THE SPAWNS

The Question Sort of Answered Itself

Chapter XI—Cole

© DarknessAndLight

While sitting in the stairs, my legs dangly lazily by the side, while I held Fluffy tightly to my chest and mentally repeated “please make this end quickly” like a mantra.

            Mum and Dad were warmly welcoming our first guest, which inadvertently happened to be Tyler and Vanessa. That wasn’t a bad thing in itself, it just implied that Nikki had arrived first and I would be stuck with her. Alone. Because of course, she would find a way to corner me. Because she wanted the goods all for herself—the goods being me.

            I wasn’t stupid, I knew my parents had good genes and made a pretty decent looking kid. And apparently I wasn’t the only one in the room who had come to this conclusion.

            Nikki’s two little brother, Jackson and Gavin ran straight to the couch, throwing themselves at it to play with Miss Puss that was sitting on it lazily. Internally, I was telling them to stay as far away as possible from that couch, but I stayed quiet.

            “Cole, how about you show Nikki our old records’ collection?” Mum offered, smiling sweetly at the two of us. Oh that… UGH!

I sighed and tried not to glared, getting up on my feet. “Would you guys want me to show her my underwear too?”

It didn’t wipe the smile off my mother’s face. Actually, I think it grew. Tyler and Vanessa seemed a little worried though. “That’s your business honey,” my hippie of a Mum answered.

Maybe my parents should get a huge sign they could walk around with saying “We want our son to get laid with anyone interested. Anyone.”

I smiled back sweetly. “You sicken me, woman.”

“Coleridge, don’t talk to your mother that way,” Dad reprimanded me.

“Whatever.” I grumbled. “Come along, oh blonde one,” I told Nikki who just stood in the middle of the room, confused. But I didn’t have to ask her twice though and she followed me quickly.

            When we reached the second floor, where was the library and my made-up room, I quickly put on my tour guide face and explained, “On my right you can see the records, also known as vinyls, they are huge and black, excellent to play Frisbee with, but I don’t recommend doing it in front of my father, he would sick his cat on you and no it isn’t an innuendo. On my left you can see a bay window, and now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go and jump off of it. Enjoy the rest of the tour.”

            Nikki laughed, thinking I was joking—I wasn’t entirely. “So, any of them are good?”

            “No, they all suck, that’s why technology made them obsolete,” I replied automatically. It wasn’t that I wanted to be a douche to the poor girl, generally I was a real nondouchy person. I just didn’t want her to have any reason to be lead on. Me and her, it wasn’t going to happen. She was a nice girl and all, she just wasn’t the one for me.

            I went to the bedroom part of the level, to set Fluffy down on my bed—he had fallen asleep in my hands.

Nikki followed, lingering around. I didn’t like it. I didn’t like having her here, in my personal space. She stopped in front of my corkboard with over a dozens of piece of paper with quotes written on them pinned to it.

Unlike Beth and Jay I couldn’t remember a quote just by reading it once. I had to re-read it at least a dozen times before it stuck in my head, unless it was really beautiful and poignant. That was somehow unsettling to me seeing Jayden couldn’t even realize what was going on around him, but with just one look he could memorize anything. He was a walking and talking contradiction.

The blond girl stood there, reading the notes, smiling a little. I seriously didn’t like it. I was moments away from shoving her out of here.

She broke the silence before I could act. “What is your favourite quote,” Nikki inquired.

“Sweepings from butchers’ stalls, dung, guts, and blood, drowned puppies, stinking sprats, all drenched in mud, dead cats, and turnip tops, come tumbling down the flood,” I answered in an almost mechanical voice.

“What?”

She was looking at me with wide disbelieving eyes. I smiled internally. For some reason it always brought that reaction. That was why it was always my automatic answer, even though it wasn’t the real one.

“It’s from Jonathan Swift’s Description of a City Shower,” I explained, keeping a straight face.

“That can’t possibly be your favourite quote! Dead cats? You love your cat!” she shot back, looking at the gray ball of fur on my bed.

“And drowned puppies,” I emphasis. “I mean it. Jonathan Swift is by far my favourite writer. I absolutely love his obsession with shit. Oh and his Modest Proposal is absolutely brilliant.”

“His what?” I think I had pretty much lost her at this point.

I sweetly smiled at her, leaning my back against one of the libraries. “Never heard of it? It’s an essay. Another of my favourite quotes!” I started to recite it. “‘I have been assured by a very knowing American of my acquaintance in London, that a young healthy child well nursed is at a year old a most delicious, nourishing, and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricassee or a ragout.’ Now it was written in 1729 so I doubt he’s talking about Hannibal Lecter, but one can always hope, right?” Yes, completely and utterly lost the poor girl.

            “What the hell are you talking about?” she pressed.

            I shrugged. “Jonathan Swift’s Modest Proposal. He says that to prevent people from starving and poverty they should eat the babies. Especially the Irish ones. A very beautiful prose…” I trailed, gazing back towards Fluffy.

            “I’m not sure I follow you, but if I do, eating babies is seriously sick,” Nikki informed me, looking at me almost sternly. But I think she was also trying to be teasing at the same time. I seriously did not get that girl.

            “But if you listen to scientist, it might actually cure all wounds,” I added, trying to shock her. And anyway, wasn’t that what they said embryo stem cells could do? And wasn’t that kind of like babies? Like, if you were really far-fetched in your analysis, which I was?

“What?”

Maybe I should stop pushing the poor girl. She’d go cry to her parents. I was really mean, wasn’t I? “Oh, don’t listen to me, I have hallucinations,” I waved it off, like it was normal, which it kind of was.

She chuckled a little. That was not the reaction I was going for. I was going for her getting out of my room quickly, actually. “You kind of remind me of Prior Walter.”

Woah, say that again, Mary Sue. “Excuse me? Who?”

She seemed proud for some reason, thinking she was about to teach me something. “You know, from Angels in America.”

No shit. How did she know about the play? I asked her.

“You mean the movie?” She shrugged. “I had a Meryl Streep movie marathon and it was in it, but I got bored quickly though because she wasn’t there in the beginning so I stopped watching.” Of course.

I didn’t roll my eyes, though I really wanted to. “You are aware that she played the rabbi, right?”

“Rabbit?”

Seriously, what was she still doing here, trying to ‘get to know me’ and all? Hadn’t she figured out by now that we were absolutely incompatible? “No, rabbi,” she still looked confused so I explained. “A Jew priest.”

I was about to ask her are you blonde but I think the question sort of answered itself.

What was it with everyone assuming I was gay, or categorizing me with gay people? I had no problem what so ever with homosexuality, my best friend fathers were proof enough of it, it just irritated me that people knew me so little. But I guess I only had myself to blame…

Obviously unobservantness ran in the family.

“Anyway, you remind me of him,” she shrugged again. I think part of her just mentioned that because she wanted me to know she had seen that movie.

“Is it a compliment?” With her, I had no clue.

She chuckled, like what I just asked was cute. “Yes” she snorted, “Look, it’s alright, I know why you don’t like me.”

I was a little shocked to hear that. First, I totally hadn’t seen it coming. And second, had she seen the way I looked at Beth and figured it out for herself? I was suddenly worried. Did Jay know? “You do?”

She nodded, still smiling. “You’re gay.”

“OH. MY. GOD!” I threw myself on the floor dramatically. My face was pressed flat against the rug while I mumbled incompressible swear words in about five languages.

I could feel Nikki crouching beside me and she patted my shoulder reassuringly. “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone. Your secret is safe with me,” she whispered, almost happily. “I’ve always wanted a gay best friend.”

That got me out of my torpor. I raised my head. “I think you don’t understand. I respect the gay community—personally, I think nobody should say a damn thing about who you’re attracted to, but I’m not one myself.”

She shook her head, still smiling, still looking at me like I was some kind of cute, confused animal. “It’s okay, you don’t have to lie to me.”

I was seconds from throttling her. “I’m not gay.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Have you ever had a girlfriend?”

I sighed. “No.”

“Numerous girl one night stands than?”

Okay, what the hell? “Huh, none of you fugging business, Blondie.”

She laughed again. I was imagining discreet ways of throwing her out of the window. “It’s really alright Cole. You don’t have to be ashamed of who you’re attracted to, like you said. And you should also probably tell Jayden you’re in love with him.”

I hit my head repeatedly on the floor. Seriously? SERIOUSLY? Had people meet up yesterday to find ways to piss me off? “That’s it. I’m done with humans. I’ll copulate with cats now.”

            And Nikki just sat there beside me, laughing, because she thought I was in denial or some crap and I really didn’t see how I was suppose to explain to her I wasn’t gay, in a way that didn’t imply me having to admit I was in love with my best-friend’s fifteen year old sister. Can someone say awkward? And anyway, what was the point?

            Suddenly, the doorbell rang, and hope sprung up in my chest. I was on my feet in seconds and sprinted out of my room and down the stairs. Jayden was the first to walk in but I immediately ignored him and went straight to his sister, ignoring everyone and everything.

“Quick, what’s my favourite quote?” Beth looked at me like I had lost my mind. I probably had.

After a few seconds of frowning at me, obviously concerned, she answered. “I know ‘tis but a Dream, yet feel more anguish/Than if ‘twere Truth,” she recited easily, “by Samuel Coleridge, the man you got your name from.”

“How do you feel about eating babies?” I asked quickly.

Now a smile crept up on her lips. “Jonathan Swift logic was fairly sound, but the application of the actual proposal was doomed from the start, because of human moral and what-not.”

“And am I gay?” Beth covered her mouth with both her hands, muffling her laugh, and shook her head.

Without any control over my actions, I wrapped my arms around her waist and smothered her into a hug.

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A/N:

So, few things to say. First off, yes I know, it took me an eternity to upload. Sue me! 0_0 (actually don't, that wouldn't be cool! lol) And I know it's a short one, but it's because I need to have Jay's POV for something that happens during that dinner and I need to get through Lilibeth's chapter before, so I had to kind of cut it short.

Anyway, for those of you who kept asking for Nikki, here she is! hahaha

Next, I don't have anything to offer, title wise, so well, I guess, if you have ideas, just write them in comments. Otherwise, I'll try writing the next two chapters so we can get back to our nice voting thing! I FINALLY have two weeks off, no work or school, so I plan on writing as much as I can!

Also, if you guys ever need anything to read, for those of you who don't know, I have two stories up for the Watty Awards this year. My short story "Birds of Paradise" (http://www.wattpad.com/story/1713096-birds-of-paradise) which is like 9 pages long, and with a weird timeline so it was fun to write, and it should be fun to read. And I also  put up, "The Family Curse" (http://www.wattpad.com/story/1091767-the-family-curse-cursed-wanderers-series-book-1) now, this one doesn't have as many chapters uploaded as I planned yet, but they should start coming in more in the upcoming days. And the narrator and main character, Oksana, is one of the funniest character I had to be in the head of, if that can count for anything. Plus, you get a couple of yummy male characters thrown in there too. ;P So, go give them a read, it would make me a very happy camper! haha

So, that should be all for now. I know my uploading sucks and I wish I could change it, but I've been insanely busy, as always. And more inspired by other stories. Soooooorry.