Chapter 7: Just Like Me.
The weight of the world seemed to rest upon Aeleus's shoulders as he slowly walked down the elegant halls of Radiant Garden's Castle. Head hung low, eyes carelessly watching his black boots drag him forward away from the lab.
With lack of direction his brain had no idea where he was going, but Aeleus's heart did. His heart told him exactly where to go. Only one special person could actually attempt to cheer Aeleus up, that person was Ienzo.
Since Ienzo started home schooling a few months ago Aeleus rarely got a chance to see the child anymore. Plus there were experiments to perform and the responsibility of guarding the large castle with Dilan.
His feet suddenly paused in front of a polished oak wood door with a sleek golden door nob that reflected himself. Sadness loomed on his face, the gray guard outfit with a red heart on his chest gave the appearance of a more sophisticated look.
For the millionth time that day he sighed and softly reached out to turn the door nob with one white cuffed hand. The door swung open before Aeleus could even turn his large hand, which still hung in the air.
He was greeted with sparkling oceanic eyes and a full head of light steel blue hair that touched the tip of one eye. "Brother!" Ienzo said happily burying his face into Aeleus's chest.
At that moment, all the pain and sorrow melted away. He may have been a failure of many other things but he was definitely not going to fail as his title as a big brother.
"Hey, Ienzo." Aeleus replied while crouching to pick Ienzo up onto his shoulders. Ienzo giggled uncontrollably in response, gripping onto Aeleus's up raised hands for support.
"Why don't we spend the rest of the evening together?"
Ienzo gasped "Really? That would be fun!"
Aeleus couldn't help but smile as Ienzo kept laughing saying "Onward, Onward!"
As Aeleus kept walking his little brother would imagine that he was a knight in battle and would come up with towering castles that held innocent citizens of that world. With his magic, Ienzo would cast a large spell among the evil armies that would make them all turn good and set the citizens free. It was always the same story, ending with Ienzo as a hero who saved the world.
Without putting so much as detail in his story , it almost seemed real in Aeleus's eyes too. Like the child was creating his own illusion to live by.
"The battle has been won once again by the mighty knight, Ienzo!" Ienzo completed when they finally confronted the large dinning room door. Aeleus pushed it open with one broad shoulder and found that nobody was in there.
He could feel Ienzo squirming a bit so he carefully walked over and put the child down on an orange couch on the side of the room. Aeleus sat down right beside him and enjoyed using the arm chair to his left for little supporting rest.
They sat in silence for a moment, enjoying their time together. This was one of those treasured moments that Aeleus would never forget with Ienzo. Every time he had a chance he would try his best to for fill the promise written on his heart.
For once, he had succeeded.
Aeleus glanced at Ienzo and saw that he was looking back. He could tell Ienzo was thinking intently, what of Aeleus had no clue. Ienzo smiled gently then opened his mouth to speak "Brother, I wanna be just like you when I grow up."
The first of the waves of emotions that flooded Aeleus was Shock. Ienzo wants to be just like him. Does that mean Ienzo is going to turn into a failure? That was Aeleus's greatest fear.
"A-Are you sure about that Ienzo?" He asked tripping over his own words.
"Of course! I wanna do the stuff that you guys do everyday." Every word that came out of the boys mouth seemed to crack Aeleus's promise.
Being a scientists is not a life of happiness. Before Ienzo came along, Aeleus felt so lonely. Even with the company of others , their was a dieing flame inside his heart that was ready to go out.
He looked up from his entwined hands on his lap to Ienzo. Yellow sweater, blue jeans , a wide smile and sparkling eyes that would even penetrate some of the coldest hearts.
Aeleus's smile returned back to him as he sat up, picking up Ienzo and hugging him close. He could feel the boys cold breath on his neck, soft hair brushing against his broad cheeks. A tear traced down his cheek,
"I promise to make you happy."
