The five times Maya can't forgive and the one time she can
Title: The five times Maya can't forgive and the one time she can
Characters/Pairing: Maya, Sylar, (others)
Rating: R
Word count: 3,129
Disclaimer: Do not own.
Summery: Title says it all.
Note: For those who want to see her dish out some of that venom ;)
I
She creeps down the stairs quietly, a grief filled scream trapped in her throat, filling it up until she can't breathe. She wants to rush forward to him, propelled by the burning and shrieking rage that's pumping through her blood but she controls herself with a massive effort.
Just a few more seconds...oh god Alejandro! Oh god! Ah - no! Calm, stay calm! Just, just....just. NOW!
Her teeth bared she clenches her fists at her sides as she blackens her eyes, standing inches behind him and he stiffens. Mohinder faces her, looking over Sylar's shoulder and he gasps, folds over his stomach and then hits the floor. But she does not see, only the black clad man in front of her. He wobbles on his feet, tries to swing around to her with the gun in his hand but with an angry gurgle he falls to his knees and Maya kicks him to the ground.
"Maya..."
His body relaxes and he stops breathing, the fingers around the gun goes slack. Maya bends down and quickly snatches up the gun and takes a few steps back, turning her head. Molly isn't moving, no one is. Her heart about to burst with grief stricken panic she closes her eyes, hears her brother's soft lullaby and draws her suffering back into herself.
A collected breath is taken from all, deep and whistling and she shakes on her feet, her limbs trembling with adrenaline as Molly and Mohinder start to stir and sit up. Sylar is the last to wake, drawing in breath after breath and only focusing on that. Finally he gets to his knees, his feet and then slowly turns to Maya. She has the gun pointed at his head and even though the black tears have made her eyes almost opaque the rage and disbelief is clear to see.
"My brother?! You - you killed him?!"
He groans and places a hand to his forehead, eyes fuzzy. But then just as suddenly he darts forward with a growl and Maya lifts the gun with a gasp. But as she does a crackle is heard and then a huge bang. A blue after shock flashing over her retinas Maya turns to see a blond woman on the stairs, a ball of lightening hovering over her palm.
"You try anything and we'll test if my lightening hits you before her bullet...right?" The woman says to her as she reaches her side, blinking for a moment at Maya's strange eyes. Maya nods and turns back to her target, the gun held firmly in hand, her white hot grief pushed down as she gains control over the situation. Reassured that someone finally has her back.
"Si, I won't hesitate."
II
He remembers when everything used to be milky, when he would add it to dilute and soften his teas and coffees. He didn't want anything too strong because he was not the type of person that could stomach it. At least that was what his mother's belief that was pushed into him. Now he liked things straight up black, liked the sting and burn of it on his tongue. The strong sweetness.
He would pass a swanky looking coffee shop back in Queens, see arty types dressed in elegant black and feel a strong swell of envy and jealousy. He couldn't go into places like that, he would be made a mockery of with his frumpy attire that couldn't be explained away as a fashion statement. Until now.
Now he was one of them, no, he was even better then them. He orders and sits at a small round table at the back, facing the other tables and their drinkers and sips, lets his eyes drift over them, smirking boastfully when he gets second interested glances from women. It was a strange but very pleasant thought that now he could pick up anyone of them if he so chooses, without any fear of rejection. It was a fun sport and the woman that happened to catch his glance the longest was just the game he wanted.
A waitress with long curling hair lays his drink down and leaves and he doesn't notice, just has eyes for that brunette's forehead. But the smell of Royal Jelly is left in the waitress's wake and it pings something primal in him, makes the hairs on his nape rise but he's gulping the coffee down after tipping it in his prey's direction. She smile's shyly and he's about to return it when he licks his lips and grimaces, looking down into his coffee cup. It's black, thick and strangely shiny, like molasses.
It tastes like brine.
Choking his head shoots up and he looks towards the coffee counter and sees her there, sitting crossed legged on a stool with the most beautiful animalistic smile he had ever seen. The lachrymose coffee spills over the table and drips onto the floor as he struggles to rise but bends over, suddenly hit with that all to familiar chronic feel and the squeeze of his throat. Gasping for breath, his inky black eyes bulging out his sockets he falls into the deadly liquid and the woman he had intended to kill stands and screams.
"Oh my god! Someone call an ambulance!"
Maya sits and watches as they try to save him but the sight of his face makes them recoil and he dies suffocating on her tears.
III
"Mr Petrelli? I'm going now and..."
Maya walks into the office, suitcase pulled behind her and Gabriel sits rooted in his seat, his heart suddenly thumping against his rib cage. It seems to happen in slow motion as she turns around to him and he braces himself, hands gripping the chair he sits in. She goes through a multitude of emotions when she sees him, shock that someone was there, recognition, fear and then overwhelming rage. Tears well up in her eyes, crystal clear tears and she bares her teeth at him, taking a few steps back.
"You! You!" She's panting, stumbling back as he rises very slowly, showing the palms of his hands.
"I'm not going to hurt you. Maya, I -" But he halts when she suddenly bolts forward with a scream and punches him in the face, grabs a fist full of hair and rips it out. He roars with pain and takes her struggling body in his hands and tries to force her back. She was very strong, adrenaline coursing through her and she manages to scratch his face deeply before he throws her to the ground with his power. He backs away from her, breathing hard and fast as she sits hunched on her knees, her hair hiding her face as she rocks back and forth with sobs, the sound of them making him wince and feel sick. It sounds like her soul was being ripped apart. Throwing her hair back she looks up at him, her face flushed, wet and wild.
"Why? Why have you done this?!"
His throat very tight he tries to answer, open mouthed. "I - I don't know. I uh...god. I'm sorry."
"No you're not! You - you've ruined my life! You have taken so much from me. My brother? Why did you kill him? Why?!" She rages and all he can do his try to breathe and not look as guilty as he feels. Maya stares at him but then looks away when she sees he has nothing for her. "I want to die, dios, dios..." She whispers heartrendingly and he gets down on his knees, trying to look into her face. Maya turns away, arms crossed over her chest, still rocking on her knees, convulsing. She covers her hands over her face and the need to touch her is powerful but he holds back.
He speaks soft and sorrowful. "I don't know what to do, I don't have any excuses for what I did. I'm a monster, a murderer."
Her hands shoot down, her eyes burning with hate and suffering. "You are evil, you have no soul. I - I did nothing to you Gabriel, why did you treat me like...like I was your enemy? Why did you want to hurt me? I did nothing to you Gabriel! I never would have hurt you, I only...only wanted to be with you. God help me I loved you." She moans in self disgust, her eyes burning with so much torment it's searing through her body like venom. He thinks she's going to attack him again but she just sits there. He swallows the nauseous feeling that rises, grasping for anything that will explain, right his wrongs.
"I know, I know. You weren't my enemy Maya, I know you didn't do anything to me to warrant my behaviour, actions... It won't mean anything but I - I shot you because you were going to kill me..." He trials off, a wet gleam over his eyes and Maya shakes her head and gets up on shaking legs while he remains on his knees, looking up at her repentantly. Maya wipes the back of her hands over her cheeks, sniffling and starts to get control over herself. She stares down at him, something dead rising up in her eyes, soul weary.
"I wasn't going to kill you. I thought that you actually felt something for me and that would stop you. I - I didn't want to believe you could do something like that, I didn't want to believe he was dead. Fooled me again." She says through her teeth, disgusted and he blinks, mouth open. He thought she would try to kill him then but he hadn't given her enough time to talk. Didn't want to hear the sound of betrayal on her voice anymore. He looks away from her grief and sees the phone, indicating towards it. "Are you going to call the police?" He almost sounds hopeful.
Maya scoffs, glaring at him. "The police? You know I can't go to them. Even if I did I know they will not stop you or keep you imprisoned. I can't do anything to avenge my brother, to avenge myself. No one will help me and I will never ask for it again because all I get in return is abuse, lies and hurt." She spits out the words at him hatefully and he hangs his head. She paces around Arthur's desk and he sees that she's touching the place where her cross use to be, her skin bare. "I never want to see you again...If there is any part of you that feels even the smallest bit of guilt for what you have done to me you will leave me alone." She has a face set like stone, thunder in her eyes.
"I will, I promise. Maya wait?" She walks to the door and stops, back to him. He gets to his feet, his breathing trembling and his throat still clogged. "Will - will you ever be able to forgive me?"
"Forgive? Do you think you deserve that from me?"
"No, no I guess I don't. I know I was the one to spoil it. I don't deserve your love, I never did." He says, rubbing a hand over his face tiredly, sad.
Maya turns her face to him, no longer crying but somber and hard. "I know that now but I would have gave you it regardless, I did. Now I'll pray that you will pay for the things you have done, and on the day you die? Bailaré en tu sepulcro." She walks out of the room as she hisses the words in her own tongue, leaving Gabriel to stare at the place she had been before he sits back down, silent, regretful and depressed.
IV
They lay dying in their hundreds, this batch of the infected at Stage Two of contamination so not as deathly ill as those in the Stage Three ward. But that doesn't matter to Maya, she and her partner can save them all. She and Peter walk amidst the beds, comforting the scared and people that just need to talk before they begin, explaining what will happen. Most people here speak Spanish so Maya's presence was even more needed.
Maya is drawn to a sleeping child and sits beside her, sweeping her hair back from her sweating skin. It works fast with the very young and the very old. Not waiting for Peter's help Maya closes her eyes and cures the child, drawing the infection into her own body, destroying it and releasing the girl from death. Opening her eyes Maya sees that the girl is sleeping easier and she smiles, kissing her forehead. As she begins to rise she stops, face suddenly slack and eyes huge and haunted.
Gabriel is in the bed opposite.
Shaking she stands and very slowly goes to him. He had disappeared some years ago and could not be found, no matter how hard they looked. Maya liked to pretend that he was dead, that he wasn't free to ruin lives anymore. But here he is, his hair matted with sweat and his skin white as sour milk. Looking up for Peter she spots him at the end of the ward talking to a doctor, not seeing her. Maya sits beside the man that murdered, lied and used her and takes his hand after a hesitating moment. He opens his eyes and stares around blearily, feverishly looking around before gazing at her. He frowns and Maya holds her breath.
"Are - are you here to help?" He doesn't recognise her. Maya releases a pent up breath and tries to relax the crushing grip she has on his hand but can't. She smiles, a contortion and speaks low.
"That's right, I'm here to help. Don't worry Gabriel, it will all be over soon." She leans down over him and places her mouth to his ear. "You will suffer more then you have ever suffered, you will be tormented day and night for what you have done I thank god that he has finally lead me back to you." She draws back, her voice wavering with emotion and Gabriel stares at her in horror, very still and his mouth gapes open and closes like a fish.
"M - Maya?"
"Goodbye Gabriel, I will not bless you because nothing can save you now." Throwing her head back, her mouth stretched open into an insanely zealous grin she breathes in deep and draws in the virus from every patient in the building, letting it rush through her and into him. Black eyes filing with tears Maya laughs, her body rocking back and forth as Gabriel screams silently, his body arching high off the bed before stiffening and then slumping back down, dead.
Peter finds Maya unconscious in her seat, hardly breathing and he carries her to a bed with a curse, throwing a shocked look of recognition at the dead man in the bed.
V
He is always silent, always sedentary and always neat and tidy. They have him seated in an armchair on wheels before a window that looks over the grounds and the small lake there. If you peer up close to him, look into his light brown eyes you can see yourself reflected there but nothing else. You can take his glasses off but he won't mind because he just doesn't see anything. I put his big glasses on and pull a face. Still nothing. I come and tell him about school and my friends, sometimes I play the recorder because they said music will help him.
At first I had been a little frightened of him, wondering if he would suddenly start talking to me unexpectedly but after a while this faded. I feel sorry for him now, because he does look sad and if we didn't come to see him he would be alone. Forever, because he doesn't age, he can't get hurt. That was how he survived the huge explosion in CostaVerda that happened a few years ago. He had a son then to, he died in the explosion. He would be the same age as me, I'm just a few weeks older according to my mom. This is why he is now so still, my mom telling me that the loss he experienced took his mind. Catatonic.
My mom brings him old spice aftershave for the nurses to put on him, she will not do it herself. Sometimes she doesn't even come in the room with me but waits outside, the door open so she can see what happens. My mom was...strange about him, sometimes when I say his name and ask questions she will burst into tears and shout at me, at him. But I know she doesn't mean it, my mom isn't very well. She's stressed and spends a lot of time talking to a therapist about her past. Although she probably spends even more time at the church. She told me she hoped coming to visit him would help her mend and heal. To forgive. I don't know if it is working yet and I don't know what she means by forgive but I hope it will work.
"Why does he dress like an old man?" He was wearing a cardigan, buttoned up and a shirt underneath. He looks like Clark Kent, which is kinda cool. He always wears Chucks, like I do. We also have the same eyebrows, though his are really ridiculously big. The nurse says it's a sign of potency.
Mom tilts her head thoughtfully at him, biting her lip. "He dresses like that because he's...peculiar. This is what he was like before, when he was more healthy in soul and mind. And well this is a rest home for the elderly, they probably wanted him to fit in!" She adds, smiling at me and then him. It falls from her face and she breathes in deep before she leans off the wall and comes into the room. She stretches out her hand to me. Time to go.
"Will we come again soon?"
"Maybe...si. Say goodbye Hugo."
I turn back to him and slip his glasses back on and then lean forward to kiss his cheek and draw back. I gasp and freeze, hands on his shoulders. Just for a moment I thought I saw his eyes move but it must have been a trick of the light. He always looks like he's about to cry but it's the eyedrops they give him. At least I think it is. I move away and go to her, turning back to wave at him. "See you soon dad."
She takes my hand and we leave for home.
**********
* I will dance on your grave.
Characters/Pairing: Maya, Sylar, (others)
Rating: R
Word count: 3,129
Disclaimer: Do not own.
Summery: Title says it all.
Note: For those who want to see her dish out some of that venom ;)
I
She creeps down the stairs quietly, a grief filled scream trapped in her throat, filling it up until she can't breathe. She wants to rush forward to him, propelled by the burning and shrieking rage that's pumping through her blood but she controls herself with a massive effort.
Just a few more seconds...oh god Alejandro! Oh god! Ah - no! Calm, stay calm! Just, just....just. NOW!
Her teeth bared she clenches her fists at her sides as she blackens her eyes, standing inches behind him and he stiffens. Mohinder faces her, looking over Sylar's shoulder and he gasps, folds over his stomach and then hits the floor. But she does not see, only the black clad man in front of her. He wobbles on his feet, tries to swing around to her with the gun in his hand but with an angry gurgle he falls to his knees and Maya kicks him to the ground.
"Maya..."
His body relaxes and he stops breathing, the fingers around the gun goes slack. Maya bends down and quickly snatches up the gun and takes a few steps back, turning her head. Molly isn't moving, no one is. Her heart about to burst with grief stricken panic she closes her eyes, hears her brother's soft lullaby and draws her suffering back into herself.
A collected breath is taken from all, deep and whistling and she shakes on her feet, her limbs trembling with adrenaline as Molly and Mohinder start to stir and sit up. Sylar is the last to wake, drawing in breath after breath and only focusing on that. Finally he gets to his knees, his feet and then slowly turns to Maya. She has the gun pointed at his head and even though the black tears have made her eyes almost opaque the rage and disbelief is clear to see.
"My brother?! You - you killed him?!"
He groans and places a hand to his forehead, eyes fuzzy. But then just as suddenly he darts forward with a growl and Maya lifts the gun with a gasp. But as she does a crackle is heard and then a huge bang. A blue after shock flashing over her retinas Maya turns to see a blond woman on the stairs, a ball of lightening hovering over her palm.
"You try anything and we'll test if my lightening hits you before her bullet...right?" The woman says to her as she reaches her side, blinking for a moment at Maya's strange eyes. Maya nods and turns back to her target, the gun held firmly in hand, her white hot grief pushed down as she gains control over the situation. Reassured that someone finally has her back.
"Si, I won't hesitate."
II
He remembers when everything used to be milky, when he would add it to dilute and soften his teas and coffees. He didn't want anything too strong because he was not the type of person that could stomach it. At least that was what his mother's belief that was pushed into him. Now he liked things straight up black, liked the sting and burn of it on his tongue. The strong sweetness.
He would pass a swanky looking coffee shop back in Queens, see arty types dressed in elegant black and feel a strong swell of envy and jealousy. He couldn't go into places like that, he would be made a mockery of with his frumpy attire that couldn't be explained away as a fashion statement. Until now.
Now he was one of them, no, he was even better then them. He orders and sits at a small round table at the back, facing the other tables and their drinkers and sips, lets his eyes drift over them, smirking boastfully when he gets second interested glances from women. It was a strange but very pleasant thought that now he could pick up anyone of them if he so chooses, without any fear of rejection. It was a fun sport and the woman that happened to catch his glance the longest was just the game he wanted.
A waitress with long curling hair lays his drink down and leaves and he doesn't notice, just has eyes for that brunette's forehead. But the smell of Royal Jelly is left in the waitress's wake and it pings something primal in him, makes the hairs on his nape rise but he's gulping the coffee down after tipping it in his prey's direction. She smile's shyly and he's about to return it when he licks his lips and grimaces, looking down into his coffee cup. It's black, thick and strangely shiny, like molasses.
It tastes like brine.
Choking his head shoots up and he looks towards the coffee counter and sees her there, sitting crossed legged on a stool with the most beautiful animalistic smile he had ever seen. The lachrymose coffee spills over the table and drips onto the floor as he struggles to rise but bends over, suddenly hit with that all to familiar chronic feel and the squeeze of his throat. Gasping for breath, his inky black eyes bulging out his sockets he falls into the deadly liquid and the woman he had intended to kill stands and screams.
"Oh my god! Someone call an ambulance!"
Maya sits and watches as they try to save him but the sight of his face makes them recoil and he dies suffocating on her tears.
III
"Mr Petrelli? I'm going now and..."
Maya walks into the office, suitcase pulled behind her and Gabriel sits rooted in his seat, his heart suddenly thumping against his rib cage. It seems to happen in slow motion as she turns around to him and he braces himself, hands gripping the chair he sits in. She goes through a multitude of emotions when she sees him, shock that someone was there, recognition, fear and then overwhelming rage. Tears well up in her eyes, crystal clear tears and she bares her teeth at him, taking a few steps back.
"You! You!" She's panting, stumbling back as he rises very slowly, showing the palms of his hands.
"I'm not going to hurt you. Maya, I -" But he halts when she suddenly bolts forward with a scream and punches him in the face, grabs a fist full of hair and rips it out. He roars with pain and takes her struggling body in his hands and tries to force her back. She was very strong, adrenaline coursing through her and she manages to scratch his face deeply before he throws her to the ground with his power. He backs away from her, breathing hard and fast as she sits hunched on her knees, her hair hiding her face as she rocks back and forth with sobs, the sound of them making him wince and feel sick. It sounds like her soul was being ripped apart. Throwing her hair back she looks up at him, her face flushed, wet and wild.
"Why? Why have you done this?!"
His throat very tight he tries to answer, open mouthed. "I - I don't know. I uh...god. I'm sorry."
"No you're not! You - you've ruined my life! You have taken so much from me. My brother? Why did you kill him? Why?!" She rages and all he can do his try to breathe and not look as guilty as he feels. Maya stares at him but then looks away when she sees he has nothing for her. "I want to die, dios, dios..." She whispers heartrendingly and he gets down on his knees, trying to look into her face. Maya turns away, arms crossed over her chest, still rocking on her knees, convulsing. She covers her hands over her face and the need to touch her is powerful but he holds back.
He speaks soft and sorrowful. "I don't know what to do, I don't have any excuses for what I did. I'm a monster, a murderer."
Her hands shoot down, her eyes burning with hate and suffering. "You are evil, you have no soul. I - I did nothing to you Gabriel, why did you treat me like...like I was your enemy? Why did you want to hurt me? I did nothing to you Gabriel! I never would have hurt you, I only...only wanted to be with you. God help me I loved you." She moans in self disgust, her eyes burning with so much torment it's searing through her body like venom. He thinks she's going to attack him again but she just sits there. He swallows the nauseous feeling that rises, grasping for anything that will explain, right his wrongs.
"I know, I know. You weren't my enemy Maya, I know you didn't do anything to me to warrant my behaviour, actions... It won't mean anything but I - I shot you because you were going to kill me..." He trials off, a wet gleam over his eyes and Maya shakes her head and gets up on shaking legs while he remains on his knees, looking up at her repentantly. Maya wipes the back of her hands over her cheeks, sniffling and starts to get control over herself. She stares down at him, something dead rising up in her eyes, soul weary.
"I wasn't going to kill you. I thought that you actually felt something for me and that would stop you. I - I didn't want to believe you could do something like that, I didn't want to believe he was dead. Fooled me again." She says through her teeth, disgusted and he blinks, mouth open. He thought she would try to kill him then but he hadn't given her enough time to talk. Didn't want to hear the sound of betrayal on her voice anymore. He looks away from her grief and sees the phone, indicating towards it. "Are you going to call the police?" He almost sounds hopeful.
Maya scoffs, glaring at him. "The police? You know I can't go to them. Even if I did I know they will not stop you or keep you imprisoned. I can't do anything to avenge my brother, to avenge myself. No one will help me and I will never ask for it again because all I get in return is abuse, lies and hurt." She spits out the words at him hatefully and he hangs his head. She paces around Arthur's desk and he sees that she's touching the place where her cross use to be, her skin bare. "I never want to see you again...If there is any part of you that feels even the smallest bit of guilt for what you have done to me you will leave me alone." She has a face set like stone, thunder in her eyes.
"I will, I promise. Maya wait?" She walks to the door and stops, back to him. He gets to his feet, his breathing trembling and his throat still clogged. "Will - will you ever be able to forgive me?"
"Forgive? Do you think you deserve that from me?"
"No, no I guess I don't. I know I was the one to spoil it. I don't deserve your love, I never did." He says, rubbing a hand over his face tiredly, sad.
Maya turns her face to him, no longer crying but somber and hard. "I know that now but I would have gave you it regardless, I did. Now I'll pray that you will pay for the things you have done, and on the day you die? Bailaré en tu sepulcro." She walks out of the room as she hisses the words in her own tongue, leaving Gabriel to stare at the place she had been before he sits back down, silent, regretful and depressed.
IV
They lay dying in their hundreds, this batch of the infected at Stage Two of contamination so not as deathly ill as those in the Stage Three ward. But that doesn't matter to Maya, she and her partner can save them all. She and Peter walk amidst the beds, comforting the scared and people that just need to talk before they begin, explaining what will happen. Most people here speak Spanish so Maya's presence was even more needed.
Maya is drawn to a sleeping child and sits beside her, sweeping her hair back from her sweating skin. It works fast with the very young and the very old. Not waiting for Peter's help Maya closes her eyes and cures the child, drawing the infection into her own body, destroying it and releasing the girl from death. Opening her eyes Maya sees that the girl is sleeping easier and she smiles, kissing her forehead. As she begins to rise she stops, face suddenly slack and eyes huge and haunted.
Gabriel is in the bed opposite.
Shaking she stands and very slowly goes to him. He had disappeared some years ago and could not be found, no matter how hard they looked. Maya liked to pretend that he was dead, that he wasn't free to ruin lives anymore. But here he is, his hair matted with sweat and his skin white as sour milk. Looking up for Peter she spots him at the end of the ward talking to a doctor, not seeing her. Maya sits beside the man that murdered, lied and used her and takes his hand after a hesitating moment. He opens his eyes and stares around blearily, feverishly looking around before gazing at her. He frowns and Maya holds her breath.
"Are - are you here to help?" He doesn't recognise her. Maya releases a pent up breath and tries to relax the crushing grip she has on his hand but can't. She smiles, a contortion and speaks low.
"That's right, I'm here to help. Don't worry Gabriel, it will all be over soon." She leans down over him and places her mouth to his ear. "You will suffer more then you have ever suffered, you will be tormented day and night for what you have done I thank god that he has finally lead me back to you." She draws back, her voice wavering with emotion and Gabriel stares at her in horror, very still and his mouth gapes open and closes like a fish.
"M - Maya?"
"Goodbye Gabriel, I will not bless you because nothing can save you now." Throwing her head back, her mouth stretched open into an insanely zealous grin she breathes in deep and draws in the virus from every patient in the building, letting it rush through her and into him. Black eyes filing with tears Maya laughs, her body rocking back and forth as Gabriel screams silently, his body arching high off the bed before stiffening and then slumping back down, dead.
Peter finds Maya unconscious in her seat, hardly breathing and he carries her to a bed with a curse, throwing a shocked look of recognition at the dead man in the bed.
V
He is always silent, always sedentary and always neat and tidy. They have him seated in an armchair on wheels before a window that looks over the grounds and the small lake there. If you peer up close to him, look into his light brown eyes you can see yourself reflected there but nothing else. You can take his glasses off but he won't mind because he just doesn't see anything. I put his big glasses on and pull a face. Still nothing. I come and tell him about school and my friends, sometimes I play the recorder because they said music will help him.
At first I had been a little frightened of him, wondering if he would suddenly start talking to me unexpectedly but after a while this faded. I feel sorry for him now, because he does look sad and if we didn't come to see him he would be alone. Forever, because he doesn't age, he can't get hurt. That was how he survived the huge explosion in CostaVerda that happened a few years ago. He had a son then to, he died in the explosion. He would be the same age as me, I'm just a few weeks older according to my mom. This is why he is now so still, my mom telling me that the loss he experienced took his mind. Catatonic.
My mom brings him old spice aftershave for the nurses to put on him, she will not do it herself. Sometimes she doesn't even come in the room with me but waits outside, the door open so she can see what happens. My mom was...strange about him, sometimes when I say his name and ask questions she will burst into tears and shout at me, at him. But I know she doesn't mean it, my mom isn't very well. She's stressed and spends a lot of time talking to a therapist about her past. Although she probably spends even more time at the church. She told me she hoped coming to visit him would help her mend and heal. To forgive. I don't know if it is working yet and I don't know what she means by forgive but I hope it will work.
"Why does he dress like an old man?" He was wearing a cardigan, buttoned up and a shirt underneath. He looks like Clark Kent, which is kinda cool. He always wears Chucks, like I do. We also have the same eyebrows, though his are really ridiculously big. The nurse says it's a sign of potency.
Mom tilts her head thoughtfully at him, biting her lip. "He dresses like that because he's...peculiar. This is what he was like before, when he was more healthy in soul and mind. And well this is a rest home for the elderly, they probably wanted him to fit in!" She adds, smiling at me and then him. It falls from her face and she breathes in deep before she leans off the wall and comes into the room. She stretches out her hand to me. Time to go.
"Will we come again soon?"
"Maybe...si. Say goodbye Hugo."
I turn back to him and slip his glasses back on and then lean forward to kiss his cheek and draw back. I gasp and freeze, hands on his shoulders. Just for a moment I thought I saw his eyes move but it must have been a trick of the light. He always looks like he's about to cry but it's the eyedrops they give him. At least I think it is. I move away and go to her, turning back to wave at him. "See you soon dad."
She takes my hand and we leave for home.
**********
* I will dance on your grave.