when you were my father

home again

As soon as we step into our house, I make my way to the couch where I just collapse. I'm so tired, more than I've ever been. In my rush to lay down, I hadn't even noticed that the house isn't empty. Brian's still here, he's sitting, leg's crossed, on a chair across from the couch.

"Brian?" I ask, wondering what he's even still doing here. I just saw him at the beach, but now he looks younger than he did there. Maybe it's just lighting, but something seems so off about it.

"Yeah, wait what happened to your leg?" He asks me, concern showing in his eyes.

"Oh, I just had an accident." I tell him, right as Micah, Isla and DJ all walk in.

"My dad's waiting in the car, I just wanted to make sure you were okay." He says and then sees Brian sitting there. "Wait, him again?"

"Do I know you?" Brian asks DJ, who looks at him like he's the dumbest person ever.

"Well, sort of. I hi met you at the beach earlier today, though you never answered my question." He replies in an accusatory tone.

"I was at the beach? Earlier today?" Brian looks dumbfounded, knowing he definitely wasn't with us at the beach earlier that day. "And I met you? Sorry, but I don't remember that at all."

"What the hell is this guy saying?" DJ practically yells at me, annoyed.

"Calm down, please. It's complicated, but I don't think that Brian was at the beach with us. At least not this Brian."

"What?"

"Just. I'm really tired, so would everyone please stop. We'll talk later." I almost yell shut up, but somehow refrain myself. The two of them have reasons to be confused and yelling won't help, it never does.

"Right, sorry." DJ tells me, and turns to the door. "Bye, I'll see you at school on Monday." And he leaves.

Isla and Micah have just been standing by the door this whole time, silent as can be except for their breathing. Brian looks around, seeming like he's about to say something.

Except that's when our mom decides to enter the room. She looks at my siblings and me, smiling. Until she finds my bandaged leg."Bia! What on Earth happened to your leg?"

"I just had an accident, but I'm fine. It's just broken. But how are you? You passed out yesterday, and haven't really woken up since. I'm glad you're up now." I tell her, but she stops paying attention after my first sentence. Instead her eyes drift to Brian.

"I-I...James?" She stutters, staring at the boy.

"Sorry, I'm not James. I'm Brian." He tells her, a dumb smirk painted across his mouth

"B-Brian..." She manages to make the word out, before cowering back. Fear and confusion fill her eyes, as she staggers around the room.

"Mom? Are you okay?"

"Brian..." It's all she can say, before her eyes seem to turn completely inside out and back again. "JAMES! Don't give her away! She's my daughter! She's your daughter!" She screams at the top of her lungs, looking straight at Brian.

"MOM! Are you okay? That's Brian, and you've never met him before." I tell her. My words seem to bring her back to reality.

"Never met him before?" Or maybe not. "You're telling me that I've never met my-my" She can't seem to finish what she's saying, it's like something is stopping the words from coming. Instead she breaks down in tears.

I run to hug her, wondering what could possibly be making her so upset. She hugs me back, whispering meaningless inaudible words into my arm.

"It's okay," I tell her, looking to Micah for help. He looks back at me and I understand exactly what his eyes are saying.

"Brian, we've asked you this before, but how do you know Isla?" Micah asks, a certain urgency in his voice rings out and Brian seems slightly intimidated.

"I don't know! I just... know her?" Brian yells back at him. He sounds like a kid, and he is. We're al kids, nothing makes sense anymore.

"You just know her?"

"Yeah? I don't know..." He says, unsure how to word or explain it.

This angers Micah, who's unable to put to words how he feels right now.

"Micah, just calm down." God, I'm having to say this a lot. "He doesn't know, and you shouldn't yell at him. Something's going on and he doesn't understand it any more than you and I do."

Mateo's breathing slows down and starts to regulate. He looks more around the room. "You're right. I just don't understand any of this."

"Exactly. None of us do, but it's not going to help to yell at someone."

After I say this, we all stand, well in my case sit, in silence. Staring at others, waiting for someone or something to happen.