RHO

 

 

 

Marcus Troy’s Funeral – NIGHT

PRESENT DAY

 

 

The rain never stopped that night. It felt like we were in one of those epics where sins are committed on God’s Earth and God sends a deluge their way. It was a romantic concept, and I wondered what kind of epic we were in. I wondered if I was the leading character or was it Adam?

When I got to Marcus Troy’s house, it looked empty. It was strange. I never felt that way before tonight. Never thought of that place as empty. But I guess things change.

I saw Adam upstairs on the second floor terrace, lost in thought and nursing a glass of whiskey. He didn’t seem to care that the rain had drenched him completely. I felt a protective  need to go up to him and put him in a hot bath and get him under the covers to keep him warm and safe.

I practically dashed up to the second floor bedroom and it was open. I was about to head to the terrace when he walked in. Still drenched. His feet were bare and the shirt he wore to the funeral was now open in the front. His chest muscles were tight under the dim lights, and just as irresistible as ever.

He saw me and instead of hugging me like I expected, Adam walked over to the coffee table and poured bourbon in two glasses. It was Marcus’s favorite brand, I realized with dismay. Why was I so bothered by this? It was ridiculous.

Adam took both glasses off the table and brought one to me. There was something different about him. Not just the way he looked but something more…

“Are you wearing Marcus’s cologne?”

It didn’t seem to matter to him. “Yes. Do you like it?”

“Watching you drink Marcus’s booze, wearing his cologne! What’s not to like?”

“You’re being jealous of a dead man.”

“I know that.”

“I like the lighting in this room and that Richter over there too, are you going to resent me for that?”

“What’s a Richter?”

He started to say something but stopped. “Never mind.”

I felt that immense tug of jealousy again. “Sometimes, it feels like I don’t even know you anymore. I don’t blame you. A lot has happened. It was all my fault, Adam, what happened to you that night. I never should have let you leave.”

“I don’t want to talk about it. Can’t we just move on instead of you reminding me every single day?”

“I’m just trying to apologise…”

“And I’ve accepted your apology, about a million times so please, just stop.”

Maybe he was still raw. Maybe the only way he had chosen to deal with it, was to forget it ever happened. I knew he wasn’t over it. I’d seen him crying in the silence of empty rooms and I’d seen him screaming out Marcus Troy’s name and calling for mercy in the middle of the night. I’d seen him struggle every time someone used the word whore to talk about him, and I’d seen him break down at the mention of the nature of their relationship.

I couldn’t stop being sad for him. I wanted to believe that I could still help him. That I could finally take him out of his misery. Be his knight in shining armor, I wanted to believe that this was a romantic epic and that I was his long lost love and he was mine and when we finally end up together, it would be a match made in heaven.

He downed the drink fast and sat on the edge of the bed. He was still staring at that stupid painting. And then, he had a huge grin on his face.

I watched as Adam started to laugh so hard he couldn’t stop and he fell back on the bed.

He was quiet then, but his chest was still heaving. The muscles on his abdomen danced with the sound of his breathing.

Suddenly, there was a morose look on his face. "I did it," he blurted out. "I can't believe I got away with it!"

He started laughing again. “Oh man, you should have seen Ian's face. He was counting on his boss to live forever. And now, he knows he has to bow down to me, poor guy, I feel bad for him." Marcus's death must have hit him harder than I thought. The boy was losing his mind. That was the only explanation for this kind of nonsense. "You're lucky, Rho. You're on my side."

"Enough, Adam. I've been letting you mourn, but this is going too far. You need to get your head checked out."

But he wasn't even listening to me anymore.

With a grave look on his face, Adam placed one hand on his heart. "I killed Marcus Troy," he said, solemnly. “And I got away with it."

I realized then, that this was a tragedy.

The Devil doesn't always laugh.

Sometimes, he weeps with you.