16 Earbuds

Destiny

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While everyone stood agape at the vibrant display, I slipped into the side doors unnoticed, following after Sean. Closing the door behind me, I turn into a vast and spacious room.

Now, this is the definition of a bro cave.

The room is furnished with a fine leather black couch, paired with a marble coffee table just at its feet, complementary to the theme outside. On the marble table sat a bunch of remote controls and empty bags of chips and soda cans. Hovering above it all, was a professionally mounted TV. Behind the couch stood a pool table, a double shot hoop like those mini basketball games you'd find at an arcade, and popcorn machines too.

Alright, Destiny. Enough snooping. Have some respect.

I left the room and stepped into a seemingly endless hallway. The ceilings were abnormally high and decorated with photos of the three siblings. It seems as their godly sculpted features ran in the family. On a golden plaque, hung an engraved sign that read: "Julianna K. Davis, Kordell K. Davis, and Sean K. Davis." I continued to walk, not knowing where the halls led to until I ended up in what seemed to be the kitchen.

I placed foot onto the ceramic floor tiles and I could hear a slight hum coming from the refrigerator. Here we go again with the marble. A beautiful island sat in the middle of the immense room, bringing forth the elegantly designed cabinets.

"You looking for something?" I jump to the sound of Sean's voice, coming from behind me.

Holy crap, that scared me. At least I'm on my feet this time.

He meets my gaze, then makes his way around the island, taking a seat.

"Uh, yeah, I'm looking for the bathroom."

Really, Des? The bathroom? Why can't you just tell the truth? Lying is nowhere near good, and you mean no harm. There's a chance he could already think you're nosy, might as well live up to it.

"Down the hall, to your left," he directs, to which I nod.

Am I really going to go along with this? Or am I going to woman up and ask him the simple but risky question, are you okay?

I turn away and surprisingly enough, I don't make it off the ceramic tiles. Instead, I turn to face him once more and make my way over, taking the seat in front of him.

"It's okay, not everyone enjoys fireworks," I say, trying to beat around the bush.

I mentally facepalm myself. Too straight forward?

"What?" He asks, raising his left eyebrow. "Don't you need to use the bathroom?"

Playing dumb, are we?

"I'm just saying, if I had a fear, it wouldn't be bright lights painting the night sky. Not that there's anything wrong with being afraid of fireworks, it's just... they're really not as scary as you were making it seem and, I guess what I'm trying to say is—"

"Alright, Alders. What's your deal?"

For a split second, I swear I caught a glimpse of hope in his eyes. Maybe he just needs someone to talk to.

"It wasn't the fireworks, was it?" It couldn't have been. "It was the sound of the explosion before it."

He locks his eyes onto mine and I see just how deep they really are. His eyes are the ocean, so full of life despite all the weathering. Emotional currents that hid uncertainty, guilt, and secrets so well from all those around him.

There was a sense of confusion in his gaze, he was shocked at what I threw at him. Shocked by the sudden accusation and shocked that I was... correct?

I allowed for the comfort of silence to creep in on us. It felt as though I've knocked down a wall that took him years to build, and I didn't want it to seem like I was pressuring him. My accusations were out there, and it was none of my business but by the looks of it, they were pretty spot on.

BOOM!

There it was again. The sound of the fireworks, exploding into the atmosphere.

As if proving my point, I watch as Sean shuts his eyes and balls his hands up into fists, struggling to drain out the noise. He looked so— so vulnerable.

Without hesitation, I clenched his hands into mine, allowing for the warmth and comfort of my hands to let him know I was there. Weirdly enough, I felt an electric current run through my arms and down my spine. I shivered at the instant reaction and I'm sure he felt it too.

He opened his eyes and once again, he was calm. He took a deep breath, never taking his eyes off mine. Like he was afraid that if he did, he'd be swallowed whole and brought back into the depths of his mind.

What a dangerous place.

"The explosion," he says, finally looking away. "The loud bang, it— it sounded like a— it reminded me of—"

"It's okay." I tilt my head, and offer him a tiny smile, meeting his gaze once more. "You don't owe me an explanation."

I was only being honest. Sean does not owe me anything. If he's afraid he'll break while shifting some of the weight on his shoulders to me, he doesn't need to speak. And as much as I'd kill for a penny in exchange for his thoughts, I need him to know he can trust me. I need him to be a hundred percent sure when he chooses to share this burden with me. I will not be added to a pile of one of his misguided thoughts.

I wanted to help, I did. But how was I supposed to do that while respecting his uncertainty of opening up? I pull my hand away realizing that I was still holding on, then suddenly, an idea pops into my head and I reach into my pockets.

I pull out a pair of earbuds that I had previously placed into my oversized hoodie, thinking I might've needed them.

Introverted things.

I then plug them into my phone and play my favourite playlist. After I quickly set it up, I slide it over to him without a single word.

He looked at me, bewildered but took them anyway, desperate to drain out the noise then placed both earbuds into his ears.

He raised an eyebrow at me, probably questioning my choice in music and I shrug.

After a few minutes of silence, Sean rubs his face with his hands and gets up, making his way towards the refrigerator. I watch as he grabs two bottles of water and tosses one my way.

How thoughtful, but I can't—

He follows through, then realizes his mistake right away.

Catch.

I can't catch.

He furrows his eyebrows at me, plastering a full face of judgement and I stick my tongue out.

Did he really expect me to catch the damn water bottle without any warning?

Luckily, the water bottle was tightly sealed and there was no clean up needed.

With the earphones still in his ears and my phone still in his hand, he walked towards the water bottle and picked it up before taking his seat, then properly handing it to me.

Thank you.

I'm not too sure how long it's been, but it was finally silent. I could hear no more than the faint sounds of conversations coming from outside. Sean had made himself comfortable by enclosing his face into his arms and resting on the surface of the lustrous marble table. He was still focusing on the sound of the music and I could hear how much louder he adjusted the volume by. He was still listening to my playlist and I have been subtly jamming out to it with him.

Oblivious to the silence, I tap Sean's arm and he looks up at me in acknowledgment.

"It's over," I mouth, and he takes the earbuds out. I'm sure the fireworks have ended long before but I wanted to be sure there weren't any random finales.

We stare at each other for a moment too long, taking in what just happened.

I no longer want to dig and I no longer want to push his limits. What I saw in his eyes seemed too much for him to handle. I'm afraid that if he speaks his mind, he'd break, and I'm afraid that if he doesn't, his emotions will consume him before he even gets the chance to.

I don't know what to do. And by the looks of it, he doesn't know either. We were stuck, and only the two of us knew it.

Out of nowhere, Sean unexpectedly gives me a reminiscing look, and I follow his gaze down to my necklace. The necklace Marissa gave me. Since the day I received it, I've never taken it off. It's far too important and it means a lot to me. There's no way I'm losing it.

"Where did you get that?" he asks.

"It was a gift," I whispered, missing the comfort of Marissa's presence. "The lady that gave it to me is away on a business trip."

"I thought it was one of a kind, " he mumbles.

"What? I didn't catch that," I tell him truthfully.

"It's nothing," he says, shaking his head.

The last time we sat face to face taking each other seriously, was back in the equipment room. That was about a month ago. The rest of the days we'd joke around and laugh. I liked when he was happy.

That reminds me.

"You know, I never got the chance to thank you." He looks up at me. "Thank you for not letting me fall. Even if it did lead to us being locked in that day."

The sound of Sean's laughter fixated the mood of the room. "Royal finally talked to you?"

"What do you mean?" I question. What does Royal have to do with any of this? "You're ruining my moment," I joke.

He smiles with his eyes before his lips follow suit, and for the first time tonight, he seemed genuinely happy. "You're welcome."

We set aside the rollercoaster of emotions and directed our conversation to something fresh. He mentioned how this house was paid off long before they moved to Luna City, and how he met the guys when they were just on the verge of taking their very first steps. In return, I told him how I met Saffron and Royal, and how I got to know the rest of the guys.

Our conversation flowed easily and I could tell that Sean was sensitive but dominant. He might get offended over Seth's stupid comments but I know for a fact that he'd take out anyone who disrespected the people he cared about.

We talked about cheer and football and from there, he immediately realized that my love for reading and writing, was far more than I ever felt for cheer and I didn't even have to say anything.

I liked doing cheer, but it was more of a... how do I say this? Cheer was like the railings on a staircase. I didn't need it but in a way, it was essential. I did it for Saffron... and so that I wouldn't have to go to the gym.

Is that weird?

• • • • • •

"Destiny? Destiny!" Sean and I look towards the door we entered from and there stood Saffron and Seth.

"There you guys are." Saffron stared at us all confused. "You missed the fireworks," Saffron upbraided. "This is where you two have been? In the kitchen? All this time?"

All this time? It's only been a couple minutes.

"Ugh, never mind that, come on Des it's almost half past 9 and we still have to go see Mrs. Knight."

Shiitake mushrooms.

That totally slipped my mind. Did she just say half past 9? It's been over an hour?

"Julianna said she'd keep the girls entertained until we get back, and the guys promised to—"

"Mrs. Knight?"

Saffron and I turn to Sean.

"Does she happen to own some kind of Psychic shop with all that voodoo shiz?"

"Well, yeah actually. Yeah." I confirmed. "Do you know her?"

"Possibly. Maybe. If we're talking about the same woman then, something like that, yeah."

"Bro what do you even mean—" Seth says but is interrupted when Sean says, "have fun."

I look at Sean once more before getting up, then I make my way towards Saffron.

That's it?

Seth walks past me and grabs a popsicle stick from the refrigerator before taking his seat next to Sean.

"Oh frick, wait what?" Sean pauses as if just realizing something.

Saffron and I turn around.

"It's almost 10 pm, and you two are going out?" Sean clarifies. "I don't know about that."

I open my mouth to speak but, I'm cut off when Saffron says, "Well we do. A promise is a promise, you guys out of all people should understand that."

"I don't care. Would you look out the window?"

"Just tell the guy you'd contact us if anything goes wrong. He won't stop," Seth necessitated, licking his popsicle stick. "Plus, he has a point. It's pretty late and—"

"Destiny, I have your—"

"Let's go, Des." Saffron takes my hand and pulls me out of the kitchen faster than Sean could finish his sentence.

Okay then. Off we go.

• • • • • •

Thanks for reading!