4 - Filling the Hole

     To say that Eva and I were in trouble for snooping around an unexplored cave was an understatement. Edgar got Baddo involved, and the next thing we knew, they cordoned off our clubhouse, confiscated all our exploration tools and banned us from hanging out on our own for a month. That last punishment was more for me than Eva, as I was the introverted one, but the idea of interacting with my peers in Havenwood felt like an unbearable punishment in excess to my crimes.

     Even though we got off relatively well, I couldn’t help but feel uneasy about what happened in the cave. By all rights, we should have died. Every time I tried to bring it up with my Baddo he’d stonewall what I was trying to say and treat me like a kid. I always hated that. I’m not a kid. I’m no more a kid than any of my siblings.

     But then, I guess our family isn’t like most of the others. My Madda died after having me, leaving Baddo to raise all of us, as well as manage the company. And he did it all without hiring any maids or butlers, when he absolutely could. We weren’t given some fancy education by private tutors, but were sent to public school just like anyone else.

     The school was Havenwood’s one and only Havenwood Higher Education, built to be large enough to house and teach the city’s children and teenagers until they graduated. It had the best funding available since the city was well off all around. There wasn’t really a lower class, well, a lower class that was easily noticed. The Governor was pretty vigilant about finding individuals who fell through the cracks and setting them up with some welfare to help them help themselves. It wasn’t perfect, but it did make us look better on the tax bracket. A single school for everyone meant less uneven distribution of funds in a district, so everyone had more opportunities together. It sort of made sense when it was explained to me, but the downside was that you couldn’t exactly transfer to another school if an incident developed.

     Sometimes we were treated well, other times our apparent wealth would be used against us. Which led to my association with Arthur. Arthur Whitestone was the only son of Havenwood’s librarian, and he seemed determined to share the knowledge he’s gained, as well as the fact his family owns the library, with anyone in earshot.

     I… I may have maintained our friendship out of desperation or pity. I’m not entirely sure. But I always felt bad that he sat alone during lunch. So I definitely felt even worse that now I was using him as the buffer to continue to hang out with Eva. Thoughts of actually visiting the library or even inviting Arthur to my place always sunk to the periphery of my priorities. I think that means I’m a bad friend. He’s a better friend to me than I am to him.

     At the very least, Arthur was a notorious notekeeper, and found our adventure beneath Havenwood fascinating enough that he started recording our descriptions and even expressed his own desire to visit.

     “What if, now stay with me,” He suggested, a feverish light reflecting off his round glasses threatening to blind us. “We ask Eva’s dad really nicely to let us explore it?” Hah, classic Arthur.

     “That’s a very… ‘optimistic’ and ‘naïve’ view on what could happen,” Eva answered diplomatically. She had a peculiar expression on her face, perhaps remembering something far more enjoyable then the conversation at hand. “But you have that nerdy charm, so maybe it’ll work this time.”

     I was too busy playing with the remis Arthur hid in his backpack to add anything to the conversation. The slime was a mixture of pink and yellow, and answered to Mr. Zippers. I loved when Arthur snuck him into school.

     “This time?” Arthur pushed up his glasses as I started feeding Mr. Zippers some of my lunch. “Someone did it before?”

     Eva nodded. “Seraphina’s boytoy, Silas tried asking ‘nicely’. Now he’s in the hospital for trespassing.”

     “Ouch, sounds like Silas won’t be working at the station for a while,” Arthur mused. “That means I’ll get to breathe easier till he gets out.”

     Something that I was grateful for was that Arthur shared the same concern I was feeling. That whatever the monster we encountered was, that it’s loose, and might get out into the actual city. As curious as the guy was, his heart was still in the right place. He’d probably just die on the spot from a mixture of fear and curiosity if he actually got to document the monster. I wondered if I’d get to keep Mr. Zippers if that actually happened. Unfortunately, I still had some reservations about the monster getting out, and knew I had to do something.

     There were times I felt like someone was watching me, even when no one was around. At first I had chalked it up to paranoia, or even Baddo setting someone to keep an eye on me, but that feeling persisted. Something was different about the town. Like it was holding its breath in anticipation for what was to come.

     The nagging feeling to do something stayed with me throughout the school day. The moment the final hour was up I bolted back home to find my brother Alan. If anyone could possibly understand, it would be him.

     Alan was doing paperwork at the kitchen table. Some kind of contract for the company, maybe. With the element of surprise on my side, I swiped the papers from the table, to his irritation. “Hey!” he exclaimed. “Have you ever heard of knocking?”

     I politely rapped on the table in response, smiling sweetly. Alan slapped his forehead with the palm of his hand. “What do you want?”

     “I need you to plug the hole.”

     “Come again?”

     “The hole Eva and I climbed down. I don’t think Baddo or Edgar found it.”

     “What about it?”

     “You saw how scared Eva and I were. Something was down there with us.”

     Alan tapped his pencil against his nose, thinking. “Even if I were inclined to believe you,” he said slowly. “How do you or I know you weren’t just hallucinating? There could have been fumes down there that only made you think Eva and you were being chased by something.”

     “I think we’d know–”

     “And for that matter, did you even get a good look at the thing that scared you two so badly?” Alan continued. “What was it? There aren’t any known predators in Seras that live in caves. So what was it?”

     “That’s not–”

     My brother began to recline against the countertop, smiling crookedly. “How do I know this isn’t some plot for you to hang out with your girlfriend without breaking Baddo’s rules? You scared him half to death, you know. Exploring an unmapped cave would scare anyone, heck, it scared me!” His grin turned into a scowl. “And you want to risk angering Baddo further by returning to the place he distinctly told you not to go near?”

     I barely knew what to say at the tirade he had unleashed on me. “Uh… yes?” I stammered.

     Alan grinned and got up. “Cool, just checking.” he said easily. “Let’s go!”

     I couldn’t help but scowl. “Couldn’t we have just skipped the guilt trip?” I demanded.

     My brother ruffled my hair. “Then don’t touch my stuff,” He answered.

     I put his papers back on the table and the two of us left the house for the cave entrance. Even with my brother accompanying me, I couldn’t help but start to feel nervous as we returned to the place. It was right where we left it of course: A hole in the ground with a pair of ropes anchored to some nearby trees. Alan frowned as he pulled on the rope and released it, making a distinct Twang! “Wow, you suck at knot tying,” He commented.

     “Says the expert rope tie-er?” I shot back, leaning over to glance down the hole.

     “That’s not a word.”

     “You’re not a word.”

     My brother joined me at the edge. “Adan, I love you, but that sounds so stupid,” He made a disgusting noise with his throat, then hocked a loogie down into the depths. Honestly, the sound of it making contact below a few seconds later felt pretty satisfying.

     “Regardless whether you saw something, or thought you saw something,” Alan continued, squatting into place and widening his stance. “The cave needs to be explored properly. Be it with armed guard or personal protection equipment.”

     After a few moments of holding the pose, I realized he was waiting for me to join him. I quickly mirrored his pose, and then together we began to pull at the ground, exerting our will on the rocks and dirt. The soil groaned, lifting to our command and compacting in on itself within the hole. I grit my teeth, and the two of us began plugging the hole.

     “How were you and Edgar able to find us in the caves, anyway?” I asked once the hole was taken care of.

     Alan grinned. “Sounds like someone has been slacking,” He teased. “It’s sort of a seismic sense. I was searching through the ground for vibrations, and those vibrations were telling me where you were. From there it was easy to pull you and Eva to the surface. The hard part was making sure to have a tunnel for you two to travel through and not just smash you against the ceiling.”

     I filed that away as the two of us began to test the integrity of the sealed hole with our feet. We tapped it, danced on it and even started punching it. Nothing we did dented or cracked the ground.

     Nice.

     An owl hooted nearby, startling me. Looking around, I spotted it in the branches of one of the trees Eva and I had attached our ropes to. It gazed back at me with unexpected clarity. The bird tilted its head, thinking with its large round eyes. After a moment, it raised its wings and flew away.

     “Real talk bro,” Alan said as we began to admire our handiwork. “Do you see yourself living a life with Eva?”

     His question caught me off guard. I definitely didn’t trip over myself, and my brother definitely didn’t laugh as he helped me back to my feet. I felt my cheeks turn crimson. “Uh, can we talk about this later?”

     “Uh uh, I plugged the hole, you owe me this. You try to deflect or walk away, and the cave is opening right back up.”

     I was trapped. It almost felt preferable to let the monster get me instead of answering the question. “Okay, real talk,” I answered, sighing in defeat. We both took a seat under the trees.

     Have you ever wanted something so badly that you would do almost anything to have it? I did. I loved her. And I knew it from the moment I first laid eyes on her. But that’s the thing; It’s like Eva is from a whole other world. She’s a social butterfly, and I’m… well I’m just a wallflower. Hanging back and napping before the action. Naps were great and all… but they became a lovely substitute for reality when the realization that Eva and I weren’t compatible would kick in on an almost daily basis.

     She was my best friend, but I’m pretty sure that’s all I ever would be to her. So why even try to change it?

     “Have you ever shared these feelings with her?” Alan asked, patting me on the shoulder. “You’ll never know if you don't try.”

     “I’ll never get hurt if I don’t try either,” I replied somberly.

     Alan left his hand on my shoulder. “Adan, we both know that’s not true,” He said. For the briefest of moments, it felt like I was with Baddo and not my brother. “Don’t hurt yourself just because you think the two of you won't work out. You’re smart, funny, and reasonably attractive.” Alan gave me a wry grin as he squeezed my shoulder. “Well, almost as good looking as me,” He amended. “Any girl, Eva or otherwise, would be fortunate to land a guy like you.”

     I snorted, but appreciated the kindness. “Who are you and what have you done with Alan?” I asked, trying to fight the smile creeping on my face.

     “I trapped him in the cave,” Alan joked, putting his arm around me. “Thanks for helping me hide the evidence.”

     We laughed, and I thought about what he said. I kept thinking about it as we returned home, and continued to think about it even as the night came and the stars whisked me off to sleep. Even then, the advice participated in my dreams, and I think I finally felt an inkling of hope.