Lou stuck the key into the front door of his Father's house, jiggling it up and down to help fit it in. Opening the door and closing it behind, he took off his shoes, slipping his bag off his shoulder. Picking up the mail that had been delivered throughout the week, he filed through to see if any letters had been written back to himself personally. He let out sigh, shuffling the papers and heading to the kitchen. Taking out some twine, he tied the papers together, fitting a note on top re-addressing the set of letters to be sent to his father personally. Stepping out to put the letters in the out-box, he returned to the kitchen and looked into the fridge for a snack. That's when he heard it.
Grabbing the closest utensil, which happened to be a spatula, he slowly moved towards the noise. Peeking his head slowly into the other room, he lowered the utensil staring blankly. Dareth had sprawled himself out on the couch, one foot on the floor and a leg over the back, both arms hanging overhead, dropping down the cushioned arm, he snored lightly- which sounded more like a distant squeak. He looked tired, restless. Had he been crying? Lou walked over, and opened the curtains to a window, letting the sun land its beams directly on Dareths face. He grunted, slowly covering it with an arm.
"Mmnn… Five more minutes…" He rolled over and off the couch hitting the ground with a thud in an attempt to avoid the light. "Okay okay, I'm up, I'm up.." He slowly got up, stretching and readjusting a gold pendant that dangled on his chest.
"How in the world did you get in here? The door was locked!" Lou had many more questions than that, but the conversation had to start somewhere.
"Ever lock your windows?" Dareth chuckled, "Nah, I'm kidding. I didn't want to get my jacket all dirty from opening them. The back door was unlocked." He smiled calmly. Lou sighed, looking done with life. Of course, who ever locks the back door?
"Okay… so, what are you doing here uninvited- not to mention still wearing shoes?" He folded his arms, tapping the spatula against his shoulder.
"Well, we're friends, right?" Dareth disguised a guilty smile by dramatically shrugging, pulling off his boots. "Besides, I'm doing you a favor for pete's sake! Say what would happen if someone broke in? I'd be here to stop any sort of theft in a heartbeat." The tone started to really annoy Lou, as he twitched an eyebrow.
"Might as well put your shoes back on. My father's house isn't a place for you to 'crash' in, Dareth, and just because we're friends doesn't mean you can get away with stuff you couldn't before. Rules apply to all guests, whether they're friends or family. Besides, if you really need to sleep then you should probably do it in your own bed, not my dad's couch."
"No can do sir, I don't have my own bed anymore." Dareth flopped back down on the couch, slumping down. "Unless you want me to sleep outside in a tree, I can do that." He smiled, but the chuckle that followed was dry.
Lou took a seat next to him, looking concerned. Dareth continued to stare out for a minute, maybe two, before starting. "My parents found out I was helping the Royal Blacksmiths; they saw the letter you wrote -sorry if it seemed I was ignoring you-" He took a breath and sighed, "and I was kicked out. I've been here for a few days now- sorry about that too." He scratched the side of his face, using the other hand to pull at the pendant, rolling it around his palm. Another moment of silence filled with a gentle jingle of the chain. "But hey, I got my Dad's bike out of it so that's cool. I gotta get out of the city before he goes after me for it… " He half smiled at Lou before looking outward again. Another moment of silence. Lou didn't know what to think, the concept of kicking someone out of a family seemed alien and unjust, especially over something that seemed so miniscule. He knit his eyebrows in concern, watching Dareth. He seemed to be handling it well… a little too well. Dareth slapped his hands on his knees and shot up. "Welp! That's enough of that! What's for lunch, Lou?" He swung his arms playfully, clapping his hands together. "Are you gonna teach me how to dance today?"
The two boys hand a few sandwiches for lunch, standing on the back patio and watching the birds gather sticks and seeds. Heading back inside, Lou proceeded to move the living room table to the wall, making a wider area to walk around in. He went over to the closet and wheeled out an old record player with a few encased records stacked on top. Dareths eyes widened and seemed to sparkle.
"So, you want to know how to dance, huh? It's harder than it looks, but let me see what you can do first." Lou filed through the records, trying to decide which one to start. They were all classical or rag, simple slower songs or fast bops. He needed something in between but he couldn't decide.
"Can I go grab- hold on, I have a few records of my own-!" Dareth bounded out the door. Lou didn't seem to notice. He set one on the player, and switched on the machine, putting the needle down. The tune started to play, and he looked up to see no one standing there.
"Dareth?"
"Hold on hold on- I got it-!" He stumbled into the room, nearly dropping the record. He looked confused at the song, and shook his head. "Aw come on, Lou, cut this old school junk out. This is the new age, turn of the century-" He took the needle off the disk and put his own on top.
"HEY! Careful you can't do that with records like that!-" Lou quickly took the two disks off, setting Dareth's back on the spoke, "Haven't you ever used one of these before?" He stared, looking insulted.
"I mean.. My dad had one but we never used it…" He rubbed the side of his neck, "That was in the old house though. He kept his records which are mine now, haha!" There was a hint of guilt in his laugh. He had taken quite a few things of his parents, the necklace from his mother and the rest from his dad. He even managed to take his fish with too, having the tank reside safely in the motorcycle's saddlebag. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get this record spinning." Lou nodded and put the needle on the vinyl while Dareth took to the center of the room.
The first thing he noticed was the coordination. It seemed rash with no real pattern. The footing too was without proper instruction or movement. He couldn't help but chuckle, seeing this all reminded him of the time he tried to teach his little brother how to dance. Lou lifted the needle off, watching Dareth continue before realizing the music had stopped. "I've seen enough. Your coordination is off and you're too harsh. Dancing is a flow, not a battle."
"Huh?" Dareth blinked. "That's not what the music teach' told me. She said that dancing is about asserting powerful moving actions. I think I did a pretty good job of that."
"You looked like you were drunk on something, the movement was too rash, I thought you were going to break something, and you had no real pattern to follow, creating an eyesore." Lou stated flatly. "You are atrocious, Dareth, but that's okay. I'll teach you how to dance. Your teacher doesn't know a thing about dancing, so don't listen to what she says about it." He rested a hand on Dareth's shoulder, who was looking discouraged. "From now on, you're taking lessons from the best." That made him smile again. "Now! Let's hear those vocals, shal we?" Lou walked over to the piano, testing the keys and striking a chord.
"Ahh, I dunno about this one Lou, I think I might spare you your ears." Dareth stuck his hands in his back pockets, still feeling bad but trying not to show it. "Besides, Mom always told me I'm a lot better talker than tuner. I might break all the windows in your house and-"
"Your mom isn't here anymore. Besides, you wanted to do this, right?" Dareth shrugged in response, humming to warm himself up. There was a bit of dread in Lou; Dareth's voice always sounded so lazy. He wasn't sure if it was an acquired accent or if that was just how his chords were, but he saw potential. Getting the okay, Lou started playing a familiar song on the piano. Dareth took a breath and started. Before long, the two were really jamming. His singing wasn't jaw-dropping, but it wasn't hideous- actually, it was quite pleasant. " ~And do you believe in rock and roll? Can music, save your mortal soul and, can you teach me how to dance real slow?~" Dareth hadn't noticed that he was beginning to dance again, wandering around the piano and singing- he couldn't help but smile. Lou smiled back, striking the keys. They were having such a fun time, they didn't even notice the gentle ring of the grandfather clock.
Through the window, the sun slowly dipped into the horizon.
