Zac looked up from the cymbol that he was fiddling with, shocked at the slam of the door that signaled Taylor's entrance into their practice room. He watched his brother curiously as he trudged to the center of the room and shoved his hands in his pockets, examining the extension cord on the floor with the toe of his boot.
"No luck on the Erica front again I see." he observed from the look on Taylor's face.
Taylor pried his hands from his pockets and held them in the air, his eyes widened in mock shock, "Today she's ambivolent, or so she says."
Zac tapped lightly on a cymbol, "Ambivolent, eh?" he watched as Taylor seated himself at the piano and tinkered away on random keys, "What's that?"
Taylor looked up absentmindedly, "What's what?"
Zac sighed as he dropped his drumsticks and proceeded towards Taylor and the piano, "Ambivolent."
Tay shrugged and plunked away another melancholy melody, "It means I fucked up." he mumbled sarcastically.
Zac snickered and leaned against the piano, "Oh, so nothing's changed."
Taylor grinned briefly at Zac's joke as his mindless piano tampering began to take shape. Zac tapped his foot for a moment, "That's pretty hot, Tay." he observed of the tune.
Taylor glanced at Zac, "Ya think?" he asked as he turned his musical ear towards the piano. Listening to his own depressing notes. He began to hum abstractly.
"Don't try for words yet." Zac shook his head, "They'll come naturally. This one's special, I can feel it."
"Ahem." a cough came from behind them. It was Isaac, "Is this a private jamming session or was someone gonna invite me?"
Taylor slammed the lid over the ivory piano keys and shot Isaac a death glare, "I think I'll go rot somewhere else for awhile." he muttered standing up.
Zac silently looked on as his brother pushed past Ike angrily and left the room the same way that he had entered it, with a big door slamming production. He sucked in a noisy breath and leaned backwards against the body of the piano, raising his eyebrows in Isaac's direction almost accusingly.
Isaac shifted uneasily under his younger brother's gaze, "I guess he still hasn't forgiving me for that little thing, huh? Ya know, ruining his life and all." he tried to joke.
"There was no other way." Zac shrugged as he picked his way back over to his drums and ignoring his brother's lament, "you did what you had to do."
"What I was told to do, what I was fucking forced to do." Isaac interrupted as he fiddled with a microphone stand, "I shouldn't have lied."
Zac cut him off, "Oh come off it already!" he shot his brother a look of blatant disapproval, "You did what you had to, don't waste a lifetime regretting it."
Isaac averted his eyes, "Easy for you to say. He's still speaking with you, your practically his goddamned angel right now. He's always asking you for your saintly advice. If I would have never lied he would never have cause to hate me and not trust me. Now I'm a piece of shit and you...you're...I don't even know but I hate it so much!"
Zac slammed a cymbol with his drumstick, "What the hell is that supposed to mean? Are you jealous that Taylor actually wants to talk to his younger brother for once? That you're not ever-knowing Isaac? You're pissed at me for that? Well fuck you then Ike!" he yelled before an angry drumfill filled the air signaling the end of that conversation for the day.
Taylor wandered into the living room and stumbled upon his mother, "Whatcha watching?" he asked as he flopped lazily onto the other end of the couch.
"Nothing good." his mother replied flipping off the television and setting the remote down. She was ready for the one on one conversation with her son that she had known would eventually come, "So what's been going on?"
He threw his hands in the air, shrugged and yawned.
"You look tired sweetie." she observed.
Taylor offered a weak grin, "Mentally, physically and emotionally." he responded before sprawling across the couch. He rested his head onto her lap and fixated his eyes on the blank television screen.
Mrs. Hanson stroked her son's hair, "Why?" she pried.
He sighed and closed his eyes. His mother seemed so easy to confide in right then, "What's wrong with me mom? I mean, why am I such a jerk, huh?"
"Absolutely nothing is wrong with you baby. You're not a jerk." she reasurred him.
He raised his head to look at her, his face crumpled, "Then why doesn't she love me?" a tear slipped out before he turned away from her again, "I just wanna know why."
"Just give her time," she stroked his hair still, "she'll come around eventually. You guys were always such good friends, she needs you. She'll always need you and you'll always need her, she'll realize that eventually."
"Eventually." Taylor lamented quietly, "That's too long."
"You can't push so hard, honey, give her some time. Trust me. Time heals all wounds." she murmmured.
Taylor pondered that thought quietly and tiredly before drawing his conclusion on the verge of sleep. Time has poured salt on my open wounds.
"Amen." Walker Hanson ended the dinner table prayer. This signaled the beginning of the normal Hanson family chatter at dinner time.
Over the buzz of small children and the clinking of plates and utensils Diana Hanson's voice could be heard, "So how was everyone's day?"
"Softball was great." Jessica chirped still clad in her uniform, "I pitched the whole game. The coach told me I have a great arm!" she boasted happily before chomping on a piece of meatloaf.
"She did a great job," Walker informed everyone, "she has the Hanson pitching arm there."
Zac glanced up, seizing his chance, "Oh, did that skip your generation pop?" he grinned, "Because you throw like a girl."
Taylor and Isaac were coaxed into a small amount of laughter over Zac's comment as there father playfully narrowed his eyes at him.
"When do I get to play softball?" Avery whined.
"When you're older dummy!" Jessica snapped nudging her sister who seemed to be constantly at her heels lately.
"Don't call me dummy...dummy!" Avery punched her arm.
"Girls..." Diana warned as she fed Zoe, "I thought you enjoyed your ballet lessons Avery?"
Avery's face lit up at the sound of the word ballet, "We're puttin on Swan Lake this year."
"Swan Lake?" Zac jumped in, "Didn't you do that last year?"
Avery rolled her eyes at her brother's lack of understanding on ballet recitals, "No, that was 'The Nutcracker'."
"Tay, Ike," Walker spoke taking notcie of their silence and the fact that they, again, were seated at opposite ends of the dinner table, "why so quiet?"
Taylor shifted his gaze at Isaac quickly and shrugged. He shoved a huge chunk of meatloaf and ketchup into his mouth to avoid talking.
Ike also shrugged and speared a carrot with his fork, "Not much to say, I guess. I've been home all day."
Walker loaded more salad onto his plate, "Well, why don't you and Tay take the car out after dinner? I'm sure there's something to do around here."
Zac's head darted up, "Count me in!" he exclaimed.
Taylor dropped his fork and held his hands up as if trying to keep that idea far away from him, "Hold up. I'm too exhausted to get into a car with these two tonight." he protested.
Walker paused mid-spoonful and gave his three eldest children a knowing look, "That wasn't a request." he informed them.
Isaac sighed heavily and Taylor dejectedly picked up his fork, angrily stabbing at the food on his plate. Zac began to mentally prepare himself for tonight, shit was gonna hit the fan.