily finished with his shower. Everett figured that his roommate was utterly shameless. He came out the bathroom with a mere towel loosely clinging to his protruding hips; as it threatened to fall and betray him at any given second. Everett scoffed with revulsion as he briskly spun the other way around facing the tasteless wall opposite Niccolo. His roommate laughed and teased him for being such a prude, however, Everett did not give in to the petty childish fuel. By the time he had turned around, Niccolo was wearing baggy brown corduroy pants with a knitted sweater which resembled one of an elderly man with deep earthy muted colours and intricate symmetrical patterns. He was at the final stages of drying his unruly permed hair. 

‘’Pft, you better not chicken out in the middle of the film.’’ Niccolo teased Everett who was half perched up on his bed reading, ’Catcher In The Rye’ which was the same book he had been clutching with his life a mere hour ago, the one he nearly scarred Niccolo with.

‘’Please, what’s this movie anyway?’’ Everett sat up now, jerking his arm away he was at level with Niccolo’s chest. He was extremely irritated with his roommate's crass behaviour; however, he did wish to prove him wrong.

‘’That would ruin the surprise then, wouldn’t it?’’ a mischievous smile tugged at the corners of Niccolo’s lips. The dim candle-light distorted his smile into an unpleasant grimace which altered his face in an unbecoming manner. ‘’You should've paid attention when Gwen was talking about it a few hours ago.’’

Everett scoffed as he shoved past his roommate, he stormed to put his shoes on and strutted towards the door. He headed straight towards his sister’s and Gwendolyns living quarters. The corridor was dimly lit and empty, Everett’s body instantaneously tensed up as he clutched his open palms into fists as he hesitantly, but determinedly made his way down the corridor.

‘’Careful, a poltergeist could jump at you any second! Or an axe murderer, all the merrier.’’ Niccolo forced his voice into a low growl as he walked behind his evidently unnerved roommate. Everett shivered and picked up his pace.

Everett hurriedly knocked on Nana and Gwendolyn's door once he had reached it, Niccolo not far behind, the unnerving storm continued to pound down on the earth's surface. Ominous clouds gather like an advancing army, their bruised and charcoal hues clash with flashes of searing lightning, illuminating the tumultuous emotions of the skies. The air crackled with tension as a lightning strike released its fury without restraint; torrents of rain cascaded down drenching the land. Everett was glad that at least, physical education would be postponed until the fields deemed solid enough for activities. 

Gwendolyn and Nana’s room was a lot more cluttered than his and Niccolo’s. Instead of school work being stacked on the shelves beside the desk, they were stacked with; cleansers, fragrances, foundation, candles, mirrors and whatnot more. Books weren’t prioritised as they were haphazardly shoved at the very bottom as papers spilled out and laid in a disorganised pile. However, the atmosphere of the room was way more inviting and cosy than theirs. Twinkling lights littered the ceiling as trinkets lay scattered around. 

Nana and Gwendolyn had pushed their beds together, so they resembled a double bed. Everett hoped only for the occasion, only to fit as many people on it as possible. He didn’t exactly want to picture his sister and Gwendolyn sharing a bed on a day to day basis. To his great astonishment those two had somehow managed to acquire a projector from somewhere; it wasn’t a VHS player however, how were they going to play any cassette? As it turns out, the cassettes were useless, Gwendolyn had found herself a DVD instead. Everett was considerably let down, he still couldn’t play his mysterious ‘proto’ cassette. To the wall opposite the beds, a white bed sheet was mounted onto the wall to re-enact as a screen. He counted six of them attending their little get-together. Everett soon realised that everyone had brought desserts and various sweets to munch on; as well as some seating stools or pillows. Everyone chatted for a good while as various scuffles broke out about where everyone should sit. 

Obviously, Nana and Gwendolyn nestled to one side of the bed with a multitude of sweet packets lay scattered atop their blanket which covered their legs. Niccolo had tugged at Everett and secured him a place next to Gwendolyn on the bed as he lay at the very end, Gwendolyn passed him a bowl of caramel popcorn which nestled on his lap. 

Everett’s eyes wandered off to the considerably sized bowl and noticed just how broad and defined Niccolo’s hands were. Each finger is sturdy, lean and robust, yet possessing a surprising dexterity that belies their size. Their grip is firm and reassuring, capable of both tender caresses and undoubtful feats of strength. He assumed that a single punch to the face and he’d be knocked out flat in a coma. Everett made a mental note not to annoy his roommate too much. Upon further inspection, Veins course like rivers beneath the surface, pulsing the steady rhythm of life. They stood out nicely against the backdrop of roughened tanned skin from intense training, tracing intricate patterns as they protruded outwards. Everett shook his head with distaste as he didn’t wish to think about his roommate in such a vile manner. He stopped himself before his train of thought could wander off to something else entirely. 

‘’You won’t chicken out now, will you?’’ Niccolo teased him once again as he forced a handful of popcorn into his mouth. A row of uneven teeth greeted him as his archwire glistened in the warm orange hues of the dimly lit room. It exposes his crooked teeth which represented those of a ghastly creature which Everett’s read about in books.

‘’C’mon Nicky, don’t be so mean to him now. We don’t want him to leave; the movie hasn’t even started.’’ Gwendolyn spun her head around to grin at Niccolo as she elbowed Everett in his ribcage.

‘’Do be quiet, you buffoons.’’ Everett scoffed as he encased himself in a warm rose-beige blanket; he looked like a caterpillar in a cocoon. However, a smile ever so slightly tugged at the corners of his lips as his gunmetal-grey eyes sparkled. Niccolo observed him for a few moments before a face-splitting smile appeared on his face.  The projector began to play the movie which Everett had still not been informed of what it was. It was a Warner Brothers movie, so he hoped it was a promising watch. A low, eerie time began to quietly play as a gloom-ridden atmosphere settled in. Much like the current weather outside.

The projector started to roll more promisingly; a monotonous clicking sound played for a few moments before the movie started. There was a young woman. Everett suspected in her early twenties. She had a blond bob cut and wore a light beige sweater. The young woman was inside of a finely decorated suburban house. He suspected it to be set in America since; no houses looked quite like that in England. So far, he believed that the movie was going to be quite unimpressive and dismissive. However, he paid attention nonetheless. A phone rang. The woman rushed to pick it up as she hurried across the well-maintained oak kitchen island.

‘’Hello?’’ the woman called out enthusiastically in a thick American accent.

‘’Hello?’’  a husky, appealing low male voice rang out clearly through the other line. The male voice was equally tantalising as well as charismatic. It captivated you as it rang through your ears like velvet. A hint of confidence could be well detected by the clear tone.  ‘’Who is this?’’ the seductive male voice questioned softly.

‘’Mmm, who’re you trying to reach?’’ The blonde woman questioned back, unalarmed. 

‘’What number is this?’’ the soothing voice of the stranger questioned back at the woman. It appeared that two could play that game. Everett visibly squirmed when that voice spoke again; it did something strange to him that he couldn’t quite understand at his fragile age. His breath hitched and he subconsciously hoped that that voice would be played a lot throughout the movie.

‘’Well, I think you have the wrong number.’’ 

‘’Do I?’’ the seductive voice questioned. ‘’Take it easy, it happens’’ and with that; the woman ended the call. Everett’s shoulders sunk at the loss of the calming voice. However, he suspected that it wouldn’t be the last of it. Blondie went about with her night and put a tin of popcorn to cook on the stove. The phone rang a second time. The girl had a hint of uncertainty written on her face, but it quickly evaporated as she rushed to pick up the phone a second time.

‘’Hello?’’ The girl spoke a bit more sharply now.

‘’I’m sorry, I guess I've dialled the wrong number again.’' smoothly, the husky male voice flirted with much amusement.

‘’So why’d you dial it again?’’ the blonde woman scoffed but she was amused nonetheless. To Everett it seemed that she wasn’t in much of a hurry to hang up the phone. Everett found himself mesmerised with the voice. It sent shivers up his spine. He peered over to Niccolo who was preoccupied stuffing his face with caramelised popcorn but otherwise, sat motionless. His attention thoroughly focused on the scene before him.

By now the caller had become more insisting and flirtatious. It appeared that he had quite a fascination with horror films and indulged in questioning the woman of what her favourite film was, or who her favourite killer was. The girl seemed quite entertained with the whole situation and flirted back as she circled the first floor locking and turning door knobs.

‘’You never told me your name.’’ the unknown male stated sullenly 

‘’Why do you wanna know my name?’’ the girl giggled out.

‘’Because I wanna know who I'm looking at.’’ the atmosphere in the room froze up. Everyone stayed motionless as they stared at the scene before them with trepidation. That statement horrified Everett above and beyond. His palms clutched at the semiliquid blanket wrapped tight around him. His muscles tensed as he subconsciously leaned towards Niccolo. It appeared that even Niccolo had stopped eating as he couldn’t hear him chewing anymore.

‘’What did you say..?’’ the girl hushed out in a barely detectable whisper.

Everett would’ve argued that the tension was so thick in the room; you could almost cut it with a knife. He supposed someone would be getting cut by a knife any second now. The blonde woman began to quiver and whimper. Her voice became slurred and desperate. She ran around the house locking doors; the voice on the other line was now irate and shouting. It no longer bared its intoxicating charm. Anguish and hopelessness engulfed the woman as she began to sob and curse at the man. Her brain was at a loss. Thoughts disarrayed with evident discoordination. She couldn’t think coherently as her boyfriend's life was now at stake and depended solemnly on her. 

‘’I’m afraid that’s the wrong answer.’’ the voice stated as a matter of fact when the woman answered one of the Halloween trivia questions wrong. Livid crimson liquid spilt out of her bruised bloodied tied boyfriend as lifelessness seeped into his dilated eyes. The blond woman screamed. A rather gruesome scene happened before them. Everett, never being too comfortable with violence, even if it had been a daily presence in his life; whipped his head around as he squeezed his eyes shut until fragments of colours began to prance around his vision; he buried his head in Niccolo’s tense shoulder and listened to the pained groans and clanks of heavy metal against flesh. Squelching thick noises of blood infiltrated his ear drums. Unexpectedly, Niccolo hesitantly wrapped a hand around Everett’s shoulder squeezing it. A comforting pressure was applied to his shoulder as Niccolo’s broad palm travelled to his upper back and caressed him soothingly. A warm hand caressed his neck with virtue. He made a mental note to threaten Niccolo to never open his mouth about this incident. To anyone. Ever. 

For now however, he didn’t mind. 

The night gradually went on. the storm's fury begins to wane, a gradual transformation unfolds across the stygian sky, painting a portrait of hope and renewal. The once tumultuous clouds, heavy with rain and laden with darkness, now begin to fracture and disperse like a defeated army retreating from battle. Glimmers of soft moonlight peek through the ragged edges, casting a soft, ethereal glow upon the landscape below. The relentless downpour was now a mere patter; a serenading melody was now upon the North-East side of England. The threatening rumbling of thunder distanced as bright moonlight shone through the translucent curtains.

The movie had become more of a murder mystery now; it still possessed its elements of gruesomeness but it also contained sufficient plot. Everyone in the room still remained quite restless and eager to find out who this Ghostface killer was. A few arguments had even broken out between Gwendolyn and Denice. She was sitting on a loveseat near the window with a boy. They were leisurely spread across the miniature couch with tangled limbs and blankets snaking around them like ravenous pythons.

Everett and Niccolo had grown quite fond of each other as the tranquil night noiselessly rotated. Niccolo’s hand was still wrapped around Everett’s back as his head was languorously laid on Niccolo’s oddly comfortable shoulder. Everett’s eyelids grew heavy with fatigue. He hadn’t the faintest idea of what time it was; however he suspected it was past nine. Consciousness slipped on and off– like flashes of the night, he found it hard to pay attention to the movie at hand. Mellow warmth engulfed his curled body as he gave in to the becoming tranquillity of sleep as it overtook him. 

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

He didn’t know how much time had passed; but before long, someone was placidly shaking his shoulder and chanting his name over and over again. Almost like it was a sweet melody which had to be heard and was of priceless value. Warm fingers shook him gently as consciousness seeped into him more steadily.

‘’Everett. Everett, wake up. Rhett. Eve?’’ a hushed male voice called out.

Fortunately for the voice, with great exhaustion and a pleading desire which begged him back to return to his slumber; he opened his heavy eyelids. Tousled, unruly curls swung atop him as a tanned face illuminated by the soft glow of the still playing projector appeared.  ‘’C’mon you tosser the movie ended, we’ve got to go back to our dorm.’’ Suddenly, a calloused great hand gently pulled him by his forearm. 

‘’What time is it?’’ Everett croaked out with a heavy bed-ridden voice.

‘’Pft, God knows. Past one, that’s for sure, Nana and Gwendolyn are walking everyone to their dorm rooms. Now, come on.’’  Niccolo dismissed him with a scoff as he ushered him towards the door. Everett roughly rubbed his eyeballs and stimulated his senses back into functionality. He simply could not muster up the energy to be worried about his hair nor appearance at this late hour. Furthermore, it was unlikely that someone would see him. Unlikely that someone would even be up at this hour. Right before he exited the room he managed to glance at the familiar wooden built in clock which every dorm possessed. It read half past one. 

In the dead of the night, the corridor was noiseless and motionless. Frankly, Everett had no problem sleeping in his sister’s room for the night; parading the ominous hallway was the last thing he wished to do. Shadows stretched like spectral fingers as aged portraits loomed unbecomingly upon the two wanderers. The air hung heavy with the impending night of the dead. Typically, Everett would not be that scared of the corridor, however on the  31st of October there seemed to be an eerie shift in the atmosphere. Dim, flickering moonlight casted eerie shadows that dance across the uneven floor, creating an unsettling mosaic of darkness and illumination. 

The occasional guttering of a lone candle adds to the sense of gloom and dread, its feeble flame barely illuminating the encroaching darkness that lurks just beyond. The silence was suffocating, broken only by the echoing pitter patter of their footsteps. Niccolo, who was typically the braver of the two, seemed sceptical and uneasy himself; after all, he is openly afraid of the dark. For a few brief moments they set a steady pace down the corridor as the pair frequently peeked over their shoulder; just in case. They were nearing their dorm, Everett suspected that they had already passed the halfway point–

CLANK!

Something in the distance fell.

The two boys froze. Neither of them dared to twitch a muscle nor breathe. Niccolo had been a step or so in front of Everett, his hand gripped him harder. He whipped his head around, almost looking like a deer in headlights. Everett, shaken up and bewildered, did not register the searing pain that was stretching through his ligaments and muscles in his forearm. His breathing had become shallow as he felt his primal instincts ante up. A pang of adrenaline surged through him like electric shocks as he tensed up. He whipped his head around in a frenzy, eyes as wide as saucers inquired pleadingly at Niccolo. Briskly, Niccolo raised his pointed finger to his lips and signalled Everett to be quiet.

Step. Step. Step. .. Stepstepstepstep.

Something was steadily gaining velocity and walking straight towards them.

‘’Corri, corri,– Vai! Go, go!’’ Niccolo yanked Everett in front of him as he whisper-yelled, half Italian half English, a thick Italian accent oozed out of him as he tugged the shorter boy. Everett didn’t understand half of that sentence but he didn’t need to be told twice to ‘go’. Especially in this circumstance. It seemed that Niccolo had quickly abandoned the idea of keeping quiet. The two boys dashed down the lonesome corridor as scrutinising portraits patronised them and grimaced. An array of brisk footsteps echoed. Another pair, foreign from their own, steadily gained on them. Heavy pants filled the noiseless corridor.

They raced down the corridor until they reached their door and with great agitation fumbled and scrambled for the lock as Niccolo rammed the key in and nearly snapped it in half in his hysteria as a matter of fact. He pushed Everett in as he slammed the door and bolted it shut. Niccolo plastered his body against the door, almost like a shield as he squeezed his eyes and waited for inevitable impact. 

None came.

In fear of the worst, he remained like that for the next ten minutes. He was primarily scared that something was going to happen to Everett so he didn’t dare budge until his panic had subsided. Niccolo at least knew how to throw a punch, he wasn’t entirely sure for Everett though. In fact, he hardly believed Everett had even been in a fight. He glanced at Everett who stood motionless clutching his chest with one hand; fingernails steadily digging into the surface of his skin. He panted heavily, mouth agape, unaccustomed to such vigorous exercise his eyes were steadily trained on the ever so slight crack where the bottom of the door and the oak plank floor didn’t quite touch. 

‘’Anything there?’’ Niccolo whispered.

Everett barely,  shook his head. Relieved at the response he backed off the door. 

‘’Ahh, Mio Dio.. what a night.’’ Niccolo groaned as he rubbed his face. He was still highly uncertain if he should have left his post at the door but he figured he couldn’t stay there all night. Now that winter was round the corner, a substantial amount of time would be nighttime. He whipped his head around cautiously, just to double check. Hesitantly, he glanced over at his roommate who was still frozen in his spot facing the door from afar. Niccolo wasn’t quite sure if he was frightened or simply out of it resulting from the long hours of restlessness. As he was about to approach Everett;

‘’I am never ever doing anything ever again on Halloween night.’’ Everett linked as they made eye contact in the dim moonlight, he sounded exceptionally serious.

Niccolo stared at him for a few moments which seemed to be frozen with time. A moment later a face-splitting smile grazed his face as he broke out into a contagious laugh. It rang through the quiet room as he couldn’t seem able to stop. The boy was laughing so hard it became muted! Niccolo clutched his contracting abdominal muscles as he collapsed onto his bed head in hands.

‘’Why in God’s name are you laughing, you donkey?’’ Everett scoffed as he yanked his pyjamas out of the wardrobe and stormed towards the bathroom door bolting it shut.

‘’Come off it Everett, it was probably a teacher or someone faffing about. You can’t seriously think it was a ghost.’’ Niccolo continued to giggle like a moron as he teased his roommate.

Niccolo resumed his laughter, frankly he did not know himself why he was still laughing or at what. However, there was something extremely funny about Everett and his way of communicating his thoughts and emotions. He supposed he found it amusing how he was still shaken up. It had definitely been an older student or most likely a member of staff. He was far too old for ghosts. Niccolo had tossed his clothes to the side as he slid his pyjama bottoms on and hopped into bed patiently waiting for his roommate to come back so he could annoy him a few more times. He ran his tongue over the front of his teeth as he waited on his roommate.

A little while later, Everett had come out of the bathroom. Niccolo could detect the glare he shot in his direction; even through the dull moonlight.

‘’Calmed down now, have you?’’ Everett let his London accent slip out with the pang of frustration that was steadily simmering inside of him. He graciously slipped into his plush bed as he peeked to look at the gap underneath the door one last time.

‘’Mate calm down, nothing’s there. Plus, it’s okay to still be scared ghosts.’’ Niccolo chuckled out as Everett faced away from him and grumbled something unintelligible. Probably in French. 

The pair was steadily succumbing to the comfort of sleep and drowsiness–

Tap. tap. Tap.

Everett jolted upwards. Something tapped at the window to the left hand side of their beds where their desk was situated alongside their shelves. A pair of opaque curtains covered the window.

Everett very slowly turned his head around to face Niccolo. ‘’I’m sleeping in the bathtub.’’ Everett desperately whispered as he snatched his blankets and covers and raced for the bathroom.

‘’Wait for me!’’ Niccolo pleaded as he dashed right behind his roommate. He did not dare glance at the window, in fear of what he may see and live to regret. 

The next morning, once the sun had risen over the horizon, bright hues of marigold and vermillion colours coated the North-East side of England Niccolo stormed over to the window and yanked the Stygian curtains open; ready to maim whatever dared to interrupt his entire night and make him cower inside the bathtub like an infantile child. He was extremely humiliated to find it had been a tree branch. He buried his head in his hands, masking his bright flushed face from his patronising roommate. 

 Everett broke into a patronising laugh,(just as Niccolo had suspected) as he pointed a limp finger at him. Mocking him. ‘’Don’t worry, it’s entirely okay to still be scared of ghosts.’’ Everett snickered out as he whipped his head around and strutted over to the wardrobe to get changed as he resumed to laugh. Niccolo remained motionless by the window as he mentally beat himself up for being such a scaredy-cat. 

Chapter Text

Each and every single one of the students worked like busy bees as the number of tests and assessments increased. It was mid November by now, autumn was coming to a steady close as Winter neared. Essay based subjects seemed to adore overwhelming their students with vast volumes of disquisitions; with the sheer amount of work that Niccolo and Everett were receiving, it wouldn’t be uncommon for scuffles to not break out. The pair vigorously argued about who should take the desk at what hours and for how many hours. Neither of them wished to be doing their hours worth of work in an uncomfortable slouched position on the floor or laying flat on their bed. So with that, they begged and begged the maintenance man to get them another chair from somewhere. Soon after, harmony settled back between the pair; however, that didn’t mean that they still weren’t neck-deep in homework and revision. 

Everett found it slightly easier to finish his work than Niccolo did, after all, it was not expected of him to go around kicking a football for hours on end like a silly little mutt. He didn’t understand his roommate's passion for football, Everett did like playing football himself; however, he didn’t let it consume his studies. Everett, being the God sent being that he is, would help his roommate from time to time. He didn’t wish for him to get too dependent. Niccolo appreciated it nonetheless. It appeared that the English Literature revision sessions after school did not help Everett increase his grade at all. On his most recent assessment about ‘how are the Ghosts of a Christmas Carol presented as a moral compass for Scrooge’, he only managed to land himself a pathetic 11/40 . In all honesty, he doubted that that was even a grade on the markscheme. He needed to improve in English; and he needed to do it fast. 

Fortunately for him, at least he was good at Maths and Physics. Everett smashed his logic based assessments perfectly fine. Perhaps, he could convince his parents to allow him to pursue a science or a maths based career such as; engineering, mathematics, accountancy or astronomy. Pursuing a career in astronomy or mechanical engineering sounded exceptionally pleasing to him. But, alas. One can only dream. His entire bloodline consisted of politicians and businessmen, Everett would look like the black sheep of the family if he considered anything else. After all, he was sent to a school which specialised in politics and economics. 

One particularly foggy and humid afternoon, Everett stood alone by the window situated above their beds as he gently played the violin, practising. He wasn’t a fan of the violin, however, it was the only instrument he really knew how to play, and it wasn’t like he could wheel a grand piano into his already compact dorm room. A lulling rather sombre tune bounced around the room as Everett lightly held the violin bow as his head cradled to the side. He played fragments of Violin Concerto by Tchaikovsky as the noiseless room absorbed the reverberation of tunes. Despite arguing so much, Everett wondered when his roommate was going to come back, the room gets quite lonesome once Everett runs out of ideas of how to keep himself occupied. The weather reflected the melody that the lonely boy was playing. Oppressive and dull. 

After a while, Niccolo still hadn’t come back. Everett had long abandoned the violin by now. He lay in his bed as he tried to distract himself with a book. Where in God’s name had Niccolo gone? It was half-past-seven by now and Everett knew for a fact that his training ended at six o’clock. As much as he abhorred the idea that had popped inside of his head, he decided that it would be best if he executed it. He decided to go look for his dorm mate.

He slid his black converse on, tossed his leather trench coat over his shoulders and set out in the vast void of darkness to go and investigate for himself. The never ending hallway looked as menacing as ever. How did he always manage to be out and about, strutting along the hallway at nighttime? Everett thought to himself as a grimace plastered itself across his handsome face. He steadily reached Nana and Gwendolyn’s dorm, so if anything, he would just run to them. Everett despised the hallway, he didn’t know what it was, but whenever he walked down it he felt as though someone’s gaze was piercing through him like daggers. The hairs at the back of his neck stood to a chilling end as he briskly glanced over his shoulder. However, there was no one and nothing. 

By now, Everett was at the opposite side of the school, he was beginning to get quite discouraged as he still saw no evidence of Niccolo. He was striding past the classrooms in the Biology Department when he heard someone inside of a classroom groan. Everett froze in his tracks as he silently waited. Someone was certainly shuffling around inside there. He highly doubted that there would be any teachers still working at this hour; not in a classroom anyway. 

With a deep self-directed inhale, Everett plucked up the last of his remaining courage and cautiously pushed the well built wooden door. Noiselessly, he peeked inside and to his relief, saw Niccolo. However, there seemed to be something wrong with him. Niccolo was preoccupied vigorously wiping his face as he sat slouched on a desk in the dark room. The only light source seemed to be that of the moon shining through the archaic mullioned windows.

Everett hesitantly made his way over to his slouched roommate who hardly seemed to notice anything around him. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that Niccolo’s nose was busted. Everett had lived long enough in the Leland Manor to know that that wasn’t caused by a simple game of football. Carefully, he touched Niccolo’s tense hands with feather-weight fingertips. The pair exchanged no words as Everett tried to grab parts of the cloth which weren’t drenched in blood; the very thought made him scowl in the dim moonlight. Niccolo silently gazed at the other boy with heavy, lidded eyes. Even in the looming shadows of the night he could still tell that the other boy's face was quite badly hurt. 

Niccolo had a nosebleed which steadily trickled down like a stream after a humid, rainy day. Everett feared that his friend might die of blood loss rather than the injury itself. His nose seemed to have swelled twice than it’s normal size which made his face seem severely disproportioned and uneven. Everett almost wanted to laugh at how obscene Niccolo looked; he looked like one of those silly cartoon characters he had seen once or twice playing on the television as advertisements.

Cautiously, Niccolo gently wrapped his arms around Everett’s back, imprisoning him within his scorching embrace. The curly haired boy rested his chin just below Everett’s xiphoid at the centre of his chest as he looked at him curiously.

‘’What’ve you done with your beautiful hair Nana?’’ he leisurely nuzzled his head into the rubbery cool texture of the leather trench coat, ‘’Why do you look like your brother?’’

Everett stopped breathing for a second as he stared at Niccolo’s head, perpetually shocked at what he had just heard. His lips were ever so slightly agape as he stood there. He was simply at a loss for words. What do you even say after something like that? There was no point in reasoning with a delusional person. After a moment of pure silence, Everett realised that Niccolo was getting his blood all over his precious coat. Briskly, he pulled the other boy’s hands away from him as he began to haul him up.

‘’Come on. I’m taking you to the nurse, you look absolutely dreadful.’’ Everett leaned a staggering amount of Niccolo's body weight onto him as he hauled him to his feet. Unsurprisingly, he was definitely stockier than Everett; frankly, he had no idea how he was going to get him to the Nurse’s Office if he couldn’t even drag him out of the classroom door.

‘’Christ– walk God damn it! It’s not like you’ve broken a leg.’’ Everett's patience was wearing thin as he proceeded to drag the larger boy down the hallway. Niccolo was displaying no desire to help out, and was delaying valuable time. If he wasn’t half as delirious as he was, then maybe they would be at the Nurse’s Room by now. Everett feared that he may have hurt his actual head rather than just his nose. Normally, a person with a fractured nose doesn’t go delirious; as far as Everett was aware anyway.

Everett scoffed with clear disdain as Niccolo lazily lulled his head into the other boy’s shoulder. 

By the time Everett had gotten Niccolo to the Nurse’s Room, he was jelly-legged and positively breathless. He should’ve just left him there after that silly comment anyway. He was fully convinced that Niccolo was purely just muscle mass, he stood for a second palms on his hips as he gathered his breath back. Everett had a few strands of fine hair stuck to his forehead with the exertion that came with having to drag his roommate a floor down, and across the school.

Suddenly, he was whipped out of his subconscious self pitying as the wrathful nurse hurriedly examined Niccolo.

‘’Why didn’t you bring your friend sooner, honestly, have you not seen him, and what condition he is in?’’ the livid stompy woman seethed at him after she had taken care of Niccolo. At first, the woman had been calmly situated at her desk, scribbling away when Everett came along, panting and begging the nurse to mend Niccolo whose nose still steadily trickled thin ropes of blood and was half delirious.

‘’Goodness me. He is suffering from a nasal fracture, but other than that, he should be well after a few good days of rest and some gauze. But, if you had brought him an hour or so later, then his bleeding would’ve just gotten worse.’’ the nurse sighed as he took her glasses off and wiped them in her shirt.

Everett looked at her curiously, he didn’t quite understand what she was talking about. Sure, he knew a nasal fracture was something to do with the nose, however, no one had really explained it to him. Even if he was quite advanced at the sciences, he never meddled with medical terms and conditions or even bothered to research any. So, the concept was quite foreign to him.

‘’Nasal Fracture? Will he–’’

‘’Yes, yes darling. Don’t you worry your young head with it. Just a mild fracture, nothing serious.’’ the shrewd woman gave him a pointed look as she stopped to observe him. Everett was relieved to hear that at least it was nothing to do with his head, for a while he just darted his gaze back and forward between Niccolo who was  passed out on the bed and the nurse. ‘’Now, if you’ve nothing useful to do or tell me, you might as well go back to your dorm. Your friend needs rest.’’ The nurse began to usher Everett out of her office as she waved her hands in a dismissive manner. ‘’When I hear the story from your friend firsthand, and he’s well rested, then I will dismiss him. Now, off you pop!’’

‘’Wait a mo–’’ Everett began but he was soon disregarded by a heavy oak door being slammed in his face. For a moment, he just stared at the door whilst blinking in a befuddled way. 

By now, it was probably past eight. Nana and Gwendolyn were probably getting ready to go to bed, so he couldn’t go to them and tell them what’s just happened. He supposed that the nurse was right; he should just go back to his dorm and sleep the entire ordeal off. Why did he have to be so far away from his dorm? Since the Halloween incident in the hallway he experienced no desire whatsoever to walk down it. At times, Everett could swear that at the side of his peripheral he could make out outlines of shadowed figures darting around and lingering; but whenever he spun around to look, there would always be nothing. 

Everett was beginning to get really anxious that there might actually be something wrong with him. All the time he felt as though he was being watched and observed. It was probably his Mothers spiritual presence haunting him. 

That night, he prayed to The Lord above to guide and watch over him. He prayed that there wasn’t anything wrong with him mentally, because if there was, his Mother would not be jovial to hear about it. 

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

The next day in the middle of his Biology class, Everett got told by his Professor that he was to go to the nurse’s office, as he was required there; he was delighted to get out of class, normally Biology was an easy subject but right now, Everett found it exceedingly hard to concentrate. His attention simply kept drifting astray as he observed random, irrelevant things scattered around the room. As of recently, he was beginning to be quite restless and awake, Everett was constantly buzzing with splendid new ideas and thoughts. He would sit down to execute his brilliant idea, but a second later, he would get side tracked doing a whole different thing. He instantly knew what it was about, Niccolo had probably woken up with a head splitting headache and asked to see some of his friends. 

Everett steadily made his way to the Nurse’s Office, upon opening the door he noticed his twin sister sitting by Niccolo’s side as she gently held his hand. He stood by the door as he watched Nana’s sincere eyes reassure his roommate that he would be okay. A moment later, his sister noticed him and swiftly let go of Niccolo’s hand as she gave him a quaint smile. Nana quickly got up as she walked over to where her brother was standing.

‘’I’ll leave you two for now, and Nick, rest well.’’ She bid them goodbye and made her way to the door. 

After Nana had left, there was a brief pause of silence as the pair just exchanged awkward glances. Niccolo looked quite silly now that he was all bandaged up. He had a small cut at the bridge of his nose which Everett hadn’t seen the night before. As for his nose, it was still frightfully swollen and an angry shade of burgundy at the tip. He had steri strips securing a thin sheet of cotton over his cartilage as looked positively… embarrassed?

He took in a deep breath as he shifted on his bed,‘’I’m sorry that you had to see me in that state yesterday.’’ Niccolo was half sat up, leaning against the headboard as he crossed his arms. His eyes flitted uncertainty around the room, as if he was trying to look everywhere else except Everett.

‘’It’s whatever.’’ Everett dismissed him rather quickly,  as he nestled himself in the plush armchair by the bed his roommate was situated in, he couldn’t help but bounce his leg, he wasn’t anxious, he rather felt as though he needed to be doing something. anything. He stared persistently and hard at his face, forcing him to eventually look back at him. ‘’Why was Nana here, alone, with you?’’ He quickly questioned him but kept his tone to a monotone.

‘’Denice and Gwendolyn were also here. The nurse doesn’t like when there are crowds of people surrounding me. She said anyone can visit but at different times.’’ he proceeded to avoid Everett’s calculating, watchful eye as he began to mess with the hem of his sleeve.

‘’So be it then.’’ Everett replied blankly as he leaned back in his chair. He certainly wasn’t an idiot; if Niccolo was going to play stupid and act as though he did not fancy his sister, Everett might as well use it to his advantage.

‘’Where do you keep your cigarettes?’’ 

‘’Hidden, why?’’ Niccolo gave him a puzzled look, he looked at him with halted eyebrows.

‘’ Obviously, you dimwit. I want a cigarette.’’ Everett deadpanned as he shot Niccolo a look of annoyed disbelief. 

‘’Oh right, at the very back of the wardrobe, beneath my green sweater.’’ Everett still looked at his roommate with a look of disbelief, ‘’you’ll find them, I’m sure. You’re a very capable boy. Don’t you dare smoke more than five.’’

Everett chuckled whilst scoffing at Niccolo’s obscene threat; he proceeded to pinch the bridge of his nose as he feigned indifference. Niccolo also grinned once he saw that Everett found him amusing, for once.

‘’Seriously, those things are expensive.’’ he laughed out before switching the topic, ‘’I hope that I’m not spending my sixteenth birthday cooped up inside the Nurse’s Office, that would really be the cherry on top of my first school term.’’ Niccolo snorted as he laced his fingers together and threw his arms behind his head.

‘’Your birthday? When is that?’’ 

‘’Twenty-first of November.’’ For the first time today, Niccolo properly locked eyes with his roommate. Everett’s eye bags seemed to have grown and darkened over night. Near his tear ducts was the worst. A dark hue of violet engraved itself onto him like permanent ink. Faint blue rivers snaked beneath his translucent skin right on his eyelids. Now that he thought about it, he should not have told Everett where his cigarettes were. The boy looked twitchy and was acting rather… abnormal?

‘’You’ve time yet. It’s only the seventeenth.’’ Everett leisurely rolled his eyes as he stood up, presumably to leave. ‘’Well then, I hope that you’re out of here in time for your birthday, you can tell me the details of how you got so banged up, once you get out of here.’’ he proceeded to giggle mockingly, as he threw his hand over his mouth.

Everett was already by the door when Niccolo yelled on impulse,’’Ev.’’ his roommate languidly cocked his head. ‘’Take care, alright?’’ 

For a moment, Everett looked curiously at Niccolo, as if he had just been told the most bizarre thing ever. His own Mother didn’t even look out for him or tell him to ‘take care’. It was curious.

‘’What are you? My Mother?’’ Everett looked over his shoulder as he gave Niccolo a wicked grin before sauntering out the door with a laugh. In fact, that’s the most that he had ever seen Everett smile in a day. 

He really did have the most radiant smile, it was a shame that he barely let anyone see it.

The next few days were truly tedious. Everett had no one to bother, no one to listen to his brilliant ideas and plans as to how they could break into the computer rooms, no one to ask him everyday after school how his day had been. An upsetting strangely overwhelming feeling settled at the pit of Everett’s stomach. He felt exceedingly lonely; he would go and hang out with his other friends but whenever he had to go back to his own dorm, a feeling of dissatisfaction gnawed away at him. It wasn’t as though he missed Niccolo, God no! In fact, he felt relieved to have the room all to himself, but at nighttime, when there was nothing else left to do, and the dorm was all quiet his thoughts would always drift back to his roommate. 

Unfortunately for Niccolo, he did have to spend his birthday in the Nurse’s Office, but nonetheless, his friends managed to make the most out of it. Gwendolyn had scrambled for the nurse in the early hours of Saturday morning as she frantically bawled that there was a serious fight at the other end of the school and that she was required immediately. Once the nurse had jumped to her feet and raced out, a handful of his friends hurriedly made it to the door as they cheered and roared Happy Birthday as they jumped and danced around the room. Denice and Everett had snuck into the kitchens and nicked a cupcake for the event. Gwendolyn then rammed a matchstick into the cupcake and used it as a makeshift candle. 

Some of his friends from the football team even brought in a boombox as they blasted ‘Stayin’ Alive’ by the Bee Gees; it was ironic really, everyone treated Niccolo as though he had  survived a brain tumour and not a fractured nose. Niccolo himself was having the time of his life. He stuffed his mouth with the cupcake, vanilla icing smeared at the corners of his mouth as he bobbed his head to the rhythm energetically and sang to his heart's content. Even Everett was enjoying himself, he was hand-in-hand with Gwendolyn as they danced uncoordinated and in a vehement manner. Niccolo leapt out of the confines of his rather stiff bed as he joined the commotion. 

A moment later Niccolo threw a pair of shoes on along with a jacket, as the group of teenagers raced down the hallway scampering through a masonry arch, the young teens broke into a wild fit of giggles. The group made their way to the back of the school, near the immense willow tree near the pond which Everett assumed had been there since before his parents were even born.

The millennium willow tree stood majestically at the edge of the tranquil overgrown pond, its immense size and graceful presence conquered the landscape. It towered above the surrounding flora, its trunk was thick and gnarled, coated in a rough, weathered bark that told tales of the past. The tree's crown spread wide, its canopy a verdant tapestry of elongated, slender leaves that cascaded down like a living curtain. Each leaf now a pastel hue of green and yellow, peppering light in an ambient display of dappled light and shadow. In the autumn breeze, the foliage swayed and whispered its secrets, the soft rustling sound adding to the serene ambiance. Long, supple branches arched gracefully from the central trunk, bending under their own weight and creating an ethereal veil of greenery. The thicker branches were mostly used for climbing by other students.

The group assembled in a circle underneath the great tree and for a very long time just chatted and laughed the day away. Gwendolyn, Denice and Niccolo being the life of the party, performed and sang to so many obscene songs that Everett simply lost count. One of Niccolo’s football friends reached into his shoulder bag and pulled a generously sized Apple Cider bottle. (not the vinegar!!) Everett had always disliked alcohol simply because of the effect it had on his Mothers mood and actions; the bottle got passed around the group and everyone took a good swig, even his sister. Everett, not wishing to be a spoilsport, also took a good, throat-burning gulp. Once dusk had finally come around the corner and vivid amber hues could be seen littering the skies through dispersing clouds, only then did the group get up.

Once everyone had waved their goodbyes and dispersed into their own ways only then was Niccolo left with Everett. They were halfway down the hallway on their way to their dorm when Niccolo suddenly remembered that he should be at the Nurse’s Office and that the stubby woman had probably turned the school upside down trying to find him.

‘’ Accidenti, I just remembered I should be with the nurse.’’ Niccolo drew out the ‘ i ’ in a display of irritation. The nurse was certainly going to be livid, however, after the splendid day he had had today, he found it quite hard to muster up the energy to be worried.

‘’Oh whatever, all that old bat does is keep you isolated anyway.’’ Everett snorted out, as if in a rush, ‘’if you’re that keen on returning to your girlfriend, go.’’ he exaggerated the ‘i’ much like Niccolo had done as he broke down into a sardonic laugh.

‘’Pft, shut your mouth, you munger.’’ Niccolo lightly swatted Everett on the arm who was still seemingly giggling at nothing. ‘’What the hell are you actually laughing at?’’ Niccolo finally asked him after a few minutes, when Everett still wasn’t calming down.

‘’Am– am I not allowed to laugh?’’ Everett’s pearly aligned teeth shimmered in the faint light as he paced in front of Niccolo, grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

‘’Laugh all you want, I was just curious.’’ Niccolo scoffed a laugh. 

He wondered what had gotten Everett in such a good mood, even though it was his birthday, Everett seemed to be ten times more ecstatic than he was. For a good week now, Everett’s mood seemed to be getting better and better. Niccolo supposed that he was simply excited for the upcoming holidays. 

He observed the other boy’s face. His eyes seemed a bit more magnetic than usual, but he shrugged it off and suspected it was due to the amount of fun that they had just had.

Instantaneously, Everett spun around to face Niccolo like a highly energised child as he babbled, ‘’Niccolo, let’s go to the kitchens, we have to go now, I'm practically starving. C’mon please.’’ Everett grabbed onto his roommate's arm as he practically dragged him away and didn’t wait up for a response.

‘’Everett, are you joking? It’s going past eight.’’ Niccolo gave him a puzzled look, but Everett hardly seemed to be registering him. Everett resumed babbling about topics, which were simply unrelated as he dragged Niccolo away. ‘’Ev?’’, he was beginning to get concerned as he tentatively called out Everett’s name again.

‘’C’mon, I told you I'm hungry, plus me and Denice nicked that cupcake from the kitchens, there was an entire box of them, it’s your birthday anyway you should treat yourself if anything. I was the one who took it anyway. I know exactly where the box is, who’s up and about in the kitchens now anyway.’’ Everett laughed, almost to himself.

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

Once Everett had satiated his unyielding hunger, they had managed to get back to their dorm at around half past one because Everett kept getting side tracked and tampered with other things which, frankly, didn’t require tampering. After his fifth cupcake, Everett got the brilliant idea of baking a cake. Niccolo swore that he felt his eye twitch; he spent a solid hour trying to convince Everett to not bake a cake, because surely the next morning there were going to be repercussions. However, after a very short-lived sulk Everett got right back up and demanded that they go to the library straight away. Niccolo thanked The Lord that tomorrow would be a Sunday because he surely wasn’t going to bed on time today.

The moment that Niccolo walked into his beloved dorm, he collapsed straight into his bed, which he had missed dearly. A distant thought skimmed through his frontal lobe that he forgot to take his painkillers, however he found it exceedingly hard to care considering that consciousness was slipping away at an alarmingly fast rate.

He didn’t know for how long he had slept or what time it was, but he woke up with excruciating pulsing aches in his nose. He really should have taken his painkillers last night. A familiar pungent smell of smoke infiltrated his nostrils. He instantly jerked awake as he thought that something was on fire. Niccolo vigorously rubbed his eyes and tried to overcome the drowsiness. Once his pupils had focused he saw Everett perched up on the open window with a cigarette dangling from his mouth. At first, he didn’t think anything of it, his roommate needed a smoke, so what? But, once his brain was working enough to register that it was light outside and someone could see Everett, he immediately sprung up. 

‘’Everett, man, the hell are you doing? It’s literally light outside, you begging to be seen or what?’’ Niccolo scoffed at him as he leaned over the desk and yanked the half burnt cigarette out of Everett’s mouth and tossed it out the window. 

‘’Niccolo, what are you doing?’’ Everett tsked at him as he stretched his arm out to get another cigarette.

Niccolo was faster than him and managed to seize the packet before Everett could get his purloining hands on it. When he snatched the pack, it instantly crumpled in his hand. Niccolo looked inside just to notice that there were only two cigarettes left. 

‘’How much did you fuckin’ smoke?’’ Niccolo gaped at the paper box appalled as he half-yelled in disbelief.

‘’It was half empty when I got it out a few days ago anyhow!’’ Niccolo stared at Everett whose eyes were wide and twitchy. His eye bags were more prominent and unmistakable,  The skin beneath the eyes was darkened, with hues ranging from a dusky purple to a shadowy blue or a dull grey, contrasting sharply against Everett’s alabaster complexion.

‘’You lousy liar! I know exactly how many fags I’ve got.’’ Niccolo roughly tugged Everett by his dress shirt, surely ruining whatever pretentious material it was made out of. ‘’I told you to only smoke five, not the entire fuckin’ pack!’’ His roommate yelped in surprise as he surged forward. Svelve fingers wrapped around Niccolo’s wrists as they squeezed in pure fear. Niccolo could feel Everett’s shallow breaths ghost past his face as he stared at Everett’s wide fearful eyes with his stormy exasperated ones. His nose was still steadily pulsing with dull pain as he suppressed the urge to punch Everett straight in his stupidly well-portioned face.

‘’What the hell’s up with you, huh?’’ Niccolo stared at him expectantly, ‘’you know how bad that is for your health? I don’t smoke that much and I’ve been doing it for years!’’  Niccolo occasionally shook Everett, just in case he wasn’t listening to him.  ‘’ I want you to answer me, what are you doing? What are you actually doing, Everett?’’

After that, a long silence lapped around the room. Everett’s magnetic, gunmetal eyes were as wide as saucers, ladened with mixed emotions. His expression flicked from saddened to angered, maybe remorse?

‘’I don’t know, alright.’’ he finally croaked out in an irate tone, ‘’it’s not like I’ll die anyway, my Father has been doing it for years!’’

‘’That doesn’t make it any better, you idiota! Plus, I brought these with my own cash, you can’t just–’’ Niccolo grimace turned into a scowling frown, ‘’just take an entire pack and not pay!’’

‘’Is this what this is about? Mommy and Daddy not giving you enough cash?’’ Everett snickered in a mocking manner as he pitched his voice, ‘’you’d think that having a Father who is a doctor would mean that you are loaded, I guess not.’’ Everett spluttered his words out so fast that Niccolo nearly didn’t understand what he had said. ‘’Bet he didn’t even have enough money to enrol you in this school.’’

He wasn’t sure what possessed him to do it, he supposed that it was Everett and his narcissistic, egotistical personality, but something within Niccolo snapped when he heard Everett talking about his parents in such a demeaning tone. He wrenched his wrist away from Everett’s squeezing hand and punched him straight in his foul mouth. With a yelp, Everett stumbled backwards with a loud thud as he collided with his bedside table, it resonated amply through the noiseless room.

Everett looked up at Niccolo with hazy, bewildered eyes, a moment later a thin rope of blood cascaded down Everett’s chin as his lip erupted like a volcano. Niccolo’s breath hitched at the realisation of what had just happened, he stood motionless still in his defensive stance as he stared at Everett who frantically touched the warm, adhesive crimson liquid and gawked mortified at his unsteady hand. He looked close to hysteria, shallow breaths left him as tears welled in his petrified eyes.

Niccolo, at a loss for words, decided to do what was best and simply left. Everett can manage his hysteria on his own, he slammed the door behind him as he briskly made his way back to the Nurse’s Office.

Everett’s vision was blurred with unshed tears as he stumbled over to the bathroom, he clutched the ceramic sink firmly, leaving blood stained prints all over the pristine surface. He scrambled to turn the tap to chilling, ice-cold as he impatiently waited for the sink to fill up. Once the sink had filled to an acceptable amount, Everett wasted not even a second as he plunged his overly scorching face into the numbing water. The cutting water washed all of his pains and worries away, it acted as an ointment for his bruised face. Languidly, he pulled his face out as he inhaled a shaky breath. 

Everett wondered if Niccolo had taken the last two cigarettes; he really needed a smoke right now. He knew no one else who would have cigarettes. Nana would look absolutely horrified and heart-broken if she found out that Everett smoked, Gwendolyn preached that kind of lifestyle however she never indulged in it. He wondered if all women were so indecisive and needed a man to do all the thinking for them. He stared at himself in the mirror, he looked dreadful. He looked as though he hadn’t slept in days. He didn’t understand how he could manage to upset such a ludicrous amount of people. He brushed the thought away dismissively, everyone purposefully vexed him and acted surprised when he bit back.

His parents dislike him, his sister didn’t feel comfortable around him, his relatives think that he is clinically deranged, his friends thinks that he is an absolute train-wreck;

 He has little to no hope for himself. 

His cousin had cigars. He supposed that was good enough.

Chapter Text

Niccolo took long strides down the hallway towards the Nurse’s Office as he huffed from the uncomfortable pain which was pulsing through his nose, making him feel lightheaded as it positively made him see stars but also with adrenaline in fear of what would happen to him if Everett decided to grass on him. He could surely be suspended for physical assault if Everett decided to tell a professor or worse, a deputy headteacher. Anxiety gnawed on his gut as he pictured the shame that would come across his parents' work-ridden faces and how disappointed they would be in him. He was going to have to make it up to his roommate big time.

He didn’t understand what was going through Everett’s head, frankly, Everett was the snobbiest and most self-centred cazzo that he had ever met. Not to mention how loathsomely two-faced he was. As of recently, he had been acting out of fashion, he acted spontaneously and erratic, hardly acknowledging that his actions may have repercussions. An abundance of thoughts raced through Niccolo’s head as finally made it to the nurse. 

He braced himself for the worst as he tentatively pushed the door open.

“Well? Now you decide to show up, your majesty? After running out of painkillers and messing about with your friends all night. Is that it?” The nurse glared at the fidgety teenager from behind her desk.

“I’m sorry, I really am.” Niccolo mumbled out an apology which was barely above a whisper as he pulled on the hem of his sweater.

“I’m going to have to inform your form professor because of this. Safeguarding precautions, now sit.” She scolded him dismissively as she beckoned him towards an examination table before he could even argue.

Niccolo went over to the examination table without a fuss. They were probably going to send a letter out to his parents, so what? He knew that they weren’t going to be angry over something so innocent, he just wanted to do something good for his birthday and his friends had come along to ensure that he, indeed, did something good for his birthday. He didn’t mind that his parents were going to be informed; if anything, they would pretend to scold him just to seem like they were mildly disappointed by their son’s actions.

The nurse took off his bandages and examined his nose by touching, tapping and moving the cartilage; Niccolo groaned and writhed throughout the entire process as every tap sent searing, electrifying pain through his head. The elderly woman scoffed at him as she gave him a handful of painkillers and smothered his nose in cooling ointment. The nurse deemed him ‘good to go’, seeing that he was fine enough to go running off with his friends. She prescribed him a handful of painkillers to take for a week or so, after that he was to come back to the nurse to get his nose checked again, to see if he needed any more painkillers. 

His parents were already being notified that he had gotten into a petty fight during football practice. Ever since he had joined the St. Louis Youth Football Club there was this insufferable guy on his team who he did not get along with, at all. He was a year older so naturally he had the upper hand. The kid was deputy captain, no one wished to be on bad terms with the vice captain, so they all stayed silent. It had all spiralled off when Niccolo was put as a substitute player, despite being one of the most competent year ten’s on the team. Niccolo was never the type to let others walk all over him, so he took it up with the vice captain himself despite his friends' attempt telling him not to do so. His crass attitude didn’t get him anywhere, the second his tone rose up an octave, he felt someone punch him straight in his nose, knocking him off his feet as he hit his head particularly hard on the concrete ground.

He had intended to tell Everett the story of how he had gotten his nose broken the second he walked into the Nurse’s Office the other day to check up on him, however, he couldn’t seem to muster up the courage to do so. He wondered if Everett would’ve mocked and laughed at him, or if he would’ve been vaguely concerned. It was curious, he would have  done either of those things and severely exaggerated them, or simply done both. This instantly brought back the dread and regret from punching Everett. At first, he was anxious that Everett would grass on him and he would be suspended, however now, he was positively horrified.  

꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

Upon entering his cousin’s room, Everett noticed that it was over cluttered and brimming with stacks of books and assignments. On the wall was a mounted poster of a very provocatively dressed woman, as she appeared to be somewhere on the beach. Everett remained silent as his gaze flitted around the room. He was picking up all kinds of knick-knacks and trinkets, quickly examining them but not long after, he lost interest and haphazardly tossed them back. His older cousin, absolutely dismayed, yelled at him to not play around with his things and above all, not to toss them. Everett however, wasn’t taking anything aboard as he continued to wreak havoc around the room. A million thoughts raced through his head as he dismissed some and made a mental note of others. Suddenly, Everett felt a firm hand latch onto his arm and yank him.

‘’Everett!’’ Roscoe initially yelled to get his attention as he took a deep inhale in order to restrain himself from chucking his baby cousin out the door. ‘’Why don’t you sit down, right there on the bed, and not touch anything, as you explain to me why you got battered.’’

Everett looked up at his cousin who had a vague expression of concern plastered across his rather pudgy face as he prompted him by nodding his head and waving his hand about. ‘’I don’t actually know why.’’ he finally admitted after a moment of silence. ‘’I don’t know why he hit me, it's not like I did anything wrong.’’ 

‘’Who hurt you? Tell me and I'll take care of it.’’ Roscoe encouraged Everett to continue, however, Everett was sceptical that he wasn’t going to take care of it in a very prefect manner.

‘’That’s not a very prefect thing to do, is it?’’ Everett snorted to himself as his cousin rolled his eyes at him.

‘’Get your cigar and get out then, you spaz. I tried being a good older cousin, but you seem to be very dismissive of my efforts.’’ Roscoe tossed a cigar at him as he scoffed disapprovingly. Everett had always known that his cousin had little to no patience; since they were little children he had known it. Whenever something hadn’t worked out in Roscoe’s favour he would instantaneously quit it and give up. Everett supposed that he wasn’t of much use to his cousin so he simply gave up on him.

Everett, satiated enough with his rather fat cigar, shrugged his shoulders as he leisurely made his way to his cousin’s door. Without any hesitation, Roscoe slammed the door behind Everett as he yelled at him through the door to pay up next time if he wanted a cigar. Fortunately enough for him, his allowance had never been anything less than two-hundred-and-fifty a week; the only good thing about his parents was that they never kept him with empty pockets. 

Everett had worn a white silk,  dress-up shirt last night which he hadn’t bothered to change before almost smoking an entire pack of cigarettes. He knew that the cigarette smoke was quite bad for the material however, curiously enough, he found it exceedingly difficult to care. In fact, he found the situation quite amusing. He wondered what his Mother would say if she found out that he smoked. The very thought gave him an electrifying thrill that buzzed through him. What was it like rebelling? Was it as exhilarating as it sounded? He fantasised about the endless possibilities and turns that the scenario could take as he strolled down the hallway, his lip still steadily oozing a pathetic drizzle of blood which dripped down his chin onto his shirt. Rashly, Everett raced to wipe the blood from his face as he almost skipped down the hallway.

Suddenly, the mysterious ‘proto’ cassette crossed his racing mind. The night before he had had his quarrel with Niccolo, Everett had been up all night planning out a multitude of ways on how to break into the computer rooms and mapping it out. He must have thought of a hundred different ways— but scrapped them all away. Frustration nibbled away at Everett’s mind as all of the plans and arrangements seemed either foolish or overly complex. He wasn’t James Bond, how on earth was he supposed to steal a key from a professor's lanyard? Neither was he Jason Bourne, he couldn’t just fight a professor for a key. He might have not been a secret agent but he sure felt like one; Everett’s confidence had peaked so much over the last couple of weeks that he almost felt invincible. 

He did talk to Gwendolyn about some of his ideas of how to get into one of the rooms, however, even Gwendolyn herself looked at him like he was mad. After much thought and consideration they compiled fragments of different plans into one, rather simplistic one. Gwendolyn is to sneak into the staff room whilst the others are dispersed and on watch out; she is to take a spare key after all of the professors had departed for dinner, the idea was that they were going to get into the computer rooms as a group and play the mysterious cassette and have approximately forty minutes to do so, before they had to eventually lock up the room and return the key. Simple enough, no? Everett was a bit dissatisfied with the simplicity of it, but he supposed it had to do. 

A minor problem was, they never discussed when they were going to execute their plan. The only thing that Gwendolyn had said the previous day was,’let me take care of it, you guys just stay close by’. Everett wasn’t fussed by her response. If Gwendolyn wanted to act alone, let her by all means. As much as he found the idea of rebelling exciting he didn’t quite wish to face his Mothers wrath if he was to get into trouble. 

Everett had already reached the West side of the building, just a few doors away from his dorm when he suddenly saw Gwendolyn dashing straight towards him from around the corner. Her hair was tossed haphazardly in a messy ponytail with loose curly black strands which cascaded down her reddened face. In her right hand she was clutching a rather rustic bulky key. She surged forward as she yanked Everett by the collar of his shirt, with a yelp she began to drag him towards his dorm. 

“C’mon Ev, I’ve got the key, go get the cassette we’ve barely any time.” Gwendolyn huffed out with exertion from running all around the school hallways. “Also, what the fuck happened to your face?” She tugged him even more vigorously now that they had half the original time to view the cassette.

“I thought we were going for it at dinner time on a weekday, not— now?” Everett ignored Gwendolyn’s question due to his inexorable excitement, he was still a bit bewildered as to why Gwendolyn decided to discard the original plan and act so spontaneously though. 

“I couldn’t wait until Monday evening, it’s lunchtime now anyway, we’ve solid twenty minutes to see what this cassette is about.” She pushed him inside of his dorm as he began to rummage through papers and shelves before eventually finding the cassette buried underneath a stack of school essays. Gwendolyn asked Everett again what happened to his face again but he blew her off and told her that he had had an ‘accident’.

“Oh, between, have you seen Nick anywhere?” Gwendolyn asked him impatiently after being ignored one too many times.

“Why would I know where that  is?” Everett half giggled at his own insult. 

Gwendolyn gave him a curious look as she proceeded to shake her head dismissively,

”Whatever, he’ll just have to miss out or pray that he shows up from somewhere. Nana and Denice are already hovering around the computer department.” Gwendolyn grabbed Everett by his hand as they made their way over to the floor above.

The pair rushed up the olden stone stairs hand in hand as they cautiously scanned around the corners and soundlessly snaked their way through the remainder of the hallway. Near the computer department, a lonesome looking Denice lurked around, seemingly aimlessly. 

“Christ Denny, you couldn’t have looked any more conspicuous.” Gwendolyn huffed exasperated as the group made their way over to the computer room. Right next to the door a rather fidgety, nervous looking Nana stood there constantly glancing from left to right and back. Once all four of the teenagers had united only then did Gwendolyn start to fumble with the door lock . 

“What about Nick? Won’t he also want to see the cassette?” Denice looked at her friends expectantly.

“Oh, don’t worry, I saw him on my way here once we had all split up, he said he’ll come straight here once he gets his report with the nurse sorted out.” Nana chipped in suddenly, she eyed Everett’s face down but decided against asking him what had happened in fear that he may snap at her again.

“And when exactly is that going to happen?” Gwendolyn asked sceptically.

“God, sometime now, unlock the door, we’re wasting time.” Everett was practically buzzing with excitement as he quickly swatted Gwendolyn to get on with the unlocking.

Upon entering the chilled room, the first most noticeable thing was that the computer room buzzed with energy. The hum of machinery filled the air, a rhythmic symphony of whirring fans and the clatter of dot matrix printers. Bright lights flickered softly overhead, casting a hard white glow upon the rows of bulky equipment. Large, clunky disk drives stood tall on a stack, their slots filled with heavy, removable platters. Tape reels spun slowly, holding vast amounts of data in their coiled embrace. A constant drone of the air conditioning system maintained a cool environment to keep all the hardware machinery and drives from overheating. Everett’s hands instantly began to turn cold as he tagged down on his sleeves, as if to collect some warmth. The group noticed how the w alls were decorated with faded posters of sci-fi movies and flowcharts. Bundles of multicoloured cables snaked across the floor, connecting the digital nerve centre.

Across all of the scattered flowchart sheets and brightly coloured cables, in the corner of the room stood the real gem. A Cathode Ray Tube television which was placed atop of a VHS player, ready to be used. Everett raced straight towards the television as he began to fumble with the wires and cables, attempting to get electricity to pulse through the television. 

The other three teens were highly preoccupied with mindlessly staring at the computer components and picking up a handful of electrical trinkets as they began to examine and mess around with hardware components such as; clicking the keyboard, pressing on computer buttons, plugging wires in random slots, tapping monitors and so much more.

“God, those things are old.” Gwendolyn sighed as she monotonously clicked down random buttons on a keyboard. 

“Stop clicking that goddamned keyboard and come help me start up this television.” Everett barked at Gwendolyn with much irritation as he clutched an array of tangled brightly coloured cables.

“Yes, of course, my husband. How could I ever disobey you?” The curly haired girl rolled her eyes as she made her way over to Everett.

After a handful of failures, mistakes and many manuals later, Everett and Gwendolyn finally managed to get the television going as it now flickered a static screen , it was finally ready for a VHS to be inserted. Sweat had accumulated on Everett’s forehead as he felt like he was the only one actually doing something. To him, Gwendolyn was just an extra pair of hands to hold on to the many cables they had left to plug in. After a little while later, Niccolo had also slithered into the computer room along with a fresh pair of bandages. He warned that they had less than ten minutes left, as on his way he had checked the time which they supposed was plenty but they should probably try and be quick.

He avoided Everett’s scrutinising stare as he focused on anything else but Everett himself. He managed to steal a glance at Everett’s lip once or twice before quickly averting his gaze. It had specks of dried blood on it and looked a little more swollen than usual but other than that, he seemed to be in a good spirit.

“Imagine that it was a porno, after all.” Niccolo snickered whilst propping himself up on a desk to the left attempting to ease the tension.

“Shut up, you swine.” Everett practically growled at him. He was closest to the television as he stood up with his arms crossed; he tapped his foot impatiently. Gwendolyn fussed for a moment before she  put the cassette into the player as they waited for it to start rolling.

The television screen resumed displaying the same static image as the tape took its time rolling. After a few seconds the tape finally began playing. The group's breath hitched with anticipation now that they were finally going to find out what was on the ‘mystery cassette’, as Denice had named it.

Suddenly, a shaky camera came into view with the dark outline of a hand positioning it upright; the static after effect remained, It appeared that the video was self directed. A young girl came into view, no older than seventeen. If Everett had paid any less attention he would’ve mistaken the girl for a much younger and merrier version of his Mother.  She had long wavy chestnut coloured hair which cascaded down her torso like a waterfall. The girl had arguably the most radiant smile that he had ever seen, it stretched across her face from ear to ear revealing a pearly row of teeth. Smile lines adorned her delicate face as she appeared to be talking to someone who was off shot. One hand was seemingly holding the camera as the other was limply laying by her side. Some parts of their uniform seemed to be tweaked, the girl’s jumper was long sleeved and not sleeveless like theirs was, as well as it being a deep crimson colour instead of the plain grey that they had. It seemed that they also had no blazer.

Unfortunately the video was noiseless because Gwendolyn and Everett couldn’t decipher where they had to slot certain cables. They plugged just enough wires to play the video. Other complements weren’t included in the pack. Noiseless or not, at least, they could still view the cassette. For a while, the girl just seemed to be talking with another person off camera; she was giggling and play-fighting with the unknown person. The video was quite underwhelming, Denice even caught herself yawning. 

Abruptly, the tape bugged.

Wavy vertical static lines invaded the boxy screen as the girl froze mid sentence. The group stayed silent for a second, still trying to process what had exactly happened. Everett stared at the frozen girl star-struck as slow-moving diagonal transverse waves distorted the image further.

‘’Oh my god, Everett, what’ve you done?’’ Gwendolyn moaned out as she threw her hands up with exasperation.

‘’What–? What have I done?!’’ Everett threw Gwendolyn such an imperil, menacing glare that Niccolo genuinely believed that he would leap at her at any given second. Judging off of Everett’s most recent behaviours, he didn’t believe that it wouldn’t be possible.

‘’Yes, what have you done. You were the one plugging in the wires, not me.’’ Gwendolyn perched herself up as she glared back at Everett.

‘’Why you, foul, little c–’’ 

‘’Stop it, both of you!’’ Denice interjected as she filled the space between Gwendolyn and Everett in fear that a fight might actually break out. ‘’What is wrong with you both? Gwen, why are you so irritated today and Everett why’ve you been so agitated these past few weeks? Calm down!’’ she half yelled herself as she glanced around the pair of them.

The group erupted into a fervent argument as Gwendolyn and Everett continued to gnaw at one another like rabid dogs. The minutes seamlessly ticked by, being wasted by petty comments and accusations. Niccolo at a total loss for words remained perfectly frozen as she gawked at the scene unfolding before him, whenever he tried to interject, he would be very quickly drowned out by Gwendolyn’s high pitched yells or Everett’s loud biting comments which resonated through the room. The argument wasn’t even really an argument, it seemed to be more of a competition who could be the loudest. Nana glanced from person to person also at a loss, growing up, she had hated confrontation; she would rather remain silent than involve herself in a situation where she knew she could get hurt. Niccolo glanced at a nearby clock and noticed that they had lost substantial time, so he decided to take matters into his own hands.

‘’Leland, shut yourself up, you little abrasive bitch.’’ Niccolo barked out in a tone which could only be described as threatening as he loomed over the other slightly shorter boy. ‘’The entire hallway is only listening to you.’’ 

Everett froze mid sentence as he stared at Niccolo with wide, frenzied eyes. He was absolutely astounded that he dared to talk to him like that. He swiftly recovered as he scoffed up at Niccolo and turned to walk away. Silence lapped around the room for a second, the atmosphere was inexorably pressuring that it was getting increasingly harder to breathe. No one spoke for what seemed like hours as they threw anxious glances at one another.

‘’Oi, the tape is running again.’’ Denice suddenly piped up from where she was situated on top of a desk. Everyone turned to glance at the now  playing tape. 

The set up had changed. The girl seemed more tired and sombre; she would occasionally nod her head and give a quaint smile whilst looking at the camera. She was still talking to somebody off screen. It was a shame that they couldn’t hear what was being said. The brunette girl appeared to be evidently unnerved by something. Fidgety, nimble fingers could be seen twisting and turning rings. She threw fleeting glances around the room, but remained calm nonetheless. Something seemed odd. 

‘’Is she okay?’’ Gwendolyn asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

‘’Why don’t you ask her? Maybe she’ll answer you through the screen.’’ Everett cocked an eyebrow at Gwendolyn who just glared at him.

The tape then bugged again, this time for not quite as long, the same static invaded the television screen before the tape began to roll again. The same girl appeared again, she looked no different from the last recording. Fidgety and tired. She was no longer even attempting to smile. She leaned back against a chair, her arms defensively crossed. Almost as if she was bracing herself for something. 

Untamed locks of hair fell over her glum face as her eyes followed a figure which seemed to be walking back and forth off camera. The pair began to talk again. At first the girl just limply nodded her head or simply agreed with one word. But after a while, the conversation seemed to get more volatile. The girl would raise her hands up as her mouth worked fervently to get her point across. Her brows furrowed as the tape played. With each passing second the girl’s frown deepened more and more. A glossy look sprung up in her eyes, saddening her delicate face. Nonetheless, she didn’t break down.

Everyone’s breath seemed to halt as they solely concentrated on the unravelling scene. No one dared to say anything in fear that they might miss a crucial part. 

In a flash, the mysterious figure that hid behind the rolling camera all this time surged forward at the girl as shock penetrated through her. The unknown person had their hood up, by the looks of it, the other figure had a much sturdier and defined physique which was distinguishingly much bigger than the brunette girl. 

A veiny hand yanked a handful of wavy locks with so much vigour and brute force that it dragged the petrified girl onto the floor. During the assault someone had kicked the stand of the camera as it tumbled over and down to the wooden floor boards. The girl was pinned onto the ground as she thrashed instinctively; the hooded person had the girl in the chokehold as they concentrated their entire body mass down onto her larynx restricting the air that flowed into her lungs. Long pointed nails scratched away at the offender’s hands and anything else that she could get her thrashing hands onto, the girl’s chest arched outwards as she fought with all her might to get out of the crushing pressure that the offender was applying onto her. 

Everett stared at the disconcerting scene with so much dismay and horror that he thoroughly forgot all about his argument with Gwendolyn, or even Niccolo for that matter. The unusually loud sound of the cassette rolling was the only noise that could be heard in the otherwise noiseless room. By now, the girl’s movement seemed sluggish and uncoordinated, she didn’t put up a fight. She couldn’t. Everett thought that this would be the end of the assault. There was still some hope left for the girl; she didn’t appear dead, her hands were twitching ever so slightly as her mouth opened and closed in a futile attempt to get some oxygen into her lungs. 

But oh, was he mistaken.

The hooded man fumbled with something in his back pocket until he could clearly make out that it was a pocket knife. The knife wasn’t small either. It was generously sized and appeared quite sharp, even though the quality wasn’t the best he could still clearly make out the jagged shape. Everett didn’t know what he was expecting. He hoped for this to be some kind of a sick, twisted idea of a psychological horror, he hoped that the girl would burst out laughing and the hooded figure would break character and this would all be over. 

But somewhere deep in his gut he knew that that wasn’t going to happen.

The inevitable happened. Razor sharp blade pierced through the girl’s dainty smooth skin, the pointed blade was rammed straight into her throat. For a few seconds, the attacker stood still before yanking the knife out and wedging it back into her throat multiple times. Dark crimson liquid squirted and seeped out of the girl’s pierced neck. Blood seeped out of her veins and vessels like an overflowing river. Long wavy locks of hair became coated in the dark viscous liquid as the girl gurgled on her own blood. With a final volatile thrash the girl lost all movement. 

The offender stayed utterly motionless as they sat on the girl’s stomach. They observed the corpse; their creation. Blood coated the glistening metal part of the knife so much so that you couldn’t even see the metal anymore. It was all over the offender. All over their arms, all over their torso, all over their legs, all over the floor.

And suddenly, the tape stopped rolling all together as the screen went back to black. Everett witnessed his own horrified, nauseated expression in the blackness of the television.

Chapter Text

Oh goodness. Oh God. 

It is not true. It simply was not. It could not be. How could anything in that tape be real? It had to be some exceptionally graphic and well acted out play. It had to be a stunt. But something about the way the feeble looking girl gurgled on her own warm, viscous blood as it frothed and travelled down the sides of her face seemed to be very much real; The way her reddened eyes rolled to the back of her head, revealing crimson vessels which snaked around her sclera like intertwining pythons. Even after any hope of the girl being alive was abolished, Nana still saw the nimble way in which her limbs twitched and continued to spasm.

Oh God. Oh God. oh god oh god ohgodohgodohgodohgodohgod–

Acid scorched her throat with every exhale right from the pit of her stomach as light-headedness and blinding contorting spots blinded her vision. Nana felt it rising up, and she felt it rising up at an alarming rate–

‘’Nana, don’t you dare vomit here! Anywhere else, but here!’’ Everett practically screamed at her as he hooked his arm around her forearm and hurriedly dragged her out of the room. Having known each other for so long, they learnt to recognise what each and every little gesture and body language meant. And right now, Everett recognised that his sister was about to vomit all over the computer room, where very delicate hardware was being kept and no one should even be near in the first place. 

Everett, who was visibly disturbed himself might have been the strongest man that Nana knew, despite his cold, quivering hands and his shallow breaths, he still catered for his sister’s needs and emotions. He dragged her out of the room before pinning her against a wall as he clutched onto her wrists like it was his duty to keep her protected.

‘’Everett– you saw what I saw, didn’t you? You also– you also saw it?’’ Nana felt like she was on the brink of a nervous breakdown. So much has happened in such a short span of time that she felt like she was going to combust; like someone was always pulling on her strings and insisted on creating tension until those strings eventually snapped.

Nana stared at her brother. He was skittish and evidently fretting. His eyes flitted from left to right and right to left, he was chanting her name like it was a prayer. However, Nana felt thoroughly disconnected. Her brother who was clearly distressed himself, just firmly squeezed her hands in an attempt to reassure her that it was going to be okay. He locked eyes with Nana and cautiously nodded his head. Everett almost leaned in to hug her, but decided against it once he remembered that his sister probably doesn’t like him. His lips opened and closed as he tried to come up with the appropriate words to say to comfort Nana.

‘’Nana, I swear that I won’t allow any harm to even come near you.’’ Everett cocked his head to the side as he peered into his sister’s tear-ridden eyes, ‘’Everything is going to be okay, yeah?’’ 

Nana frantically nodded her head as she choked back on her unshed tears.

After a moment Everett also nodded his head, however in a much limper fashion as if acknowledging the fact that his words weren’t entirely sincere, he wasn’t much stronger himself. He let go of Nana’s hands as he turned to look behind him.

Niccolo, Denice and Gwendolyn stood not far behind them, equally morose as the twins. Niccolo was occupying his mind by fidgeting with the hem of his shirt as he glanced around with uncertainty. Denice kept glancing left and right, as if she expected a swarm of Professors to ambush them any moment. Gwendolyn looked as equally close to tears as Nana was. No one said anything for what felt like an eternity, truthfully, they were all afraid to say anything. 

‘’We have to tell someone. We can’t– we just can’t not.’’ Gwendolyn hushed out in a strained voice which was barely above a whisper. 

‘’Gwendolyn.’’ Everett replied sternly, impassively looking at her as he shook his head, ‘’we can’t tell anyone about this. Not now or ever.’’

“What?” Gwendolyn stared at him, ‘’Do you hear yourself Everett? Did we or did we not watch the same tape?’’ she hissed at him almost cat-like.

‘’And what will you say? What are you going to tell them? ‘Hey, don’t be angry but we unintentionally found a stash of hidden cassettes underneath the prop room and I, being the clever girl that I am, decided to steal a few But wait! Then, me and my friends made this plan to steal a key for the computer room from the staff room when none of you were there in order to play a mystery cassette that we found only to find out that it was some sick bastard who decided to video himself killing a girl’.’’ Everett exhaled deeply as he cocked an expectant eyebrow at Gwendolyn, ‘’is this what you’re going to tell them? Not only does it sound utterly ludicrous, but will also make you look like you’ve completely lost it.’’ 

‘’God, you know everything, don’t you Everett?’’ Gwendolyn glared at him through her glassy eyes as she pursed her lips.

‘’Hardly, but I know what’s going to happen to all of us if we tell anyone.’’ Gwendolyn glared at him for a long moment before eventually averting her gaze elsewhere. 

‘’Gwend–’’ Everett attempted to talk his friend out of her silly tantrum but he stopped very quickly when Gwendolyn took an instinctive step backwards away from him, she didn’t take her eyes off of him.

‘’I’ve got to go.’’ By now, her lip was quivering and it was becoming increasingly harder to keep her tears at bay. ‘’I hope that somewhere in the near future you will try to understand why I’m going.’’

‘’You cannot just–’’ Everett’s eyes positively bulged out of their sockets as he opened and closed his mouth in a frantic attempt to formulate a convincing enough argument that would change Gwendolyn’s mind and make her turn back. But she was steadily making her way down the hallway, unwilling to look back.

Everett huffed anxiously, his brain was simply refusing to work as he failed to come up with a convincing enough counter argument. He stared at her as she hurriedly made her way down the hallway. As a last futile attempt, Everett began to sputter and stutter all kinds of threats and demands.

‘’Your actions have consequences, tell anyone and you will be just as involved as any of us!’’ Everett practically howled at her as his agitated voice echoed down the deserted hallway, ‘’Do you hear me? You won’t come out of this clean, mark my words.’’ he huffed with exasperation as he turned back to look at the rest of his friends.

Upon turning around he noticed how intensely Niccolo was looking at him; his eyebrows were halted so tight that his gaze almost felt like it was piercing through Everett; He looked at him as if he didn’t even recognise him. His expression was not much different from Denice's, she had an arm wrapped around Nana’s shoulder, who was positively sobbing by now. 

She gave Everett an uncertain fleeting look as she linked arms with Nana and very gently directed her to walk away as she attempted to soothe her evident hysteria. Now, both Nana and Denice were walking away from him. He only had Niccolo left, Everett hoped that at least his roommate would have a little bit of hope left in him and that he was going to at least hear him out. If Niccolo walked away then he would be left utterly alone. 

Everett spun around to look at Niccolo who couldn’t have looked more miserable to be left alone with him. He turned his head to look to the side as he pursed his lips with agitation. He stared at Niccolo for a few seconds, hoping to get his attention, however it seemed that his attempts were futile. Gwendolyn was out of sight and so were Denice and Nana. A thick silence lapped around the narrow hallway; Everett almost felt like he was stranded in the middle of space. Vast nothingness up ahead and perpetual silence. He felt like he was in a vacuum and that no noise would escape his mouth even if he screamed as there simply weren’t enough particles to transmit the sound.

‘’Now what?’’ a demanding voice yanked him out of his mindfulness as he looked up to find Niccolo finally looking at him. 

‘’Sorry?’’ Everett’s voice sounded as if someone had forced nettles down his throat. 

‘’What are you going to do now?’’ Everett looked at him funny for a moment as he cocked his head.

‘’What am I going to do now?’’ Now his voice sounded almost afraid.

‘’Yes Everett. You.’’

‘’What do you want me to do?’’ Everett proceeded to gently shake his head with disbelief. ‘’Do you want me to run off and collect everyone and make a grand pep-talk about how friendship and unity is our key and– and how we shouldn’t let a literal murder, which is highly consequential , get in between our friendship. Is that it? Because, personally I don't think that– that is a very utilitarian way of thinking. Because, if– if’’ Everett briefly paused to inhale a lungful of air, ‘’if one of us as to so much so, utters a word, we will be arrested for obstruction of justice for finding a murder evidence but deciding to stay quiet about it, but then again, if we tell we’ll be in equally as much trouble; so what am I supposed to do in that instance? What do you actually want me to do.’’ 

Everett couldn’t possibly fathom how nobody saw his impending anxiety. He couldn’t fathom how everyone only saw the bad in him. Everyone commented on his recent actions and behaviours, however no one bothered to ask, ‘why are you behaving like that’. Truth be told, he didn’t quite know himself. Everyone commented that he was acting aberrant but other than feeling a bit giggly and restless, he felt no different. Maybe, no one actually really knew him. 

‘’Have you finished ranting?’’ Niccolo eyed him with such a dismissive look that Everett almost recoiled backwards with how taken aback he was. ‘’You and Gwendolyn are both the same; impulsive and reckless. She fails to think of the repercussions that may come after acting out on a thought. She steals and lies and thinks right out her arse. But you, you are so much more deceitful than that, you know that your actions have consequences and yet you still do them with the intention to blame someone else for your wrongdoings afterwards. You view yourself as superior and deem yourself to be so much more than you actually are but once someone makes the tiniest comment towards you, criticising your actions or your ways, you erupt like a volcano. I’ve no idea how you were raised or who raised you, but they clearly didn’t do too much of a good job–’’

‘’Take that back this instant.’’ Everett interjected before Niccolo could resume to attack him any further. He balled his palms into fists as he felt his blood simmering. Everett didn’t exactly like his Parents, but they were still his Parents ‘’Take my Parents out of your filthy mouth, you pathetic lowlife.’’ 

‘’Who do you think you are to be calling me a lowlife?’’ Niccolo snorted at him as he broke into a mocking laugh, ‘’What will you do exactly, Leland?’’ instinctively, he clenched his hands into fists as he strode towards the shorter boy.

‘’I’ll fight you, even if it means I get my other lip busted.’’ Everett prayed that Niccolo hadn’t noticed how his voice wavered or how his entire body was positively trembling with fear at the thought that he might actually have to fight. However, his ego was too big for him to back down and accept defeat.

‘’You? Fight me? ’’ In one swift gesture Niccolo clutched both of Everett’s pitifully puny wrists in his stronger dominant right hand; the other boy was caught completely off guard as his stormy grey eyes widened in fear. He thrashed his arms in a futile attempt to get them free from the securing lock of Niccolo’s hand. Tactfully, Niccolo firmly pressed his leg against the other boy’s leg to prevent him from kicking. Everett’s face scrunched up with spite as he continued to squirm willfully, Niccolo’s grip only tightened which caused the other boy to groan with discomfort. 

‘’You can’t even break your wrists free yet you want to fight.’’ Niccolo smirked at the other boy’s displeasure as he sought to bully Everett a little more. ‘’How do you even expect to fight me, I mean.. you look like a girl.’’

Everett whipped his head up as a sour expression distorted his handsome face. ‘’I am not a girl!’’ he yelled straight into Niccolo’s face as panic began to swallow him up.

‘’God, are you sure? You’re not exactly the bravest guy that I know. Neither are you very strong.’’ Niccolo’s smirk turned into a face-splitting grin as he resumed tormenting his roommate.

‘’Shut your mouth, you stupid, jabbering dimwit.’’ Everett tried his hardest to glare at Niccolo as menacing as humanly possible, but it was quite hard seeing how he was pressed against the wall rendered helpless. ‘’My Father has enough connections to get you thrown out of the country and strip you of any education possible here in England.’’

Niccolo stared at Everett questioningly before he spoke up, ‘’Bullshit, you’ll take my citizenship away from me?’’ he tried to laugh through the threat, acting indifferent, but Everett noticed how his eyebrow twitched.

‘’My Father is in the Parliament after all.’’ Everett paused, letting the words sink in. ‘’Let me put it simply enough so that your hollow immigrant head can soak it up more easily; in modern politics and history, the parliament is a legislative body of government.’’ Everett’s grimace began to turn into a devilish grin as he continued, ‘’Carry on pissing me off and I'll make sure that you don’t step a foot back onto British soil ever again.’’

They stared at each other long and hard. Niccolo remained silent but his bruising grip didn’t waver. He searched Everett’s gaze for any indication that he was having him on. However, Everett continued to stare right back at him unblinking, he cocked an eyebrow after a few seconds of silence as he grinned at his roommate.

‘’What will it be?’’ 

He bit his lip with frustration as he yanked his hand away from Everett’s wrists as if burned. He was sure that they were going to be bruised later on in the day. His hands had gone numb as blood rushed to circulate the deoxygenated vessels. Niccolo backed away from his roommate but he proceeded to shake his head whilst glaring at him.

‘’You’re too much of a pussycat to put up a good, decent fight so you use your Daddy’s political status to back yourself up.’’ he practically growled at him as he turned to walk away.

‘’Works out well in my favour, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say that you were jealous.’’ Everett called out at him, seemingly in a rush to get the last word. 

He had no idea if the other boy had heard him since he had already turned the corner, but, alas, one can hope. Everett exhaled shakily as only now he realised how vigorously his heart was beating. He caressed his tense neck as he wondered how he managed to pull that entire stunt off. Frankly, he was bluffing. He doubted that his father could do much for him, he wouldn’t even write to him, never mind deport someone for him. Even so, his Father couldn’t help him even if he wanted to. Hardly anyone liked his father at his workplace, he didn’t believe that anyone would help him with something like that. Unless Niccolo had come to England illegally, or he refused to update his expired citizenship they couldn’t really return him to Italy.

He was glad that Niccolo seemed to be oblivious of how the government actually worked. He had told him that his Father was Deputy Prime Minister but, truth be told, the Deputy Prime Minister wasn’t always appointed or needed. It sounded impressive only if you hadn’t an idea what a Deputy actually does.

Everett supposed that he felt somewhat guilty for threatening Niccolo like that, he didn’t know what it was like to be tossed in a foreign with no family or friends solely for a more stable education, but neither did he feel too bad. Afterall, he had been an infuriating sod. He just didn’t know how he was going to share a dorm with Niccolo when all they did was bicker. Speaking of bickering, it just crossed his mind that his entire friend group had split up because of that cassette. He felt absolutely terrified about what would happen to him and his sister if his Parents were to find out. They might as well disown him, his Parents had always been more lenient towards his sister. They might show her mercy and at least give her share of the familial wealth; but he wasn’t so sure about himself.

What if Gwendolyn told someone? God, that girl’s mouth was like an endless pit that never stopped spouting nonsense. It was a matter of time before the inevitable happened. He needed to get everyone back together before the Christmas Holidays, and he needed to do it fast. He was mortified at the idea that he might have to actually give a pep-talk of unity and the importance of friendship, but as long as no one said anything he would be fine.

Afterall, only two can keep a secret.

  ꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

The end of November had steadily creeped up. Faintly and seamlessly. Just like that, it had already been a week and the calendar displayed the 29th of November. It was the 29th of November and the group was still shattered apart like smashed glass fragments. The sky loomed low and oppressive, with thick churning clouds that smothered away any hint of sunlight, casting the world in a suffocating pall of grey. The biting wind howled through the air a lot more now that winter was mere hours away, it carried with it the stinging lash of cold rain that fell in relentless sheets, drenching everything in its path. The once vibrant colours of the geranium and vermillion landscape were now dulled to soggy, lifeless leaves which litter the muddy grounds, as if the earth itself has been drained of all warmth and vitality. Distorted, scrawny tree branches stood naked as the wind thrashed them with hostility. 

That particular Sunday, Everett sat alone in the library as he once again attempted to tackle a question on Macbeth with his Professor’s notes at the side to help him. But, alas, he soon accepted defeat as he rather violently dropped his head face-down onto the sturdy wooden table. He pressed his forehead against the rough edge of the table as he stared at his lap absent-mindedly. Sometimes, Everett wished that he was deaf. If he was, then he wouldn’t have to listen to Gwendolyn’s aggravating voice a few tables across to his left. 

The gossip-monger was prattling away rather loudly, as if she intended for everyone to hear her. After the break-up, Gwendolyn began to hang out with another group of girls. In Everett’s opinion they were plain and unamusing. Gwendolyn was doubtlessly the prettiest one there to look at. He whipped his head up as he glanced at Gwendolyn. She was perched up on a chair with her head in her right hand. She wore a black knee long fur coat which clashed horrifically with her voluminous black hair. He hadn’t realised how intensely he was staring at her until she spun her head to the side to look at him. Upon making eye contact, her face instantly soured up as she scowled at him. 

Gwendolyn started whispering something to her girlfriends which instantaneously made them also scowl and scoff at his direction. Judging by their reactions, it hadn’t been something good. He was worried that he was attracting too much attention to himself so he took that as his cue that it was time to leave. 

Over the last week, Everett has been observing Gwendolyn’s every move with a magnifying glass. He had become so paranoid that it kept him up at night up until unreasonable hours thinking if she had told anybody, in the mornings he would be absolutely debilitated and twitching like a madman. It seemed that he was the only one that didn’t have any friends at the moment so he simply refused to show up for mealtimes. He certainly wasn’t going to sit alone even if it meant that he starved to death and plus, having more time to study was never a negative. Everett thanked The Lord for his twin sister who would sneak some food from mealtimes and bring it up to him. Nana and Denice seemed to be the only ones who were on talking terms with him, but even then, they hung out with Gwendolyn, he wondered if Denice only talked to him because they were forced in the same class together.

Everett exhaled softly as he hesitantly walked into his dorm room. He groaned as he  heard Niccolo’s stupid record player whistling tunes. A random upbeat pop rock song was playing, something about an ‘uptown girl’, however Everett didn’t pay it much attention. He thought that it was pointless complaining about how frustrating his music was since Niccolo had been actively ignoring him since the break up. Niccolo was situated at the desk with a stash of hardcover books to his right as pens and highlighters were haphazardly scattered around the desk.

Everett stood slouched against the door for a few moments. He normally wouldn’t have liked to admit the fact that the lack of communication actually did upset him. As much as he liked peace and solitude, he still enjoyed someone talking to him once in a while. Humans were social species after all, communication was a vital part of survival. Perhaps he was thinking too scientifically into it, but the main point was that he missed Niccolo asking him how his day had been or telling him a silly joke to lift his mood up. Now he didn’t even look at him, he didn’t register Everett’s presence, he didn’t register when Everett was talking to him, nor did he register when Everett was upset. He felt like a ghost. No, that would have been an overstatement. Even ghosts got registered. 

His shoulders sagged as he made his way over to the bathroom in a strop, slamming the door shut behind him. Maybe he required a steaming, hot bath to calm himself. He didn’t know why but ever since he laid his eyes upon the bathroom mirror he’d wanted to smash it to bits. That mirror seemed to yank the worst out in him. He didn’t know if it was the white tile and ceiling, or the white ceramics that contrasted the darkness of his eyebags, but they surely didn’t look healthy. Have they always been that hollow? Has his skin always been this grey? Has his nose always been that pointed? In fact, it looked so pointed that it looked no different from a snout. One of these days he was going to smash that mirror to bits with his bare hands and then he would take the most serrated, knife-like piece and he would jam it straight into his external jugular vein and patiently wait to bleed out on that vexingly pristine white floor. But for now, he just wanted a bath. 

Would it hurt? He wondered as he slipped into the bath, if he was to slit his throat, a simple papercut was agonising enough as it ached for days never mind slitting a vein which was under high pressure, but then again the adrenaline that his brain would release would be enough for him to not even feel the pain. Everett let those thoughts marinate inside his mind as he thought of the different outcomes. The first outcome was that he died of blood loss as he besmirched his family’s name and reputation. He could picture the news. Heir of the Leland's tragically passed away in his dorm bathroom in St. Louis due to an unsuspected suicide, Deputy Prime Minister Senior Leland hasn’t any comments for the press as he has requested for his family to mourn in peace. Everett giggled wetly, he wondered what expression his Mother’s stupid face would make. Would she be surprised? Or would she remain impassive? He supposed that he would never find out. 

The second outcome wasn’t much different from the first. Perhaps he would survive and his tragic failed suicide attempt would be aired for all of Great Britain to see. After being discharged from the hospital, he would be disowned and thrown onto the streets. God, he doubted that his Father was even going to give any of his familial inheritance. The second outcome wasn’t quite as amusing so it wasn’t worth laughing at it. The warm bath water enveloped Everett in a comforting, tight embrace as the heat seeped into his muscles, coaxing some of the tension which was trapped underneath. The water was the ideal temperature, not too hot to scorch the skin but warm enough to produce a gentle steam which lazily swerved around the miniature bathroom. 

Everett’s gaze lowered  as he stared at his bruised wrists. It appeared that Niccolo had squeezed one wrist harder than the other as it was still a vivid dark shade of purple. His other wrist was a sickly yellow with the odd spot of light green. He stared at his wrists for a second. He wanted to sink his fingernails into the bruise, but not for any reason specifically. He wasn't mentally ill or anything. He was simply curious as to what he would feel if he did it. Would the bruise go black where he sunk his nails? Or would it stay the same? At first, Everett was feeling quite hesitant; as a test, he lightly scratched at the purple bruise. It felt unpleasant but not enough to cause pain. With a self assured inhale he sunk his nails deep into the bruise, enough to break the skin as he dragged around the circumference of his wrist. An electrifying stabbing pain shot through his body as he shivered at the sensation. It was different from when he had pressed his fingertips to his bruised side a while back, this time it was more thrilling. It felt bad. But at the same time it didn’t. 

Everett slid further into the silk-like water as he fully submerged himself, his knees peaked out of the water like the tops of two mountains. 

Suddenly, another thought whizzed past his head. What if he drowned himself? It wasn’t as painful, and neither did it require so much planning beforehand. Drowning seemed peaceful, you just let the water envelop you. The only problem was that he was a great swimmer. Damn his wretched Parents for forcing him to try out every sport under the sun. 

Niccolo sat slouched in his desk chair as he desperately attempted to revise for an upcoming physics assessment, unfortunately he had never been much good at physics or maths in fact. The moment that he had heard Everett entering the dorm he contemplated very hard if he should break his ignoring streak and ask him for help. Back when they were on talking terms Niccolo had no problem with begging and bribing Everett for a few minutes or so until he gave in and eventually helped him. The revision guide wasn’t making any sense whatsoever in Niccolo’s opinion. The letters just kept jumping about the page and even when he would re-read the same passage multiple times the words just seemed to have a mind of their own as they pranced around the page. 

Niccolo was abruptly whisked out of his ineffectual revision as he heard a laugh from the bathroom; cosa, in nome del cazzo was he doing in that bathroom? Niccolo rapidly shook the multitudinous chain of indecent thoughts out of his head as he felt his cheeks heat up. He figured after half-an-hour or so of not learning anything  and a mentally deprived roommate, it was time to clear his head and go for a walk.

Upon making it out the door, Niccolo made sure to shut it audibly enough for Everett to know that he had left, he wasn’t entirely sure why he did it, it became somewhat of an unspoken rule between the two of them. Whenever one of them was leaving they would shut the door a bit louder than what was considered normal. He hoped that he didn’t bump into Gwendolyn, he was angry as much at her as he was at that skittish maniac back in his dorm. She shouldn’t have stolen those cassettes and Everett shouldn’t have… well whatever he’s been getting up to the past two weeks. 

He supposed he was to blame for the whole cassette ordeal as well, he had been on it just as much. The other week Everett had called it, ‘being no good accomplices’, at the time Niccolo had to suppress a snort as they were on bad terms. It happened when he was having a rather passionate rant with Denice, but she didn’t even get the chance to chip in as Everett was ranting so overwhelmingly much. 

Niccolo vaguely remembered that he forgot to take his painkiller this morning but he supposed that it didn’t matter that much anymore. His nose had practically healed it’s nearly been two weeks since the incident. The Nurse had pestered him for quite a while to tell her who had beaten him so badly, but Niccolo refused to tell her, it wasn’t because he was scared, he just didn’t want to make a fuss of things. Plus he had a plan of his own of getting back at that blathering, attention deprived, buffoon. When the Nurse had dialled his parents on one of those rotary dial phones they hadn’t been very amused with his recent behaviours. He buried the memory of his fuming momma somewhere deep in the archives of his brain as he steadily made his way to a bench outside in the school gardens. 

The sky was ridden with thick, leaden clouds which stretched over the horizon in an unbroken shroud. The air was crisp and sharp, it bit rather unpleasantly at Niccolo’s unprotected hands. He was glad to have at least tossed a coat on before leaving. Occasional gusts of wind tousled his already unkempt, unruly hair as he hurried to zip his coat all the way up to his chin. Niccolo couldn’t wait to go back to Italy; not that it was much warmer there now that it was nearly December, but at least it was home.

Suddenly, Niccolo saw from the small of his eye another figure approach him. He turned his head to see who was approaching him. His heart nearly leapt out his chest when he saw Nana. for a second, he thought it was Everett because of the uncanny resemblance. He was pleasantly relieved when he saw her instead. Subconsciously, he beamed at Nana like a fool as he gave her a toothy genuine smile. Niccolo hadn’t smiled so brightly in a long time. The girl returned the same heartfelt smile, he couldn’t get over how stunningly beautiful she was. A black headband adorned her head as it pushed back her silky hair. Beyond her charming glistening smile a row of aligned teeth peaked out. The cold gave her a quaint rosy blush on both of her cheeks as she waved at him. 

Nana seemed a bit more ready for winter, she wore a black puffer coat with a white cosy scarf which cradled her neck with a pair of leather boots. On top of her tights the top of a matching pair of fluffy socks peaked out as she nestled close to Niccolo. 

‘’Hey Nana.’’ Niccolo resumed to smile at her as he could now make out all her other enchanting features, like the mole right underneath her right eye. 

‘’Hello Niccolo.’’ she gave him a coy smile as she hurried to clasp her hands together to retain some warmth. Niccolo oh, so wanted to wrap his hands around hers and intertwine their fingers together like a ball of yarn. 

He gently cleared his throat once he realised that he had been staring for too long, ‘’how are you holding up? Y’know, how are you?’’ 

Nana shrugged her shoulders absent-mindedly as she looked at the evergreen trees up ahead, her quaint smile not leaving her quite yet. ‘’Okay I suppose, these past few months haven’t exactly been easy, have they?’’ she spoke so lightly that Niccolo struggled to hear her over the persistent howl of the wind. 

‘’No, but that’s not a bad thing, it builds up resilience. Making you better for the future, I suppose.’’ 

Nana chuckled as she turned her head to face Niccolo, ‘’who would’ve thought that you would be so wise.’’ there was no bite in her comment, unlike her ill-tempered brother, it was just some friendly teasing.

He laughed lightly at the comment, ‘’Now I see how you and your brother are related.’’

All of a sudden, her smile wavered and became melancholy. Nana stilled after he said that, he wondered if he had said something wrong. Niccolo scrambled his brain for an apology, even if he himself wasn’t quite sure what he was apologising for. ‘’Nana, I–’’

Before Niccolo could even finish his sentence, Nana reached over to grab his numb hands. He choked on his breath for a split second as he felt his heart flutter once again. Even through his numbness, he could feel the softness of Nana’s hands; her manicured nails glistened with a simple clear polish. 

‘’How is he?’’ she cocked her head to the side ever so slightly, ‘’my brother.’’ Niccolo kept his gaze locked on Nana for a very long time as he considered how to go about his answer. 

‘’He’s y’know, same old same old.’’ he shrugged his shoulders, Niccolo hadn’t expected for the conversation to turn out like that. Why was the conversation always about Leland? Even when he escaped the confines of his dorm, his presence seemed to linger and follow him around. He stopped himself from telling her all the other little abnormal things that Everett was doing. Like the laughing out of nowhere, or the muttering under his breath, or the insomnia accompanied by the nervous twitching. Perhaps he was selfish or perhaps he just wanted to have a real talk with the girl he fancied.

‘’Have you seen him behaving… weird?’’ Nana paused in the middle of her sentence as she searched for the right word. 

‘’No.’’ He kept her gaze as he tightly wrapped his palms around her daintier hands, encasing them in a warming hold. Her shoulders sagged ever so slightly, a relieved smile lit her features up.

‘’I'm glad, hopefully it was just something temporary.’’ she fidgeted with the sole of her shoe as her other foot pulled it downwards. ‘’I feel as though I hardly recognise him, despite knowing him my entire life.’’

He looked at her with evident concern, he wanted to smother Everett for being such a bastard to his sister,‘’Don’t worry, love. He’ll come around eventually. He will be okay.’’ Niccolo leaned closer to Nana as he felt her steady warm breath ghost over his prickled skin. Nana lulled her head, positioning it on Niccolo’s shoulder who wrapped a reassuring hand around her shoulder pulling her impossibly closer to himself. 

Chapter Text

Cataclysmic enveloping darkness surrounded Everett from all directions. Even after frantically spinning multiple times like a silly mutt chasing its tail, he still saw nothing. Each breath felt laboured and heavy; like a burden which crushed his ribs and yanked him downwards. It felt as though the air itself was thick with dread. Familiar yet foreign. He’s uncertain of what is happening or what was real and what wasn’t. He dug his hands in his pyjama top as an act of self soothing before he felt a dead weight topple on top of him seamlessly from nowhere. An acrid stench surrounded him as he scrambled to see what had fallen on top of him. By now his heartbeat was irregular and panic-ridden, he thought that he might vomit his heart out with the efforts that it was making to break out of his ribcage. A clammy yet frozen fleshy hand suddenly grasped him by his oesophagus as it squeezed with firm rigorousness. 

Everett felt his eyeballs bulge as he looked at it. It was her. It was the girl from the cassette, the dead girl–. A gurgled choke escaped him as the girl dug into his pelvis as she concentrated all of her weight on top of him, imprisoning him. Matted, long chestnut hair cascaded down her hallowed, grey face as she snarled at him like a wild animal. Her eyes seemed almost deflated and viscous, Everett didn’t dare break contact, he stared like a deer caught in headlights. Seconds felt like years as the girl opened and closed her mouth in a futile manner a couple of times, as if she wanted to say something. Abruptly, she retched out a thick volume of pungent smelling blood which fell all over his torso and face as he gawked absolutely terrified. 

‘’It’s all your fault Everett Leland. All, all, all, all, all your fault.’’ she hissed out her words almost playfully, giggling wetly in between. ‘’They’re coming for your sins–’’ she wheezed abruptly, ‘’they’re coming to collect your debts.’’ the girl elongated the ‘s’, like a snake. ‘’You won’t be able to slither away this time.’’ She grimaced at him before she began to repeatedly bash his head against what he assumed to be some sort of solid ground underneath him.

He was sick and tired of seeing darkness. Shadowed figures plagued his vision day and night, nightmares and visions haunted his mind. Everett just wanted it all to stop. He would never be avaricious or judging ever again. He just wanted it to stop.

Everett jolted in his uncomfortably warm bed with a yelp, his eyelids flew open as he stared up ahead at the dome ceiling in their dorm. His hand instinctively landed on his chest, he squeezed the silk, ragged breaths escaped him as he attempted to soothe his thundering heart. Lethargically, he turned his head towards his roommate who seemed soundly asleep facing away from him. An exhale escaped him as he listened to the howling wind outside. 

He didn’t know if Niccolo really did sleep like a log or if he was simply too caught up in upholding his petulant ignoring grudge to acknowledge Everett. Whichever it may be, Everett was nonetheless relieved that he wouldn't have to explain himself. He really didn’t know what he was going to do about himself. Surely, seeming uncanny shadow people was abnormal. Though, he wasn’t exactly sure if they had been people at all or not; he just recalls seeing blobs skittering in the corner of his eye, sometimes they did have the one odd limb but that didn’t really mean anything. 

He was perfectly fine and he stood by that. So what, most adolescents also have nightmares and are scared of monsters, that doesn’t make them mentally deprived. His Mother had once said that nowadays it seemed that the younger generation had a hyper-fixation with diagnosing themselves with all kinds of ‘illnesses’ simply because they were attention deprived by their parents so they sought out something to make themselves look more interesting to the public. Like a jester, Everett had thought. Realistically, what did loonies have to offer to society? They were unreliable and unpredictable. Everett was a very reliable person and he was very predictable. Surely , it was temporary. It’ll go away sooner than later. He wasn’t sure himself, but somehow he had managed to succumb to slumber once more.

The following morning, Niccolo had woken up first, he had woken up to a white, pale light filtering through the nearly opaque curtains into the mostly dark room. Niccolo blinked a few times, waiting for the room to come into a clearer focus. Secondly, he noticed that he had woken up facing Leland. He looked almost angelic as he slept with the covers tucked safely up to his chin like a cocoon. He saw Everett’s nimble pale fingers peak out ever so slightly from the covers huddled together beneath his chin. He wondered if the only time of the day when Everett wasn’t a completely vicious discriminating prat was when he was peacefully huddled underneath his covers. Niccolo glanced at the grandfather clock as he got up from his bed, noticing that it wasn’t even seven yet. He didn’t think that Leland deserved to be cosily nestled in bed dreaming away whilst he was up and already cold, so he decided to pull the curtains and let some light into their beaver’s nest. Niccolo hurried to yank all the curtains open before he froze. From behind the coarse fabric a breath-taking scene greeted him:  the landscape outside has been transformed into a pristine, snow-covered haven. The first snow of the year has fallen, it was still gently snowing as he absorbed the scenery. A thick powdery layer of ice gleamed under the soft grey sky. Trees just yesterday which had stood bare and ominous were now holding a delicate layer of snow on their bigger branches. He buzzed with excitement as he couldn’t wait for in between class breaks to toss a snowball at someone’s head.

Behind him he heard rustling as Leland groaned in an unappreciative manner due to the invading light which lit the room up. He had vague recollections of last night, Niccolo remembered stirring momentarily in his sleep as he heard high pitched whines and undoubtful groans. He knew that Everett was having yet another nightmare, but he didn’t know what to expect if he was to go confront him about it. Niccolo felt guilty for lying to Nana like that a few days ago about her brother being completely fine, when he clearly wasn’t. But then again, what was he supposed to say? ‘Ah yes, your brother is absolutely out of his mind and belongs in a loony bin, no can do!’, perhaps if he didn’t like her and desperately sought out ways to get rid of her, then he would have said something along those lines. But right now, all he really wanted to do was go launch a snowball at someone; he would sulk about his morally controversial actions later.

 Niccolo gathered his uniform in his hands in a messy heap as he scurried to get dressed. Whilst he flew through buttoning his shirt up he noticed that Leland had tossed the covers over his head and had proceeded to wriggle about in bed. He was definitely awake, that’s for sure. Everett just probably didn’t want to have to look at Niccolo. And he was fine with that since he also didn’t want to look at his anti-migrant extremist roommate (who was also an insufferable prude). He tossed his coat and scarf on, and took off firmly shutting the door behind him. 

Instantly, he regretted slamming that door, once he realised that it was still ‘in dorm hours’ and that he wasn’t permitted to leave. Niccolo skittishly made his way down the corridor as he poked his head around the corners in fear that a Prefect might be patrolling. He couldn’t wait himself to run for prefect; although he was highly certain that he wouldn’t get it. Most teachers already thought that he was insufferable and a distraction to his peer’s learning, but on the contrary, at least he was intelligent enough to be in one of the top sets. He couldn’t guarantee that he was going to be in higher maths and science for long though. Niccolo was already severely falling behind on homework and assessments. 

He pushed all of those rattling thoughts to the back of his mind as he tried to focus on the fact that he would be going back to Italy soon for Christmas. Niccolo couldn’t wait to see his parents again; but he couldn’t say the same for his agitating abundance of older brothers. From the moment that he would enter the house, Niccolo knew that he would be showered with questions about how England was, or was the weather really as bad as they make it out to be in movies, or if he had found himself a ‘ cara fidanzata’ , or if he was a troublemaker at school. The possibilities of questions were frankly endless.

 Once Niccolo had made it past the corridors and into open space, the chilling bite of winter instantly attacked his vulnerable, uncovered skin like an advancing army. There were about three solid inches of dense snow beneath him. It crunched in a satisfyingly prolonged way as he attempted to zip his coat impossibly more. Niccolo puffed out a lungful of air in an almost childish way which instantly froze, it looked like smoke. Perhaps, that was the only reason why he did it. Despite blowing smoke all year long due to cigarettes it didn't quite compare to that of the innocent snowy one. 

Whilst he was sheepishly standing there, all of a sudden he felt something soft enough to not hurt him, but also dense enough to catch him off guard, make contact with the back of his head. An icy, merciless droplet slithered down from his head down to his neck as his shoulders tensed at the temperature difference. He spun around to see who had violated him with a snowball. A girl slouched against the grand doors grinned viciously at him as her black bodacious curls haphazardly blew in all directions. 

‘’I thought you were angry at me?’’ he scowled teasingly as he turned the statement into a question.

‘’I could say the same about you.’’ Gwendolyn took a leisurely stroll over to Niccolo as they continued shouting at each other from across the school yard.

 Niccolo considered his next words carefully. Either he could make it up with Gwendolyn and only have Everett to deal with or, he could turn his back on her and continue their petty feud. He really didn’t want to make enemies during his first half-term at school. What good would that bring him? 

‘’I am still annoyed with what you did.’’ he offered very tentatively, pausing to see how she would react.

‘’God, can you stop bollocking me for it?’’ she huffed annoyed right beside Niccolo now, ‘’Leland’s to blame even more than I am.’’

‘’Yeah, well, don’t act like it wasn’t you who came up with the entire scheme of breaking in and stealing the cassettes, plus, I’m not exactly talking to him right now either.’’  They walked side by side as crystalline snow crunched beneath their feet. Despite his gloves and having his hands balled tightly inside his coat pocket, the biting cold in the air still wouldn’t leave him alone. 

‘’ Really? You’re not talking with Leland? I thought you only weren't talking with me.’’ Gwendolyn eyed him curiously as a sly grin creeped onto her face. ‘’Pray tell.’’

‘’Nothing. I’m just pissed at him for being him, really.’’

‘’That’s not nearly enough of a reason for you to hate someone.’’

‘’Not hate. Not as strong. More like…’’ Niccolo momentarily looked away and focused on a dried out shrub somewhere in the near distance. ‘’–More like ‘I still haven’t made up my mind whether I want to even remain within the same radius as him or sock him in his foul mouth for being a raging anti-immigrant capitalist even if half of the English economy revolves around the primary and secondary sector minimum wage jobs which are given to migrants to keep the market running.’ ’’ Niccolo finished rather fast with a shaking fist and a bulging vein in his forehead.

The girl blinked incredulously as she gave him a strange look, almost as if to say ‘what are you on about?’, ‘’Wait a second now, Leland’s a racist and a fascist?’’ 

‘’Probably, I don't know, he acts like it, he might as well be both.’’ Niccolo briefly paused before massaging his temple, ‘’I just don’t understand how someone can be both so intelligent yet so stupid. Or how he and Nana are related, y’know? She’s so nice and considerate and then there’s– well, him. He might as well turn into a dictator, it’s not any better that he goes to a school that specialises in politics.’’

‘’Well, whatever, you two can act like an angry married couple without me, I’m just here to say that I don’t really have anything against you.’’ She eyed him awkwardly, refraining from making eye contact. The ‘angry married couple’ analogy took Niccolo aback but he wasn’t sure how to counteract so he just left it with a scoff. He would rather fire a bullet through his head than stay and imagine him and Leland married, co-existing and doing other icky domestic things.

‘’You’re missing something.’’ In return, Niccolo eyed her almost accusingly.

‘’Fine, whatever. Sorry for–’’ she made this annoyed hand gesture before sighing, ‘’partially dragging our entire friend group into sommet that could’ve resulted in us being suspended and dragging it out when we should’ve left it.’’ 

‘’And the cassettes.’’ he coughed uncomfortably.

‘’Fine! And the cassettes.’’ she blurted out thoroughly annoyed. ‘’But, I’m not apologising on Leland’s behalf, he can do that himself once the coward plucks up enough courage to do so. Happy now?’’ 

Niccolo raised his eyebrows whilst nodding at her almost mockingly , turning away, ‘’yeah. A lot happier.’’

They silently walked side by side for a moment.

‘’Wanna walk to class together, Gwen?’’ he looked at her hopefully. If they were to rekindle things they might as well get to it.

‘’Sure, why not.’’ she shrugged, hesitantly glancing at him. For a second they continued to walk in silence before Gwendolyn piped up rather loudly. ‘’You need to be more discreet about your crush on Nana. it’s very obvious.’’

‘’Wait what–’’

      ꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

Everett sat perched at his desk desperately trying to grasp the concept behind Macbeth. He was a ‘fair’ loyal soldier that turned ‘foul’ because of some ambiguous prophecies given to him by three hags. Right.  ‘’Fair is foul and foul is fair.’’ right. But what did it mean? What is the big message that Shakespeare was trying to convey? The more his overzealous brain wrinkled itself the more he felt himself lose the thread all together. So he left it. 

He proceeded to lean back as he hoped that his Professor would model an answer for them because in the past four months he had barely managed to write one poorly structured  essay with the constant help of someone by his side. He sighed as he audibly banged his head against his exercise book. The dead girl seemed to prod and crawl around his head like some kind of a brain eating amoeba. He simply could not get her out of his mind. What did she mean that they were coming for his sins? Who was coming? Was he going to die? Surely not, that would've been ludicrous. But the statement seemed to be running loops around his mind like a curse. He had to tell someone, anyone. But, he can’t just tell anyone that is the problem. Gwendolyn and Niccolo appeared to have moved on with their lives; the death of some poor gal didn't seem to be doing much of a toll on them. It wasn't much better when he had unexpectedly seen them walking to class together this very morning. Honestly, they were meant to hate each other, For Christ’s Sake! What on earth were they doing prancing around together? Laughing too! The more Everett thought about it the more he started to convulse with it. 

Just then, the bell rang dismissing them. Thank God that it was lunch, Everett felt that if he had to interact with anyone right away he might just erupt like a volcano. He scrambled to his feet to pack away, rushing to get as far away from his classroom as possible. 

‘’Everett? May I speak with you privately?’’ his English Professor suddenly piped up as the classroom was nearly emptied out. He paused and skittishly glanced around. Why did Professor Keegan wish to speak with him? Privately too. Keegan was posed at her desk sorting through papers, seemingly not in a rush. 

He strode over to her desk as he looked inquiringly at her, ‘’Professor?’’ 

The woman’s mouth came to a thin line as her eyes bore into him. Her fingers were interlocked. He stared at her fidgeting red polished thumbs. ‘’Everett, I'll be frank with you, I feel concerned about your work ethic in and outside of class. I feel very unnerved about the level that you’re working at.’’

She was telling him off. Okay, but, why was she being so calm about it? His tutors back home were way stricter; nevermind his parents if they ever got informed that he was misbehaving. Everett lightly shook his head as he proceeded to scoff in a futile attempt to conceal his ever growing anxiety. 

‘’I don’t understand what there is to be possibly worried about, I mean– I’m passing aren’t I, so what’s this fuss about?’’

‘’Please don’t speak to me like that,’’ the woman very softly pardoned him, ‘’Everett, a C or a B is a pass. A D isn’t anywhere near to a pass. You know this: I spent an entire lesson on my expectations and on the grading system back in September.’’

Everett stiffly half smiled as he dismissively shrugged his hunched shoulders, ‘’Professor, I'll study over the holidays, it’s not a big deal–’’ 

‘’You are four months behind everybody else. I don’t wish to insult your intelligence, because I have seen your results in Maths and Science but, do you have any idea of the chronology in Macbeth? Can you confidently name me five quotes from each Act?

‘’Professor– I, uhm.’’ Everett nervously exhaled as he felt his hands go cold, ‘’of course, I can, but you’re putting me on the spot, I can’t just–’’

‘’Everett who’s Banquo?’’ Keegan perched herself forward on the desk as looked at him expectedly.

‘’Macbeth’s best.. Friend? That he killed.’’ he very tentatively said, but it sounded more like a question than anything else.

‘’And why did he kill him?’’ 

At that, Everett blankly stared at his Professor for what felt like hours as he frantically began to chew on his bottom lip, heart pounding. ‘’Because… you know, you know I can write it in an essay, I’m not good with you staring at me like that. It’s, erm, putting me off. ’' Uselessly, he said the first excuse that came into his head. Now he has surely done more damage than good, saying his teacher is ‘off putting’.

‘’I have yet to see you produce one essay!’’ the woman opposite him scoffed in disbelief.

‘’I have written one essay!’’ Everett shot back defensively. 

‘’In four months?’’ 

At that, he stared at his Professor quite defeated, ‘’obviously not. I have more, written somewhere in my dorm.’’ a weak attempt at lying, but an attempt nonetheless. 

The woman opposite him sighed and looked down at her papers disappointed. ‘’I’m sorry but I have no other option but to notify your Parents. This lack of effort just simply won’t do.’’

At the mention of his Parents, Everett instantaneously seized up as he felt his muscles tense. Anything that his Professor might’ve been saying went from one ear and out the other as he felt his breathing go shallow.

‘’Professor!’’ Everett slammed his hands down on her desk startling the woman as he stared at her like a wounded animal. ‘’Don’t be daf–, don’t be like that, don’t tell my Parents, I’ll do any work that you ask of me at home. I promise, I’ll–’’

‘’Mr Leland, this is simply not up for discussion. I have made up my mind.’’ Keegan’s voice became firmer as she asserted her point. Everett frantically looked at her through wide eyes.

‘’No! You don’t understand what’ll–’’ Everett bit his tongue as he realised what he was about to say would most likely lead to him and his sister being thrown into an orphanage and having their family name plastered all over The Times in all of Great Britain.

‘’I don’t understand what exactly, Mr Leland?’’  she stared at him intently as she raised her eyebrows up at him.

‘’Nothing.’’ the boy seethed back after a moment through clenched teeth.

Everett swung his bag over his shoulder and stormed out the room in a fury. She’ll tell his parents and he’ll just get another damn beating, big fucking deal, it wouldn’t be the first time that he would have his wits banged out of his head. If anything he’s looking forward to it, about time he felt some refreshment. Who cares about English Literature anyway? The big fuss nowadays was all about Maths and Science. What was he going to do with English anyway? Analyse why the carpet in his office at work in ten years time was grey and what it symbolises. He thinks not. 

         ꧁༺ ❖❖༻꧂

There were only two weeks left until they broke up for Christmas. Two weeks until they broke up and Everett had been specially selected to perform in a violin sonata of Tchaikovsky’s Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy from the Nutcracker for the Christmas Assembly next week. He was glad if anything that it’s Tchaikovsky that he had to perform, Everett recalls that once or twice he had played the piece; but it was just too long ago since. In all fairness, he felt quite smug when his Music Professor had popped into his Maths class to inform him and told him to come find him at lunchtime for more information. Denice, absolutely heart-broken that she hadn’t been selected, groaned in despair before eventually clapping Everett on the back and telling him that she was happy for him nonetheless. 

‘’Y’know, that’s well impressive considering that we’ve only been here for four months.’’ Denice grinned at him as she pretended to write an answer on her whiteboard.

‘’Would’ve been nice if I was actually doing that sonata with someone that I knew.’’ he sighed dismissively, ‘’I mean, what if that other donkey gets stagefright and bails on me. Or worse, messes up the notes all together.’’ 

‘’Can’t do, they’re probably on the same level as you if they also got picked.’’

‘’No one is safe from stage fright. Being stared at by two-hundred odd people is bad enough without the pressure of actually playing the instrument.’’

‘’What kind of an exhibitionist do you actually have to be to get a kick out of being stared at.’’ Denice barked a laugh. Everett in return stared at her blankly.

‘’What’s an exhibitionist? Like the people in museums that show you the exhibitions? What’s that got to do with stage fright?’’ Everett asked her, completely lost.

‘’Erm, you know what, forget I ever said anything.’’ Denice cleared her throat uncomfortably and dismissively waved her hands. ‘’I can come with you to the studio if you wanna practice, I’ll keep you company.’’ 

‘’Yeah sure, whatever.’’ Despite shrugging it off, Everett still wondered what Denice had meant. He’ll make a mental note to pester her for an answer later.