Chapter 2
Summary: Ellis is some kind of Genius (some kind) and Keith is unlucky in love.
"What's that?" The brunette chirped and Dave sighed for the hundredth time that day bent over a car he was attempting to learn on.
"That's a fan Ellis, I'm tryin to learn this for class. Can' you go bug Keith? Or do I gotta ban you from tryin to help me too?"
"Tha' aint fair tah begin with Dave!" Keith called out from a couch set very far away from the car. His hands still bandaged from the burns he got the day before when he was allowed to try and help.
"No yer bad luck and an engine is disaster waitin. You gotta find another elective." The native quipped back clamly. "Yer 16 Keith figure out what the fuck yah wanna do with your life yah?" He sighed at what he was working on. "I give up, I've checked everything.."
"What about..." Ellis leaned over and grabbed one of the tools from him and before the Cherokee could stop him was doing something with the engine. "Ok.. try it?"
In disbelief he tried turning over the engine wowed when it started on the first try and he just leaned back out looking at Ellis who had the largest grin on his face.
"The hell...? How did you..? Who taught you how to do that?" Dave asked quite a bit surprised a 13 year old just did that and he had no idea what he'd done.
"Well shit I been watchin you for like three days working on it, an I been looking at your books. It's all really easy Dave.." He shrugged a bit though the satisfied grin was still on his face.
"Well a' least onna us knows what their doin with their lives." Keith called out amused by the dumbfounded look on his friends face. "I got it! We in a garage right? We shoul make one of em garage bands. Lotsa women love bands man."
"Hmmmn well Mom has been botherin me to learn some kinda instrument." Dave conceded to the notion some. "What are you going to do then? And what about Ellis? A three man band aint much of a band Keith. We don't know anyone else."
"Well shit we'll figure that out as we go right? I kin play drums I been fiddlin with the ones at the music store. An I kin sing too." He frowned at the large snort that produced from the taller man. "What I can too!" He would have hit him if his hands weren't still burned.
"Sure you can spitfire. I guess we give it a try, but what the hell do we do with...Ellis what th' hell are you doin?"
"Fixin the car more...I wasn' listening what are you two goin on about?" He blinked leaning up his hands and face covered in black grease smudges.
"We're talking about making a band..yah in?" Keith almost couldn't talk because he felt like laughing at that face.
"Shit yah! I gotta bass thingy for Christmas, ma said I shoul' learn somethin early...or something like tha'"
"You gotta bass and never told us?" Dave asked incredulously.
"I though' you guys would laugh, I didn' know it was cool or nothing." Now the two of them did laugh, Ellis had no idea why they were laughing but he just grinned sheepishly.
"So she dumped you, wha' happened this time?" Dave asked the somber red head drinking a beer across from him. A sigh leaving his lips at the meloncholly attitude.
" 'member that time we was tryin to make fire works an my shirt caught on fire? An I got those weird splotchy burns on my body? Scarred up all neat lookin?"
"She dumped you because of your scars?" He hadn't expected that.
"Naw just that man she let me sleep wit her. Said it was prolly the only lay I'd ever get so I might as well get it from a pretty girl." He put his head on the table miserably.
"What a fucking bitch." Dave said with a raised tone of anger in his voice. "You don't listen to a word she says Keith. Some girl out there will just love those scars alright?"
"Yah I guess so." He sighed out looking up at him. "Least I got you and Elle right? Don't need no bossy woman deligatin my time." He smiled a little more trying to cheer himself up. He smiled more when a hand ruffled at his hair and he soaked up the attention.
"That's the right attitude to have." Dave was highly distracted though by petting his friends hair.
Why was that so nice feeling? He dropped his hand after a moment trying to chew it over in his head for a while. Keith wasn't doing any better on the confusion side. The affection had his face going a bit slack.
"Any way we shoul' get outta here and go find Elle so we kin practice, he at the garage you think?" He pushed up and grabbed his coat.
"Is he usually anywhere else these days? E'er since he started taking auto he's been in the shop every night."
The shop was a small auto garage that Dave's parents had helped him rent. He paid for the rent on his own with Ellis's help. They really were a good team. So long as Keith stayed on perma ban when it came to touching the cars. Keith settled for cleaning up and surprisingly balancing the cash. He turned out to be fairly good at numbers. Which considering how he talked surprised quite a few people. He did odd jobs on the side too to make up for the expenses of their music equipments upkeep. Dave gave a small wave of hello as he came in.
"How's the Thompsons van comin? I told em you'd probably have it done in a few days." He looked over their work sheet.
"Hell that thin'? All done, had em come get it an hour ago. Payments in tha office Keith. As well as the truck for ol' man Jenkins." He said wiping his hands off on a rag. "How's it commin finding us a gig? We been ready for months."
"Slow as fuck, jes no opportunities for us here in Savanah. I think we may wanna try Atlanta." Keith said as he stepped into the office looking over the payments and putting them in the pouch for taking to the bank before the end of the day. "Imma try to find some kind of recording company that might listen to us, we get their attention we get more gigs an eventually rock stars." He grinned widely as he returned. Ellis had a grin as well.
"Hell yah we're gonna play all the big places!" He gave a little pump of his fist in the air of encouragement.
"We'll set tha sky on fire sunshine." Keith chuckled out and grinned at Dave winking. The cherokee raised one brow but couldn't help the smile forming on his face. Of course it faded two seconds later.
"Yah think you could? Set the sky on fire?" Ellis blinked looking at him.
"...Hell I bet ya I could..enough gunpowder and gasoline. Just need some kina catapult and a delayed fuse.."
A day later they were standing out in a field. Ellis and Keith putting the final touches on their catapult of doom filled with all kinds of flammable substances. Dave watched with furrowed brows. Fire and Keith usually equalled hospital.
"I really don't think this is a good idea, usually I'd let you two have at with the dumb ideas but spitfire this could actually light you on fire and I don't want to see you get hurt more.."
"Aww c'mon Dave, Keith is like invincible." Ellis looked at him like he was crazy to think other wise.
"No, no he aint Ellis he's just a guy like us. Yah keep encouraging him like this and one day we won't have no Keith anymore." He frowned chiding the boy in a fatherly manner.
"Pfff no confidence in me at all." Keith said as he stood up and suddenly lit the fuse and waits til it was just right and pulled the handle.
Ellis and Dave had to scramble away to get to safety. Keith just stared up as the thrown up liquid and powders exploded into light and fire. He was so entranced by it he didn't see it falling towards him until it caught him square in the backside. He fell forward but the fire kept falling and it burned right through his tshirt in an instant. If they hadn't brought their beer cooler per usual he would have just kept burning. But Dave was quick in action and snagged it up dumping the ice and water out over him dousing the flames. Then he scooped the red head into his arms.
"We're taking him to the hospital." He said sternly Ellis didn't complain at all.
It was kind of a usual trip for them after an outing. The nurses at the hospital had a special room that was always prepped for the boys arrival. They even went so far as to say 'welcome home' whenever Keith arrived in whatever state was that weeks mess. And this weeks mess was second degree burns on his back. He had to lay on his front side in bed, high as a kite on morphine while he was down. Ellis had went home some hours ago with his mother. Who had in her loving graces left both the remaining young men a good home cooked meal wrapped on the side table. Dave shook his head looking at him.
"You gotta stop these fool ideas of yours Keith, someday I'm gonna lose you.." He said his hand petting the older boys hair soothingly.
"Ya have it real soft for me don'tcha..But I like it that way. Only person in the world that makes shit right yah know? Ma won't come, she never has. But yer always right there..." He was so out of it, he wasn't likely to remember the conversation. Dave knew that all too well from previous ones.
"It won't ever change either, don't worry yourself none. I'm not like your Mom, I'm with you for the long haul spitfire." He let a long breath out. There was that feeling again that he couldn't put his finger on. "Just rest, I'll be here when ya wake up." He watched the red head doze off slowly and soon enough he was sleeping in his chair as well.