The Darkest Sky

I woke up in a guys bed. A reckless hookup… again. I had gotten up and got dressed, rushing out his house and back to mine. The streets were busy, people everywhere. It was loud and overwhelming. It was a pain walking back. As I walked, I took out my phone. I had 18 missed calls from my mother. And a text that read:

Caelus. Answer me as soon as possible… it's your dad.

I immediately called her. "Hey mom, what's u-"

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?" She sounded angry, but also as if she'd been crying. 

"Mom, calm down, what happened?" She sobbed.

"Your father was murdered…" My heart stopped, and I started breaking into tears.

"W-what..?" 

"CJ. Don't do anything rec-" I hung up before she could finish and ran to my dad's place, it was an hour or two from where I was but I didn't care. My heart was pounding and my head racing. I couldn't believe this was happening.

When I arrived, I could see police tape covered the front of the house, and police stationed outside as well. "Sir you aren't supposed to be here." Said an Officer. I just fall to the floor in tears. I felt numb. My emotions started shutting down. Another Officer approaches me. 

"Are you Caelus Jackson?" I nodded in response. "We have a few questions to ask you." I sat up, hugged my legs and nodded again. "Where were you last night, around 12pm?" I shot a glare at the officer.

My voice was shaky, but I said, "You aren't seriously asking me that, right?"

"Sorry kid. Standard Procedure." I hesitated, before replying. 

"I was at a guys house…" He nodded and wrote that down. I started breathing heavily, my eyes darting around, my leg bouncing from anxiety.

"I need a name, address and phone number so I can check your alibi." I steadied my breathing and answered, my voice getting hoarse. "Leo Kaplan. 448 Burton Road, M-" the officer cut me off.

"One second. Officer Kaplan!" 

I froze. This could not be happening. A man walked over, and low and behold, it was Leo, he was in an officers uniform, he looked at me, kind of confused, but eventually shifted to serious. This made my anxiety worse. My heart quickened and tears flowed down my face much quicker than before. 

"Yes Captain?" He asked.

"This citizen, claims he was at yours during the night, is that correct?" Leo sighed.

"Yes sir. That is correct."

"And Leo, do you have proof he was at your house?" The captain spoke again.

"Ring doorbell sir." 

"You're dismissed Officer. Go back to the station." He said, passive aggressively.

"Yes Captain." Leo heads off, giving a worried glance back at me. 

"Ok kid. I will check if your alibi is legitimate. Until then, don't leave the area." 

I barely registered when my mom arrived… one second I was staring at the pavement, my mind going blank, the next she was there with me. She sat next to me, her voice shaky, as if she'd been crying. "CJ…" I thought she was going to pull me into a hug me, but then the police captain approached us. "Miss Jackson, a word please?" My mom stands up and wiped her tears. 

"I'll be back dear." She shakily walked with Captain Reynolds. I let out a heavy breath, and dragged myself to the car, slouching down, my leg still bouncing from the anxiety. I stared at the dashboard. My ears ringing, my brain not fully processing my father is dead. 

I don't know how much time had passed before my mother returned. But something was off, she didn't look upset, or sad or even grief stricken. She looked angry and disgusted. I sat up.

"Mom… are you- are you oka-" 

"Don't… don't talk Caelus." Her voice was low, trembling.

I blinked and looked at her, tears still filling my eyes. "Why- mom?"

"Don't call me that!" She snapped. My stomach twisted. My heart ached. She gripped the steering wheel tight. She had just lost her husband, and now she was glaring at me, through the car mirror, as if she just lost her son as well. I was confused. My head was racing from grief and panic. What did the officer say to her?

My voice broke as I spoke. "Mom… what are you talking about?"

"You're a faggot CJ?!" She slammed her hand against the wheel. I started crying more. My dad has just died and this is what she's bothered about? I start hyperventilating. My body shaking. I couldn't breath. It was an anxiety attack. My brain started shutting down. I couldn't move, my whole body was shaking. She let out a light, but aggressive and sarcastic chuckle. "And now your faking that stupid illness again. You know what. Get out my car, and don't come back to the house." I tried to move, to talk, to breath, but nothing was working. My hearing shut down. I couldn't hear what she was yelling, but I could tell she was. She had gotten out the car and pulled me out of it. Leaving me breaking down on the side of the road. I pulled some pills out of my pocket. My brain rushing to the worst possible place. I shakily took the pills out. 

I tipped my head back, the pills on my tongue and went to swallow, everything was numb. I had to end it… I forced myself to swallow, when suddenly, a strong force hit my back, making me spit out the pills on the sidewalk. I gasped for breath, winded by the impact. My ears were ringing but I heard a voice in the muffle of the ringing. "CJ. CJ come on, breath through your nose." The voice was steady, but firm and familiar. I turn my head and through blurred vision see Leo. Leo… I fell onto him, my body giving out, and cried, clinging to him. He didn't let go. Didn't push me away. He just held me. His arms stayed locked around me, grounding me, keeping me stable. He didn't say anything. He knew nothing he would say would help. But I could hear his heart beat, calm, steady. I tried to focus on that, and the warmth of his body. 

I don't know how long we were sat there… people passed by, and the sun had already set. But Leo didn't move. Eventually my body grew tired, my tears stopped falling as if I had run out. But I still felt numb. He knew that. He could see it. He pulled back slightly, enough to look me in the eye, and flashed me a slight smile. The smile was like a small light in the darkness I felt. 

"You're staying with me tonight." He said. His voice was quiet, but demanding. But also very welcoming and warm. I swallowed and exhale deeply, my voice shaking. "Leo, I-" he shook his head and stroked his fingers through my hair. 

"No arguing. You need somewhere to stay. You can stay with me, it isn't a good idea for you to be alone right now." I blinked at him, struggling to keep up with what he was saying. "Come on tiger." He picked me up, it felt caring, gentle. I wanted to argue… to tell him I'd be fine, but I wouldn't. He was right, I couldn't be alone. So I nodded. I let my head lay against his chest, listening to his heartbeat, it had quickened slightly as I rested my head on him. It was still calming. The weight of the day, the grief, the loneliness… had finally hit me. And before I knew it, I was asleep. 

I jerk up, I was in Leo's bed, he was asleep next to me… why did he even care! I hugged my knees and looked at the time. 4:32am. My mind raced about that day… my fathers death, my mothers words, and the interrogation. I started crying again. I didn't even realise Leo had woken up until I felt his hand on my cheek. He didn't say anything, but the gesture was enough, I looked him straight in the eyes. They were greyish-brown, like graphite. Warm and calming. He hesitated for a moment as if searching for what to say.

"You're shaking…" he said, not a question, more an observation. I hadn't even noticed the trembling. My mind raced for a response as my voice cracked. "Leo…" my eyes started streaming. "I don't know what to do." He exhaled, rubbing the sleep from his face. "Hey… hey it's ok, you don't have to figure it all out right now." He hesitated, "You're not alone anymore CJ…" I tensed up. I wasn't used to people staying. This was all new. Why was he here? Why did he care? My mind raced, and I subconsciously leaned into his hand, it was comforting. It was exactly what I needed. "Let's go back to sleep, Tiger." He said, warmly, it made me feel safe. I nodded and laid down. He put his arms around me protectively, I let out a slight smile and fell back to sleep.

I sat up slowly, my body was heavy with exhaustion. I heard a clatter of dishes coming from the kitchen, the low hums of music from the radio… and the smell of coffee and eggs. I stood up slowly and approached the door. I hesitated, but opened it, stumbling down the stairs, slowly making my way to the kitchen. Leo stood there with his back to me, making eggs. He tapped his hand in front of a cup of coffee. "Morning CJ." He smiled. I walked up and sat on the counter, picking up the coffee and taking a sip. I wasn't ok, but I felt much better than I did yesterday. I managed a smile back… a genuine smile. He finished making the food and slid me the plate. "Eat." He said. I let out a quiet chuckle.

"Are you always this bossy?" I said, my voice was still croaky from crying yesterday. 

"Maybe." He said. He picked up his plate and sat on a seat across from me. "You're looking better." I nodded.

"Better than I expected… Thank you for this." 

"That's good Tiger. I have an errand to run, feel free to make yourself at home." I nodded, I felt like a burden, but he doesn't see me as such… 

Leo looked at me, as if he wanted to say something. Something important, but he just smiled and put a hand on my cheek. "I'll be back soon." He headed out.

I sat on the couch, taking in the room. It was plain, but homey. The TV was on, something about Vigilantes who the police were focused on taking down… I had never heard of it before. I watched it, intently, very interested in what was going on. There were 4 vigilantes, what interested me most about them was their names. Arachne, Erebus, Eos and Kratos. Each named after a Greek deity. The news was portraying them as criminals, to be fair they were. They work outside the law, but they were doing better than the police ever had. I kept watching, people were cheering for vigilantes, others disgusted by their criminality. I wondered how Leo felt about them…

The door opened as the news report was coming to an end. Leo had walked in with bags. "Hey Tiger, what you watching?"

"The news." I said and then turned to Leo. "Hey Leo, you're a cop, what do you think about the Vigilantes?" He looked at me, and shrugged. 

"They do a better job at getting to the criminals than us cops do, would be better if we worked alongside them instead of against them though." I nodded. He hesitated, before saying, "What do you think of them?" 

"They're cool. I like their names." He smiled.

"Yea, that doesn't surprise me." I gave a fake offended scoff.

"What is that supposed to mean?" 

"Nothing, nothing." He came and sat next to me. "How you holding up, Tiger?" 

"… Still devastated…" my leg bounced from the anxiety. "But I think… I think I'm gonna be ok." I gave a reassuring smile. "I just wish there was something I could do for my dad… to bring him just-" I looked up at Leo, he looked very serious, but also as if he was hiding something. "What?" I asked. He averted his eyes and ran a hand through his hair. 

"There may be a way for you to get justice for your father…" I perked up and grabbed his shoulders, a bit angry he didn't mention anything earlier.

"What?! What is it? Why didn't you tell me earlier?" He looked me in the eyes. "CJ. Ok I'll tell you. Just calm down."