When Liam returned at home, he immediately noticed that Paul's car wasn't there. There was only Theo's pickup parked in the driveway.
When he walked in, he put his house keys on the furniture in the hallway and took a few steps forward. "I'm home?" He said unsure if somebody's actually listening.
"I noticed, you idiot" Theo's sarcastic voice answered from the kitchen.
Liam rolled his eyes as he stepped in to find Theo bent over the books. Liam threw his bag on the ground, giving Theo a single skeptical glance, before passing him to go to the kitchen and get a glass of water. "Where are mom and Paul?" He asked, returning.
"Restaurant" Theo just said without looking up and flipping frantically through the pages.
"Okay" Liam replied slowly, undecided what to do. Theo uncorked a marker, highlighting everything he read. Liam's eyes hovered on his hand, where a large scar was pretty clear. That was the one Mason was talking about, for sure.
"If you have to say something, say it, or otherwise let me study. I'm going crazy here." Theo muttered
"I don't have anything to say." Liam said, lingering a few
seconds longer. "What are you studying?" He sat down in the chair next
to his.
Theo looked at him confused for a moment, as if he didn't understand why he had sat down.
"History. I have a test tomorrow" he went back to the book. Then he seemed to remember something. "Hey you are in my history class too"
"Wow what a good eye" Liam snorted amused.
"Idiot" Theo rolled his eyes. "Why aren't you studying?"
Liam looked at him, narrowing his eyes. "Do you remember when you laughed at me on Saturday because I was studying?" Theo nodded with a shrug "Good, now I'm the one who laughs"
Theo gave a snort, drew back in his chair and put his hand in his hair. "Okay, you nerd" he sighed at last. "Maybe then you can explain to me how it is possible that there was an half man and half bull guy who lived in the middle of a maze in the middle of a town devouring virgins and nobody seemed find it strage?"
Liam snorted amused. "That was just a legend, to scare off enemies and keep them away. There was no Minotaur"
"This is shocking" Theo said, feigning bewilderment with a hand on his heart.
Liam laughed again, this time a real laugh. He looked at Theo
shaking weakly his head "You're an idiot" he commented, but there was
no bite behind the words. They seemed almost fond, and Theo's heart
skipped a beat when Liam's deep blue eyes met his.
He cleared his throat, quickly looking away, and pulling close the book. "Uh- so, what was the purpose of the maze?" He asked, bringing the discussion back to the initial topic.
"Um it was a decoy." Liam cleared his throat. And he began to explain "They built all those narrow and winding streets around the town... the invaders were lost, they couldn't find a way out, never being able to reach the city and allowing the soldiers to hunt them down-"
Theo stood looking at him, Liam's eyes shined as if he were talking about the most incredible thing in the world, and Theo couldn't look away. His lips tilted in a half smile, while the boy continued to blabbering. Liam stopped, noticing his gaze. He blushed slightly. "What?"
Theo shook his head "Nothing, just - I'm impressed"
Liam blushed even more, bowing his head to hide it. Theo's heart skipped another beat.
"I ..." Liam looked at him with a small smile, his cheeks still dusted with red and his eyes bright "I just like history"
Theo froze for a moment, words that made their way into his mind overwhelmingly. He had ... a strange sense of deja-vù? As if it were something he once had already heard somewhere...
Seven years before - Third grade
Theo looked from the door at the cheerful group of children accompanied by their parents. Forcing back a frown and with a cold and distant expression, he walked up to his desk, next to Josh's, throwing his backpack down. "Hey T" Josh greeted him with a smile, while his mom was distracted talking to Hayden and Tracy's parents. "Where's your dad?"
"Work" Theo just said, pulling out his notebooks and pens.
"Uh, yes even my dad couldn't come" Josh murmured sympathetically. Theo looked around and noticed that in fact many parents were there alone. Or there was only the father or just the mother.
Then his eyes fell on the child who always sat in the front row. Theo had never spoken to him. He was barely noticeable. He was always silent, still bent over some book or comic book, hidden behind his thick glasses. He didn't even remember his name. But he, like Theo, was alone. There was no one beside him. And he looked uncomfortable. He was twisting his hands in his lap, occasionally throwing sad glances at the children around him who were talking happily with their parents, showing them satisfied the work they had done during the year. He seemed about to cry.
Hayden and Tracy approached him, probably noticing that it was alone "Liam, what are you reading?" Tracy asked with a big smile. Liam winced as he looked at them, while Hayden leaned over the desk. "The Vikings?" she read with difficulty.
Liam - so this was his name . nodded trembling, blushing slightly. "Is it good?" Hayden asked again.
"Uh-uh" Liam grumbled. "I -" He looked up, smiling a little "I like history" he said softly. "My dad gave it to me"
"Cool. And won't your dad come today?" Tracy asked curious.
Liam's eyes filled with tears suddenly, and he bowed his head as he shook his head. Hayden and Tracy shared a full of pity look. "Hey, you can stay with us if you want," Hayden said quickly. Liam sobbed, nodding.
Theo felt a wave of disdain. Only the weaks cry. There's no need to cry. He wasn't like him. He hated the idea that someone could look at him with those pitiful looks. He didn't care. He wouldn't cry just because he was there alone.
"Where's your mom, T?" Josh's voice distracted him. Theo looked at him, his expression hard and impassive.
"She won't come"
"I'm sor-"
"I don't care, I'm fine by myself, I don't need any of them" Theo interrupted abruptly, opening his notebook.
He glared harshly at Liam, now surrounded by the other children, all suddenly sympathetic.
I'm not that weak.
Present - tenth grade
"-eo... Are you okay? Theo?"
Theo winced back to reality. "Uh- yeah .. I-I think so"
Liam looked at him almost worried. "Are you sure? For a moment you seemed far away"
"Y-yeah ... I'm fine." He brought the book close. "Keep going?" He asked, clearing his throat.
Liam nodded, still watching carefully. Then he looked back at the book and restarted his explanation "In the end, you know, however, Theseus succeeded in overcoming the maze. The legend says that he succeeded thanks to Ariadne's thread, but even that is a metaphor. It is a poetic way of saying that it was Arianna herself who led him thro... "
Theo wasn't sure he was really listening. He had finally remembered. Yes, that was the day. The day when it all started. He remembered it now. He had never associated these two things, probably because he hadn't been able to figured out as a kid. But that was the day he decided it was easier to attack Liam's being weaker than to come to terms with his. That it was easier to prove that he was strong and self-confident by attacking the one who was not.
Growing up then, picking on Liam had become a routine, to the point of forgetting why it had begun.
Theo looked at Liam next to him, who kept talking about
history, with a smile on his lips. Now, in hindsight, he understood how
stupid he has been, because if there had been a weak there, that was
just him.
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