1o. Beloved Cousin

The week went by both quickly and quietly, with out a word from chase or a slight of Drake or Bri. On Friday, I came to the conclusion that defending Drake had been a mistake. I had upset Chase and embarrassed Drake, by my actions. I knew Bri absence was more David's fault than my own, still all this anger between everyone and me made me feel bad, like something bad was on its way.

Saturday morning lasted forever as I waited for my dad to bring Sean home from the airport. My mom tried to keep me occupied by chatting and talking about her latest acting stuff, but it was rather boring hearing it from her, I've never much liked hearing about her job, I'd rather watch.

Finally when the front door opened, I bounded off the couch in our living room, and tackled my favorite cousin.

"Woah there girly, calm yourself." Sean's voice brought to mind many memories we shared together back home in Florida.

"I missed you Sean."

"Really? Not too busy with your new life to miss your old one?"

I giggled and looked at my cousin, he gave me his goofy smile that I knew best, the one he always used when he teased me.

"Alright you two, break it up." My dad pulled us apart and beamed at us both. "Here's an idea, how about we all go out for lunch? Have some family time?"

"So we're going out? I need to change."

Sean, my dad and I watched as my mother ran to the hallway to my parent's bedroom. We all laughed, she had always been this way, and always cared too much about her looks.

"We waited for awhile as my mother tried to find a flattering outfit for her "artistic" self. But at least it gave me more time to catch up with my cousin.

"So what's life like here in the wettest state?" Sean asked as we waited in the family room.

"Its actually pretty good, though when its not raining its cloudy and cold. But other than those issues its a lot of fun here, I've made several friends already."

"Friends huh? Heh, I remember when I was your only friend."

I rolled my eyes and pushed him playfully. Sean laughed and rustled the hair on my head.

"I was like five years old, you being older made you cool and fun."

"Yeah I was pretty cool then huh?"

I giggled, "So how is everyone back home? All our cousins?"

"All of them were fine when I left them, I asked a few to come up with me, but most are working now, and couldn't spare the time."

"Yeah? Annoying, you be sure to get after them for not coming to visit me."

"Yeah I will. So what are your friends like here? Any of them have webbed feet?"

"Nope, no one like that." I gave a fake laugh, I didn't know if anyone in the family did or did not have webbed feet, but I couldn't say that.

"You dad told me you had made quite a few friends since you got here, that's good. I'm glad your not lonely here without me." He hugged me to his sighed and chuckled. This was one of the many reasons I loved my cousin, he was always accepting and encouraging.

"Alright I'm ready, let's go." My mom popped out of her room. She now wore T-shirt, vest, skirt and boots.

"Aunt Emily , you never seise to amaze even me." Sean said.

My mom blushed slightly and took my dad's hand. "Well now that I'm decent, let's go." She pulled my dad along and headed out the front door.

Sean and I went after them. It had started to rain and we all laughed as we loaded into my dad's car.

"How do you guys live like this, really now?"

"I don't know, I still haven't gotten use to it." We laughed as my dad pulled out of the drive way.

"So where are we going to uncle John?"

My dad looked back at us in the rearview mirror. "Well there's this really cool pizza place in town, I though we could check it out."

"Dad what have I told you about saying the word 'cool'?"

Sean chuckled, "Aw, come on. Give your dad a break, he just wants to be hip and cool."

I sighed and leaned back in my seat. "You can't be hip and cool if you can break your hips."

My dad laughed along with Sean, I just rolled my eyes, then laughed with them.

The pizza place was fun with the four of us. Mom and ad, laughed, did their "cuitsie" married couple thing, dad tried to tell jokes, but most of the time Sean and I just stared at him like he was nuts. I learned that Sean had gotten into military school, he's been training with the army late. I thought that was cool, but I could never do it.

"So how long are you staying with us Sean?" I asked my cousin.

"Um, well I though maybe a week or two, is that alright Uncle John?"

"Yeah you can stay as long as you want, I may actually have stuff for your to do while you're here, and while Darby is busy with school."

"Stuff?" Sean looked at me then back at my dad. "Oh, ok, I'll help with anything you need, but my skills are limited in most stuff."

"Ah, that's fine, you must have some training in something, so you will be plenty of help."

I looked back and forth between my father and cousin, "What are you two talking about?'

"Oh, its nothing sweetie," my dad replied. "He can just help with some house repairs, the toilet in the guest room is poorly piped, stuff like that. He smiled at me, the same weird smile he had when I asked him about his book. A shiver ran down my back as he smiled, and my body seemed to tense in reaction.

The night went on uneventfully as my family and I returned hot and just sat in front of the TV. Some show my cousin like was on, it was some odd show with two brothers killing some sort of creature thing; it made me feel very uncomfortable. But I paid more attention too my cousin next to me. He had grown even more since I had last seen him a few weeks ago. He was well over a foot taller than me now, even while sitting down.

I remembered how people use to think we were twins while we were growing up. We did look a lot alike, same pale blue eyes and faded blond hair. While examining him, I noticed something different from the last time I had seen him. His left ear was pierced, he had never had that before. A small silver dragon with its wings spread dangled from a hoop in his earlobe. It was very small but the detail was amazing, like it could come to life at its own will.

"Something up Darb?" Sean asked, he had noticed me staring at his from across the couch.

"Oh, just your earring, it's lovely, where'd you get it?"

Sean smiled and shook his head. "Just a nice little place back home, maybe one day you would wont to get one?"

"Uh, no thanks." I covered my ears, I would never willingly stick a needle to them.

Sean laughed, "Don't worry, never mind about it ok?"

I eyed my cousin, but he just smiled and turned back to his program. I didn't ask anything further of the subject, worried that Sean may convince my father into making me pierce my ears. But Sean's one little dragon worried me a little, like the dragon was more than Sean was saying t simply was.

Sunday, me and my family went to church. There was a nice old Catholic church near downtown that my parents really liked. It was an old place, but still beautiful in that age. It had many stained glass windows, though the grey morning light didn't help much. My family, you could say, is very religious, though they still have different thoughts on some principles. But they still liked to go to church every Sunday, and of course I went with. However, this week with my cousin and all the things I had learned since knowing my "nonhuman" friends, I was uneasy and felt weird being in this building. When we left church, the bad feeling slowly lefts but I was worried that those feeling might soon return.

When I returned home I got a call from someone I didn't expect.

"Hey Darby, do you think we could, like, hang and talk?" Drake's voice was soft but still held its normal harshness.

"Um, I guess that would be ok." I looked over at my parents who were starting on lunch. "But you'd have to come here."

"Alright, I'll be there in a sec." Drake hung up before I could respond and I was left confused as the line went to that annoying beeping noise.

Sean leaned against the counter next to me. "Someone coming over here?" he asked.

"A friend of mine, something must be up, he just wanted to talk, but I don't see why we couldn't do that on the phone."

"Huh, sounds odd, still I thought today was just between you and me?"

I felt guilty as I looked up at my cousin. "I'll just give him a few minuets, then the rest of the day is yours."

Sean nodded, but he was pouting, though he was teasing. He walked over to the kitchen table and slouched into a seat.

Before I could try to console him, the door bell rang.

Outside Drake stood ridged and tense, and as he came inside his eyes darted back and forth.

"What's up Drake, are you alright?"

"Yeah," he said slowly. "Do you have a place we can talk privately? Where are your parents?"

"My parents are in the kitchen, making lunch. My cousin is in there to."

As if on cue, Sean walked out of the kitchen and stood at the top of the stairs over the landing. His face was emotionless, but he appeared to force a smile as he looked at my friend.

"You must be one of Darb's friends, nice to meet you."

Drake gave a smirk then turned back to me, but only briefly. He head shot back at Sean, and although he had a grin on his face, he tensed further. The two of them stared at one another for what seemed like hours, both seeming to be hating the other, but they forced smiles on their faces.

"Um, Drake, you wanted to talk?"

"Yeah," he replied without taking his eyes off my cousin.

"Then come on." I grabbed Drake's shirt sleeve and pulled him along down the stairs to my bedroom. His tension didn't decrease at all as we left my cousin upstairs, and not even as I closed the door behind the two of us.

I turned to look at Drake, but his eyes were suck on the door behind me.

"Drake?"

The black eyed boy glanced down at me then back to the door, then back again to me. "Do you know what the earring your cousin is wearing, is made of?"

"What it's made of? Looks like silver, maybe sterling silver, how should I know?"

Drake's eyes flashed back to the door, but he relaxed a bit and sat on the end of my bed. He peered up at me again, through his red hair.

"What going on Drake? And why on earth do you care about my cousin's earring?"

The boy's black eyes narrowed as he stared at me. "I came here for a certain reason, but I don't know it its safe or not right now."

"Not safe, my house is as safe as any place around here."

"I'm not too sure about that Darb," he said in a mocking tone.

I was confused, what did he mean and what would make my house "unsafe"?

Drake looked around my room, his dark eyes looking at everything individually. He stood, walking over to my desk, Drake picked up the bizarre book my dad had given me, then instantly dropped it.

"Ouch," he yelped as he shook his hand.

"What? What happened?"

"Nothing, it was nothing." Drake's eyes seemed to darken further as he stared at the book on my desk. "I think I should go, Chase may need me right now."

"Wait, what? I thought you needed to talk to me about something?" I grabbed on to his shoulder and looked up at his dark face.

He shrugged me off and turned away. "Maybe later," he said as he walked toward my bedroom door.

"Drake wait."

"What?" He twisted back to me, his eyes pitch and upset, and his mouth set in a cold frown.

My chest pounded like the first time I had heard him speak, and my voice came out in only a whisper. "What's wrong?"

For a moment his face looked sad, but soon enough the dark eyes boy's face hardened. He wretched open the door and stepped out.

"Drake!" I called after him but he was already up the stairs and out the door.

I ran up to the landing and stared off into the morning fog, he was gone.

Sean whistled from where he stood at the top of the stairs, he looked as if he hadn't moved since I took Drake down into my room.

"What did you do cousin? Did you scare him off with some girly crud or something?"

I glared up at my cousin and he put his hands up in defense. "I didn't do anything, he's just a jerk."

"Whoa girly, calm down, he your boyfriend or something?"

The heat in my face rose and burned, and I knew Sean could seen the blush. "N-no he's not, he's just a friend how is very rude and spiteful." I covered my face dace with my hands, trying to hide from my cousin. Two strong arms wrapped around me and pulled me toward his chest.

"There, there, Darb, its fine, most teenage boys are nothing but jerks anyway,"

"But you're not though," I mumbled into his shirt.

"I could feel the smile Sean had on his face as he tightened his arms around me. "Yeah, well, I'm your cousin and I love you, so I must be nice to you."

I giggled and looked up at Sean, to see his smile. This was another reason why I love my cousin, he was there for me, and he had a smile, always just for me.

It was a sunny morning, for once, but it was still cold and damp. Sean wished me a good day at school and hugged me before I left. I kissed his cheek goodbye as well, my cousin blushed, but kept his smile for me. I was in a great mood, last night with my cousin. We had hung out at the mall, had seen a movie and eaten dinner together. It was fun getting to be with my best friend again. I never found it too be weird that my cousin was my best friend, he was a good guy and a lot of fun to be around.

When I walked into the band room that morning, the trio of my friends were there. Bri and David seemed to have made up, and were happily in each other's arms again. They all smiled at me when I came into the room, even David did, which I found very unnerving. Kcie skipped over to me and giggled as she came to stand next to me.

"So how was your weekend? Your cousin came here right? Did you have fun with him?"

I nodded and smiled to Kcie's innocent questions and walked back with her to the other two.

Bri's wounds were almost completely gone now, just light silver and greenish lines ran across her pale skin. David looked batter to, he didn't have his crutches any where near him, so he must have healed up enough not to need them

"Hey Darby, what's up?" Bri pulled herself from Davidand stood smiling down at me, her face bright, but her smile sly. "I heard Drake came by your place how'd that go?"