I tak ze sobą jedziemy. Umył przednie nóżki, tylne nóżki. Popatrzyliśmy trochę na siebie. Teraz znów się myje. Nerwica natręctw? 😏 O, znowu. To pewnie zdenerwowanie, wydostać się bidok nie może.
I know I’ve been silent for a while but I’ve been working on the next chapter and planning the next six chapters out!! We’re moving ahead swiftly in the investigation and things are starting to go back to usual (well,,,, soap opera usual is never usual but you know what I mean) with the kids! My expected WC for the chapter is around 8K and I already have 5K written and only three more POVs left to finish the chapter! So! There will be a Joe pov later tonight (or tomorrow morning at the latest because I have a history assignment due tonight as well) where you find out things about his life and his mom! I’m just editing it right now but it should be up soon! And since I have a few more POVs written as well, I'll be putting them up too soon! And my last exam for the semester is on Wednesday so after that I will have all the time in the world to finish this book! Hopefully I'll at least be halfway done with the first draft! Which reminds me!! The first draft crossed 95K last night!!! Its been a long ass journey and I'm glad you've stuck around!!
And there's other new too! I'm almost done with the first half of the third chapter of OWAD (I had to scrap the original because it was accidentally a little too racially charged but this one's coming along... Relatively well! It might be done in a week or so! And you'll finally get to meet Faye, Ralph's introduction to the whole world along with some vampires hopefully!! Its going to be super fun!
Here it is. After basically forever of waiting, it’s finally at a stage where I like it. I hope you do too! If you have any suggestions or critiques, there’s a gdocs link at the end open for comments! This is the beginning of the book, right after the opening prologue which you can find right here.
WC: 2500 words
Raphael turned in his bed. The soft, cold breeze flowing through the city enveloped his room from the half open window above his bed. He pulled the blanket closer and higher, trying to seal all entrances the air could enter from. But the blanket was simply too short.
If he pulled it up too high, his feet were exposed, sending waves of cold through his body making him shiver almost constantly. If he pulled it down to over his feet, other parts of his body were left exposed - particularly his shoulders and his face - causing them to go numb.
It was a constant battle between him and the blanket. Even the bed was being a bitch. Every time Raph moved, the bed seemed to get shorter and smaller. It had come to the point he had pulled his knees to his chest, trying to curl up like a ball just to fit on the bed and not having his feet dangling off the edge.
It wasn’t like he could blame his uncle though. Nobody really expected it, did they? He didn’t expect much when he moved here. But he at least expected a bed that he could fit in. At this point, even the couch seemed a better option.
But Uncle Jeremy had already occupied that. It seemed everyone he knew in this godforsaken town was having a rough month.
Raph shifted to the left slightly, pulling his knees closer to his chest. Turning sideways and leaning on his right arm, he pulled the blanket over. Voila. The blanket fit. Now all he had to do was stay in this position the entire night, not moving an inch. Easy.
His phone buzzed on the nightstand.
Fuck me, he thought. Slowly reaching out a hand from his blanket, he grabbed his phone.
The blinding light made him squint and avert his eyes as he rushed to turn down the brightness. He groaned as his shut his eyes, letting them adjust to the darkness once again. I’ve got to remember to turn on the fucking auto brightness. God!
He checked his phone. Reddit, tumblr, twitter, discord and a new system update. Took you long enough.
The system update were supposed to be rolled out to users months ago. Guess they finally got the time to actually roll it out. Regardless, Raph didn’t have the internet to do that right now. The WiFi in the house was down, as Raph had learned when he had arrived, and wouldn’t be repaired for two days.
God, this sucks. Raph thought, putting his phone back on the nightstand. He readjusted himself in the bed, probably for the millionth time in the last hour, and closed his eyes.
Raph didn’t know how much time passed between him closing his eyes and falling asleep but it couldn’t have been long. Raphael woke up screaming. But his screams were muffled, for the most part, by the blender downstairs.
“Uncle Jer, could you please turn that infernal noise off?!” Raphael shouted from his bed.
“Sorry!” A third voice came from downstairs. “That was me!” Ah, Jeremy’s boyfriend. Daniel. The most basic, blandest of names. Raph certainly hoped the man was better than the name. “Hope I didn’t wake you!”
Jesus fucking christ. It’s like a fucking chainsaw. Raph thought, flinging aside the covers. He looked at the clock. 6:45.
He sighed, stepping out of bed, slumping to the door and groggily pulling it open. He pulled a hand over his mouth to cover a yawn as he stepped out into the hall. With his first foot into the hallway, a chill shot up his spine. Fucking freezing out here.
He considered going back in to get a shirt or something but decided it wasn’t worth it.
Uncle Jeremy’s house was certainly something.
Raph had arrived in the dead of night and hadn’t gotten to really see much of anything before he’d went to sleep. But now, with the light flooding in through the large stained glass window above the front door, and the set of artificial gas lamps outside every door on the floor, Raph certainly felt he’d been flung all the way back into the 1400s. Walking through there felt like travelling through a piece of history. He almost felt like he shouldn’t be walking down this hallway.
But he ignored it and soldiered on. It was probably because he hadn’t been here in forever. He honestly couldn’t even remember the last time he was here. Uncle Jeremy came to visit him and his parents once, back when they lived in [state]. Back home.
Yes, that was probably it. This place wasn’t home.
This wasn’t the comfortable hallway he was used to. There were no sounds of laughter from the kitchen as his dad cracked a stupid joke. There was no comforting voice waking him up.
This place wasn’t home.
But the grim reality Raph would have to face was that it had to be home. Because if it wasn’t, what was? His home was all but gone. Auntie Felicia’s? That was even stranger than this house. He was glad he only had to stay there for a few weeks. Another few days with her and he would be facing a murder charge.
Raph pulled his undershirt away from his chest. It had begun to stick to the skin in the humid atmosphere of this town. The floorboards squeaked beneath his feet as he made his way to the staircase.
“Are you up already?” Jer’s voice came from downstairs.
“Yeah!” Raph shouted back as he descended down the stairs.
Jeremy emerged from the living room and stopped in front of Raph. “Look, I’m sorry about Dan. You should go get some rest. You must be tired after the long drive.”
“No, no, I’ve rested enough.” Raph leaned against the front door, running a hand through his hair to make sure it wasn’t too ruffled. “What’s for breakfast?”
“Well, I was planning on taking you out for breakfast to Rose’s Diner over on Maple Street once you’d rested up but I suppose I’m game if you are.”
“Can’t we order in? I’m not in the mood to go out.”
“Oh, don’t be like that.”
“Like what?” Raph asked innocently.
“I know this feels strange and new but avoiding things isn’t going to help. You can’t stay home all day. Besides, even if we wanted, Rose doesn’t deliver. So, go on. Get ready, okay?”
“Ugh, sure. Just give me like half an hour to shower and stuff?”
“Absolutely. You remember where everything is, yes?”
Raph nodded. Jeremy had insisted on giving him a tour of the house last night. Raph had presumed it was to avoid Daniel or something but he hadn’t said anything. Raph dragged his hand along the railing as he strode back upstairs, wondering what the town would be like.
As promised, thirty minutes later, Raph descended down the stairs, dressed in a plain white t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans. He began to walk to the living room but stopped dead in his tracks.
“You always do this, Dan!” He heard Jeremy shout. “Always. This doesn’t concern you, don’t interfere with this.”
“It’s his right to know, Jeremy.” Daniel sighed.
“He’s not ready. And it’s not your decision. So shut the fuck up, Dan.”
“And it’s yours?” Daniel’s tone was accusatory.
“Yes, as his legal guardian, it is my decision, Daniel. Mine and his. So shut up!” Jeremy shouted.
Raph heard stomping footsteps approaching and quickly pulled out his phone, pretending to scroll through it.
“Oh!” He heard Jeremy’s voice and looked up from his phone. “You’re ready?”
“Yeah.” Raph said, pretending he hadn’t heard the loud fight. Hell, the neighbors had probably heard it.
“You sure you don’t wanna put a jacket on? It’s cold out.”
“I’ll be fine.” Raph said.
“Well, okay. Come on then. Garage is this way.” Jeremy said, motioning for Raphael to follow him. Raph quickly shoved his phone into his pocket and followed Jeremy through the house to the garage.
Jeremy’s silver Chevrolet stood in the center of the dark garage. Jeremy turned on a switch near the door and a bright yellow light in the center of the ceiling flickers to life.
“Get in.” Jeremy said, opening the garage door.
*
The car stopped in the parking lot, a few feet from the diner.
“Go on in,” Jeremy said. “Grab us a booth. I’m right behind you.”
Raph opened the door and stepped out. As the chilly winter air hit the exposed parts of his body, he immediately regretted not having taken a coat or a jacket with him. Regardless, he hurried to the door of the diner and walked in.
Inside the diner, things were much more homely than they looked from the outside.
The booths were scarcely populated right now but the stools were full of a row of cops, sipping on coffee and eating breakfast. Raph made his way past them and grabbed an empty booth towards the back of the diner.
He sat down, patiently waiting for Jeremy to walk in.
“You new around here?” Raph looked behind to see a waitress, carrying a pot of coffee.
“I guess you could say that.” Raph said.
She put a cup down on the table and looked at Raph before pouring him a cup. “Passing through or staying?” She asked, topping off his cup. Raph whispered a quick thanks.
“Staying, unfortunately.” He picked up his coffee. The door opened and Jeremy walked in. Raph waved him down.
“You know him?” She asked, surprised.
“Yeah. I’m staying with him.” Raph said.
“Heyyy, Brenda.” Jeremy said, almost flirtatiously.
“Jeremy Caldwell. Who in god’s name is this boy right here?”
“What? You don’t recognize him? That’s my nephew, Raphael. The resemblance is uncanny, no?” Jeremy touched his own face as he sat down in the booth.
Brenda gave a sarcastic ‘Mmhmm’ before pouring Jeremy a cup of coffee and taking their orders. Jeremy insisted on ordering for Raph who was so hungry he didn’t even try to resist.
Jeremy and Raph sat quietly for almost an entire minute before Jeremy couldn’t stand the awkward silence.
“So, you want a tour of the town later?”
“Maybe,” Raph mumbled, looking out through the window at the river, glistening under the strong sunlight.
“That’s good.” Jeremy said, before going silent again. Another thirty seconds passed. “Watcha lookin’ at?”
“Just… the river.”
“Looks beautiful, right? Yes, the Rendell is quite magnificent.”
The Rendell River sat quiet this morning. No loud waves, no splashing water. A strange, serene stillness. Raph had never seen anything quite like it.
He stared at it for longer than he realized as he heard the clanking of the glass plates on the table and looked to his right to notice Brenda putting their food on the table.
“Thanks, darling.” Jeremy said as she placed his plate of pancakes in front of him.
“Eat your food, surname. Keep your compliments for your man.” Brenda said, somehow managing to sound charming.
Raph grabbed his fork. He heard a cop’s radio buzz to life and quickly diverted his attention to see what was happening.
“Code 211A. Nearby units please respond.” A loud voice came from the radio and two cops groaned, rising from their seats. One of them grabbed a donut and put it in his mouth as he left the shop.
Raph diverted his attention back to his food.
It looked delicious. The syrup, slowly flowing off the edge of the stack of pancakes, making a small pool at the bottom, drenching the pancake in syrup. The small pools of blueberry, contrasting the perfect golden-brown-ness of the pancakes.
Raph shoved the fork into the soft pancakes and they broke down perfectly. He slathered the piece in the syrup before taking a huge bite.
“They’re good, right?” Jeremy asks, even before the fork has come back out of his mouth.
Raph chewed for a second before answering. They’re perfectly cooked and they just dissolve into gooey goodness in his mouth. “Holy fucking shit these are great.”
“Yeah, Rose - she’s the cook too - grows the blueberries in her own garden.”
“These are fantastic.” Raph takes another bite, a bigger one this time. More syrup, more blueberry.
“See? I told you it was worth it.” Jeremy said, taking a sip of his coffee.
They both proceeded to eat their pancakes in silence, letting the flavor and texture overwhelm them. As he finished the last of his pancakes, Raph felt a tap on his shoulder and checked to see who it was.
It was an older guy, maybe in his early 50s, dressed in a red flannel shirt and a greasy denim jumper. His greasy hair were mostly hidden by his backwards hat but the wrinkles on his face said he was not a man who laughed a lot.
“Mark?” The man asked.
“Uh, no? Are you looking for someone?” Raph asked.
“No. No, nevermind. You remind me of someone I used to know way back when. Mark Caldwell. Old friend. Used to go to college together.”
“I think you’re talking about my dad.” Raph took out his phone and unlocked it to show a picture of his dad and him to the stranger. “That’s, uh, my dad.” Raph said, his voice cracking a little. It had been almost six months since the accident but some wounds just didn’t heal.
“That’s him.” The man said. “How’s he doing these days?”
“He’s uh…” Raph trailed off.
“What did you say your name was again?” Jeremy chimed in.
“Uh, Peter Denton.” The man outstretched a hand. Jeremy shook it. “And you are?”
“Oh, Jeremy Caldwell. Mark’s brother. Curious, he never mentioned you.”
“Yeah, we didn’t really part on the best terms so, I’m not really surprised.” Peter said in a lower tone. He was still clearly ashamed of whatever it was that happened. “Well, anyway, how is he?”
“He’s uh, he’s dead.” Raph said in a cold tone, trying to not think about it too much. Raph took a sip of his coffee to mask a sniffle.
“Oh, god, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.” Peter put a hand on Raph’s shoulder, perhaps in an effort to comfort him but honestly it was doing nothing for Raph.
“It’s okay. I’m fine.” Raph said.
“How did it happen, if you don’t mind me asking?” Peter asked.
“Uh, gas leak. A fire started somewhere and took the whole house and everyone in it.” Raph said, taking a sip of his coffee.
“I’m so sorry.” Peter said.
“It’s fine.” Raph said.
The door swung open and Peter’s attention jumped to it as a young girl, maybe fourteen, waves at him. “I’m sorry, I have to get going.” Peter blurts out. “But, I genuinely am sorry about your parents. Your father was a great man. I only wish I’d known him longer.”
“Yeah, me too.” Raph whispered.
“Well, I hope you have a good time here in Tenebris. I’ll see you around.”
“Yeah, sure.” Raph mumbled and Peter walked away.
Raph finished his coffee and like magic, Brenda appeared from behind. “You boys need anything else?”
“Uh, no I think I’m good. Raph?” Jeremy said.
“Uh, little more coffee. And where’s your restroom?”
“Gotcha. Let me just go brew up some. And the restroom is straight down and to the right. You can’t miss it.”
“Thanks.” Raph rose from his seat and walked towards the restroom. He needed a minute to himself after that.
