Chapter 10 - Brother
I sighed heavily, enjoying the sensation of blankets moulding my body, feeling myself sinking into the Mattress never to return. It didn't last; Matt's voice was a constant yelled lecture in the background. But spread-eagle on my bed, revelling in the comforts of my many fluffy pillows, it was easy to block out the never-ending tirade.
I must admit, my passage through the house last night had much resembled a zombie's; making a beeline for the stairs, staring straight ahead, ignoring Matt completely. It was easy; I had always been a proud supporter of selective hearing. It was one of my many other strange skills, and I employed the use of it now with great relief.
Still lying motionless on the bed, I contemplated my options. They were limited, neither very appealing. Both had benefits, but they were far outnumbered by the cons. It looked like it was a choice between bad and bad.
I could keep lying here, I wouldn't have to move, and I could go to sleep. But Matt would never shut up enough for me to sink into sleep, and he would be even more annoyed if I continued ignoring him. Or I could actually listen to bits of what he was saying, come up with some form of reply to shut him up, and then go to sleep. But that would require enduring the lecture and using my brain, which was really unavailable at the moment.
I had heard the saying 'the end justifies the means', but I didn't like it. Nor did I like the phrase 'the lesser of two evils'. Yet both applied to this situation. Resigning myself to the fact that I had to decide, I made a decision. It was obvious really: I would pick the one that would get me what I wanted.
Giving myself a mental slap on the head, I tuned into Matt's ranting. I didn't fully pay attention; I just listened in on segments, before tuning out, then tuning in again. He never ceased to amaze me with his ability to shout at me and come up with so many reasons why what I had done was wrong.
'-ANY IDEA HOW WORRIED I WAS!' Very worried, by the sounds of it. Like you always are.
'YOU COULD CAUSE SERIOUS HARM TO YOUR SELF. AGAIN!' I just went for a walk! How is that harmful? Though he didn't know that. All he knew was that I vanished and that I had concussion…
'WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?' I wondered when that was going to come up.
'ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?' Good question.
'DO YOU HAVE TO ALWAYS PUT YOURSELF IN DANGER?' I don't do it on purpose!
'WHY DO NEVER THINK BEFORE YOU ACT?' What am I doing now then?
'CAN'T YOU ACT SANE FOR ONCE?' I do. Sometimes…
'YOU'RE SUCH AN IDIOT!' Now that's going too far. Deciding it was time to intervene, I rolled onto my back and met his furious gaze. He had no right to call me an idiot, and I was not going to just lie here and take it without making a comeback.
'I'M NOT AN IDIOT MATT! JUST BECAUSE I DIDN'T TELL YOU WHERE I WAS GOING WHEN I ESCAPED FROM THE HANDCUFFS DOES NOT MAKE ME AN IDIOT. YOU'D THINK IT WOULD MAKE ME SMARTER BECAUSE I WAS INGENIOUS ENOUGH TO GET OUT OF THEM! JUST BECAUSE I EMPLOY THE USE OF FREE WILL DOES NOT MEAN YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO HAVE A HYSTERICAL HISSY-FIT IN MY BEDROOM WHILE I'M TRYING TO FREAKING SLEEP!'
A long silence followed. And I mean a long silence. Both of us glaring like there's no tomorrow, seething with anger. Matt trying to come up with a comeback, me backing up my exclamation. We were both breathing heavily, yet the look of complete shock on Matt's face was so hilarious I couldn't resist a weak laugh, despite the pain it caused. If only I could take a photo.
Dismissing my urge to try and find a camera, I hugged Matt tightly before turning my back on him, yanking my doona off the bed. I wrapped it around me, clambered onto my bed, and lie there once more. At last, I would be able to sleep. Hopefully.
After a few minutes, I vaguely heard Matt come over to the bed. Only semiconscious, I could just barely feel him watching me, before he abruptly turned and left the room. Unfortunately, he left the light on. Groaning, I squeezed my eyes shut tighter, buried my face in a pillow, and fell asleep.
Someone was shaking me awake. Roughly, I might add. As I was rudely yanked from my much needed slumber, a rush of cool air met my skin as my doona was pulled away from me. I reached out my hands blindly, my eyes still closed, grabbing on to my soft doona, and holding on tight. More pulling.
A predictable tug of war ensued. I didn't know who I was opposing, but common sense told me it was Matt. Irritating me when I was tired once more, meaning I was unable to retaliate with any enthusiasm. So cruel. Moaning loudly, I could feel myself sliding ever so slowly closer to him as he dragged the doona and me with it. With a sudden burst of strength, I pulled with all my might.
I managed tug it back over my bare shoulders for perhaps a second before suddenly it was gone once more, but this time completely. Shivering, I conceded the fact that it was inevitable that I would lose. Human versus werewolf; it was obvious who would win. Clearly this was revenge from last night.
I opened my eyes to glare at him, momentarily blinded by the light flooding into the room. Blinking like crazy I was quick to find the instigator of my misery. My gaze was ice cold as it bore into him, only increasing the smug grin on his face. Annoyed by his happiness at my frustration, I glanced away towards the window. And was shocked by what I saw.
It was still dark outside, the orange glow of the rising sun barely visible over the tops of the trees that framed our house. There were still a few stars out, and as I watched they began to wink out, one by one. But I didn't have the time to appreciate the beauty of the sunrise. Because, well, it was dawn. Way too early to be awake.
'What the hell are you doing? Do you know how early it is?' I complained, able to come up with no good reason why Matt would have woken me up at such an un-godly hour. He may not need much sleep, but I did. It was one of my favourite past-times, and he had taken it away from me.
I glared at him once more, not at all amused at his ever-growing smile. He didn't falter under my gaze, and proceeded with much enthusiasm to reply.
'Don't be so grouchy, Chlo. Now get up, or you'll be dragged there.' He was telling me not to be grouchy? He'd been so angry last night it wasn't funny, and he was telling me off? That wasn't right. It was then that I processed the rest of what he'd said.
'Dragged where?' I asked, a feeling of apprehension creeping over me. Some sixth sense was telling me I was not going to like the answer.
'Out. Now come on.' He said cryptically, staring at me strictly. I groaned loudly. Why was he taking me out? It was too early! Clearly seeing my look of utter disbelief, he continued.
'You don't have to get changed, you're already dressed.' I looked down at myself. I was wearing the same thing as yesterday. I shook my head. I was not dressed. Huffing, I told myself to move so I could at least be clean. I slid off bed, rummaged quickly through my dresser and headed to the bathroom.
'I'm not leaving without a shower, so you're gonna have to wait.' I called over my shoulder, entering the bathroom, and locking the door behind me. With a speed I'd never known I showered, still half asleep despite the pounding water. Dressing quickly in black leggings and a striped jumper, I began to brush through the tangled mess that was my hair.
Not bothering with make-up, I went back to my room to find it empty. Smiling, I grabbed my doona off the floor, got on bed and draped it over me. I was still really tired, and I was going to take every chance I got to get sleep. But just when I was about to sink into unconsciousness, Matt stormed into the room. With the same abruptness as this morning he yanked off the covers, glaring.
Sighing, I got up and headed downstairs, Matt trailing behind me, muttering a stream of words too low for my ears. Making a beeline for the couch, I was about to collapse onto it when he grabbed my arm tightly and steered me to the front door.
'Not today. You're coming with me.' I think he meant to sound gruff and strict, but there was humour in his voice as he chided me. Smiling at his failed attempt, I did not immediately notice that we had entered the woods. But the sudden gloom brought me back to my mission to discover our destination. Considering that he had presented me with no clues whatsoever, my chances of guessing were slim.
I let my mind dwell on other things as we journeyed to wherever we going. Such as how much I longed for sleep, and whether or not I would be able to sleep where we were going. I didn't bother to stifle my yawns, but Matt seemed not to hear them. I decided to see how long I could stare at him before he noticed me.
Fixing my gaze on his face, I couldn't help but wonder at his expression. It was full of purpose, and he seemed to be contemplating something. He glanced towards me then, and smiled at me as I yawned once more, still staring. He turned away, then back again. I was still staring. He stared in return.
It wasn't awkward. At least, not until I stumbled and fell into a tree. Matt laughed then, and it echoed around the forest. I swore under my breath as I righted myself and continued following him. He could have warned me, but it was probably payback. Then I noticed something; he wasn't holding me anymore.
A stroke of inspiration hit me. A brilliant idea, one too good to let pass. I ran forward, and launched myself at Matt's back, scrambling for a hold. I felt him tense at my attack, laughing with me as he realised what I was doing. He grabbed my legs, and mentally I did a victory dance. Piggyback! I got to celebrate for maybe 3 seconds before he dumped me unceremoniously onto the forest floor.
Glaring up at him, he shrugged at my accusing look.
'You asked for it.' His snide comment infuriated me, and I began to plan revenge. Clambering to my feet, I followed him. I was still glaring. It was then that I realised I was glaring. And I wasn't seeing spots or feeling like I was going to faint! I was no longer visually impaired! Yes! This made the future look so much brighter.
I was surprised Matt wasn't keeping control of me like before. I wasn't complaining; it was just what I wanted. Because I now had my plan.
I stopped. I wanted to see how long he would continue for before he noticed I was no longer trailing behind him. I didn't have to wait long. Only 10 metres away from me, he paused, and turned to face me. He had an amuse expression on his face, which soon turned into exasperation as I began to slowly back away, praying that I wouldn't collide with a tree.
Of course exactly that happened. My back hit the solid trunk of a tree with a thump, and I winced. Then I ran, shrieking and laughing as I wound my way through the trees, Matt chasing after me. He was gaining on me, of course; he had super werewolf strength, and I was not meant to be active until midday. So the outcome of my clearly doomed plight was inevitable.
He soon caught me, wrapping his massive arms around my slight frame, lifting me off the ground. I was giggling like crazy, but Matt's laughter was a bit more controlled. He actually managed to compose himself long enough to give me a stern glare and scolding before he started off once more, his hand securely grasping my arm this time.
Before long we approached a house that seemed to appear out of nowhere. It was small and quaint, and was obviously our destination. It looked strangely familiar, and I wondered briefly if this was the same house Quil had directed me to just days before. If only my brain was actually awake enough to figure it out. Unfortunately, I had used up all my energy in the chase, and the only thing that was on my mind was finding somewhere to sleep, and fast.
So when Matt entered the house without announcing our presence, I didn't wonder why; instead my eyes were searching the house for all available spots for sleeping. Locking on to dark blue couch situated not 5 metres away, I felt my face light up with joy. It didn't matter why I was here as long as I could get on that couch.
Matt had let go of my arm when we had entered, probably having decided I wasn't going to do anything else. Upon crossing the threshold, he made straight for the kitchen on the right, expecting me to follow suit. I, of course, did no such thing. Making a beeline for the couch, I collapsed onto it with a grateful moan.
Laughter followed my collapse, sparking my curiosity about who else was here. Peeking over the edge of the couch drowsily, I caught sight of Matt standing with two tall, buff Quileutes, both of which were obviously wolves.
And one of which was familiar.
'Hey Quil.' I murmured sleepily, giving him a half-hearted wave.
And with that, I unceremoniously and instantly fell asleep.