Page 1 of Entwined

Chapter One

Darby blinked several times then pushed his thick, black-framed glasses up on the bridge of his nose. The unconscious action was typically repeated many, many times a day.

Is Nathan breaking up with me via email?

He skimmed through the long missive to the end.

“You can throw out my toothbrush, but I’d like the key back to my place. We don’t need to meet up, just mail it.”

Yup. Darby sniffed as he ran a finger under one eye. Asshole.

He hadn’t been in love with Nathan, but he had been heavily in like with the guy. After all, they’d been seeing each other for almost a year, and okay, so there was that one time—maybe two—when he’d caught Nathan cheating, but…

Darby sighed. Clearly, Nathan had recognized what he hadn’t. They weren’t meant to be, so why waste any more time? He should’ve known they were doomed as a couple when Nathan would go on about how the whole soulmate and forever and ever thing was a crock of shit.

Not willing to engage, Darby hit the delete button then slammed his laptop shut. Being a man who took his responsibilities seriously, he dug around in the somewhat scratched up pine wood desk in his tiny, studio apartment. He searched the cluttered drawer for a small marker he could use to write on a padded envelope.

Nathan hated coming over to Darby’s messy space, hence the reason he had the man’s damn key. But the place was all Darby could afford on his high school teacher’s salary. Living in the Valley had become so much more expensive than when he’d been growing up there. However, anywhere decent in a Los Angeles suburb was almost impossible to afford unless there were two salaries contributing to the household.

Not much chance of that happening anytime soon.

At last, Darby discovered a decent pen. He plucked it from the drawer, then shuffled through another one for an envelope. The more he concentrated on his task, the more irritated he became. It was Friday night and he’d already had a grueling week of dealing with the kids at the school. His plan to treat himself to Chinese takeout and kick back to start binge-watching Game of Thrones for the third time had been ruined.

Darby shoved Nathan’s precious key ring inside the envelope. He didn’t include anything else. There didn’t seem to be much point in adding something beyond the requested item, since he doubted Nathan ever wanted anything from him again. Right as he pulled the strip off the sticky backing, his cellphone rang. He glanced at the caller ID from where the phone lay on his desk.

Seriously?

He frowned at Nathan’s name then decided, what the hell. Maybe he’s calling to tell me he changed his mind and will beg to take me back. Then he could tell Nathan to fuck off. The tightness in Darby’s chest eased and he grabbed the phone before it could go to voicemail.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Darby. You get my email?”

Darby cleared his throat. “Yes.”

The silence between them stretched on as Darby waited for Nathan to state the reason for his call.

“Yeah, so…” Nathan gave a short cough. “When can I expect my key and, you know, the ring?”

Darby pressed his lips together as rage coursed through him. Of course. His stupid Batman key chain. “When the fucking post office delivers it!”

He ended the call then threw his phone across the room which—considering the size of his place—wasn’t much of a distance. He then stuffed the unaddressed envelope back into his desk and decided to mail the damn thing when he felt like it. The action wasn’t in an effort to give Nathan another reason to contact him. As a matter of fact, as soon as he figured out where his phone had landed, he’d be so blocking him.

Once he’d managed to dig out his phone from behind the small sofa opposite his bed, he then blocked Nathan on every social media platform in existence and discovered he was starving. Suddenly, that Chinese food and GOT marathon seemed like the best idea ever.

Washed down with some green apple vodka.

* * * *

Bram stretched in the soft piles of moss he’d used as a bed for his sleep cycle. He rolled onto his back and arched his thin, pale body, waking himself from his slumber. An odd sensation filled him, and he jerked to a sitting position. Were the sun fairies about to attack? There hadn’t been a sun fairy attack in eons, so Bram couldn’t remember what it felt like. However, a raid from those vicious sunshine-spewing bastards was no laughing matter. Their brightness would cut through the perpetual dark forest—where only the fireflies and incandescent glow of the many colorful flowers cast any light—and make everything wither in their path.

Bram tucked the long, silver-streaked strands of his hair behind his pointy ears then rose.

Whatever it is, it’s moving closer. He scrunched up his nose. Or getting bigger?

Yet, at the same time, it also seemed as if it was coming from within him, as if this foreign energy had already arrived but was growing inside his body. Bram gasped then covered his mouth with both hands.

Is it my maturity?