Date: Fri, 17 Mar 2006 01:59:13 +0800
From: YoDawgs Bl.net <yodawgs.blnet@gmail.com>
Subject: The Search For Conscience 3

"Okay, you're going to be sharing a room with Sean, I'm afraid. We don't
have any spare rooms, and besides, Sean's sister always shared this room
with him."

They were climbing the stairs after dinner, and it was about ten o clock at
night. Sean had already made his way upstairs and was clanking about in the
adjoining bathroom. The wall of the magnificent wooden staircase that they
were ascending had beautiful works of art adorned. The creak of the oak
staircase emanated throughout the works of the house, penetrating the
silence that now enveloped them. They thumped up to the first floor and
Cody noticed that there were three rooms. One room was at the end of the
corridor, its door was open; he had a glimpse of boxes and guessed that it
was used as a storeroom. The other rooms were located along the corridor,
and each of them had an expensive mahogany door as their entrances, with
intricate patterns carved upon them.

Taking him by the shoulders, Regina led him to the room further down the
hall. With a smart rap on the door, she called out.

"Sean? You've had enough time by yourself in there now. Let Cody in now to
share some space."

Having said that, she turned the wooden black doorknob and pushed open the
door to reveal a double Decker bed in the centre of the room and a standard
sized bed located at the far end of the room, beside a window that had been
draped with beige coloured curtains.

"Sean has always slept on the second storey of the double-decker bed, so
I'll let you decide which bed you want to use. Goodnight, Cody." She kissed
him on the forehead and went over to Sean to do the same. After that, she
exited the room, closing the door silently behind her. Cody could hear her
demure footsteps all the way to the room beside them, and the door closing,
followed by a muffled exchange of words between Regina and John.

Cody made his way to the bed beside the window and decided to settle there
for the night. He did not choose to sleep on the bunk under Sean because he
was not aware of Sean's sleeping habits and wished to monitor them for the
first night before making the crucial decision.

"Wanna play XBOX? I've got HALO 2 and a couple of other games you might
find interesting." Sean beamed down at Cody from the double-decker bed.

"Normally, I would. But today was a really big day for me and I'm just so
tired now. Don't get me wrong, I love this family, but I really can't keep
my eyes open. Thanks for the offer, Sean. I appreciate it, bro. Maybe
tomorrow, huh?"

"Sure, Cody! To be honest, I'm feeling kinda pooped out as
well. Goodnight!"

It was partly the truth, but honestly, Cody wanted some time to mull things
over in his head. A lot had happened in the past few days, and today was a
day of new beginnings. He waited till Sean turned off the lights before
changing silently out of his uniform into something more
comfortable. Following that, he lay still in bed, pondering the events of
the few days.

His thoughts drifted back to the orphanage just three days ago, where he
was informed that a new family had agreed to take him in. He remembered his
emotions during then; partly excited, partly dread-filled. Was this family
going to be like the rest? He recalled saying goodbye to all the other
children at the orphanage on the last day he was staying there. His luggage
had already been transferred to the Williams' but he had insisted on
staying one more night and going to school the next morning, one last
time. Alice, in particular was extremely heartbroken to see him
go. Throughout his short stay at the institution, he had got to know her in
a more personal detail. She was eleven years old as well, and had lost both
her parents at childbirth. She was curious about Cody's parents and wanted
to know how it was like to have loved and lost rather than to have never
loved at all. She was rather tearful on the last night and accentuated on
spending the night in his bed. He was grateful for her company.

He was back at the hospital, staring over the bodies of his parents. The
kind doctor who had brought him in had left him alone, with his
request. Tears welled up in his eyes, as he just stood and stared. He felt
a tap on his shoulder. He spun round. There was his mother, smiling down at
him. There was a sudden flash of white light, and Cody found himself
spinning in a neverending circuit. A scream pierced his ears.

He jerked awake, cold sweat making its presence known on every single area
of his body. His shirt was sticking to his back, and soon the bitter
English cold began to chill his nerves. He was about to drift back to sleep
when he heard a soft cry coming from the direction of the
double-decker. Bumping noises suggested that Sean was thrashing about on
his bed. Slowly, Cody made his way over to the double-decker, his vision
clearing as his pupils dilated, getting used to the darkness. Adrenaline
pumped through every single blood vessel in his body as he inched closer
and closer to the double-decker. His feet touched something soft, and he
nearly jumped, but quickly realized that it was Sean's shirt, which he had
adorned before going to bed.

Another series of quick bumps and a panicked whine from Sean made him
regain his composure and make his way up the bed ladder haltingly, his eyes
jerking to every shadow in the room. As he reached the top, he braced
himself for what he may have had to witness. In a swift motion, he lifted
himself over the guardrail and swung his entire self over it, landing
silently and softly on the bed spread.

There lay Sean, his eyes closed, but with a look of trepidation and anxiety
on his face. He had kicked the covers off, exposing his half-naked body and
Cody noticed that he was breathing rapidly, because of the rise and fall of
his breast. He murmured soft words, and Cody leant forward in order to
ascertain them.

"Please, leave me alone. Don't come near me! You're not real! You're not
real! Get away from me!" He squirmed slightly and the entire double-decker
shook with his force. Knowing that waking a person in such a situation
would likely cause harm to the victim, Cody hesitated to touch Sean. But
after approximately five minutes, the squirming got progressively worse,
and the murmurings soon became loud sobs of fear. Cody tried placing both
hands on Sean's shoulders and shaking them slightly, to no effect. Then, he
tentatively laid a hand on Sean's sweating and heaving stomach. It felt hot
as a boiling kettle. Sean immediately placed both hands on Cody's hands, as
though willing him not to let go. But it seemed to help calm down Sean a
little. Slowly, Sean's breathing became more controlled, but he still did
not cease the nerve-racking sobs of terror. Cody then began rubbing Sean's
chest in the hope that it would somehow arouse him from his slumber. Sean's
hands remained on his stomach right stacked on left, on top of his belly
button.

After five seconds of massaging Sean's half-developed chest, Cody witnessed
Sean's eyes flickering open with a gasp as his body reacted to the
touch. For a minute, both of them just stayed where they were, looking at
each other, Cody's hands still on Sean's chest. Then Cody realized that he
had achieved his objective and started to make his way to the edge of the
bed to descend the ladder.

"Please don't go." Cody turned around.

Sean was sat upright on the bed, sweat still shining on his body, with an
expression of sorrow and loneliness.

"Ever since I could remember, I always dreamed about this black-robed man
with glowing Blue eyes, who said that he would torture me for eternity if
he ever got hold of me. I was always alone at night, coz my sister is an
even heavier sleeper than I am. This is the first time someone ever did
that to me. Please don't go, or else I think I'll start dreaming about that
monster again. When I felt your touch, I knew that I was not alone, and
that someone out there would save me. I refused to let go, and when I woke
up, I thought I imagined it until I saw you. Please don't leave me alone"
Sean pleaded. He stretched out his hand toward Cody.

"If it makes you feel better, then sure! I just hope you don't think
sleeping in the same bed with another boy is wrong." Cody replied.

"Please don't worry about that" Sean said. "I'm not attracted to you in any
way, and all I need is someone to keep me company. I don't wanna spend
every night suffering in my dreams."

Doubts set aside; Cody took Sean's hand and settled back down in the
bed. He smelt a fragrance of pine, possibly from the car, and a distinct
aroma of hair conditioner. He lay down on the pillow while Sean shuffled
about on the bed. Presently, Sean plopped a pillow down beside Cody and
rested his head on it. He found Cody's hand and draped it over his bare
chest. Cody knew this because of the two distinct bumps that his palm felt,
along with a couple of moles at his fingers. After a few minutes, Sean's
hand became fatigued and he moved it to a more comfortable position. This
caused a chain reaction of goose bumps forming under his hand, while Sean
squirmed a little, giggling.

"That tickles! Stop that!"

"Sorry"

With a contented sigh, Sean closed his eyes and soon drifted off into
dreamland. Cody just looked at his step-brother for a minute. He noticed
the fatigue lines on his face, from the faint creases on his face to the
bags under his eyes, which implied lack of sleep and stress. The expression
on the face was pure calmness, however. A steady rise and fall of Sean's
chest and stomach suggested a fitful slumber. Cody decided to go to sleep
as well.  Accompanied by Sean's monotonous light breaths, it wasn't hard.