thread has been moved!

Pine needles were digging into Earl's back. Through the thin blanket he and Daisy were laying on, he could feel every pebble scattered on the hard ground, and his back had started to ache. Early morning light was filtering through the ancient pines, struggling to reach the few strands of grass which had taken root in the unyielding ground. The forest was quiet, birds just now starting to wake up and shake off the rain which had fallen the night before. And Earl had his head resting on Daisy's lap, smiling up at her while she was braiding flowers through his hair.

Daisy was a pretty girl. Earl had thought so from the moment his eyes had landed on her limber form. Coils of wild curly hair cascaded down all the way to the middle of her back, and her bronze skin was spotted with patches of pearl. They wrapped their way around her neck and eyes, down her slender arms and waist, disappearing in the waistline of her jeans. Earl loved playing with her hair, and loved doing makeup on her even more. She'd sat patiently, corners of her lips turned up into a grin, watching him caress her skin with soft brushes. Red and gold eyeshadow, dark mascara. Daisy had eyes like a lynx, hooded and dark, just as terrifying when she frowned. Good thing she didn't frown in his direction very often. Over the years, Daisy had put up with him do everything and anything, from painting her nails to grudgingly filming tiktok dances (after a lot of begging).

So, it was no surprise that at 6 in the morning, she was laying beside Earl, a basket full of tiny cakes beside them, watching the sunrise and listening to the birds.

"Done" she said, poking Earl between the ribs and making him squeal. "Get off my lap you scoundrel." The boy pouted prettily, scotching off. "No fair," he grumbled. "The ground is hard." He knew what she was gonna say before she said it. "Should have thoug-"

"....thought of that before I picked the place, I know." Earl sighed dramatically, flopping on the ground like a fish. And continuing to sigh until she smacked him upside the head. If she could have rolled her eyes any further, they would have gotten stuck staring at her brain. Which, if Earl had to guess, wasn't a very fascinating sight. "Hugs?" he demanded hopefully, looking up at her with his best puppy eyes. "What do

wordcount: 666

Although the T-shirt was horribly baggy, Earl was more than glad to be wearing a pop of color again. He doubted anyone in the games would recognize him. After his dad had made it his mission to turn him 'into a man' (whatever that meant), all the energy had gone out of Earl. Dark circles rested under his eyes from the night before; he hadn't bothered to tailor them out in the morning, too defeated and tired to try anything. His hair had been chopped so closely to his head it was sticking out in every which direction like the spikes of a porcupine. Mr. Gray was a great clock maker, but his skill with the scissors could have been improved.

The boy who'd usually be at the center of the commotion was now lingering on the sidelines. Picking at a piece of cheesecake with a tiny fork. Draven was watching him from across the hall, a strange expression on his face. For the first time ever, Earl couldn't bring himself to care. His older brother could fluff right off, he had no right to say anything.

Unfortunately, Draven didn't fluff off. Instead, he sauntered over and sat himself down beside him, grabbing a fork and taking a piece of cheesecake from off his plate. "You look like s***" He noted, putting his feet up on the bench. "And you look as amazing as ever." Earl said. No bitterness colored his voice. He was just stating a fact. The sky was blue, macarons were hard to make, and Draven always looked good. Elegant, in clothes which hid the sharp angles of his shoulders and waist, unruly hair tucked underneath a muggle beanie. He had the "I rolled out of bed like this" look.

"Your dad sucks." Draven was studying Earl's clothes and hair, nose wrinkled in disgust. He usually looked like that when he saw Earl, as if the younger boy was something particularly nasty he'd stepped on.

"So does yours."

It was their little ritual. They never spoke of it. When Draven was a little too loud and nasty, when Earl was a little too quiet. When Draven woke up with tears in his eyes, unable to move his hands, when Earl collapsed in on himself like a piece of crumpled paper. They always found each other, Draven and him.

"Your mom sucks" Earl said very quietly, stabbing the cake with his fork and setting a piece in his mouth. "So does yours." Draven replied, not missing a beat. It was funny, because they had the same mom.

"You look like a unicorn threw up." Earl giggled. No he didn't. Not today. Usually, that applied, but today he looked very much like his name advertised. Gray. Dead eyes and crumpled clothes. Just like his father, with the slender frame and the ashy skin. Draven paused. That hadn't been the right thing to say. Still, Earl went on. "They stopped dressing like you do in 2005."

It was a script. Words they'd exchanged so often over the years they'd become a prayer. Both of them from a broken family. Draven all alone in that huge house of his, with the cold father who would have probably sold him off for profit. Earl living with a man who hated every inch of his skin, hated the sound of his voice, hated him no matter what he did.

"You're stupid." Draven said, taking another piece of his cake.
"I'm happy." Earl replied around his fork, lips stained red with the strawberry sauce. "You hate everything."

Draven set the fork down, reaching for one of the banana slices on Earl's plate. "Yeah including you."

"Also I signed you up for truth or dare." Earl paled. That wasn't part of the script. "Draven," he moaned, setting the plate to the side. "Whyyyy."

"So you can make as many people's eyes bleed as you can. You will probably crack a mirror if you go in front of it so be careful. You won't be able to afford replacing it." Earl grumbled, wrapping his arms around his knees. "I don't like you."

A brilliant grin. "No one does." That was a lie and they both knew it. Stealing one last piece off fruit from Earl, Draven slipped away.