The Trio

-IV-

                    I glanced at the clock on the radio and sighed quietly. It was almost four a.m. and all I wanted to do was fucking sleep off the pounding headache I had. Nervously I peeked out of the corner of my eye toward my elder brother, who had bailed me out of jail twenty minutes earlier. He hadn't spoken a word since we got into the car, and I was too terrified to say anything. The silence didn't help my nerves, doubling my anxiety about the situation.

Dylan was furious, he clutched at the wheel of the car as though it was a life support, knuckles white with the force of his grip. The man's firm jaw was tensed and rigid, he seemed be holding back many hot words. I almost wished he would just get to yelling at me already, the silence was unbearable.

I tried to speak once or twice but each time I was shut down with one forced word, "No." Slipping into our driveway, Dylan turned off the car and sat there, silent, for a good minute. I squirmed subtly in my leather seat, rubbing my fingers together nervously. Finally, my brother spoke. "It's practically four, I want you to go upstairs and get in bed. I don't want you to leave your room tomorrow morning until I come get you, unless you have to pee, is that clear?"

Dylan's voice was like his face, flat, emotionless, solid as a rock. "Dylan ple-" I began. Dylan's face whipped about to face mine. His eyes said it all. He was furious, so furious he probably didn't trust himself to deal with me fairly. "Is. That. Clear." He repeated in a low tone. I licked my lips swiftly. "Y-yes sir," "Go." Was the last short order.

So, with Dylan's eyes burning into my back, I slipped from the car and up to the house, closing the front door tightly behind me before I clumsily mounted the stairs to my room. I readied myself for bed quickly, not wishing Dylan to walk in right in the middle of it and start smacking my ass for not obeying him quickly enough.

I decided to forgo brushing my teeth or washing my face, for fear that I might run into Dylan, and instead slipping beneath the covers, I snapped off the lights and lay there silently, ears straining for the sound of anything.

The house was deathly quiet. Staring at my dim, moonlit window, I listened to my heart beating in my chest, the pounding in my head matching its fast pace. My stomach churned and gurgled, giving me a small preview of what tomorrow's morning would be like. I swore quietly. Why hadn't I grabbed a bucket or trashcan or even some Advil before going to bed? But I didn't dare move from underneath my blankets.

My window was cracked open, and I could hear the sound of trees swaying against each other in the night's breeze, the rush of an occasional car pass by; and there, in the distance, the sound of frogs coming from the lake a few yards behind our house. I waited for sleep, thinking it would never come.

The front door opened, closed, and was dead bolted. Dylan. A slow tingling feeling spread across my bottom, and I clenched unconsciously. Whatever awaited me tomorrow, was not something I looked forward to, nor should I, because I knew for a fact that it was going to be awful. How horrible? Only my older brother knew.

Heavy footsteps climbed the steps upstairs. The sound reminded me of Dad. What would he say if he knew what I'd done? Would he have spanked me too? Or just grounded me for the rest of my life? The footsteps stopped outside my door. I forgot to breath. My heart began to race faster. Was he going to come in here?

After a long minute, Dylan moved away, his footsteps receding down the hall to his room located at the end. I let out a long, relieved breath. Whatever Dylan had concluded from his short inspection had satisfied him enough not to come in any further. I shifted onto my side and studied the clock. 4:17; I'd been laying here for about forty minutes already. I really needed to sleep, get my mind off what was going to inevitably happen tomorrow.

Turning onto my stomach, I buried my face in my pillow. I'd be sleeping like this tomorrow night, I mused, and probably the rest of the week too, so I might as well get used to it. With my eyes closed, I groped around on my bedside table, hand searching for my phone. A little bit of music would probably calm me down and help me fall asleep faster.

My hand stilled when I realized that I'd left my phone in the car. No doubt it was in Dylan's possession now. I groaned. "Dammit," I muttered. I probably wasn't gonna see that for a while at least. Sighing, I rubbed the side of my face. How had I made such a mess of myself already? I'd been hoping for at least a couple months between the second spanking I was to receive from Dylan. But no, I was such a dumbass, I just had to fuck everything up, and only when things between Dad, Dylan and I were beginning to get better too.

I tossed and turned in bed for a long half-an-hour. My mind was running and full of thoughts and fears. My stomach churned, a dull stomachache taking over my belly. Even though the window was open I grew hot, but throwing off the blankets I was suddenly cold, and when I curled back under them, I was hot again. As my body went through the chills I lay in bed, shaking lightly, one blanket half on me, the rest on the floor, thrown off by my turning.

I didn't hear Dylan in the hall, or see him walk into my room, but when the mattress dipped a little as he sat beside me, I flinched and tensed. He laid a soft hand on my shoulder and pulling me toward him, half sat me up and handed me a glass of water. Without a word I downed it quickly, swallowing with it two small pills Dylan dropped into my hand.

Once I'd finished, Dylan took the glass and I slipped back down to my pillow, fingers nervously picking at the blanket as I stared at a dark wall, unable to meet my brother's eyes. Dylan laid a cool hand on my forehead, then ran it down the side of my face to feel my cheek. Without meaning to, I leaned into his hand. Just that small touch helped to calm my shot nerves.

Taking that as an affirmation, Dylan continued to gently caress my flushed, warm face with his cool hand, and I closed my eyes, letting out a long breath. After a few minutes Dylan's hand stopped and he stood to leave. Before I could stop it, I let out a low whimper and Dylan froze.

My eyes were still closed as I felt him sit back beside me and push me over until my back was toward him, beginning then to tickle my back as our parents used to when we were little. A heavy drowsiness took over me gradually and I yawned, realizing that one of the pills Dylan slipped me must have been a sleeping pill. It only took a few more minutes for my body to succumb to the sleepiness induced by the pill, and as I fell asleep, I felt Dylan lean over to gently kiss my forehead. I smiled faintly and then darkness overtook me and I was fast asleep.