Chapter Text
The canoe rocked. Water sloshed, spattering against its sides. Eric yanked his foot back before Ace laughed, shoving him gently. Eric’s jaw tightened. Glancing at Ace over his shoulder, he faltered: “Are you sure this is.. safe?”
Shadows sunk between Ace’s teeth as he slumped in a shower of fiery oranges and golds. Eric squinted. The sun retired behind the treetops which bobbed gently in the breeze tossing Ace’s hair as he ambled down the hill. “What are you so afraid of?” Ace, in his squeaky, parroty way, joked. His heels clicking on cement grew with the lake gently sloshing on the bank.
Eric bit his lip. A cooler swung from Ace’s hand. “What if the boat capsizes?” Eric crossed his arms, staring at his mud-caked combat boots.
“Haven’t had it happen yet.” Ace slurred, shrugging one-shouldered.
“You can’t swim.”
“You could better than me!”
Ace laughed. Eric recoiled. His ears throbbed. Ace slid into the boat. It swang with his weight. As the ends of a couple rods poked his legs, he muttered curses, kicking at them. Once Ace sat then cracked a beer, Eric held his breath, counted himself in and—his eyes locked on the boat. He sighed.
“Eric. What’s the worst that can happen if it flips right here?” Ace pressed like a disappointed parent, raising his brows, “You fall and drown in ankle deep water?”
Eric peered down. Sun hit a cloud of rust. Minnows flocked into the murk. His body tightened. A knot wrangled in his throat.
“.. I don’t think that’s just ankle deep.”
“Okay, but shoulder deep? You gonna die?” Ace paused then softened, “You’re gonna be alright. I’m here to catch you if it goes wrong.”
The two smiled at each other before Eric caught his breath and eased into the boat. He froze. Arctic burst through his body as his end sunk. Ace roared in laughter as it eased back up. Eric shuddered. Next thing they knew, the pinch of whatever murk smelled like on a lake stung their noses. Eric tensed. Salty? No. Peppery? Earthy?
Looking more like bowling pins at the other side of a supermarket parking lot, trees caged them. Deep green trees. Dark stalked between them behind bushes. Ace rigged his fishing rod then cast. The string hissed before smacking into the water.
“I brought a second one just in case.” Ace rambled.
Eric looked at his shaking hands. “I think I’ll pass this time.” He sighed with a halfhearted smile, “But I’m happy to provide you company at least.” Ace chuckled.
“Just keep your voice down—fish hate noise.”
“Okay.” ‘Says you.’ Eric thought, he couldn’t hold back a grin.
Silence. Stabbed by the pop of Ace’s beer can and the short hiss that followed, then the slow crinkling of it in his fist. Eric watched the sun ride the soft ripples like shimmering snow as the wind kissed his face. He couldn’t help the way his breathing eased. Ace’s cursing and the sharp crunch of his can he clenched patted Eric awake—only for Eric’s eyes to heavy again.
A boat—a dot, eased in the corner of his eye now and again, but as the sun burrowed behind the trees, Eric’s last sighting of the other guys died.
Dark nested in the gaps between the rocks on one end of the shoreline. Lilac glared off the pebbles on another side, then cliff of boulders and red clay. Reeds towered. Trees hunched over. The lake was a crooked creek they were thrown into the size of ants.
“Come on.” Ace groaned, “I ain’t caught a fish this whole fuckin time!”
“Really?” Eric blinked himself awake.
“Yea—what the hell!”
Eric yawned. “You’ll get it. We’ve not been out here long anyway.” Through half lidded eyes, he watched the shoreline which blurred with the rest of the night until his eyes focused. Ace half-smiled.
“Maybe they’re just in for the night.” Ace joked, brightening, “It may be a fish holiday! Who knows.” He laughed—the boat cradled. Eric flinched. His heart hurdled.
“Y-Yeah…” He faltered, itching the nape of his neck and looking off.
“Eric!” Ace hissed.
Eric blinked himself awake, sitting up from the middle. Things clashed off his legs. Ace shook his shoulder like it had gold in it. He glanced and glanced over his shoulder. “What..?” Eric moaned. Ace gawked at the black sky.
“Did you.. did you hear it?” He hushed.
“No.” Eric chuckled, “I was sleeping.”
“Just now.” Ace sharpened, “As you were waking up?”
“Nothing—except my head hitting the bench as you shook me.” Eric sassed, sliding back onto it and stretching his cramping legs.
Ace’s eyes widened. “I think I’m just imagining things, but my senses are going crazy..” He reassured himself, petting his own hair as if to fix it. Eric looked around. His brain dried.
“You’ve not even told me what you heard.” His brow raised. Ace took a deep, shaky breath and sat back, clasping his rod while his shoulders curled in.
“Erm..” He feet which he glared at crammed together as his brows tightened, “Birds.”
“Birds?”
“Yeah. One lone, whistling bird. It went—boom!” He flew upright, his hands flying apart, “Then all the sudden—it’s quiet again. When you woke up it was this one little whistle, one that you.. really wouldn’t hear if you weren’t listening.”
Eric leaned closer. “I mean.. I get why it would be odd cause.. uhh, I don’t think we’ve heard a bird this entire time, but-”
“We.. we haven’t?” Ace’s eyes widened, “O-Oh my god.. we haven’t.”
“Well.. it could also be a hallucination if you didn’t get enough sleep or you’re just tired or..”
“-No.” Ace spoke over him, sharpening, “I assure you, I’m fully fuckin awake.”
He leaned down. The two stared at each other. Eric went rigid before Ace turned, casting. The string hissed.
“If we just make small talk or something you think it’ll happen again?” Eric continued, “I mean, it’s not completely out of the norm for birds to whistle at night. I once freaked out when one flew past me.”
He squeezed a chuckle, watching Ace. Ace was more tense than Paul during rehearsal. He hunched, clutching his rod like a gun in a break in with his eyes locked ahead of him. He looked small. His thumping heart and heavy, coarse breathing thudded in Eric’s ears. Still air. No brushing treetops, still water. Silence.
Eric’s guts coiled. Every hair on his body slowly pricked. ‘Ace is just afraid. It’s rubbing off on me.’ He reassured himself, clasping his cargo pants pockets from the insides.
“I feel like I’m going crazy.” Ace said. Eric perked alert.
“Ace. I don’t think it’s necessary, it was just a bird.”
“We’re not going anywhere until I feel better.”
Eric’s eyes flew wide. Ace’s worked pierced him like ice water. He quickly shook his head—”You don’t want out of here-”
“I heard it was we passed the hill.”
“What if it’s some piece of shit trying to scare us off to thieve our car?”
“I have a bad feeling.”
“That could contribute easily!” Eric snapped, “Did you see anything weird?”
“N-No.”
“What’s got you so shaken up??”
Ace breathed in, held it then out. His chest caved. He paused before slowly turning. Though dark quilted his face like thick sheer curtains, dim sagged his otherwise blank features.
“.. I know no one takes me seriously. Especially on this.” He murmured, “But I really need you to listen to me.”
Eric recoiled. “Ace—Use your reasoning. Whatever you’re thinking it is is probably the last thing it is—I-I mean, come on. I understand your anxiety, hell-” He chuckled, defeated, “I could hardly get in the boat! But it’s fine.” Rubbing his temple, he emphasized: “Did it sound abnormal?”
“.. Yes.”
“It’s alright. I promise.” Eric soothed, “But if it’s really messing with you it would be best if we went home. Plus.. maybe the alcohol isn’t great for this.”
Ace popped open his tackle box. As he fumbled, he glanced over the lid, kicking the beer box to face Eric. Cans glinted, walling it to the point it wasn’t even half empty. He nudged one beside his foot, which sounded half full at least. “You’re still drunk.” Eric sassed.
“You were out cold for like five hours.” Ace rambled, bending back and picking up a can from behind.
It was crumpled as the core of an apple. He eased the hook through the pull tab, tying it together with a rubber band. Eric drew back, raising his brows. “What are you doing?” He doubted. Ace turned it, his eyes following a soft glint running across it before he cast.
It hit the water, the only blue and silver thing in a field of black.
“Sorting intentions.” Ace stated.