Murphy was anxious, his dream had left him unnerved, and it rattled him. His worried behavior hadn't gone unnoticed by his brother,
"Murphy, ya alrigh'?" When Murphy looked at his brother Connor could clearly see the worried look in his eyes, "Jesus, what's the matter with ta?"
"Lord's name," Murphy mumbled as he rubbed his eyes, "Jus' had a nightmare is all." Connor furrowed his brow,
"Mus' have been one hell of a dream to have ya spooked like ya are." Murphy stared at his brother for a moment before he let his shoulders slump with a sigh,
"Was 'bout Chris… she was playin' her violin. She didn't say nothin' but the music jus' sounded so sad. She was behind me, I was sittin' in a chair. There was a fire in fron' of me, felt like we were back home. I asked her what was wrong, she started screamin' and cryin'… there was laughin' an' I couldn't move. The fire took over the house an' that was it. I woke up." Connor could see why the dream had bothered him so much. If he was honest it concerned him as well. Dreams could mean anything. Most were just silly, nonsensical things. Some though, some meant more. God had spoken to Joseph in a dream, and he wasn't the only one. And when He spoke to them it was life changing. Sometimes they were warnings and sometimes they were tidings of joy. But when God spoke you listened. Neither one of the brothers took dreams lightly; they knew the difference between a nonsensical dream and message. Connor wasn't sure what to think of his brother's dream. It could be a warning, that something bad was coming for her or it could mean that something bad had already happened to her.
"We'll keep an eye on her yeah? Who knows maybe it's not as bad as ya think. Could be somethin' simpler yeah?" It was a weak attempt to sooth his fears but Murphy appreciated it all the same.
"Think I'm gonna walk her home. Peace of mind ya know?" Connor nodded,
"Aye, jus' be sure to come home tonigh'." A chuckle escaped Murphy's lips,
"Very funny. By the way, she invited us over fo' dinner Thursday." A surprised look passed over his face,
"The lass cooks?"
"Aye, she made pancakes this mornin'." Connor gaped at him, "They'd put Ma's to shame."
"Ya a right bastard aren't ya! Ya get homemade pancakes an' didn't think nothin' of your dear ole brother did ya?" He smirked,
"'s why she's havin' us both over fo' dinner ya git. Knew you'd throw a hissy fit." Connor spluttered,
"I do not throw hissy fits." Murphy rolled his eyes. The two continued to bicker as they made their way to work, effectively keeping Murphy's mind busy. But once he started working his mind wouldn't stop reeling with the images and sounds of the dream. By the time his shift was over his heart was in agony. He barely shouldered off his uniform and told his brother goodbye before he booked it out the door and to the school.
Nervously, Murphy smoked through his third cigarette waiting for Chris to come out of the building. It was several minutes after the bell before he saw her emerge from the door. He sighed in relief at seeing her unharmed, he stomped out his smoke before he made his way over to her,
"Chris!" Her head snapped towards the sound of his voice,
"Murph?" He smiled,
"Aye lass it's me."
"What are ya doin' here? Not that I don't like seein' ya."
"Jus' thought I could walk ya home is all." She gave him a suspicious look before she took a deep breath causing her to wrinkle her nose,
"You've been smokin', a lot. You only smoke a lot when you're angry, nervous, or upset. So which is it? What's wrong?" For a moment he stared at her, he hadn't realized she'd picked up on his bad habit or that she could tell he'd been smoking,
"It's nothin' lass."
"Murph." He heard the warning in her voice as he looped his arm through hers,
"Jus' had a rough mornin' at home is all."
"Did you an' Connor have a fight?"
"No, no fight. Jus'… didn't sleep well this mornin'." Gently she squeezed his hand,
"Did ya have a nightmare?"
"Yeah…" She licked her lips before quietly asking,
"Was it… was it bad?" He swallowed hard before answering in an equally soft voice,
"Terrifying."
"I have nightmares sometimes. I used to have them all the time, now I just have them every few months." He imagined her waking up in the middle of the night crying and shaking… and all alone. The thought made his heart clench, he didn't like seeing her hurt. In their time together he had never brought up her parents, like Maggie had said, and he never asked how she lost her eyesight. But, there were moments were something someone said or a certain object would cause, for the briefest of moments, a pain filled look to cross her face. He knew the looks were connected to her past and he wanted to help her, and granted he was making progress. She was slowly, almost unconsciously, opening up to him. Bit by bit he was slipping past her defenses, but this did nothing for him now. He wanted to help her now and he wasn't entirely sure how. He licked his lips,
"Were they bad?" She sighed and put her head on his shoulder as she whispered back,
"Yeah… they were really bad." Murphy lightly kissed her head,
"If ya ever can't sleep, me brother an' I are always up late an' you're more than welcome to talk with us." She smiled,
"Thanks Murphy, that sounds nice." Murphy took the long way back to her home, wanting to spend more time with her. Of course she knew, she knew exactly how many steps it took to get from work to home, but she enjoyed his company as well. To try and relax Murphy's troubled mind, Chris told him stories of her students. She told him of the things they said and did. He particularly found the one of Patrick, a boy with a mental disorder, calling the grouchy old biology teacher an asshole to be hilarious.
"Sounds like he could be Doc's grandson." She laughed,
"It does! I never thought of that before." As they climbed the few steps to her door Murphy thought about how he didn't want to leave, "Thank you, for walkin' me home." He grinned,
"'s no problem love." She beamed at him,
"You'er sweet Murphy MacManus." She reached out and ran her hand up from his shoulder to cup his cheek before quickly leaning in and kissing him on the cheek before opening her door, "Night Murph!" Murphy stood there dumbfounded as she shut the door. She had moved so fast his brain had to take a moment to comprehend that she had just kissed him. He grinned before whispering,
"G'night love."
I kept my face buried in the couch as I felt the heat radiate off of my face. It was an impulsive and rash decision but I' done it all the same. My face burned and I wished to God I knew what the look on his face was. I wanted to scream at my own stupidity and laugh at how much I'd enjoyed it. As I lied there, I tried to think of a way to play it off if he ever asked brought it up. I could play it off as a friendly kiss, a thank you for caring and walking me home. A friend wouldn't have bolted however if it was just a friendly kiss. I groaned,
"Bloody moron."
Connor watched as his brother walked in with a smile on his face,
"I take it it all went well?"
"Aye." Murphy said nothing as he flopped down on his bed,
"Well?"
"Well what?"
"What da hell ya smilin' 'bout?"
"Nothin'." Connor silently observed his brother,
"The lass has ya smiling; more."
"She's got a good heart an' a lot of spirit."
"Aye that she does… but it's more than that isn't it? Ya've got feelin's for her yeah?" Silence fell over the brothers before Murphy quietly spoke,
"I care 'bout her. A lot in fact."
"Ya wanna go out with her." It was more of a statement than a question really. Connor could see the answer plain as day on his brother's face.
"Aye, but I want her to trust me 'fore I ask her." Connor nodded,
"Her parents and her sight."
"Aye, I want her to fully trust me, I wanna help her. Not jus' physically, I can see it in her eyes, the pain. She's good at hidin' it but it comes out now and again. It's deep Connor. It's this deep achin' pain that destroys souls. I wanna make that go away." Connor stared long and hard at him. This was more than just attraction like he first though, he could see how passionately his brother cared about helping her. And not just trying to help her overcome her pain, but to take that pain away entirely. He could see it, even if Murphy didn't know it yet, he could see the beginnings of something akin to love. This was stronger than mere attraction, this was purer than want or lust. Connor smiled softly,
"An' I'm sure ya will Murph. I'm sure ya will."
It wasn't long before Thursday arrived and I was actually excited. It had been years since I last cooked a proper meal for someone and I missed it. I had left work right after the bell rang and stopped by the market on my way home, picking up some vegetables, spices, and lamb for the stew. I made a quick run into the bakery and bought a loaf of hardy bread that was perfect for dipping into stew.
As soon as I got home I tied my apron around my waist and got to work. As time went on, the house quickly began to fill with the smell of stew, making my own mouth water in anticipation. It was almost finished when I heard the doorbell ring, wiping my hands off on the front of my apron I made my way to the door.
"Who is it?"
"Two hungry Irishmen here to see a beautiful lass." I laughed as I opened the door,
"Hello Connor.: He wrapped me up in a tight hug while lifting me off the ground,
"Lass, mmm, smells delicious." As soon as he sat me down and let go I was enveloped in another, softer, pair of arms. I smiled as Murphy kissed my cheek before pulling back,
"Smells wonderful Chris." My cheeks warmed a bit as I took hold of his hand leading him into the house,
"Thanks, I hope ya boys like it." When we reached the kitchen I headed straight for the pot, stirring it for a bit before tasting it, "Think it's done lads."
"Where's ya bowls an' spoons at lass?"
"Oh I can set the table Conn-"
"Nonsense, we'll do it for ya."
"Especially since ya cookin' us such a fine meal." I blushed more as I heard them rummaging through my cabinets,
"Ya haven't even tried it yet." Connor chuckled,
"After what Murph here told me 'bout the pancakes ya made 'im I already know it's gonna be great. I was blushing like mad now.
"Thanks, I hope ya like it." The boys were quick to set the table before Connor handed me his bowl. I ladled out some of the stew for him for which he quickly kissed me on the cheek for before heading to the table. Murphy chuckled,
"Brought your bowl with me." I smiled,
"Thanks Murphy." After I ladled stew into both bowls and turned the stove off Murphy kissed me softly on the cheek. It lingered for a moment or two but it was enough to make me blush. I followed him back to the table where he sat the bowls down. I felt around the table for a moment before I located my spoon and dug in while Connor moaned in delight,
"Mmmmm, Jesus this is good."
"Mmm, Lord's name." I could tell by the muffled sound of his voice that he was shoveling spoonful's of the stew into his mouth.
"Slow down lads, there's more where that came from." They barely slowed down as the sound of them slurping and smacking their lips remained consistent. It felt good to cook for people again, it felt good to smile and laugh. Not long ago, I came to the realization that the boys had become a serious part of my life, they meant as much to me as Maggie did if not more. I had only ever told Maggie about the accident that had taken both my parents and my sight from me but I was beginning to think that Connor and Murphy deserved to know. They had never asked about and never brought it up and I had appreciated that. Now though, I felt the need to tell them. As I listened to them eat their food and bicker between mouthfuls I made up my mind. I was going to tell them, I was going to tell them about the accident and all the horrible events that had lead up to that fateful day so long ago.