Page 15 of In This Iron Ground
“Whatever.”
Dinner was the usual ordered chaos. Food was consumed at an unholy pace. Damien forgot about everything else.
After everybody except the twins had all helped tidy and wash up, Damien knelt beside Dee.
“How about we give Hakan his drawing?” he whispered. Dee nodded vigorously. They grabbed the drawing from her room and found Hakan in his, already turned towards the doorway as they walked in.
“Present!” Dee exclaimed, running towards him and scrambling up his legs. Hakan hoisted her up and sat down. He took the paper when she settled, peering over her head at it.
“What the…” he laughed, looking up at Damien, who grinned.
“It was a collaboration, plus Koko,” Damien said. Hakan looked back down at the drawing, clearly marked withHAKAN!at the top.
“What a beautiful rendition of me,” he snorted, but his smile was wide.
Damien closed the door after her when Dee perked up suddenly, as if hearing something, and then leaping off Hakan’s lap and out of the room. As soon as the door closed, the noise from outside was muffled into silence. Hakan had very logically explained that a family of werewolves living in a house without soundproofing was like humans living in a house with glass walls. Damien had shuddered at the very idea.
Damien flopped onto the bed with a sigh. He stared blankly at the ceiling as he let the day sink into him. Felt the exhaustion deeply, like a weight. Felt the fullness of the meal, the contentment of the company. Felt the omnipresent apprehension like a leaky faucet in his head, the tap, tap, tapping of it.
“You okay?” Hakan asked, quiet like he got sometimes. Damien turned his head to see Hakan standing by the bed, a copy ofDescenderin his hands. Damien smiled and scooted over. Hakan settled on his front beside Damien, facing the pillows.
For the last few weeks, they had been reading theDescenderseries together, following TIM-21, a robot boy who wakes up after being decommissioned to find a universe that has turned on androids, and him in particular. Despite the sprawling scope of the sci-fi adventure, Damien couldn’t help but love it for its soft colours, its heart-breaking moments, TIM-21’s quest for family, for origin.
Damien and Hakan had developed a rhythm when reading together, learning how to interpret the signs that the other was ready for the flip of a page. Damien revelled in the shared enjoyment of reading with Hakan. He loved the moments when they would become enraptured in a single double-page spread, the soft noises they would both let out in the twists and punches the story delivered, the feeling of Hakan’s werewolf warmth pressed against his side. It reminded him of the joy, the connection he used to feel with his mom when they pseudo-researched together, like a bright thread was woven between the two of them.
The sadness it caused was one of the sweetest emotions Damien had ever felt.
“Did you check that webcomic I suggested last week?” Damien asked, turning onto his front but not propping himself up on his forearms as Hakan was.
“Oh, yeah! The part with the weird worm in the party hat!”
“Oh my God, I know. So gross. And cool.”
“Love it. Even if the authors thinkWalk Like an Egyptianby The Bangles is the best song of the eighties,”Hakan said.
“I know! The best song of the eighties is clearly a tie betweenMan in the Mirrorby Michael Jackson andBizarre Love Triangleby New Order.”
“Uh, no,” Hakan scoffed. Damien lifted himself on his forearms, rolling his eyes at Hakan.
“Oh my God. Let me guess. Your favourite song of the eighties isStrippedby Depeche Mode.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” Hakan grumped.
“Or, no wait, it’sSo Lonelyby The Police. No! It’s The Cure, isn’t it? Oh God, you like The Cure.”
“There’s nothing wrong with The Cure!”
“You aresucha drama queen!”
“Me?Says the one who likesBizarre Love Triangle!”
“Uh, ’cause it’s an awesome song!Every time I think of you, I get shot through with a bolt of blue…” Damien sang. Hakan snorted through a smile.
“The best song of the eighties, for your information and education, Damien, isI Wanna Be Adoredby The Stone Ro—”
“Drama. Queen.”
“Brat.”
