“I was wondering if you’d pick up.” Silas chuckled into the receiver.
“Why wouldn’t I?” Lenore answered. Silas couldn’t tell for sure, but it sounded like she was crying.
Silas wiped his face clean before leaving the dark alleyway he was crouched in. As he breached the entryway, life roared around him; people leaving bars, taxis stopping and going, the Metro’s brakes squealing as it made its next stop, engines and horns blaring.
“Well, I just mean it seemed like something was bothering you back there,” he said plainly, shoving past a man keeled over drunk.
“What are you talking about? I’m fine–where are you? It's so late, shouldn’t you be home?” she asked, changing the subject.
“I’m almost home, just stopping to get a bite for my mom and Marie. You don’t have to worry your pretty head about me,” Silas chuckled.
“Marie is your sister, right?” she asked, he could hear fabric shuffling as she moved positions.
“Yes, my older-little sister,” he breathed into the line.
“Little?” a chuckle from Lenore, “I thought she's older than you?”
“Oh she is, but she has…problems, so it feels like she's really my younger sister in the way I have to take care of her. You’ll like her actually, she’s…," Silas couldn’t really think of a way to describe Marieannette. I mean how do describe someone so enslaved by her own thoughts? “...Odd,” he settled on.
“Hey! What's that supposed to mean? You think I'm ‘odd’!?” Lenore sounded as if she were offended but he could hear the chuckle in her voice.
“No! No, I said Marie is odd. I just think you’ll get along nicely with her,” he said, saving himself from embarrassment, “Anyway, I just wanted to check on you, you seemed shaken up when I left. Was the kiss that bad?” He laughed as he turned the corner onto his street.
“What? No. It was…okay. Fine. Good.”
He could picture it now. Lenore’s face all red, blood flowing to her cheeks all flustered. He almost let out a ‘hmm’ at the picture.
“ ‘Okay, fine, good?’ If I didn’t know any better I would say you enjoyed it.” he smirked.
“I mean yeah, it was…You know what I mean!” She whispered.
Yep definitely flustered.
“Yeah, yeah, i'm just messing with you,” Silas chuckled as he walked up the steps to his house. “I enjoyed it too, you don't have to be embarrassed.”
Lenore was quiet for a beat. “Okay I’m home now. I’ll let you go back to whatever it is you were doing– fantasizing about me or whatever,” he joked.
“I was not fantasizing about you!” Lenore retorted.
“You were! I’ll talk to you tomorrow, bye!” Silas hung up before she could reply.
His house was a large stone building that looked like it should have housed multiple apartments. A large townhouse with wrought iron detailing on the roof, and dark, closed shutters adorning the windows. It looked like the house all the kids would avoid on Halloween. Maybe they should avoid it on Halloween.
The outdoor light by the front door was on, which meant Charlotte was home. Silas would have to be quiet when he entered.
As he passed the living room, the fire flickered away, casting deep shadows about the room. There was a large portrait above the mantle that depicted Charlotte, sitting in a chair, and Marieannette crouched in front. Standing behind them was Silas on the left, and another boy who looked Silas’ “age” on the right.
Silas hated that portrait. No matter how many times he had it covered, Charlotte would always uncover it. Where it should have cast a sense of familial bond, was nothing but a morose anger.
“Marie?” Silas called, “Marieannette? You Home?” Of course she’s home, she never leaves the house, he thought.
“Silas.” Silas startled as he turned. Marieannette stood a few feet behind him as if she had been standing there all along.
“Are you hungry? I brought you food.” Silas held out a thermos.
Marie stared and walked past him further into the house. In the kitchen, she handed Silas an empty glass. She eyed the thermos as he popped the top off of it.
Steam swirled out of the container, spiraling a delicious scent in the air, surrounding the two. Marieannette’s mouth all but watered as he poured the viscous red liquid into the glass. As the last drops drip drip dripped from the canister, She grabbed the glass like she couldn’t stave off the hunger any more – like she's never fed before.
Silas knew that Charlotte was full shit of when she said that Marie couldn’t defend herself. Marie was probably more vicious than both him and Charlotte combined.
“She really wasn’t fantasizing about you, you know.” Marie said as she finished off the glass.
“And you would know…” he said with an eye roll.
“I know all, Silas,” she said in a calm yet indignant tone. “She is wearing a red dress. You find her beautiful.” Marie sets her glass in the sink and disappears into the shadows of the hall.
“What?” Silased gasped in confusion, slamming the thermos into the sink, “I do not. I don’t even like her.”
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