A long silence stretched between us as we watched the shadows lengthen, as if neither one of us were quite sure what to say.\u00a0 It was awkward, almost painful.<\/p>\n
I took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cThey named him Seamus,\u201d I said.\u00a0 Anything to break the silence.\u00a0 It was my own small peace offering.\u00a0 He\u2019d asked what I\u2019d Seen.\u00a0 I hoped saying that would be enough.<\/p>\n
Phelan stared at me in confusion for a moment, blinking and frowning.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTeague and Kira.\u00a0 They named their son Seamus.\u00a0 The son that you knew they were having when they left Chicago to go wherever the hell they were going to be safe from the end of the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
His eyes narrowed slightly.\u00a0 \u201cHow did\u2014no.\u00a0 I don\u2019t want to ask that question, do I?\u201d<\/p>\n
I shook my head.\u00a0 \u201cProbably not.\u00a0 But they named him Seamus, for your cousin.\u201d\u00a0 I fell quiet again for a moment before I asked, \u201cDo you think he\u2019s alive?\u00a0 Your cousin?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTeague and Neve\u2019s brother?\u201d\u00a0 Phelan sighed, raking his hands through his hair.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d he said, his voice quiet.\u00a0 \u201cPart of me wants to believe that he is.\u00a0 Then there\u2019s the logical part of me that says that it can\u2019t be true, that we\u2019re living in some kind of dreamworld if we believe for even a heartbeat that he might be alive.\u201d\u00a0 He shook his head, sounding wistful for a moment.\u00a0 \u201cBut it\u2019s a nice thought.\u00a0 In a lot of ways, he was the best of us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou miss him a lot,\u201d I said softly.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s the reason I\u2019m the Taliesin,\u201d Phelan said simply, staring at the snow.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s the reason I\u2019m here\u2014maybe even the reason I am the way I am, but I have to claim some of the credit for that myself.\u201d\u00a0 He sighed again and shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI miss him, le\u00e1nnan<\/i>. We all miss him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s your cousin,\u201d I said.\u00a0 \u201cOf course you miss him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Phelan shook his head slightly.\u00a0 \u201cA lot of things changed once he was gone, le\u00e1nnan<\/i>,\u201d he said softly.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe things that shouldn\u2019t have changed.\u00a0 Things that led to our current path.\u201d<\/p>\n
I leaned against him for a moment, sliding my arm around his shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cThen it can\u2019t be all bad.\u00a0 Occasional nasty circumstances aside, I think we\u2019re all pretty happy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Phelan snorted softly and I poked him.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s true,\u201d I sad.\u00a0 \u201cI think we\u2019re all better off now than we were a few months ago, before the end of everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe,\u201d he said, eyes staring at something long ago and far away.\u00a0 \u201cMaybe.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A long silence stretched between us as we watched the shadows lengthen, as if neither one of us were quite sure what to say.\u00a0 It was awkward, almost painful. I took a deep breath.\u00a0 \u201cThey named him Seamus,\u201d I said.\u00a0 … Continue reading