A L T A I R

The Beginning Part One

Freshly cut grass and dead leaves kicked up into the air as a pair of bikers rode threw the streets with their bookbags hanging off of their backs and their helmets discarded onto the ground behind them.

The humid summer air had shifted into the cool breeze of autumn. Children entered their first week of school and buses whizzed past them as they rode down the rural road. Birds chirped as they sat perched atop trees and many people had gone out to enjoy the calm environment.

Truly, the English countryside was beautiful this time of year.

Skidding to halt the boys changed there course and turned down a narrow trail that lead towards a small bridge. The bridge was wide enough for both of them to pass over it with it going into a small street lined with townhouses and family owned shops.

Parents arrived home from the beginning of the evening traffic and the fragrance of barbecued meat filled the air. It seemed like everyone was out and about the busy neighborhood.

Riding in the front the older of the two skidded to a stop as they neared there house and hopped off of his bike, letting it fall to the ground as he walked towards his front yard. Entering the house he ditched his bookbag and let his jacket fall to the ground.

 "Mum are you home?" Altair yelled out into the room with his brother coming in after him and slamming the door shut behind the two.

From the door led into the home's living room which was barren besides a small, antique rug the family inherited from distant relatives, a tv and vcr set and two small recliners. A small potted plant sat on a nearby window sill with a small stalk of lettuce growing out of it.

 "Mum?" He asked again walking into the kitchen to meet the back of his mother who seemed to be ignoring the two and chopping up the remnants of there supper. "Mum!"

Jumping she dropped the knife back onto the cutting board and turned to face them with ear buds hanging from her ears. She took one out and dusted her free hand off on her apron. "Oh did you want something boys?"

 "Nothing mum we where just checking if you got off of work early." The younger of the two said taking a seat at the kitchen counter.

Altair followed suit sitting next to his brother and taking a piece of the chopped carrots off of the cutting board and popped it into his mouth. It tasted salty and crunched despite having been left out the entire time she had been cooking the food. He reached for another one while ignoring his mother's scathing scowl as he took them.

 "Wait until I'm done to start eating sweetheart," She said smacking a  wooden spoon down near his hand. "Also the office let me out early today due to my boss getting food poisoning."

His brother raised a eyebrow and gestured towards the empty driveway before taking his own carrot and nibbled at it. Taking the cue Altair cleared his throat and nudged his head at it.

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

 "Really?" He asked biting the bottom of his lip. The driveway was empty with no van in sight and there mother still had her work clothes hanged on the clothesline outside in the front yard.

 "Yes really." She sighed putting her utensils down and scooped the cut vegetables into the bubbling pot on the stove top. Sweat dripped down her face. "Now do you want to help cook or not?"

The two teens looked at one another with the youngest shaking his head and the other frowning. Both of them recognized the tone in her voice and neither wanted to push her any further then they already had. So leaving the kitchen was the only good option for them to use.

"Nah we'll just go upstairs and study." The youngest muttered pulling the back of his brother's shirt as he started to leave the small room. There mother frowned and shook her head with a small tsk.

 "Okay then but I don't want to hear you two arguing while I'm in here or no phones for the next week." She warned them as her arm stirred the wooden spoon in the pot taking it out to take a sip of the curry.

Before she even finished talking the two had already left the room and began heading up the stairs that led to the second floor of the house. Even though it was only a townhouse the home had enough space to fit the family of seven in it. With three bedrooms and a basement all the siblings had a place to sleep despite there being seven of them.

The two actually only shared a room together so it was easier for them to slip in and lock the door behind them. It was a relatively small room with a bunk bed on one side and a futon on the other. Next to the bunk bed was a medium sized closet and dresser sat right behind where the futon sat.

While Altair took to sitting on the bottom bunk and crossed his legs with his head perched on his hands, his brother just stood with his back against the door. 

He could tell from the way he held himself that the boy was frustrated as his body was tense and his eyes closed.

Sitting, he toyed with the shoelaces on his sneakers. He didn't want to be first one to say anything or be in such a position. 

 "Do you think she's having a affair?" The question jolted him out of his thoughts and made him drop the shoelaces back onto the bed's thin sheets. 

 "Our mother is not having a affair Gabe," He gritted his teeth at the last part hoping to get the message across to the stubborn teen. "Why the hell would you even say something like that?"

Gabe stared at him emphatically and sighed with a low shudder.

 "She's getting more money then she's ever gotten before, her car hasn't even moved in the last week and she's always coming home with the smell of cologne on her body." Altair narrowed his eyes at the last few words.

 "When dad's on the road she always puts his cologne on. It helps her cope with him being gone so long. You know that Gabe." He watched as the teen nodded his head seemingly agreeing with what he said but not giving up. "Gabe."

 "Dad's been gone for over a year Altair and mum always becomes depressed every single time. But not once in the past twelve months has she even shown any sign of worrying about him or even caring about anything but her so called job." He shook his head. "She's always either sleeping when we get home or still in her pajamas."

 "So, she can just be overworked from taking care of us all by herself." He sighed giving him a look filled with disappointment. 

 "Can you just let this go?"

Gabe opened his mouth as if he where going to argue with him but he must have seen the look the other was giving him as he shut his mouth and walked over to the bedroom's window. His face was red as  he kept his back to the other with his lips in a firm line.

He didn't care that he was upset as he felt that it was disrespectful to even think of there mother sleeping with another man. It made his stomach feel queasy and he wanted to banish any remnant of the idea from his mind. And he couldn't even imagine what made his brother think of there mother in such a way.

Sighing, he turned onto his side and faced the roof of the bunk. Stickers and cracked wood stared back at him and with a yawn he closed his eyes as the exhaustion from the entire day collapsed onto him.