Love is Always Write Anthology Volume 7

furrowed forehead prevented Jeremy from breaking the silence. The reverence in Jacob's stare was disconcerting, even though it was focused on the tasks at hand, as demonstrated by Jeremy. Jacob was evidently feeling guilty and wanted to make reparation; despite being unused to cleaning, it was apparent he did his best. A self-imposed focus that Jeremy knew all too well: he could see the same expression on his own face when his Duties threaten to drown him as he overcomes the suffocating burden.
    As they moved to work, cleaning, an obstinate silence isolated them in their own thoughts. Jeremy could not help but admire Jacob's form: the strength, the potency and the concentration. Jeremy absently rubbed a drying sponge against the cabinet door as he continued to think dreamily. The peace that had swamped him in the forest lay to rest most thoughts except for the most immediate. All he could contemplate was the growing warmth spreading to his fingertips and toes, making his skin tingle. His efforts on the offending, dirty surfaces were listless and distant as he focused on the internal monologue of feeling.
    Jacob, on the other hand, was confused. Again. Yet he was resolved within himself to see this through. It was only cleaning a room – nothing truly demanding – an effort to apologise for his poor behaviour. Yet Jeremy continued to surprise him and keep him on edge: literally in fact, surprising him by sneaking up into the room without him sensing anything. Or the natural compliance that Jeremy brought out of him, guiding him like a puppet under puppet master Jeremy; an uncomfortable understanding glinting in his eyes as he methodically communicated intent without words.
    Their role over the other, and the connection they shared, was deep – it hit him hard.
    No one had ever commanded such power over Jacob, as before, he was always in charge. His vulnerability, apparently being expressed so clearly, struck a chord within him, explaining why his resolve and dominance had been so easily undermined. Helpless against his fate, without the resolve to do otherwise, an intangible weight was released from his bowing shoulders, and so he resumed his efforts with vigour. He was unaware of his surroundings and Jeremy's increasingly lethargic efforts, polishing the same spot for minutes before he realised the space sparkled as stars from his ministrations.
    They remained like this for hours, bent over in labour, breathing deeply, as they both unconsciously harmonised their efforts to the other, mirroring each other's motions as they cleaned the kitchen.
    At one point, they both agreed to finish cleaning, without words or motions, and moved to rearrange the piles. Jeremy focused on sorting the heaps, putting things in their proper place, while Jacob walked out to remove the refuse. Neither considered the opportunity that this freedom provided, confident that the other would return to the rhythmic circular motions of wiping surfaces clean and creating order.
    Eventually, the kitchen was flawless again; however, it was considerably emptier. It also contained another "monster" – as every other person would say, omitting Jeremy – within its walls. Not that either of them were eager to claim such a title in their exile.
    CHAPTER 7 – The Switch
    I have the strength and ability of many men together.
    My alien nature marking me as an abnormal that the past has turned into a demon. Abhorred and detested, I found no haven with people. Instead, I learned from example to be independent and self-sufficient.
    I can't make the same mistake of trust as my parents had. "Setting roots" in a place with people who claim sympathy; but only to make their cruelty all the more sweeter when they massacred my parents and desecrated everything they held dear before our eyes – antiques and personal mementos all destroyed in seconds.
    My power, strength and dominance were triggered as I stormed through the mob at our door and into the wilderness of the fallen world that I now call my home. The previously dormant aspect of my nature coming to the front thus, my ancestry became apparent. The last in a diluted line; enough to live, but not enough to be human.
    ~ Jacob, musings.
     
    " Here," said Jeremy breathlessly. He handed Jacob a glass of cold water with condensation dripping down the side. "To help with your stomach," Jeremy added awkwardly, turning away as Jacob rose from his final ministrations to grasp the drink, meeting Jeremy's eyes with