Kookaburra (formerly untitled) Ch.EIGHT

“Come on Kay, pleeease?”

“But it’s cold outside…” says Kaden, digging his feet behind the doorframe, resisting the pull of my hand.

“I’ll keep you warm, sweets.”

“Promise?”

I smile. “Promise.”

“Okay,” smiles Kaden, “but only for a little bit. And I get to use the camera.”

***

The moon shines through the branches of a tree, leaves picked out by the smooth light. Kaden raises the camera to his eyes, slowly, hesitantly. I hear a click, then the whirr of the picture being pushed out. Kaden takes it quickly and slips it into his back pocket.

“Aw, let me see?” I murmur. But Kaden says nothing, just raises the camera again and clicks another photo. I slip my arm around his waist and peck a kiss on his cheek. He smiles and curls his own, bony arm around me.

“God, when did the sky get so beautiful?” he murmurs. When did you get so beautiful? I wonder to myself. I hug him closer, his bony ribs pressing into my chest. I turn into him carefully, not wanting to hurt him, and peck kisses along his collarbone, jaw line, cheek.

“I want to see the stars,” he whispers against my cheek.

***

We’re lying on the ground, hip against hip, cheek against cheek, hand against hand. The stars shine above us. Kaden’s face is white in the moonlight, his eyes hollowed out by the heavy air hanging all about us. The light miss of rain falling around us, huddled together on the grass, blurs the stars and skies. I squeeze tight on Kaden’s hand. I don’t want to let go. I can’t let go. I don’t think he can either.

I turn my head to look at him. His eyes are closed, chest steadily rising and falling, rising and falling. He’s asleep, and he’s so beautiful.

I take the camera from its resting place on the floor beside his curled hand, and hold it above us both, clicking the shut. The photo slides out and I take it, glancing at the polarised darkness for a moment before slipping it into my pocket.

“Kay,” I whisper, scooting closer to him, “Kay-Kay, wake up.”

His eyes flicker open. The green looks purple, blue, black. The colour disappears briefly as he blinks himself awake. Then he turns his head to mine, and it’s back. “Hey baby… what’s the time?”

I glance at my watch, the plastic face illuminated in the darkness. “About half one. Want to go in.”

He sighs. “Can’t we stay out all night?”

“Not really. Matt’d worry.”

“Okay,” he says through a yawn.

I sit up and offer him my hand. He takes it and I pull him up. We don’t break apart as we walk inside.

“Your camera flash, on us, meaningless. You cannot waste a single night.”

***

It’s late at night. After a half-joking, half-serious argument performed in hush tones Kaden succumbed, and slept in the bed, me on the floor. I’m staring at his sleeping faces, watching his eyelids flicker. He’s in REM. I wish I could know what he’s dreaming about.

I can’t sleep. It could be the hormones playing havoc with my blood, the paranoid thoughts swimming through my brain. But mostly it’s Kaden. I’m still trying to figure out if this is real or not, if I fell into a coma a week ago and haven’t woken up yet. I’m scared, I know that. I can feel the fear; it’s definitely there. But I can’t figure out what it’s for.

I reach my hand down into my jeans pocket and touch the photo I took earlier, and suddenly those thoughts go away. We’re alright, I tell myself, we’ll be alright.

***

It’s around one in the afternoon. Matt’s out skateboarding, probably with that dickhead Chris. I don’t know if he knows about what happened with Kaden, or if he’s just ignoring it, putting it down as normal Matt. But I don’t think I want to.

I raided his CD collection. Right now we’re listening to The All-American Rejects. It suits our mood perfectly. Relaxed, subdued, mellow. But with that undercurrent of happiness, teenage excitement, the music filling up our veins.

Kay snuggles his head into my neck. “I’m so glad I found you…” he whispers.

I can’t think of anything to say. So I turn my head, careful not to disturb his, and place a kiss on his forehead. “Me too.”

I can hear the smile on his lips. “How glad?”

“What?” Is he thinking what I think he’s thinking? Or is that just me hoping?

“I said, how glad?”

I smile. “Oh. How glad, huh?” In one swift movement I flip us both so he’s lying on the floor, my body over his. Sure you want to find out?

He rescues his confused expression into a smile. “I’m sure.”

“Well then,” I say, snaking my hands down his body to his waist, fiddling with the fly of his jeans, “let’s find out.”

***

Kaden’s body is so small. Just blood and bones and scar tissue. I hold him close, my hips pressed against his. I kiss along his jaw, up to his earlobe, nibbling gently. He runs a hand through my hair and kisses me, hard, deep, slipping his tongue inside my mouth. He doesn’t waste a moment after we break apart, just presses along my jaw, down to my neck, sucking and pulling gently with his teeth.

“You’re going to give me a hickey,” I half-whisper, half-giggle. He doesn’t stop. He doesn’t care if he gives me a hickey, and what’s more, he’s damn well going to. “Kay,” I say, succumbing to the giggles, pushing his head away gently, “that tickles.”

He smiles up at me. “Too late.” I look down. There’s a pink-purple bruise forming on my skin, slight indents from his teeth resting around it.

“Kay!” I faux-gasp, “I never knew you had it in you.”

“Hah,” he smirks, rolling over onto his back next to me, “ showed you then.”

“True,” I smile, “you did.” We’re silent for a moment. All I can hear is his steady breathing, and the words I thought I’d never speak. I’m not afraid of them anymore. I can’t tell if I’m asleep, or dead, but I know I’m awake. And I’m not afraid.

“Kay… I love you.”

And as the sun drifts past the window, Tyson Ritter croons out promises to us, telling us that “the skies are blue…”

He’s right. I think to myself. We will be alright.