Zinc 01 - Altors, page 5
part #1 of Zinc Series
I was right. Brass suddenly dropped his stick and ran straight into Cali, breaking one of The Ring's rules by connecting his fist into the side of Cali's neck. My best friend gasped for air as he fell to the ground, his hands around his throat while Brass leaned over him, whispering something in his ear. Then, to everyone's utter astonishment, Cali broke down. Furious tears rolled down his cheeks as the air entered his lungs again. Not thinking twice about it, I ran onto the platform, pushing Brass aside so I could crouch down, checking Cali's neck, face, anything and everything to see if he was okay. He stared sadly at me, crying silently, something I’d never seen him do.
Helping him back up onto his feet, I wanted to ask what Brass had said, but the Ring master walked over, blowing his whistle to have people tone down their angry bellows, or in some cases, cheers. He seized Brass' shoulder then.
"You broke a rule. You're out." Our resident bully didn't say a word, just kept on staring intently at Cali, who was carefully avoiding his gaze.
"I'm fine." Cali said, his voice hoarse.
The Ring master eyed him. "You sure?"
My best friend nodded. “I will win this round because I beat him fair and square, not 'cause he was disqualified.”
Brass snorted. “Your kind will never beat me.”
“Watch me!” Cali's voice was defensive. I still didn't know what Brass meant by 'your kind'.
* * * *
Everyone congratulated us, our moves were discussed and none of us could stop smiling with the pure joy we were feeling. Brass, although a bully, wasn't a terribly bad loser. He grumpily handed over the winning cup, shaking our hands and conceding that we’d won nicely. It was surprising and although I still didn't like them, I appreciated the fact that Brass and his gang weren't ruining our moment.
Acacia gave us permission to stay out and celebrate. The team wanted to go to the beach and while I hadn’t ever gone there, avoiding it with all I was, after a small moment of thought, I’d agreed to come.
Having grabbed some supplies, we cheered the whole way to the station, singing victory songs in the train itself, and after a short walk down the main street, opposite of Edge, we finally stepped our feet into the sand.
I inhaled the sea air deeply, staring as the others ran towards the water. I felt Cali's hand settle on my shoulder, squeezing it gently.
"You okay?" He asked softly. Nodding in response, we walked together to join the others.
The reason I'd avoided the beach all these years was because LV wasn't my home town. Iron Island was. Iron Island was beach everywhere, like a large sandbank that didn't go under water. The beach reminded me of my parents. I'd been afraid the beach would bring back too many painful memories, while instead, it did quite the opposite.
Stripping down to our underwear, we jumped into the ice cold water. I was freezing, but biting through it as the other boys seemed to handle it. Thankfully we soon got out and built a campfire. As the sky was turning orange, Helix and Delph started telling us scary stories. Holly was clinging to Helix's side, so I guess that was the whole point in it, especially because Delph kept looking expectantly at Marguerite, who, to my surprise, had decided to share a log with me.
Cali wasn't really paying attention, laughing with Helix as Holly scolded them for scaring her and Delph soon joined in on the banter. I was about to open my mouth and make a witty remark, when I noticed Marguerite shivering by my side. She was smiling, staring at the fire dancing in front of us, but she obviously was quite cold as her bottom lip was turning blue.
I shrugged out of my jacket, wondering why she hadn't brought one, and then put it over her shoulders. I didn't think much of the gesture, not until I felt her hand discretely clamp over my own. For some reason I got the idea that this wasn't just a friendly hand holding type situation. Staring numbly down at our clasped hands, I frowned, trying to work my way through the feelings. A lot of people in LV thought I was pinning my hopes on Cali or that I was into girls, so it didn't surprise me that Marguerite believed in the second rumor. I'd never felt that way about girls and I was sure of it now as I didn't feel any fireworks. Was it silly to expect fireworks?
It was the very lack of fireworks that made me keep things with Delph friendly rather than pushing it into a romantic direction. Nobody knew he and I had lost our virginity to each other. It felt like the right thing to do at the time. We'd both been sixteen, single and clumsily inexperienced. I’d wanted to get rid of the big V and apparently Delph seemed to be on the same wavelength. It had definitely not been romantic, but he'd been sweet, constantly making sure I was alright. I kind of felt bad for not asking him if he'd been alright throughout the entire process.
Cali would never have his first time be like that. He was a romantic even if he'd deny it. I personally didn't work that way. Yet that didn't mean I didn't want to find the fireworks one day.
I sighed once my reeling thoughts came to an end, tilting my face in Marguerite's direction to explain the situation. Without warning though, she leaned over, pressing her lips to mine. She didn’t stick her tongue down my throat or try to chew my lip off like Delph had. Instead it was a very simple kiss.
Scared of hurting her feelings, I stopped myself from pulling away instantly, instead, darting my eyes over to the guys. What had me breaking the lip lock as quickly as a cold bucket of ice been thrown over me, was the look Cali sported. He looked betrayed.
Cali stood, turning on his heel to leave the fire and the others, who barely seemed to notice what had gone on. I wanted to run after him, explain what I was feeling, but I couldn't leave Marguerite hanging. She was probably just as confused as I was.
Gently prying my hand back, I offered her an apologetic look. To my surprise, she laughed softly, hugging my jacket more tightly around her, a faint blush covering her cheeks.
"You like Cali, don't you?" She whispered.
* * * *
“Don't freak out." I said to myself. "You're way to tight to break over something this silly. Just go up to your room and explain things to him. He might throw one of his hissy fits, but you've dealt with those before.” Yeah. That's good. I can do this.
Sprinting through the boarding house’s courtyard, I rammed the door open, flying through the kitchen. I was about to make my way upstairs when Acacia and Lupinus walked out of the living area, looking at me curiously.
"Sorry 'bout the door!" I apologized, then made my way as quickly as possible, without breaking my neck, to our room, throwing that door open as well, effectively killing the apology I’d just given. I was then forced to stop dead in my tracks when I was met with the meanest glare ever yet produced. Obviously, I'd screwed up very, very badly.
"Cali, listen-"
"No you listen, Solenum! This morning you heard me and Delph talk about how we both liked Marguerite. Not only did you kiss her in front of me, you also completely forgot to mention you're into girls!" He shouted.
He was wearing only his pajama bottom and as his naked chest was displayed before me, Marguerite's words spun through my mind. 'You like Cali, don't you? You like Cali, don't you? You like Cali, don't you? You like Cali, don't you?'
I knew he was angry and that I should probably be listening to him, but her words were confusing me. I eyed his bare chest and the muscles that had formed since we started working out. How had I never noticed this before? Yeah, I guess he looked nice. I could allow that. Before I could find more words to describe him I was slapped out of my observation. Literally.
I scowled, grabbing my head. "What'd you do that for!' I pouted at him, my ears ringing.
"I was getting mad at you and you weren't listening!" He answered testily. I stared at his biceps when they tightened.
"Solenum!" He snapped his fingers before my face, hoping to get my attention. It got me to blink and look him in the eye rather than the nipple, but it also led me to think that I might as well get it over and done with.
Taking two steps forward, I tried to figure out a way to hold him properly. Or let him hold me. I wasn't sure. Cali looked completely out of it, trying to understand why I was acting so strangely. Taking his arms, I circled them around my waist and then shoved my own over his neck. His eyes widened to the most gigantic circles I'd ever seen, more so when I pulled his body flush against mine. Once I’d gulped, I shoved my lips onto his.
Both our bodies went rigid. His eyes were still comically huge, staring at me while I stared back. Basically we were hugging quite awkwardly, reluctantly swapping spit, while our minds plummeted down six feet under. When I figured the deafening silence had dragged on long enough, I stepped back, ending our odd lip lock and offered him an expectant look.
Blinking and remaining silent for another long minute, he finally spoke. "You aren't getting away with this. Explain yourself." Feeling my brain vacating my skull, I sat down on the floor. After a moment, Cali joined me, mirroring my position.
Figuring it was time to speak, I did just that. "Marguerite sorta kissed me, not the other way around. You see, she started holding my hand and the fireworks didn't go off like they should in my stomach when she did, and I thought for a while about it and then I realized that, yeah, I really wanted the fireworks, so I was going to tell her I wanted the fireworks, but then when I turned my head to speak to her, she sort of launched herself at me, and I kind of just froze on the spot and then I got nervous and didn't know how to pull away without hurting her feelings and then I saw the way you looked at me-"
"Breathe, Solenum."
I breathed. "After you stormed off I really wanted to go after you, but it would have been rude to just leave Marguerite without an explanation, right?"
"Right." He agreed softly with a smile.
"Anyway, she must have seen my reaction to yours and that led her to say," I cleared my throat, trying to imitate Marguerite's voice, "You like Cali, don't you?"
"Sol, do you, you know, like me?" I'd never seen him look so uncomfortable.
I sighed. "I'm sorry, but I don't think so. It felt like I was kissing my brother." While I had no brother, and certainly not a brother that I’d tried to kiss, I figured the wrong and uncomfortable, bordering on nauseous feeling that had crawled under my skin while locking lips with Calycanthus, was what allowed me to compare it to that. I saw the tension leave his muscles instantly and he let his head fall back in relief.
"Oh thank you, Creator of Zinc." Now he was adding a tad too much relief for my liking.
"I am still here, Cali. I figure we don't like each other that way, but do you mind? That's the first kiss I threw at someone. Ever. Bit touchy here."
He had the guts to laugh at me. "Not the kiss! I feel the same way; it was like kissing my sister. Or my sister was kissing me.” He blinked in confusion, then shook his head. “I was afraid you may have feelings for me and that I would have to turn you down all gently and stuff, and then it would go all thriller and we’d need to find a way to get past it because our friendship is so important. Blah, blah, blah, and you know. I don't know."
I nodded, understanding what he meant. "We both agree to just stick to being friends.” Glad to have gotten that out of the way, I tackled the next issue. “What about you and Marguerite?"
"What about me and Marguerite?"
"Well, you know." I pushed.
He shook his head. "I didn't need to kiss her to be able to tell the fireworks weren't going to be there. Pretending I liked her and having everyone believe I did was just much easier for me than trying to absorb the truth of things." He took a deep breath, looking at me carefully. “I’ve been hiding something from everyone, you included. It’s-” He had trouble speaking, making me worried. “I’m not sure it is what I am, not like I have any experience to back up my theory. Jeez, don’t use the eye twitch, Sol, I’m trying to tell you, but it’s hard, so bear with me.” Trying to minimize the facial expression that seemed to pressure him, I held still as he nervously tried to gather the right words in his mind.
The fact that he’d kept something from me wasn’t that surprising. Cali always needed to over think everything before being able to share it with me as an idea, and then with everyone else as a concluded fact. It’s how he’d always gotten through stuff. I’d never seen him have this much trouble though, and while he was trying to toss the words out into the open, I’d already figured it out. The idea had never crossed my mind, not until this moment. It made complete sense though, as if the missing piece of the puzzle was found and clicking into place, simplifying the complicatedness that is Calycanthus Esquivel.
“You’re gay.” My voice surprised me as I announced the realization.
The deep frown of concentration was replaced with an upset narrow of the eyes. "Don't say it that way. It's like when Brass says 'your kind'." Figures Brass would use Cali's confusion against him.
I shrugged, hoping that by not making a big deal out of it, he'd understand it wasn't a big deal. "You like guys. Who cares?"
He shook his head in disbelief, "Do you have any idea how hard this is for me?! I’m not even sure and here you are labeling me!" He shouted. “It’s not like there are boys in LV lining up in front of the boarding house, willing to throw themselves at me so I can test the theory in my mind and figure out if I really am-” He choked on his words, “that.”
I raised an eyebrow. "I didn't know how hard it was for you. How do you expect me to understand what you're going through when you don't talk to me?"
“I’m sorry!” Taking my hands in his, he looked at me apologetically. “Just, don’t use that word, okay? Not until I’m sure. I can’t officially voice out my preference until I’m attracted to-" He gulped. "someone.” If he thought I’d let him make this situation complicated, then he could keep on dreaming. Of course I wasn’t going to inform him of my meddling right now, he was way to emotional at the moment.
“It’ll all be okay, Cali.” I murmured, giving him a smile and a squeeze of the hand.
~~~~~~~~
"Cali?" I asked curiously, staring out over the sea as I leaned down on Edge's railing. "Do you think Acacia and Lupinus are our real parents? Do you think we are real brother and sister? We look so alike." If that was the case then why didn't they just tell us?
Cali chuckled. "We probably just come from the same region in Zinc. I guess each area has its specific type of people." He didn't sound completely certain. He had a good point, but considering we'd never leave Lithium Village, it wasn't like we'd ever find out.
"I can't remember if the people looked different on Iron Island." I murmured. "I never really paid attention back then. When you're ten, people just sort of all look the same." I gave Cali a funny look.
He stared out over the water. "I think I can picture what my dad looks like, just a bit. It's a very shaky image in my head that I can't seem to describe out loud. It's a feeling more than a visual." He pressed two fingers against his temple. I wish his nightmares would stop. They kept reminding him of that black spot in his memories, never being able to tell what was real, make believe or his true past. They scared him and I didn't know what to do or say that could help. If I knew how, I'd use it on my own nightmares.
Shaking my head to remove the dark thoughts, I smiled down at our reflection in the water below.
"You really believe it's just types of people from different regions?" I questioned again, frowning at our eyes and hair. We didn't look anything alike feature wise, but the coloring just showed there was a link.
"It's the only explanation."
~~~~~~~~
My throat was dry, my feet were tired. My entire body was exhausted. I wanted water. My eyes hurt as I tried keeping them open. I looked around, cursing the miles and miles of flat and clear ice surrounding me. I was in the desert and I was alone.
"Calycanthus!" No answer. "Cali!"
"Solenum!" I shot up in my bed when I heard my name, more than glad to see that Cali was here, unlike in my dream. Shooting up onto my knees, I hugged him tightly, surprising him, but he didn’t hesitate to return the embrace.
"You were gone! I was, I was-" I frowned in confusion, the fright suddenly gone. "I was in Corium Desert." I said, dumbfounded.
Cali matched my frown. "Corium Desert? What were you doing there?"
"I was looking for you." He took one look at my face and the fright transferred over to him.
"I'm right here now, aren't I?" His hold on me tightened. "We always make sure we don't get separated. We're in this together."
* * * *
Narrator
* * * *
Corium Desert. The temperature didn't allow you to live in this region. With the right provisions you could travel through it, walk or drive on the ice as if it were a regular road. The rare people that passed through, raced; not taking the time to slow down and look at the beauty it had to offer.
While at first glance there wasn't anything to see beneath the cold crystal like layers, there was water, and in that lived creatures that were said to be of the brightest colors, lighting up the desert wherever they swam. But you needed to be patient, otherwise they wouldn't show you their magic.
The only people in Zinc who had been in contact with these creatures were the Palliums. They didn't descend from the Regius, Rebellion or the Civilians. Some claimed that the Palliums came from another world, while others said they were the creatures of the desert themselves in human form, having come from the depths of the seas and settled upon the earth.
The Palliums were the only ones who dared enter the desert for reasons other than travel. That reason was the desert jewels. They sought them out, taking them and using them to create jewelry so fine, it was said that no other stone in Zinc could compare.
* * * *
Chapter 5: Solenum Everhart
“Digitalis”
* * * *
It doesn't matter how, why or where it happens; when it does, it always comes as a surprise. It's something so incredibly hard to swallow and move on from. But you won't realize that until it actually happens to you.
I had no idea my entire world would shift when Acacia asked me to go shopping with her this morning. I'd have said no to the lunch she proposed, making us take a right instead of a left, had it changed the outcome. But I'd later come to realize that it wouldn't have changed a thing. Even if we'd turned left, what took place still would have.
