Pain of the Past

-PART ONE-

Wrapped himself in the duvet, waves of nausea adding to misery. His brain felt like it would swell beyond the capacity of skull and now dehydration was too obvious to ignore.

"Damn, this hangover wants to kill me"

"Damn you Knight"

"Damn your fucking delicious rum"

His stomach lurched and gurgled, raised his heavy eyelids half way only for them to fall shut. He raised them again and swung his bare feet to the carpet.

"Perhaps some painkillers would help too."

It was cold and sticky underfoot,

"must have missed that earlier."

He sank back to the bed; too many jobs to do, so much mess and life's in tatters. He was more aware of his cracking headache than the layer of dehydrated saliva that coated on his cracked lips. Once on feet the room swayed almost causing to loose balance and reached out for the wall. His hand slipped along the high sheen paint and sprawled onto the carpet with a crashing thump. The room swirled before becoming stationary again and used the bedstead to pull himself to standing.

Again.

This feeling meant they'd had some fun the night before but somehow he can't remember any memory.

Maybe just a little memory.

He smacked his lips and his stomach turned in an unfriendly way. A fry up was probably the last thing he needed but he was going to have one anyway.

"Wonder if Lycko Louise was already awake."

…

From the pounding head, vomit taste in her mouth and dehydrated feeling she figured she must have been drinking heavily last night. Her throat felt like sandpaper.

It hurt to move.

It was like the flu only self-inflicted, which meant she'd get no sympathy from anyone. At least the curtains were still closed, she was always averse to bright light when she was hungover.

Maybe she could sleep it off.

She curled under the duvet and closed her eyes.

…

I still had a head that felt like an axe was planted in it. My eyesight struggled to cope with the daylight. With my brain still struggling to recover from the previous night's abuse.

I had very few options.

Reading would be impossible, the TV too garish, Lycko's haven't awake yet. So instead I elected to cook for myself and hers.

Dragged my heavy limbs into the kitchen to make a fry up. Eggs, bacon, sausages, perfect for a hangover. Thinking for any food that might help me to ease this painful shit inside my head.

It seems like I brought my leisure work here.

Grabbing ingredients from the fridge and pantry.

"Seems there's a feast for our breakfast" I smile as I grab the ingredients I needed.

Bacon

Egg

Shrimp and Steak? Why not?

Heating the pan, I grabbed an oil and pour unto it. The savoring aroma of bacon and eggs makes my hang over ease a little. After cooking some fry up. It's time for the main event.

I licked my fleshy lips and grabbed a handful of oily Hors Oeuvres. They were little shrimps, fried to a crisp. I placed a pile of shrimp on her plate and to mine, drenched them in creamy, sweet sauce. I pudgy hand clenched the oil soaked shrimp and stuffed them into my mouth. I licked my fingers, smeared with cream and oil.

What a nice savory taste.

"Eating like a retard… so dumb of you big bro!" she giggles as she walks towards the counter in front where I was seated. By observation, she looks pale and has an unconscious face.

"Morning brat!... here, have some morning fry overs… with uhh… shrimp and steak accompanied with a savory cream and oil" she just nodded and sit in front of me. I handed her a coffee for a little medication purposes.

"ughh! This head ache is going to kill me... I love Drain's rum but I fucking hate the effect"

I chuckle as she stated what's on her mind, "you… silly girl… go eat… it may help you ease the pain"

She grabs her spoon and fork and start crunching a handful of crispy shrimp. She snatched a large slice of steak, saturated them in the rich, sweet sauce and popped another into her mouth.

She's beautiful but she's kind a gross!

The steak was too thick to chew with her mouth closed, not that she was concerned, she dabbed her fleshy cheeks with a delicate napkin before speaking.

"Any plans for today?"

I sigh, "Remember our last dinner with Pendelton?"

She stops chewing as she tries to remember the situation. "Ah… yeas! The night after his meeting with the psycho?... damn it… I'm not sure"

"Yes, you're right… silly" I laugh as I find her cute with her innocent expression.

"Hey! Stop laughing Hermano!" she mumbles as she munched another slice of steak. "What about that night?" I merely don't understand what she says because her mouth was full of food.

"Hey! Young lady! Don't dare to speak while your mouth's full" I murmur it with full authority.

Being a big brother wasn't easy if you have a childish sister!

Ugh! I hate Drain's idea

She immediately chewed up her food and swallow. "I said, what about that night?" she irritated hissed against me and roll an eye on me.

Brat!

"The night, Pendelton tell us about the house from 1720"

…

-THE NIGHT AFTER KNIGHT-DRAIN REVEALS THE TRUTH-

-FLASHBACK-

"he dies without even knowing the truth"

"Copper is a Chase!"

"Copper is Blade"

"Copper is my Brother"

Chase ran outside, leaving us dumb founded. Though I know the truth from the very beginning. Blade and Drain was my best friends. As Drain walks away, we decided to follow him. We found him at the parking space of the building, Drain was leaning towards the steering wheel, observing carefully, Drain holding it tightly, obviously he's controlling his anger, he's controlling his temper. Lycko immediately ran towards the car but it was locked.

"Hey, Drain! Open up!" as the young lady knock the window of Drain's car.

Scratches his face Drain unlock the car and my sister immediately go inside. I walk until I reach my car. As I got in, I received a message from Knight

"Go straight to shop��� we'll having dinner"

So unusual of him, knowing Knight for a very long time he doesn't want C.R.I.N.G.E style of living yet he's doing it right now

Something's very strange

The memory of the past seems refreshed because of that fucking situation

…

It was a mild spring day, the sort when we kids were so happy to run outside without jackets. I ran to the neighbor's house because they had a swing. With my almost five-year-old legs I pumped higher and higher. My hair flopped backwards as my face felt the warm sunlight and forwards as I faced the ground on the backwards swing. I can't recall how I fell, just the dull thump of hitting the dirt. I lay there unable to breathe, all the wind knocked right out of both lungs. I heaved but no air passed in.

"Hey! Are you alright?" it is like I was hallucinating or something, I saw a two figure of a kid same age like mine, didn't have knowledge about the concept of having 'Twins' all I know that time was a brother and sister concept.

"Am I hallucinating?" I ask an innocent question as they both laugh. They help me to stand up catching my breath.

"We're twins" they both synchronize giggly shout

They're identical to each other. The different was their styles, the one with red hair wears a cool luxury clothes and the one with gray hair wears a very high graded glasses with a very thick lenses, he's a nerd and wearing a black casual polo underneath a suit. They're clothes are luxurious.

"Hi I'm Knight-drain Pendelton Chase… five years old and you are?" the boy with glasses offer me his hand for a hand shake

How majestic they are!

"I'm Lock Lopez… same age like you and your brother… I'm not rich as you are… don't be friends with me… your father might get angry" I hissed out of shy

"Silly! I'm Knight-Blade Chase… it doesn't matter; we want you to be our friend… besides our father was a kind man… besides we're not on any medieval period" the boy with a red hair murmur

By the time I got home all I could do was slide down the glass of the front door and bang once. Dad opened it. I lay on the mat, still trying to breathe. He looked at me, panicked, seconds later I was lying on my parents' bed. I lay there, just breathing.

"Mom! Dad! I have new best friends!" I jump as I starts my tale

"really, who is it?" my mom asks

"It was Drain and Blade mom! They're the son of Mr. Chase" I excitedly hissed "they're twins"

My mom and dad were happy about me having a friend in our new town,

Realm town.

We're strangers from other country, my dad was an engineer that closed a deal here in town.

We spent our time mostly with each other, they invited me to join their dinner, Uncle Knight and Aunt Kelly was very nice. They have a kind heart. They always buy me luxurious clothes as Drain and Blade have. They treated me like I'm their own biological son.

I do the same, I invited Blade and Drain on our simple home for dinner, with their own body guards as well. Though my mother serves them a simple food such as turkey, beans, sprouts and soup not luxurious as they have but I guess they loved it. They're always insisting to come over and have dinner with a sprouts stuffs.

I'm very Lucky to have them

Blade, Drain and I decided to walk, we saw something and it is the acorns and we love it because it's the best. They lie cold on the soil, bright against the dark rain soaked ground. Their shells glisten with drops poised to run home to earth, sitting proud on the impervious shell. They are every childhood tale, every meal for Squirrel Nutling, the embodiment of fall. On kitchen window sill sits a bowl of acorns from last season, dried and several hues duller than these.

We play and go at same school, it is a bond of brothers that no one can break.

A nightmare happened to me a very long ago, we decided to go on my house and have a pork and beans with sprouts dinner. Our favorite.

As I open the door, I was shock tears flow towards my cheeks, my system shakes out of shock, when I saw my mom and dad bathing with their own blood, they've been murdered by a psychopath. A month after my parent's funeral, uncle and auntie adopt me legally and let that psycho suffer behind bars inside of a Mental Institution.

We're happy when we know that I was going to be Drain and Blade's adopted brother. We shared our rooms and they provide me my needs

I owe them my life

A year after, the twins we're turning six, all staffs we're busy preparing food for the visitor. The twins happily celebrated their birthday, I go to our room with a cupcake and a candle in my hand.

"Happy birthday LL! Happy Birthday LL" I sweetly sang with sadness and pain as I remember that tomorrow was my birthday and I don't have my mom and dad besides me. I don't want uncle and auntie knows about it because it's such a waste of time celebrating it.

"LL make a wish, blow your candle" I murmur and imitate my mom's voice as I blow the candle clapping like an idiot while crying softly, doesn't want anyone to hear.

"This is my chance to have a cake… I guess" I whisper as I remove the candle on top. I can't handle the sadness, I burst out to cry as I want a hug from my mom and dad.

I really missed them.

I badly want to be with them.

I badly needed them.

Hearing the sounds outside makes me cry even more. I get the plate containing the cupcake that I steal from the party and go on the space beside my bed which I can see a mountain view outside. I lit up the candle again and sing.

"Happy birthday LL… Happy birthday LL"

"Is it your birthday, today too?" as Drain approaches at the back, then my cupcake meets the floor. "Ooops! We're sorry, your cupcake spill" as Blade approaches.

"nah. It's not my birthday today… it's tomorrow" I stated while wiping out my tears

"You're crying… aren't you?" the both shock when they saw my slightly red face.

"We can tell mom and dad to throw a party for you too." Drain stated

"Nah! It's okay not to have party, I'm too grateful to the both of you and to uncle and auntie with what I received" I smile at them making their worries wiped away. "I just missed my parents"

"We know…" they cuddle me until my tears become laugh

"hey! What if we changed your name?" – Drain

"Yeas! We can change it to Knight-Lock" – Blade

"It's a poison Bladey!" – Drain opposes Blade's idea

"nah! It's cool… making LL's name into Knight-lock Chase" – Blade

"wow… that was cool!"

We cuddle until we fall asleep never knowing that we aren't wearing our pajamas.

The next day our silly plans do come true. My name became Knight-lock Chase as uncle and auntie decides to change my name. We celebrate my birthday as simple as I had when my mom and dad alive.

I request that thing.

I celebrate my birthday with my new identity being Knight-Lock.

Kidnapping movies were the new soul-porn. Every fantasy was dark, no-one dreamed of a better future or even though love was possible. The scenes were dark, dank. The profile of the capture was always in semi shadow and most of the victims never made it out alive. Always there would be several grisly murders before the final one was rescued, scarred and mutilated. The endings used to be of the kidnapper getting justice served, not anymore. The watchers so identify with the kidnapper that they demand they escape to re-offend. Humanity used to fantasize about being the hero, now they only dream of being the villain. All life offers now is to be the villain or the victim, no-one chooses the latter. The kidnapped children huddled in the container, falling against one another as the chains lifted it into the air. Already the air was stale and smelt of sewage. At first they had pounded against the walls and cried out, but the only reply was their own echoes from the steel walls. Each one cried out in their minds for their mama's, their papa's and some prayed to God. No help came. The next time they saw sunlight nothing good would happen to them, though their fate depended on the buyer.

I read it from Drain's book. Drain's having a good taste on every book. As I've reading Drain's book on our study room a loud cry echoed on their mansion.

"Blade was gone!"

I run towards him, his crying like a river

"hey! What happened?" I worriedly murmur

"Blade is dead! Father found him on the river bank!" Drain stated

We started to cry as the news being confirmed. Seems the book that I've been reading before do come true.

A big question was, "who did that to Blade?"

Week after, Drain suddenly changed his happy and lift-up attitude seems to become a cold, brat one.

I understand

The silence dwelled as it entered the church. A six good-looking men wearing black suits pulled out Blade's coffin from its case. It wobbled as they carried it to the front and gently placed it down. The coffin was dark navy blue

His favorite color

and it was perfectly polished. It had a white cushioned and silky lining. It seemed inviting.

Drain's cries all over the ceremony. It's painful, really.

Years have passed, Drain and I was already 13 years old when auntie got pregnant and give birth to Gray.

Knight-Gray Chase a sweet loving girl

We spent most time like nothing happened on the past, but the memory of Blade remains in our hearts.

Drain and I celebrates our eighteenth birthday together with our friends in high school. We have a best group known as mystery busters, Drain was the leader and I'm his right hand, Copper was his left and Lycko was his queen, always. Lycko serves as my little brat sister ever since we became friends.

That Spanish brat!

Copper became our best buddies until he decides to be a varsity and choose his popularity. Drain become noxious and cautious again, it's his second break-up since Blade's death broke him first. The month before uncle handed their legacy to Drain, we receive a paper, DNA result to be exact. It was the DNA of Copper and Drain saying their related to each other hundred percent.

We talk about it every time, how do Blade forgets anything about Drain and lives as Copper Richardson?

Drain only knows the answer. I guess

We search and search until we answered the question. We try to approach Copper to say about what happen and what's the truth but seems like there's someone stopping us from talking to Copper.

The night when Drain become the new king of their legacy, after the celebration. He tells everything to uncle and auntie. A moment of silence when suddenly a news came after.

a murder was performed at the bank under the Pier in Lion's Lodge. A nineteen-year-old boy named Cooper Richardson found bloated by bank waters, no bruises, no scars and even gunshots or any sign that he was being attacked.

In just a snap, Drain burst out crying again, it's his third time

"I couldn't even tell him the truth" continue sobbing "I couldn't yet I could've"

"he dies without even knowing the truth"

"Copper is a Chase!"

"Copper is Blade"

"Copper is my Brother"

…

I didn't notice that I reach the parking lot of Knight's shop, Pita Club Bomber Shop.

Spacing out again Knight-Lock?

Unbelievable. Really.

I immediately walk towards the shop. I stared on the counter realizing that this shop was my everything. Knight handed over me this shop as a graduation gift at a culinary school. I chuckle from what I thought.

Lock! Your fucking nowhere right now!

I go to the kitchen and prepare everything using my Chef skills.

The chef was his own miracle. He saw a brilliance in food, a potential to help and heal others, a way to show them how the sublime was simply a mixture of the ordinary, it was his genius at play, seeing what the rest of them didn't. I guess that's why I called myself culinary magic and joked that my spoon was a wand carved from the spirit tree. Either way, I made everyone all so happy,

food does that, right?

It feeds the soul, brings smiles and bonds, makes everything so much better.

Moving as if I had my own personal opera playing within. At times I moved as though I were the bow of the cello, steady and deep. Other times I was the violin in some rapid dance. Yet whatever rhythms flowed in my soul from day to day, be them tranquil seas or tempests, what made was so heavenly. And I would stand there as they took a bite, awaiting all their facial expressions and sounds. I cared about their words, but less so, always looking for the truth in that reaction of awe and pleasure.

But the real star is the food. Tables laden with delicacies line the walls. Everything you can think of, and things you have never dreamed of, lie in wait. Huge platters of fowl stuffed with savory fruit and nuts. Ocean creatures drizzled in sauces or begging to be dipped in spicy concoctions. Countless cheeses, breads, vegetables, sweets, waterfalls of wine either, and streams of spirits that flicker with flames.

Sitting on the counter waiting them to arrive.

Such in time before the food turn cold, Drain and Lycko already arrived.

"Sorry we're late, hermano" Lycko giggly stated as she accompanies Drain to our table.

"it's okay, you're just in time" I calmly stated

As we started savoring the food I cooked, silence echoed inside the shop, seems that no one wants to talk and no one doesn't know about any truth that Drain wanted to spill. An hour later, when we finish eating, an extreme awkwardness flows to each one of us.

"ehem!.." I faked a cough to start our conversation "spill the beans Knight"

"there's something inside the house in Westfield drive... I go there and got evidences"

"So where's the things?" lycko curiously asked

"I already handed it to knight-lock" he gives me a gaze which gives me chills and goosebumps underneath my hoodie. "He knows already how to deal with it."

This is the first time that he calls me that name. I feel my eyes become watery, there's this feeling that Drain will be gone.

I'm afraid he'll never comeback.

This is the only time he reminisces something in his past since Blade gone. I thought he forgets about everything we've been through. I thought he forget that I'm his adopted brother. I secretly wiped the tears flows over my cheeks.

Damn your dramas Knight-lock

This isn't the fucking time for that

"what about the house" I utter to ease my overwhelming emotions.

"I saw a suspicious location where there is a blocked fireplace, facing it seems to be disturbing…" He said as he drank his brewed.

"The article says that… the house has numerous amount of that thing… haven't you even try to look on them?" I ask curiously

I know where this is heading

"I tried looking around where the other fireplaces located but that one seems more disturbing and alarming… and"

"and what? Mate?"

"and a sudden urge came up that I want to remove the object that's blocking the way… but I ran out of time"

"It seems that… there's something on it… an evidence… or even a corpse"

-END OF FLASHBACK-

…

"It seems that… there's something on it… an evidence… or even a corpse" it gives me chills when my sister suddenly utters those lines. Having the feeling that Drain is with us from that moment. "So… you're planning to go there and see what's inside?"

I just nodded on what statement she said. I clean up the plates while she stays at the counter.

"How can we supposed to track a crack if we're aren't Drain… we're not even as great as him" she breaks the silence in between.

"what?... so you're saying that you want to come?" I furiously stated

"ugh… yes?... besides I want to know everything… how it works… how his world run—"stating calmly

"Jesus Christ… no!... you're not into this… you're not coming along" authoritatively murmur as I face her with cold emotions

"the fuck you talking Hermano!... I want to… please… I'm not doing it for myself… it's for Knight-drain" this was the first time he called her boyfriend to its first name.

"but… it's too dangerous, hermana" I stated as I sigh as a sign of defeat. She looks awful and nasty

Drain, brother you should come back… your lover seems like a psycho without you mate

"Nah! Drain trained me well…" she said with a super energetic type of giggle. "anyways, why'd are you interested in continuing what Drain started?"

"because it's Drain's passion and I want to continue it" I stated calmly

"Same as you say, It's not for ourselves but it's for Drain"

This is Knight-drain's request.