</a> ~ Episode Thirty-Two ~


    The Pounding of a Pair of Hearts


    Shinji was waiting for him just inside the foyer, hands jammed in his pockets with the hiss of downpour over Colborne Street behind his shoulders.


    “Yo.” Evan’s first step downstairs to meet him creaked under-foot. Shinji struggled to make eye contact on what was clear discomfort in choosing to come here, a lion with his tail between his legs.


    Callyse Williams turned a bright smile at her son. “What a pleasant surprise! Oop, gotta check the beef. Shinji, are you staying for dinner? It’s pelau tonight!”


    “Don’t think Shinji’s staying that long.” Evan took his time the rest of the way down the stairs as his mother scuttled back into the kitchen and sidled up against the doorframe, arms crossed. “Wassup?”


    “Uh, hi.” Shinji shifted the weight of his backpack. He was such a slight boy. How he managed to carry a bagful of school books, a handful of Mon-Orbs, the Monster Dowser – all the weight of the world – upon slouched shoulders, Evan had no idea.


    Just then, his father boomed into existence within the kitchen from downstairs on a hearty Carl Williams laugh that always managed to shake the windows, no matter wherever he was in the house.


    “Damn, that smells good! Mm-mm, Callyse, almost gettin’ me impatient for dessert! Heh, heh, heh!”


    “Carl! – Carlton, st – stop that! You’re gonna make me burn myself!”


    “Then I’ll just gotta kiss you better, all over…”


    “Stop—” Evan heard his mom giggle. “Stop it, now. The boys are right in the hall.”


    Shinji blinked, intrigued by the new sounds, and peeked past Evan on tippy toes to try and see what was going on. Evan felt his face grow hot and cleared his throat to try and reclaim his friend’s attention. “Listen, man—”


    “No. You were right.” Shinji sank back onto his heels and regarded him with a trademark graveness, so wise and sad from unspoken heartbreak Evan could never quite figure out.


    “What do you mean I was right?”


    “About Seruma. About everything. I should have been honest with her from the start. Should have told her the moment Nagamani attacked the library. Maybe even before that.”


    The admission was a relief to Evan. Yet, he eyed Shinji, unconvinced by the inevitability of a certain someone’s typical scaredy-cat crap. “That so, huh?”


    “Yes. Today proved that. I really messed up – and probably made things far worse now. We almost lost Seruma today because of my actions this weekend. I take full responsibility, but – you have to understand – I wasn’t lying when I said things didn’t work out over the Book of Lodoss. I tried to tell her – I really, truly did, but—”


    A loud swat sounded from the kitchen, followed by a sharp howl of laughter from Evan’s mom. Thundering steps into the foyer shook every possible wall available.


    Shinji’s sturdy gaze cracked a hair, darted up past the top of his friend’s head.


    Evan felt the doting weight of his father’s elbow settle on his shoulder.


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    “Mister Izuma,” said Carl Williams in his best professional tone. He snort-giggled, took a sip of his beer, and re-established business courtesy. “Good to see you again, sir.”


    Shinji nodded a shy hello to Evan’s father – a towering and burly Santa Claus of a Trini man, clad in that day’s work clothes consisting of paint-smeared jeans and earthy-toned plaid.


    “You staying for the game, right? Our champ Kobe, versus the world!”


    “Um – I—” A nervous look flicked Evan’s way.


    Evan shrugged with a sigh. “I mean, you’re here. And if that means you’re being real with me and wanna talk it through, we can talk it through. Ball’s in your court.”


    Shinji nodded, tight-lipped.


    “My man,” said Carl, oblivious to the context of their conversation. He then kissed Evan on the top of the head and vanished into the nearby TV room on a made up whistled tune.


    “Sorry about him.” The act brought a crinkle of embarrassment to Evan. He shifted statures into that of smooth coolness in hopes to come across less excitable in Shinji’s presence than his nerves declared. “The man lives for beef pelau.”


    “Yeah…” Shinji rubbed awkwardly at a bicep and struggled to meet his bestie’s gaze.


    “I don’t wanna fight you,” Evan told him, straight up. “Fighting’s what cost the Star Warriors the first time, you know? – I mean, being the Warrior of Water is like the only thing I’m good at, but I made bad choices, too. We nearly lost our girl today ‘cause of me. You gave me one job, and I screwed it up. Like I screw everything up.”


    “What…?” This surprised Shinji. “Evan, you’re not a screw-up. Don’t say that about yourself. What happened today – a Monster’s never attacked us at school before. Other than Nagamani at the library, all of our encounters have been secured within the confines of Grover’s Mill. The incident with Grandar today was an unprecedented one.”


    “Yeah…” Evan mulled it over, unconvinced. “Anyway. Think it’s safe to say we’re all scared these days.”


    Shinji studied the welcome mat between his heels in silence. He nodded.


    A flutter of anticipation formed between Evan’s lungs on what he wished to say, next. “Listen, man. I – I really care about you. About us.”


    This stole Shinji’s attention. His freckled cheeks glowed scarlet. “I – I know.”


    “No, you don’t.” Evan sighed, mad at himself more so than at Shinji’s agreeable reply. “Listen, that crap I said last night – forget it, okay? We both messed up, yeah? I was just mad. Not just at you, but this whole situation. I just want to do what’s good, too, you know? But that Cloria chick was right. Hate’s not a good game for us to play. ...I''m sorry for saying I didn’t wanna know you anymore. It''s not true.”


    Shinji’s gaze darted away again. “I’m sorry too.”


    Awkward silence settled over the boys against the hiss of downpour out in the street.


    Evan continued, “Shin, it’s pretty clear you care a lot about our girl. I – I think I do, too—But the way I feel about you – what we got going on isn’t a thing I dare take for granted. Truth is, man, knowing you’s one of the best things that ever happened to me—Monsters included.”


    Shinji’s blush deepened. “…Me too.”


    This brought a shy smile to Evan’s lips. He pushed away from the doorframe. “You wanna come in?”


    Finally, Shinji looked up. He started to smile.


    But then the joy across his face flexed into something completely unexpected.


    Confusion. Horror.


    “—Your mother … she’s gone!”


    “Huh?” Evan turned away to a clear view directly into the kitchen. Sure enough his mother was nowhere in sight at the stovetop, where dinner popped and crackled on mid-heat. “She’s still there, pro’lly just past the frame.”


    “No, I saw it,” Shinji said on shaky words. “Your mother literally vanished into thin air just now.” He entered into the foyer on urgent strides, Monster Sealer mode initiated, and headed straight for the kitchen.


    “What are you talking about?” The matter-of-fact statement froze Evan’s blood solid. He watched Shinji click off the stovetop element to keep the food from burning, then drop to one knee to retrieve the Monster Dowser from out of his backpack. “She gotta be there.”


    “She’s not, I told you. I blinked and she vanished. Gone.”


    “Gone—” Evan jerked forward on hasty steps and stole a look into the TV room, where his father was reclined on the couch watching the pre-game show. Carl Williams turned a look to his son, cheeks puffed with an un-swallowed intake of beer.


    And then he blipped out of existence – can of Coors Light, and all.