Welcome to Gaia! ::

(1/7)

At the risk of sounding dramatic, Isaia had begun to split his life into 'Before' and 'After' the accident. It was a distinction only made in his head so hopefully it was excusable, but it was difficult to break the thought pattern regardless. Everything these days came down to a comparison of two lives. The Isaia of Before would have been ashamed of his After self - at his weakness towards his injuries, anxiety over Maritza's condition, his obsession with a stranger, and now his new religious curiosity.

But there it was. It was a hard habit to break, but these days he had far too much time to focus on his thoughts, and inevitably that's where they always went.

Before, a winter chill had been a cause for celebration; flights would be cancelled or postponed until the weather cleared, and he and his friends would go off to the closest inn or bar to warm themselves with alcohol and close company. At his most childish, he'd enjoy himself with youngling games like blowing his breath as if he was making steam, or daring friends to take nude dips to see how long until they ran back indoors to warm up by a fire.

... Now? Now, he suddenly understood why his old man complained about the cold - the shift in the weather had taken a toll on his bad leg before the cold itself took a drastic dip, leaving it aching and throbbing. He wasn't sure where the rest of his family was, he'd been asleep until just a few hours ago (despite the time of day), and they were already gone by the time he dragged himself, swaddled in blankets, to a chair by the dead fireplace.

Isaia must've dozed off, because while he slept through the knock, the sudden slam of the door resulted in a snort as he woke, jolting in his seat as a wave of cold air washed inside along with his brother. He glowered half heartedly at Lioe, ducking his face pathetically into the blanket still wrapped around his shoulders like a lumpy scarf. "Had to go bringin' it in with you then, huh?"

(2/7)

Isaia eyeballed his brother, annoyance shifting to amusement at each layer of clothing. "Are you?" He shot back cheekily, laughing. A part of him was embarrassed that all his siblings had come to see him, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't relieved too. It was easy to ignore how much he missed the other two triplets when he was busy with work.

He shuffled a bit to make some room on the seat he was in, opening up the blanket he was curled up in with a shiver, "I already have one - warmed up and everything! Well? Get over here!"

(3/7)

Yeah... yeah, he couldn't remember the last time he'd cuddled with his siblings. Isaia as a kid had always tried acting older than he really was, had clung to the idea of being a 'big boy' far before it was expected of him. He draped the blanket around his brother's shoulder as best he could with his stiff arms, then slumped into his side, huffing out a content sigh.

Matori? "Nah. Always heard it was sunny and nice for swimming." Isaia shot a flat, doubtful look at the door, still fringed by ice that Lioe had let inside. "Between this storm and the trip here? Can't say I'm impressed."