Eli stares dimly out the passenger side window, watching the grind rails pass while imagining a man running atop them at impossible speed, jumping any gap or sign with little effort.
Sometimes he wishes he could run that fast. What if he could? What if he could outpace the car and run a mile in the blink of an eye?
First he'd run downtown and race up a skyscraper, just to see what the world looks like. Then he'd run back to the streets and past the over-crowded busses. He'd wave if he's feeling nice, but it's more likely he'd blow a raspberry. Then...
"Don't worry, kiddo. She'll pull through."
Eli is pulled from his fantasy and back to the real world, where all that awaits him is the stale, too-clean smell of Voight's car and an annoying reminder that Mom is in the hospital.
He wants to respond to the effect of it not being her first time, but even speaking would take what little energy was already spent being dragged out of school and trying to get his dad on the phone to no avail. He instead continues to stare and tries to return to his daydream.
Voight slows to the red light and lets out a heavy sigh. The silence itches at him, "...you got a key, right?"
Without looking away from the window, Eli holds up his housekey, having kept it in his hand the whole ride.
"Ah, good." the wolf mumbles. The light goes green and they're off again, "...sorry, I'd let you stay the night but I got numbers to crunch before Monday." he says softly, as if to let the bun down easy.
"That's okay." Eli responds flatly, still fixed on the running man in his mind's eye.
"Mmh." the wolf stifles a huff in his throat, exhaling sharply but just slightly.
"...you're not gonna fire her, are you?"
Voight's brow unfurls and he laughs heartily, so much he nearly misses a stop sign, having to slam the breaks and force the bunny tight against his seatbelt, "Course not! C'mon now. What kinda man would I be if I did that?"
"A bad one."
"..."
Another minute of silence, broken only by the squeal of the wheels as Voight comes to a slow and definite stop.
Eli blinks and sees a familiar curb, but no house, "This isn't my stop..."
His ears twitch to the brief but piercing whine of a radio, followed by a muffled, chipper voice, "Hi there, what can I get ya?"
Finally turning from the window, he sees the drive-thru menu of a restaurant towering over the car and a smiling Voight, "Y'hungry?"
Eli was already uneasy at one kindness from the wolf, but even more so at the idea of digging around for two bread ends and scraping at an empty jar of peanut butter.
"Um...yeah. Okay."
The line is an agonizing wait, one the bun all but goes to space to endure.
He wonders how Mom is doing. Part of him wanted to stay, but if he has to sit in a room with no one to talk to, he'd rather be at home, where it's at least familiar.
He wonders why Dad is too busy. Dad's boss must be evil. At least Voight took off.
He wonders what his food will be. If he gave an answer he's already forgotten.
The questions fall out of his brain as a colorful box is dropped onto his lap. It feels terrible but smells amazing. He sees Voight's handed to him in a bag and feels a pang in his heart at the comparatively childish container of his own, guilty over his brief excitement over the toy inside.
As they pull off down the street, sniffing at the box no longer suffices. The heavy, salty aroma pouring from the gaps nearly makes him drool. Eli may be a rabbit, but has a carnivorous hunger to rival a wolf's. He digs his nails in between said gap and grabs at the burger inside.
"Hey hey hey!" Voight snaps, "Not in the car! Just got it reupholstered."
Eli sheepishly puts it back down, but makes sure to sneak a fry at the next left turn.
-
At last, they pull onto gravel and unkempt grass.
"Alright, home sweet home." Voight sighs happily, unbuckling and grabbing his food.
Eli follows suit, only to feel a jolt down his spine when he hears Voight's door close and his feet on the gravel. He peers over the hood and sees the wolf approach the porch.
"You comin'?" the wolf turns and asks.
"Uh..." Eli picks up the box, "Can...we eat out here?"
"Huh?" Voight raises a brow.
"...please?"
A new silence, one far worse than the one in the car. He sees a myriad of emotions flash across the wolf's eyes, ranging from disbelief to disdain. And yet, it's over as quick as it begins. Voight shrugs and leans against his car, digging into the bag for his dinner.
Eli comes around to join him, happy to finally have his burger in hand. Taking a bite, he feels a flood across his tongue; salty, tangy, sweet, sour, some he loved, some he could have done without, but after today, anything was better than nothing.
His taste-induced trance is broken when he hears the wolf swear, "Gah! Fuck!"
There stands Voight, having caught a glob of sauce right on his lily white shirt before taking a single bite. The bunny can't help but giggle at the sight of him trying to wipe it off with no napkin.
Maybe he'll pay for it later. It and the burger. But for now, he has a nice dinner, and soon he'll have a house to himself. For now, he'll blast his radio as loud as he can and stomp on the ddr mat as hard as he can.
i love the story scenes you include in the descriptions for these. they add a lot to some already incredible art. eli enjoying his burger is very cute x3 i love seeing him in different art styles. i always love to see chunkychip art around.
i love the story scenes you include in the descriptions for these. they add a lot to some already in
