Page 34 of Echoes of Us
"I said I don't care if they come."His words were clipped, precise in their anger.He sat rigid in his chair, and one hand white-knuckled around a paper coffee cup, the other running through his already disheveled dark hair.His Yale rowing team sweatshirt was wrinkled, like he'd slept in it."They're only showing up because their perfect son's staying in academia."
"Cole."Dale's tone was patient and practiced.Even rumpled from what was clearly an early morning, he managed to look put-together in his soft gray sweater and wire-rimmed glasses."They're here for your graduation-"
"Right."Cole's laugh was sharp enough to cut glass."Because Mom's so thrilled about me leaving while you stay here pursuing your brilliant academic career.Tell me, did they even blink when you got into the master's program?Or was it just expected?"The remnants of his blueberry muffin lay destroyed on his plate, picked apart but uneaten.
Ashley rounded the corner just as Dale reached across their table, trying to catch Cole's arm.The morning sun caught his signet ring - identical to Cole's - as Cole jerked back, his chair scraping against the polished floor as he stood.The movement brought her into his line of sight.
For a fraction of a second, something raw flickered across his face - gone so quickly she might have imagined it.His expression smoothed into careful indifference, though his knuckles were white around the crushed paper cup, coffee threatening to spill over his fingers.
"Ashley."Dale's whole face brightened, his greeting warm despite the tension crackling in the air like static electricity."Join us?"
She hesitated, caught between Dale's welcoming smile and Cole's carefully constructed wall of ice.The contrast between last night's library Cole and this morning's version made her head spin.The same face, the same storm-gray eyes, but where last night's had burned with intensity, these were winter-cold.
"Actually," Cole's voice was perfectly neutral as he gathered his things, his movements precise and controlled, "I was just leaving.Wouldn't want to interrupt the future of theoretical physics here."
He didn't look at either of them as he strode past, the set of his shoulders rigid beneath the wrinkled sweatshirt.
Dale watched him go, something heavy in his expression."Sorry about that," he said quietly."He's...graduation's a complicated topic."
"Because of your parents?"The words slipped out before she could stop them.
Dale's eyes snapped to hers, sharp with surprise.Then, his features softened into something sadder."They mean well.They just..."he trailed off, searching for words."Sometimes it's harder to see what's right in front of you when you're busy looking for perfection."
The way he said it - careful, measured, like he'd spent years trying to bridge a gap that kept widening - made Ashley's chest ache.She glanced toward the door Cole had disappeared through, understanding, blooming like bruises under her skin.
"Coffee?"Dale offered, already standing.His smile was gentle, nothing like his brother's careful armor of indifference.
As he walked to the coffee station, Ashley caught Cole watching through the window.Their eyes met for a heartbeat.This time, he didn't look away first - just held her gaze with an intensity that stole her breath.Then he pushed off from where he'd been leaning against the building and disappeared into the stream of students rushing to finals.
Dale returned with her coffee fixed exactly how she liked it - because, of course, he'd noticed he paid attention to details like that.But Ashley barely tasted it, her mind stuck on the glimpse of pain she'd seen in Cole's eyes on the way he'd pulled away from his brother's attempt to reach him.
All this time, she'd thought Cole's sharp edges came from losing Dale.But maybe they'd started forming long before that - carved by years of standing in his brother's shadow, of being measured against him and coming up wanting.
She wrapped her hands around the warm cup, her heart heavy,
"Hey."Dale's voice pulled her back."Where'd you go just now?"
Ashley managed a small smile."Just thinking about finals."She paused, then decided to take advantage of the moment."Actually, I could use a break from thinking about finals.Tell me about your research - what made you choose theoretical physics?"
Dale's eyes lit up with genuine enthusiasm."Would you believe it started with origami?"
"Origami?"
"Yeah."He grinned, reaching for a napkin and beginning to fold it with practiced movements."Our father taught us when we were kids.He traveled to Japan a lot for work - engineering contracts.Every time he came back, he'd bring new patterns."His fingers moved swiftly, precisely."I got obsessed with its mathematics - how a single sheet of paper could become so many different things just by changing the angles and the folds."
Ashley watched his hands, realizing she'd never known this about their father.Had Cole ever told her?"Your dad sounds interesting."
"He is."Dale's smile turned softer."Brilliant engineer, terrible cook.He drives Mom crazy with his experiments in the kitchen.Once tried to 'optimize' her grandmother's lasagna recipe using fluid dynamics."He laughed."We had to order pizza."
The napkin in his hands had become a perfect crane.He set it between them on the table."Mom still has boxes of these in the attic.We used to compete to see who could make the most complex designs.She'd hang them from our bedroom ceiling - said it was like having our own constellation."
Ashley's throat tightened.She'd seen those boxes in Margaret's attic, never knowing their significance."Do you still make them?"
"Sometimes.When I'm stuck on a problem or need to think."He pulled another napkin from the dispenser."Here, I'll teach you a simple one."
As he guided her through the folds, Ashley found herself relaxing into the conversation."What else do you do?Besides physics and paper art?"
"Piano, though I'm rusty now.Photography - mostly astronomy stuff.And I restore old radios when I can find them."He glanced up from their folding."My roommate hates it - says our apartment looks like a vintage electronics shop exploded."
