The Prince and the Pauper

Lyle closed his eyes, listening to the hum of Attis’ breathing. Had he not remembered Donnie was in the room, he would’ve confessed a part of his unsure feelings through actions, rather than words. It was easier that way, for Lyle.

Donnie stared at Lyle lying on Attis. The way they were positioned made it look so wrong. The way they looked like each other made it worse. As Donnie stood there, he wondered what people would say-what Lyle’s parents would say if Lyle and Attis were to have an intimate relationship. The thought made his stomach turn.

If they are twins, wouldn’t that be incest?

Donnie tried to force the thought away with success.

“I’m sorry!” Lyle used his arms to lift himself off of Attis after a good couple of minutes. He wasn’t really sorry, he liked being so close to Attis.

Both of their faces absorbed a fierce colour of ruby as they awkwardly got up. Attis straightened his hospital gown and hid under the white covers. He hated the gowns with a flaming passion. They were ridiculously unfashionable and he felt exposed, as if anyone who looked at him could see right through the faulty material. The only incentive was the free and loose feeling of it.

The three were waiting in silence, uncomfortably gazing around to avoid making eye contact. As the suspense in the room grew thicker, the silence grew more unbearable.

Finally, Attis and Lyle looked at each other and let out a relieving snicker. At least Lyle did. Attis only expressed his amusement through a glimmer in his eyes as well as the smile developed on his graceful face.

When Lyle felt content with his outburst, he stopped and bit his lip, wanting to ask the question that’s been lingering in the atmosphere for days now; ever since he met Attis. As Lyle stared nervously at his hands, Attis cocked his head, wondering what was wrong.

“I-I’ve been wondering… Attis,” he paused to breathe. The suspense was killing him, almost as much as the horrific design on the hospital walls. “Your pa- I mean, Cory and Layla.. Are they your r-real parents?”

The question wasn’t completely clear, for Lyle was too anxious to keep his tongue from fumbling over the words. Attis, on the other hand, had already seen it coming, being completely relaxed already having decided on what he’d tell Lyle.

Attis opened his mouth, forming an O shape, though he had no intentions of talking. He closed his mouth back up, looking Lyle in the eyes. The room lights shimmered off of his eyes, adding a dramatic change to the expression Lyle held.

Attis knew it wasn’t nice to keep them waiting. He sighed, looking down and pursing his lips. The day they found out they were twins was a day Attis dreaded. Would Lyle ever want to be more than friends?

Lyle breathed deeply, hoping to calm his wild pulse that was going out of control. He got up and to both Attis’ and Donnie’s surprise, walked out of the room. The two boys sat there watching the door for only seconds before Lyle came trotting back in, beaming.

“Guess what?”

The boys figured it was a rhetorical question and only grinned in response.

“No really, guess,” Lyle chuckled a little as he looked between Donnie and Attis.

Donnie shook his head a little, not knowing what could be up.

“I don’t know,” he said.

Lyle let his shoulders drop to show his disappointment.

“Nevermind, I forgot,” Lyle claimed.

Attis smiled wide, not really believing Lyle had forgotten.

“Well I was actually hoping if I asked-”

Lyle was interrupted by the door opening and a nurse in white and blue scrubs walking in. She had blazing natural red hair. She disregarded Lyle and Donnie and made her way over to Attis, doing a number of things to him.

She checked his eyes and ears, his throat…

“Okay, dear. How are you feeling?” she smiled politely as Attis, waiting for a response. He only smiled back and nodded his head. The same nurse had being seeing him every day and by now, she knew he didn’t talk. Even though she advised him to speak up every now and then, he still remained mute.

“Great!” She beamed. “How would you feel if you got some visitors?” She bit her lip slightly as she waited for him to respond.

Attis’ face fell. He feared it was Layla, coming to assure him he hadn’t escaped, that she would find him and kill him. But he thought better of it. The nurses would never let her near him after the incident.

“You see, we submitted your profile to the nearest orphanage, but a couple saw you here and asked about you. Well, they wanted to adopt you instead. I’d say you got lucky, Attis. Growing up as an orphan isn’t really ideal,” she said.

Attis looked down. His last foster parents had been terrible. What would these people be like?

“You don’t have much say in it, but you do have the option to say ‘no’. You just can’t refuse to go to an orphanage too. There’s no other place…” the nurse trailed off, hoping that Attis was listening, though he was upset.

Attis shook his head and brought his knees up to his chest. He wished he could live with Lyle or Donnie. They were so warm with each other. Though he knew it was impossible. No parents want to take on the responsibility of another child other than their own. Especially when their own kid is getting old so they’re looking forward to getting them out of the house. It just wasn’t that easy.

“I’ll tell them you’d like to think about it. Okay?” the nurse said with sympathy. Attis nodded as she rose from his bed and looked at Lyle and Donnie.

“Visiting hours are almost over. But thanks for keeping him company,” she grinned civilly at them before walking out. The boys only nodded and returned the friendly gesture.

Lyle hummed a song while he sashayed to the side of Attis’ bed.

“We’re gonna go, but we’ll be here when you are released. Maybe they’ll let us take you somewhere before you have to go to the orphanage. Or, wherever they’re taking you,” Lyle beamed at Attis, trying to encourage him to smile back. “There’s always the option of running away.”

Attis silently giggled and offered Lyle a doubtful look. Lyle laughed and leaned over to give Attis a hug. Attis immediately wrapped his arms around him and buried his face in Lyle's shoulder.

“Bye, Attis,” Lyle whispered as he pulled away. Attis reluctantly let go of his shirt and shot Lyle a half-smile.

Donnie walked over to him and gave Attis a quick, but friendly, hug.

“We’ll see you tomorrow,” he smiled and waved goodbye as he walked out. Attis waved back. Lyle stayed beside the bed for a moment more. He didn’t get an answer to his question.

Lyle felt something brush against his hand. He looked down to se Attis struggling to reach for his right hand. It made him smile, but Attis was completely embarrassed. Pulling his hand away, a blush formed on his cheeks. He turned from Lyle to hide his face.

Lyle laughed silently and gently took his hand back. Attis slowly looked at him once again and smiled shyly. His eyes held a look that could hold a million meanings. Since Lyle didn’t know which ones, he thought it best to keep his feelings to himself.

He caressed the back of Attis’ hand with his thumb for a moment before starting to pull away. Attis gradually tightened his grip as he started to feel Lyle's hand slip away.

“Please don’t go.”