Idk lol.

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A/N: This wasn't ever really titled in my notes, and so it's not gonna have a proper title here. Yes the paragraph spacing will be weird, this was designed to be sent over Snapchat. Anyway, hope you find this mildly entertaining. :-)

I've never been able to figure out what compelled my brother to leave. And I don't know how long it took me to realize that maybe he wouldn't be coming back. I think that it was the second week when it hit me.

And when I did realize that he wasn't coming back, it felt like a punch to the stomach. I was working far from the earshot of anyone when the thought quite literally struck me. My knees hit the dirt, and I had no idea what to do. I was wandering a thick mental fog. I recognized that I had entered the woods surrounding our house, but I didn't know why or where I was going. 

Slowly, I blinked and tried to see where I was headed. The path looked familiar, but I couldn't remember where it led. It didn't seem like I actually needed to consciously understand. My feet stopped me in front of a very large and sturdy tree that I could recognize. 

My brother and I would climb this tree every time that it seemed that our parents couldn't stop arguing. We had spent so much time in this tree, and had actually brought books with us on multiple occasions, due to necessity. 

And at the base of the trunk, right at my eye level, was a hole just large enough for a piece of paper and a pen. Which gave me an absolutely desperate plan. I didn't know if it would work, but I couldn't think of anything else. 

So, I started my walk home, and mentally drafted a letter. Again, a desperate plan, but I needed my brother back. And getting back to the house meant a return to the shouting and fighting between my parents. Maybe I do know why my brother left. 

I made it to my room without incident, and glanced at my window. Seeing the missing screen in it made me laugh to myself a little. One night, my brother and I snuck out of our windows to go lay in the field and watch the starfall. Our parents didn't even notice. 

Still smiling, I pulled my paper folder out from under my bed, grabbed a pencil from my case and started writing. 

"Hey Andy, I know that our parent's aren't the greatest, and that you're tired of it, but please don't leave me here alone with them. I don't know how long I can last. Or if you refuse to return, tell me where you are. I won't even stay forever, I'll go back home at night.

I guess, what I'm trying to say is that I need my brother, Andrew. I don't know why you thought I could handle this on my own. But I need you somewhere close by, and I need you safe. Two weeks has been too long, even for you." 

I signed it in the way that he taught me, just to make sure that he knows it's me, and I placed it under my pillow. With my parents still fighting in the hall, I drifted to sleep. 

When I awoke, all was quiet. It was dawn, and my parents were asleep. Chances were, they wouldn't wake until noon, and so I got my day started. But with all my usual things I put my letter and a pen in my back pocket. 

I headed out the door and directly to the old tree. I placed the folded letter and pen into the trunk and hoped for the impossible. I even decided to ask the tree for a little bit of help, though I didn't know if it'd work. 

"Can you please make sure that nobody can get this except for myself and my brother? I don't know if you remember him, but he's a little older than me, and his name is Andrew Pyter. I haven't seen him in a few days."

And as expected, nothing seemed to change. But I had nothing to do but hope. So, I left the tree, and went to work in the field again. there wasn't much left to do really, but it was better than being inside.