F O U R
Brothers of Four

THE SENSE OF dread was something I was heavily used to. I felt it long ago when Lucius and I were first starting to drift apart. The break up was sudden but I was merely too blind to see the clues that were set up all over. It was as plain as day that there was something bothering Lucius as the days bled closer and closer towards my twenty-first birthday.

On another note, I had also felt a rush of foreboding when I was in the hospital room awaiting the verdict for my grandfather's health many years ago. He had been sick for a long time and when it finally got curious enough for him to be needed to be admitted to a hospital, it was too late to save.

If you are curious to know, the news that was given to us after his checkup wasn't exactly a wonderful one. But grandfather died with a smile on his face and his loved ones by his side. We stood there as a complete family, watching the monitors that kept a note of his heartbeat slowed down to a dead straight line. He was, however, very fortunate in a sense. If I were to die, I would want to be in the arms of the person I loved with all my heart, hopefully, surrounded by some more friends and family.

Dread, in my opinion, was the most alarming of emotions. But what was it exactly that made everything so painful? Perhaps it was because the suspense was worse than the outcome. It was like a wound on a dying man. The pain would always be more prominent. The man would die knowing that death was about to meet him and vice versa. An instant death would not be as impactful and would be considered as an act of mercy to some. It one was left in a writhing pile of agony, the suspense and knowledge that death would eventually consume you, and yet not dying just yet, would be tenfold the trauma.

And there it was, the emotional trauma that could drive me absolutely insane.

Shaking off the sense of foreboding, I made my way towards the bar, instantly drawn in by the impressive array of drinks, both alcoholic and not. Along the line of alcohols on display, there was a particular shelf dedicated to photographs of random people, along with miscellaneous ornaments that glowed in the black light. There were three bartenders that were on duty, each entertaining a crowd with fancy shakes and delectable concoctions. Finding an empty stool, I slid on with a flick of my long honey blonde hair, eyes trained after the bartender closest to me.

"Can I have a drink, please?"

A pair of flame red eyes met mine, turning over almost instantaneously as he finished the drink on hand. He smiled at me, one that was sinisterly handsome before wiping his hands clean on a white cloth that hung on his beltline.

"Just a moment," he said. When he was done with the current duty on hand, the bartender turned towards me, dimples etching in his cheeks as he flashed his pearly white teeth.

As he walked closer, I realized that there was a hint of gold in the man's eyes, perfectly complimenting his blood red hair and equally scarlet irises. He was a man quite literally made of red and gold, the colors of royalty.

"And what would the lady have tonight?" He asked, voice slick and smooth as he shot me a lopsided – but heart-stopping nevertheless – smirk.

"Think you can manage an apple martini?" My voice dropped lower, batting my long eyelashes just the slightest as the man winked.

"Anything is possible for a beautiful lady. Just ask and it shall be presented." There was a slow alluring drawl in his tone, a low hint of seduction before he carefully whipped out the ingredients needed for the drink, concocting a brilliant masterpiece before assembling it in a martini glass.

I watched as he worked, eyes trailing with piqued interest after the unique red ink that disappeared under the sleeves of his button-down shirt. It trailed past his wrist, ending around each finger and the back of his hand. The other end to the fiery red design curved in pointed yet intricate swirls around his neck and to the back of his head, disappearing into his maroon colored roots.

I frowned, eyebrows crinkling as an image of Calvin's tattoo flashed in my mind. I had no idea why but the two different body inks seemed to correlate, making me feel a little on edge for I knew that I had seen the symbols before, but yet I am not able to exactly put my finger on it.

"An apple martini for the princess of the ball." Smiling, he slid the drink over to me, a playful grin situated on his features. This immediately snapped me back into reality as I adorned a carefully mastered smile, combing a section of my hair behind my ear and out of my face.

"Are you sure that you are a bartender and just a bartender only?" I asked, taking a small sip of the drink and allowing its bittersweetness to wash over my taste buds. "You are too slick to match up with those I see down at the local clubs and bars."

The man faked offense, placing a hand over his heart with a shake of his head. "You hurt my feelings, doll. It is not like I actually intended to be swoon-worthy."

I rolled my eyes at that statement. All too easily, he placed a muscular hand on the table, hoisting himself over in one smooth action as another barista came up from behind the counters to take his place.

"But you caught me. I bartend for fun mainly. The name is Wilhelm. A pleasure to meet you, Miss...?"

"Addison. Addison Pilediah." Taking his outstretched hand, I shook it gently before letting go.

"So you're the famous Addison I've heard so much about." Wilhelm smiled, casually propping his body against the counter by his elbows. "My brother did have the best eyesight for the most beautiful ladies. And that fact just proved itself true once again."

My eyebrow scrunched in confusion at his statement, curiosity overwhelming me when he said that. "Your brother is the host?"

Wilhelm nodded once, a sort of fire dancing in his ruby eyes. I could feel my palm starting to turn clammy with sweat. There was no way in which his eyes could be real. The scarlet red of his irises resembled a bloodbath during war yet it complemented his features so beautifully.

"That he is. This is the first time I've actually been to one of his parties, though. He said that it is thrown in your honor and had promised that the great Miss Addison Pilediah would be a sight to behold. He most certainly did not lie like I had expected him to."

"And I suppose Calvin is your brother as well?" I trailed off questioningly. "I met him just now on my way in."

There was no possible way for the two men to be brothers, or at least blood siblings considering their different ethnic background and vastly different genes. Calvin, for one, had dark ebony skin and hair white as snow. His eyes were a sparkling electric blue that resembled that of a bolt of lightning that could split the sky into two. Wilhelm, however, had skin was fair and pale. Yet his eyes were brighter than the summer's blazing sun and his hair was that of bloodshed in a battlefield.

Both men were equally beautiful, but definitely on different ends of the spectrum.

"My whole family is an adopted one. Mom and dad took us all in from the orphanage before they passed away." Wilhelm shrugged with a nod, easily reaching below the counters to retrieve a bottle of vodka. Unfazed, he tossed his head back, easily chugging down a good quarter of the liquid content at one go as if it didn't even affect him so much more than a glass of juice. "We're a unique family, I guess you can say."

"I'm so sorry." Stuttering, I swirled the contents of my drink absentmindedly. I had unknowingly already finished nearly half the glass but there was no buzz of alcohol in me quite yet. "I didn't know. My condolences for your loss."

"Ah..." He took another swig of the burning alcohol, waving his hand nonchalantly. "No need for that. It's been years since mom and pops died. Death is common in the family, in a way that is both fortunate and not at the same time." His eyes twinkled with a hint of memory, trailing far away before it focused on something behind me.

Based on pure instinctual curiosity, I too, turned my head back to see where Wilhelm was looking.

"Will, we have to go. Calvin is looking for us." A man with dark ebony black hair appeared, his dark soulless eyes eyeing me for a split second before leaving to trail after Wilhelm's grin.

He had deep cut cheekbones, sharp as if crafted by the hands of God himself. His features were unforgiving, emotionless even, and he stood just a few inches shorter than Wilhelm. He was, obviously, still taller than me by nearly half a head. His skin was a ghastly pale and he seemed like a ghost walking amongst the living. His eyes were nearly like two narrow slits that seemed to always be judging one's every movement and decision. The man seemed to be of Asian descent, his handsome features much more oriental as compared to both Calvin and Wilhelm. Nonetheless, that did not make him any less beautiful.

"Addison, meet my brother Fabian. Fabian, this is the lovely Addison we've heard so much about. Isn't she just simply wonderful?" Wilhelm mused, eyes dancing against the light as he gestured to me. Fabian's dark eyes scanned over me once, as if he was sizing up an opponent before battle. I couldn't help but cringe away a little from his intense scrutinizing stare.

There was a flash of something that went through his irises, but I couldn't tell what it was. Hatred? He sure seemed like he despised me even though this was the first time we had met. Fabian's eyes were completely judgmental, a sneer carved onto the corner of his lips the very second in which Wilhelm introduced me to him. However, there was also something more than hatred, something that I could not put my finger on. It was a word out of my dictionary, perhaps a feeling in which I hadn't quite yet experienced it myself. Maybe that was why I did not know what it was.

"I wish you a good time, Miss Pilediah. Wilhelm, let's go." Fabian briefly nodded at me and he spoke with a clipped tone filled with false politeness. He did not bother to wait for a reply from his brother before he turned to walk away. The man easily disappeared through the crowd and the very second in which he left, I could feel a stone being lifted off of my chest.

"If you will excuse my brother, Addison. He definitely is not known for his manners." Wilhelm shook his head disapprovingly, looking after where his brother's figure once was. "I'm afraid I will have to take my leave. I hope to see you again, Miss. And until then, enjoy your time here."

Wilhelm barely waited for me to nod before shooting me a dashing grin, sauntering off towards the crowd and disappearing amongst the sea of sweaty sticky bodies that danced to the rhythm of the music.

I sighed dejectedly, downing the rest of my drink's contents and allowing the smooth alcohol to leave a fine burn down my throat. And once more, I was left to my own thinking.

The undeniable breeze that blew colder than winters here in Riverside Creek returned, surrounding me in an eerie embrace. Pulling the sleeves of my sweater down to cover my freezing fingers, I left the now empty glass on the bar counter, deciding to battle my way through the crowd in an attempt to find heat.

Wherever I went, though, there was the constant feeling of being watched. As I darted my eyes in all directions, I could see no one paying particular attention to me, all too mesmerized by the thumping clubbing music than to bother with a lonely girl in the sea of drunken monsters.

Resigning to the fact that I had most probably lost my mind due to the chain of unfortunate events in my life recently, I pushed my way past the crowd and away from the dance floor, only barely escaping towards a lonely deserted table set to the far corners of the otherwise packed room.

All through the next few moments, the prickling sensation had never left the back of my neck. But with no other choice, I decided to ignore it as best as I could, allowing it to instead play with the last strings of my sanity.

———

social media:

instagram: twelvewonderingstars (personal: aurorayeo)

twitter: aurorayeo (personal: aurorayyq)

facebook: twelvewonderingstars