Smokescreen by icd
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Chapter or Story 
Chapter or Story
Disclaimer: see part one
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Smokescreen
Part 7
A glimpse behind the smokescreen
A few more days went by but Jarod wasn’t able to get any closer to his younger twin. Jay was still closed up and very distant. He didn’t open up at all; on the contrary - after their nightly encounter Jay seemed to be more adamant than ever to get away from Jarod.
Jarod on the other hand, felt his nerves fraying by the second.
He knew he wouldn’t be able to keep cool for much longer. Jay’s last remarks had been hitting too close to home. On some level Jarod knew Jay was trying to protect himself by dishing out hurtful remarks but it didn’t make them any less painful.
Maybe it was time for a real confrontation… on the other hand, there was another possibility… a possibility he still shrank away from.
He could try to sim his younger self.
He knew siming him would be difficult because he was very close to him and because Jay had been able to hide so many things from him that he didn’t know if he would be able to perform a proper sim.
Yet, there were only few alternatives.
Maybe it was something he just had to do to get any closer to their problem. He should just get over with it.
Jarod breathed deeply and leaned back in the comfortable easy chair. He closed his eyes and started taking deep and calming breaths.
It took him only minutes to get through to the phase of deep concentration; years of training effectively helping him. He was in the middle of the sim when he felt rather than heard someone entering the room.
Jarod didn’t pay attention to that someone though.
Jay watched his older self’s movements, quickly recognising them. His face darkened and his eyes narrowed. “Stop siming me,” he hissed. “I don’t want you to do that!”
Jarod looked up at the angry voice and found Jay staring down at him. “Why don’t you want me to be doing it?” he asked evenly, knowing that he would provoke Jay.
He had just discovered simming wouldn’t be possible so he decided to take the other way he had refrained from until now: attack. Hopefully he would be able to provoke Jay into a fight where the boy would lose control over his calculated moves. Then maybe he would be able to get Jay to tell him more about his emotional state and what it was that had resulted in this mess.
“Why don’t I want you to do that?” Jay asked incredulously. “You are kidding, right?”
Jarod quirked an eyebrow. “No,” he said calmly.
“Because you’re invading my personal territory and I don’t want you there,” Jay snarled.
“Then give me something to work with, so I can figure out what it is that makes you that angry. Let me find another way to help you then,” Jarod said, trying to calm himself despite Jay’s words. He needed to stay focussed so that he wouldn’t lose what he wanted Jay to lose: his composure and the control over the situation.
“My God, you just don’t understand do you?”
“Understand what?”
“I don’t want your help, Jarod. In fact, I don’t want you anywhere here, anywhere near me. Just go, leave and go back to your pretends.”
Jarod shook his head. “No.”
“Why not?” Jay asked, raising his hands in exasperation.
“Not before we’ve had a long and open talk,” Jarod said evenly.
“No!” Jay screamed in frustration. He then took a deep breath. “Jarod, you can’t help me. And I don’t know if you really want to help me even though you say you do.”
Jarod’s jaw nearly hit the floor at this remark. Thoughts started racing through his head. He looked at Jay in puzzlement. “Why wouldn’t I want to help you? Isn’t my being here alone telling a different tale?”
“No, it isn’t. I don’t think that you would want to help me anymore than anyone else around here,” Jay said, getting more and more agitated. “No one in this twisted family is truly interested in me and no one cares about me,” Jay yelled and then stormed off angrily, leaving Jarod sitting in the living room.
Jarod watched his younger self striding out of the room, an interested expression on his face.
Moments after Jay had left Marc entered the room and walked over to where Jarod was sitting, still staring at where Jay had stormed out.
Marc sat down on the chair opposite from Jarod. “What was that?”
Jarod averted his eyes from the door and let his gaze sweep over to Marc. “I think ‘a discussion that ended in a confrontation’ would describe it best,” he replied.
Marc looked closely at Jarod, watching his face. The pretender had his expression back under control but the wheels were still turning in his head.
“Shall I go to Jay and try to talk to him?” Marc asked.
“No, you better leave him alone. He’ll either scream at you to leave or he will leave you there, running out of the room,” Jarod said.
Ever since he had arrived in this house, Jarod had seen Jay leave the room whenever he felt pressure on him. He had either left or pointedly shot at his older self to divert the attention from himself.
But what the young man had just revealed was interesting, very interesting indeed.
Jarod had been able to push him directly to where he had hoped to get him. Jay had lost his countenance and had given him a good clue as to what it was that had sent him into this detached and isolated state.
Now several things were finally making sense and suddenly a big puzzle was laying out in front of Jarod. There were still missing pieces but the picture was slowly completing itself.
“You look as if you just got a whole lot closer to Jay than it would seem to the casual observer,” Marc stated.
“You’re right. I think I just got a better view on what is going on,” Jarod nodded.
“Despite the fight?” Marc asked.
“Because of the fight. I should have tried confrontation much earlier,” Jarod said, leaving Marc puzzled. “There are still some parts missing but I think that I’m far closer to what’s going on. When did you say he started behaving this way?”
“About three months before you came,” Marc replied, frowning at the question.
Jarod merely nodded. “Three months. That’s what I thought you said,” he trailed off. “I have some things to take care of,” he got up from his seat and went out of the room.
Shortly afterwards Marc heard the front door close and then a car-engine being fired. Marc looked at the door, frowning, but then he shrugged.
Jarod and Jay were so similar. Both of them were secretive and when they had decided to do something - anything - they would do it eventually. And they would both keep it a secret until it was done, the preparations and possibly also the action.
Marc got up from his seat and walked over to the kitchen where he knew his wife was preparing dinner.
“And?” she asked when he entered the room.
“I think Jarod has an idea and that maybe he’ll get to the bottom of everything that’s going on,” Marc said. “But I don’t know anything else.”
Carol looked at her husband and gave him a wink. “He will get to the bottom of this puzzle.”
“Yes, after I saw him now, I’m sure he will. I was starting to doubt but now I’m certain that he’ll find a way. But how he’ll do it is still beyond me.”
To be continued…
~~~~~~~
Part 7
A glimpse behind the smokescreen
A few more days went by but Jarod wasn’t able to get any closer to his younger twin. Jay was still closed up and very distant. He didn’t open up at all; on the contrary - after their nightly encounter Jay seemed to be more adamant than ever to get away from Jarod.
Jarod on the other hand, felt his nerves fraying by the second.
He knew he wouldn’t be able to keep cool for much longer. Jay’s last remarks had been hitting too close to home. On some level Jarod knew Jay was trying to protect himself by dishing out hurtful remarks but it didn’t make them any less painful.
Maybe it was time for a real confrontation… on the other hand, there was another possibility… a possibility he still shrank away from.
He could try to sim his younger self.
He knew siming him would be difficult because he was very close to him and because Jay had been able to hide so many things from him that he didn’t know if he would be able to perform a proper sim.
Yet, there were only few alternatives.
Maybe it was something he just had to do to get any closer to their problem. He should just get over with it.
Jarod breathed deeply and leaned back in the comfortable easy chair. He closed his eyes and started taking deep and calming breaths.
It took him only minutes to get through to the phase of deep concentration; years of training effectively helping him. He was in the middle of the sim when he felt rather than heard someone entering the room.
Jarod didn’t pay attention to that someone though.
Jay watched his older self’s movements, quickly recognising them. His face darkened and his eyes narrowed. “Stop siming me,” he hissed. “I don’t want you to do that!”
Jarod looked up at the angry voice and found Jay staring down at him. “Why don’t you want me to be doing it?” he asked evenly, knowing that he would provoke Jay.
He had just discovered simming wouldn’t be possible so he decided to take the other way he had refrained from until now: attack. Hopefully he would be able to provoke Jay into a fight where the boy would lose control over his calculated moves. Then maybe he would be able to get Jay to tell him more about his emotional state and what it was that had resulted in this mess.
“Why don’t I want you to do that?” Jay asked incredulously. “You are kidding, right?”
Jarod quirked an eyebrow. “No,” he said calmly.
“Because you’re invading my personal territory and I don’t want you there,” Jay snarled.
“Then give me something to work with, so I can figure out what it is that makes you that angry. Let me find another way to help you then,” Jarod said, trying to calm himself despite Jay’s words. He needed to stay focussed so that he wouldn’t lose what he wanted Jay to lose: his composure and the control over the situation.
“My God, you just don’t understand do you?”
“Understand what?”
“I don’t want your help, Jarod. In fact, I don’t want you anywhere here, anywhere near me. Just go, leave and go back to your pretends.”
Jarod shook his head. “No.”
“Why not?” Jay asked, raising his hands in exasperation.
“Not before we’ve had a long and open talk,” Jarod said evenly.
“No!” Jay screamed in frustration. He then took a deep breath. “Jarod, you can’t help me. And I don’t know if you really want to help me even though you say you do.”
Jarod’s jaw nearly hit the floor at this remark. Thoughts started racing through his head. He looked at Jay in puzzlement. “Why wouldn’t I want to help you? Isn’t my being here alone telling a different tale?”
“No, it isn’t. I don’t think that you would want to help me anymore than anyone else around here,” Jay said, getting more and more agitated. “No one in this twisted family is truly interested in me and no one cares about me,” Jay yelled and then stormed off angrily, leaving Jarod sitting in the living room.
Jarod watched his younger self striding out of the room, an interested expression on his face.
Moments after Jay had left Marc entered the room and walked over to where Jarod was sitting, still staring at where Jay had stormed out.
Marc sat down on the chair opposite from Jarod. “What was that?”
Jarod averted his eyes from the door and let his gaze sweep over to Marc. “I think ‘a discussion that ended in a confrontation’ would describe it best,” he replied.
Marc looked closely at Jarod, watching his face. The pretender had his expression back under control but the wheels were still turning in his head.
“Shall I go to Jay and try to talk to him?” Marc asked.
“No, you better leave him alone. He’ll either scream at you to leave or he will leave you there, running out of the room,” Jarod said.
Ever since he had arrived in this house, Jarod had seen Jay leave the room whenever he felt pressure on him. He had either left or pointedly shot at his older self to divert the attention from himself.
But what the young man had just revealed was interesting, very interesting indeed.
Jarod had been able to push him directly to where he had hoped to get him. Jay had lost his countenance and had given him a good clue as to what it was that had sent him into this detached and isolated state.
Now several things were finally making sense and suddenly a big puzzle was laying out in front of Jarod. There were still missing pieces but the picture was slowly completing itself.
“You look as if you just got a whole lot closer to Jay than it would seem to the casual observer,” Marc stated.
“You’re right. I think I just got a better view on what is going on,” Jarod nodded.
“Despite the fight?” Marc asked.
“Because of the fight. I should have tried confrontation much earlier,” Jarod said, leaving Marc puzzled. “There are still some parts missing but I think that I’m far closer to what’s going on. When did you say he started behaving this way?”
“About three months before you came,” Marc replied, frowning at the question.
Jarod merely nodded. “Three months. That’s what I thought you said,” he trailed off. “I have some things to take care of,” he got up from his seat and went out of the room.
Shortly afterwards Marc heard the front door close and then a car-engine being fired. Marc looked at the door, frowning, but then he shrugged.
Jarod and Jay were so similar. Both of them were secretive and when they had decided to do something - anything - they would do it eventually. And they would both keep it a secret until it was done, the preparations and possibly also the action.
Marc got up from his seat and walked over to the kitchen where he knew his wife was preparing dinner.
“And?” she asked when he entered the room.
“I think Jarod has an idea and that maybe he’ll get to the bottom of everything that’s going on,” Marc said. “But I don’t know anything else.”
Carol looked at her husband and gave him a wink. “He will get to the bottom of this puzzle.”
“Yes, after I saw him now, I’m sure he will. I was starting to doubt but now I’m certain that he’ll find a way. But how he’ll do it is still beyond me.”
To be continued…
