Big Salmon Lake Stale air and dead parades

Takiyok touched him, but he did not respond beyond blinking. No, he answered. He didn't make eye contact with her, even though he knew she might think he was upset with her. None of it was about her. Looking down at the ground for a moment while they walked, he licked his lips anxiously.
For a long moment, he didn't say anything. It was hard to explain what he was feeling. Some of it, he was positive, was the rattling in his mind that had persisted since the fever had turned. It was as though someone had filled his head with static and jacked up the volume as far as it would go. The breathing through his nose was harsh, troubled. He kept his head low, trying his best to focus ahead of him. Something's not right. I can feel it.
The silence of the flash in the sky had bothered him since it happened. He didn't know why. He'd seen shooting stars before, but whatever that was just wasn't right. Something told him this wasn't going to be just another visit. It wasn't something he could even explain with logic. Gut reactions are bullshit but I can feel it, he repeated.