The rest of the wheat section was dealt with of in relative silence. Rami couldn’t find it in him to take care of cutting the rest of it, so that was left to the Clockwork, who finished the job in less than a minute. The last portion of the job, hauling it back and forth between the field and the silo, took five or six trips, but by then it was hardly ten in the morning.

“I guess we’re on to the cows and horses,” Rami said, his voice still a little shaky. He led the way to the cow pen, where six cows stood waiting to be handled.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a cow in real life,” Orion said, walking up to one.

“They’re sort of like big dogs. At least, that’s what I’m told. We’ve never had a dog.”

He pet its nose, which it didn’t seem to mind.

“They’re cool.”

“Yeah, not super exciting. Here, I’ll show you how to feed them. Watch this.”

-◦=[ ]=◦-

With the chores done and the sun getting lower in the sky, Rami grew more anxious about his parents returning home with Max. The two sat on the front porch together, waiting for the green truck to make its reappearance on the horizon.

“Has something like this ever happened before?” Orion asked, breaking a silence that had lasted nearly an hour.

“Nothing this serious. We’ve broken some bones before, but it’s almost always arms. And never during the busy season.”

“I’d ask if you’re worried, but the answer’s pretty obvious.”

“Yeah, I am. That was a bad break. They’ve been gone all day. What if it’s gotten worse?”

“I remember days like this.”

Orion paused, and Rami looked over at him. “What do you mean?”

“My mom. She was diagnosed with cancer when I was really young. Something about the factory she was working in and some sort of powder that had destroyed her lungs. There were lots of late days waiting for my mom and dad to get home from the hospital.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“It’s no worries. The news was almost always hopeful when they came back that day. Sam, my younger sister, would be asleep on my shoulder, and we’d both be sitting on the front step of the apartment complex, kind of like what we’re doing right now. Then, Mom and Dad would be back, and they’d tell us all the good things the doctor said, and send us to bed.”

“That’s really sweet.”

“Yeah. I think what I’m trying to say is that it’ll be okay. I don’t know your sister all that much, but if she’s anything like mine, she’s a fighter.”

There was a quiet moment between them again, this time with more calm energy, before Rami asked, “What happened to your mom?”

Orion sat for a while. “She, uh… the cancer got her. Mom and Dad never told us the actual severity of it. Actually, just straight up lied to us about it. Not the best way to handle it for two kids who were about to lose their mother in one of the most drastic ways possible.”

“Oh. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—”

“You’re fine, Rami. I don’t have any problem talking about it. This was years ago.”

“Do you still miss her?”

“Every day. Dad does what he can, but you can always tell when he’s missing her, too.”

“That must be so hard.”

“Some days. When it gets tough, Dad likes to say, ‘we fight for what we can’t control, and fight harder for what we should.’ I guess it’s just his way of saying we’ll get through it.”

“Your dad sounds like a good man.”

“I’d like to think so.”

“Wish I had that sort of dad in my life.”

“How so?”

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but Dad isn’t a very loving man by any sense of the word. I haven’t heard the words ‘I love you’ in probably over a year. Not to mention, he’s incredibly close-minded, and the religious aspect of it doesn’t help.”

The Clockwork’s heavy footsteps came back around the house. It had been pacing for a while, and Orion couldn’t decide if it was bored or on a sort of patrolling mode. It looked at the two of them and started in again.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

They sat for a while longer. Orion stared off at the sunset, but glanced back to see Rami staring at him. He sheepishly turned away to look at the sunset too, but after a moment, they turned to look at each other at the same time.

Orion felt... something. Happy. Secure. Despite everything he had been through, Rami’s eyes were soft. Whatever it was, it didn’t last long before Rami stood up.

“It’s getting late. Want to watch a little bit of television while we wait?”

“Yeah, I guess. What’s on?”

“I don’t know. I rarely watch. Any ideas?”

“I also don’t watch. No TV in the apartment.”

“Well then, I guess we’ll find something.”

Orion sat down on the couch while Rami turned the TV on and searched for a channel using the little dial. Most were static, but the one they did have access to was halfway through an episode of M*A*S*H. After a bit more searching, they settled with that, and Rami joined him on the couch.

“Have you ever seen this?” Rami asked.

“Nope.”

“It’s not half bad. Talks about some war the Americans were fighting. Lots of fun characters.”

“Is this an American channel?”

“It’s not like we get a lot of Carmsborough-original shows.”

“I figured we’d get the UK.”

“Sometimes. Depends on the channel.”

In the episode, two of the characters were going past enemy lines to help their wounded troops. Guns were waved around for a few tense moments, and having no context for the show at all, Orion figured this was it.

Fortunately, the one he could only assume was the main character lowered tensions, and they went to work.

The Clockwork stomped around the house again, this time stopping to peer through the window at the television.

“Is this thing… watching the television with us?” Rami asked.

Orion looked back at his golem. “I’m not sure. Maybe?”

“I’d offer for it to come in, if it weren’t going to completely destroy the floor.”

As if it were listening, which they had pretty much determined it always was, the Clockwork hovered slightly off the ground, in a state between the full rocket feet and walking.

“Well, in that case,” Rami said. “It can come in.”

Orion motioned for it to join them, and it came through the front door, ducking. It then stood behind the couch, watching over the two of them, as well as the show.

The surgeons were just getting done with helping the enemy soldiers get patched up and got out of dodge. It was a show of the best aspects of humanity.

“See this?” Orion asked, looking at the Clockwork and pointing to the screen. “This is what you should be doing. Helping anyone and everyone, not just me. Protecting all the innocent people of Carmsborough.”

It made a whirring noise, which was indecipherable to the two of them, but otherwise didn’t seem to respond.

The next episode started, and the three of them watched through it all together, mostly without words. The actors threaded the line between comedy and the very serious stakes very well, and it was growing on Orion.

And then that episode ended, and the grandfather clock in the living room chimed its tune.

“Bedtime,” Rami said, looking out the front door. His parents still weren’t back with Max. Watching the show was nice, but clearly only a temporary distraction from the very real feelings he was experiencing at the moment.

“How about we check the radio real quick?” Orion suggested. “See how the world is?”

“That’s a bad idea right before going to bed,” Rami said, doing it anyway.

“…calling him a terrorist, despite not having done anything that we know of. It seems the only offense this kid has committed is being randomly chosen by the Clockwork.”

“A terrorist?” Orion said. “The host is right. I haven’t done anything.”

The radio spilled over with static for a moment until a different voice took over the station.

“This is your leader, Syndra. This is a reminder that I am offering a significant cash award of ten thousand wings to the person who can report the Clockwork’s location. Tip lines are remaining open through the night. Remember that curfew has begun.”

The station switched back to normal, and the host kept talking, likely unaware of the interruption, but that was all Orion wanted to hear. Rami turned the machine off.

“What’s going to happen tomorrow if they don’t show up?” Orion asked, switching topics back to the incident earlier.

“Business as usual, I guess. Mom and Dad wouldn’t expect any less. That’s what I’m here for, after all.”

The two of them climbed the stairs together, and the Clockwork watched the whole time, until they disappeared around the wall. They walked side-by-side down the hallway to Rami’s room and the spare room, and waved goodnight before stepping into their respective room.

Orion stripped down nearly all the way and stood in front of the attached bathroom mirror. His hair was getting seriously unruly, and the stubble from having not shaved in a couple of days was peeking through on his chin and upper lip.

Not to mention the sore state of his muscles. Even with a few hours for a break at the end of the day, he was still moving pretty stiffly from all the work.

He made a mental note to ask for a toothbrush when he could find a convenient time, hopped into some of the borrowed pajamas, and slipped into bed. His eyes stared at the ceiling, which grew fuzzier the longer he looked as the darkness warped his vision.

Yet he couldn’t fall asleep. His mind kept replaying the scene on the porch. He wasn’t sure where these feelings were coming from, but for some reason, he was feeling for Rami. Lean, tanned, and, most importantly, unbelievably kind.

He shook his head. Was he really… falling for Rami? It would explain a lot, especially over the last few years. Why hadn’t he noticed it with anyone else, though? The thought didn’t disgust him, but it was foreign.

He could handle being gay. A little bit of homophobia was nothing compared to his current state of affairs. Whether Rami felt the same way was another story.

Did he? The way Rami had talked about his experiences, it almost made it seem that maybe it could be the case. Especially when he was talking about the values of the church compared to his own.

Still, he didn’t want to ruin this friendship by making any assumptions. After all, they were currently housing him, and best-case scenario, they’d kick him out. Worst-case would probably be alerting Syndra, and middle-case was having an awkward air but still staying at the house.

He tossed and turned in bed, burdened by this newfound knowledge and debate. Ten minutes later, he decided enough was enough and stood up, approached his door, and placed his hand on the knob.

What was his plan? Walk in and confess his love? Leave the room and avoid the topic entirely? Find some excuse to be wandering around?

He figured he’d have some time to figure it out, but Rami was standing on the other side of the door when he opened it. They both startled a bit.

“Sorry,” Rami said, hand over his heart. “I was just coming over to knock.”

“What’s up?”

“I… uh… there’s no good way to say this. I wanted to see if maybe you wanted to sleep in the same room. You and me. Uh, together. This is dumb. I’m sorry. I’ll go.”

Rami turned around to leave, but Orion grabbed hold of his calloused hand. He turned back, that same softness from before still in his eyes.

“I was going to ask the same thing.”