Lightning seemed happier when his father returned, but Mater had been his best friend for a long time and even as ignorant as he was he could see the exhaustion in his friends eyes. It wasn't easy to spot, but on the rare occasion when Lightning looked him in the eyes Mater saw a deep sadness and a strain that suggested he was carrying a heavy burden, and it wasn't always his eyes. When he smiled the corners of his mouth twitched unnaturally and his eyes didn't crinkle like they had before. He just wasn't... happy anymore, and it hurt Mater to the core.
In a fruitless attempt to cheer his friend up he asked Lightning to come 'tractor tipping' with him, and he tried to come up with another outrageous story to tell, but Lightning always blew him off with an excuse about hanging out with his dad, and when his dad was gone Lightning flat out said no. It hurt to see him suffering, but Mater couldn't do anything now. His dad was coming back in a few days, so maybe he could talk some sense into his son. And if he couldn't? Well, then no one can.
Mater pulled back out of the engine he was working on and banged his head on the hood in fright, "Gee, Lightning, You about gave me a heart attack!"
Lightning smiled sheepishly, "Sorry, bro. I was wondering if you wanted to go 'Tractor Tipping?'"
Mater grinned from ear to ear, It seemed like Lightning was getting better, "Sure! Let's go!"
Tractor tipping was a code name they used for when they just wanted to hang out. It could be anything from scaring cows on the local farms to late night swims in the oasis on the other side of town. Actually, a swim sounded like a great idea to Mater, and he was sure Lightning would like to go for a dip. It wasn't often that Lightning shared tidbits from his childhood, but he had confided in Mater that he had dreamed of being a swimmer in the Olympics but his dad had urged him to take up mechanics. Mater had felt a little cross at his dad for stifling his dream, but if he had become a swimmer Lightning would have never met mater or anyone of them.
"Well, I can go grab my swim trunks-"
"No." Lightning denied quickly and winced slightly at the thought. He smiled weakly at Mater and feebly attempted to play it off, "I've been swimming a few times with my dad, i'm not in the mood."
You're lying. It was on the tip of Maters tongue be he refrained from saying anything. This was a delicate path, and if he wanted to help Lightning then he had to keep him relaxed. "Alright, we can just go fer a drive then!" He smiled wide and hoped it didn't look fake.
Lightning looked almost like he regretted seeking out Mater but let himself be pulled along to him truck. Lightning had spent a surprising amount of time near beat-up old truck like his when he was a teen. Men would bring theirs into the shop a lot to be fixed and his mother used to have one. It was a roughed up old model painted like red velvet and rusting at the edges. His father had asked multiple time to buff out the rough edges but Clover had been adamant on keeping them, she insisted it gave the truck character and made it look loved. Donahue had conceded, but when she died he buffed them out and sold the car immediately.
Lightning was at home in his own race car, but he was completely and utterly free in Maters. His was so precise and perfect he had to watch for any scratches or dents that could ruin a good race, but it his rusty old pick up truck he was free to keep his eyes off the road, relax, and listen to the familiar sounds of a coughing and old engine that was barely making it. It was a refreshing and sad ride altogether. Lightning was stony and silent and Mater was unwilling to break the sliver of peace between them. Lightning had been volatile and isolated from him, and every time he tried to broach the subject it just turned int a big fight. It was sad and made them drift farther and farther.
ANd the thing is that his behavior was familiar. Mater had met someone who had acted the same way, and he just couldn't think of who. He couldn't figure it out but he knew it was important... Isolation, mood swings, insecurity, bouts of muteness, jumpiness, and the weird clothes. Who had been acting the same way? Who had been so messed up when Mater first met them?
The truck shuddered to a stop.
Lightning cast Mater a questioning glance, but Mater didn't cast him a second look because everything was falling into place. The weird behavior triggered by his Father being there, the behavior that was so reminiscent of Red. Red had come from a broken home and had taking sanctuary after the last trial that had put his abusive sister in jail. He had been broken and uncertain and grieving and so messed up because of all his hurts and Lightning was acting the same way. He way acting almost exactly like Red.
And oh god Mater didn't know how to handle this stuff. It had been Stanley who had helped Red, but now Stanley was gone and Lightning was here and red and raw and he didn't know what to do. Should he confront him? question him? Take him too the police station, or the hospital? he needed to... get his thoughts together, he started the truck again and Lightning shrugged off the stop as a Mater thing and continued to look out the window. Mater drove them into a large open flatland and got out, Lightning followed him in confusion.
"Mater..?" He questioned timidly and he couldn't keep silent any longer.
He spun around to face his best friend, "You know you can tell me anything, right?" He asked somberly as he wrapped his fingers around his wrists
"yeah..." He whispered, then added a little bit louder, "Yeah, of course."
"Lightning look around us. There's no one here, and there's no were to run." He watched as Lightning looked around nervously, "Now... Take off your shirt."
"What? No!" He laughed sourly, "I'm not gay." He smiled thinly and tugged lightly at his wrists.
"Lightning..." Mater pleaded. He wouldn't force his to show, but he needed to know if he was correct. He needed to know!
With sudden ferocity, Lightning yanked his wrists from his grip and frowned angrily at him, "No, Mater. There's nothing wrong, i'm not hurt. Just take me home." He marched back to the truck and got in and starred at the floor while Mater drove them home.
But there was something Lightning let slip when he was angry, because Mater had never asked if he was hurt.
