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.He brought a foot up to the bed and latched onto the end of the bandage with his left hand.Unraveling the gauze took forever and he wasn’t in the mood to prolong the pain.Even though the gauze was lubricated, it still hardened over the day and became a bit difficult to remove.He set his jaw, gritting his teeth together, and tugged the gauze off in one long strip.His hand stung and his feet ached, but at least the pain was quick.A few tears rolled down his cheeks, but he refused to cry out.He didn’t want Elijah to hear, didn’t want anyone to know how weak he was.He looked up, catching his eyes in the mirror.“You’re not weak, you’re strong,” he said, as he pulled the gauze from his other foot.The words rang hollow and sweat broke out across his brow.A small sob passed his lips and his hands shook as the gauze peeled off.His feet were blistered on the soles and around the toes.Some of the blisters were popped and stung badly.He went through the motions of opening the blisters with the needle, biting his tongue to halt the cries that threatened to escape as he applied the ointment.It stung to press against the wounds, but he had to.Unraveling the gauze from his hands went easier, though his hand hurt far worse from his little accident in the kitchen.His lower back was sore as well from the fall and he anticipated some small blisters forming over night.The stinging in his hands was so intense that his right hand felt numb, just a constant throbbing.He managed to remove all the gauze from both his feet and hands in only twenty minutes, and his relief to be snuggled in his bed, safe from the world, washed over him in blissful waves.It’d been a difficult day, and he wanted to hide from the pain and the disappointment.He curled to his side, ignoring the throbbing ache in his hand, and let out a low groan, pulling a pillow to his belly, hugging it tightly.“Night,” he whispered, blinking away a lone tear, and fell fast asleep.***Daniel shuffled into his apartment, kicking off his shoes and slipping off his jacket the moment he crossed the threshold.It felt good to be home after such a long day, though his home rarely gave him much comfort.He left the lights out, slipping across the foyer to the kitchen, opening the refrigerator and removing a large bottle of water.Drinking deeply, he let his mind wander.The layout of his apartment was ingrained in his memory, having lived there nearly five years that autumn, and he was fond of padding around in the pitch dark.It made him feel further out of the city.Also, his wealth of possessions, beautiful imported furniture and fixtures, made him somewhat uneasy.Daniel had grown up with little, part of a traveling family that could never put stock or care into what they owned.They often traveled with just the clothes on their backs, rooting and uprooting themselves as often as the seasons changed.Daniel had lived all over the United States and in many cities around Europe.His favorite spot had been Idaho, oddly enough; all those dark quiet nights in the middle of nowhere had really grown on him.He snorted, leaning against the counter in the kitchen; how far he had gone since then! Now he had every luxury in the world, but they did nothing for him that he had imagined they would as a child.He was still alone-- still empty.Work had become what he had always feared, just a means to an end.And that end was looming closer and closer each and every day.So, he kept the lights off, possibly to forget his fortunes, the way his life had turned out.But mostly, the dark hid his walls, lined in unsigned paintings.Walking into the living room, keen on having a smoke out on the balcony, a high-pitched beeping met his ears.His cellphone had a new voicemail.Chapter Fourback to topElijah was dreaming.It was a very good dream that involved Elizabeth, an empty library table and a can of whipped cream.Things were going much to plan until the whipped cream started ringing.“Wha?” Elijah mumbled, sitting up sleepily, shaking his half-asleep hands out.“I can’t even get to first base in my dreams, pathetic.” He stumbled aimlessly in the dark toward the infernal ringing, tripping over his shoes, an end table and one very annoyed cat.“Who the hell is calling this late? Sorry, Cat! Sorry! Ouch!”The cat tangled in his legs and he nearly fell over.Instead, he bumped into the wall beside the door, his hand grappling for the phone.“Guh,” he answered, punching a few keys clumsily.“Alexander?” a low voice asked.For a few moments of pure confusion, Elijah wondered why someone was calling for Alexander at his house.“Oh, no, not,” Elijah said.“Not Alexander,” he got out, his voice cracking as he searched for the light switch.“Well, can I speak with him?” the man asked, sounding quite amused.Elijah could detect a hint of something (was that jealousy?), under the man’s breath, and he knew that he must be speaking with the infamous Daniel.“Sure,” Elijah said, clearing his throat.“May I ask who’s calling?”“May I ask who I’m speaking with?”“Hey, I’m the one who did the asking first,” Elijah replied.He yawned into the phone and made his way without disaster through the living room.“Then you can tell him it’s me,” Daniel said cheekily, and Elijah snorted [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]