Beyond Bloodline - Unbreakable Bonds

ten

Pausing the series he'd decided to binge over the weekend, Nigel massaged the spot between his brows, feeling quite hungry but not too willing to leave the comfortable spot he'd burrowed into in his bed with his laptop. Gathering his resolve, he finally got off his bed and languidly made his way down the stairs to see if there was anything he could snack on.

He paused at the kitchen doorway, somewhat taken aback at the sight of his twin pacing about with a folded booklet in hand. "Are you okay?" he asked, watching as his contemplative expression- complete with furrowed brows was instantly replaced with his ever easy smile.

"Of course," Saxon walked over to take a seat at the breakfast bar, merely holding onto his text. "Did you need something?"

Nigel stalled, surveying the other with a flickering stare for all of a minute before he just shrugged, deciding to let it drop. He walked over to pull open the refrigerator so he could find something to snack on while he binged his next couple of episodes. Soon, he found his expression turning sour as his gaze passed over barely passable options.

"What happened to all the snacks?" He asked, irritated as he straightened up to look over his shoulder as he questioned.

"What snacks?" Saxon had lowered his gaze to continue studying his text but immediately brought his gaze back up when his attention was needed.

"We basically just went to the supermarket," he said, shutting the door and turning so he could lean against it. "Where did it all go?"

"I don't know," Saxon averted his gaze from his brother's languid posture and expression. "Where did it go?"

Nigel frowned but ultimately curbed the want to vent on how the little lilt to his tone rubbed off on him the wrong way. "You've eaten then?" he asked, ridding all extra expression from his face.

"I ordered pizza," Saxon said. "It should be here any minute. Would you mind that?"

"I don't mind," Nigel said. As far as a quick meal went, he was willing to take that over any of the other options he was seeing in the fridge. "Where did they go?"

"They?" Saxon's furrowed brows gradually relaxed under Nigel's otherwise piercing gaze. "They are your parents."

Nigel gave a short, self-depreciating chuckle, unwilling to even give a rebut to that statement. They were only Saxon's parents. Even now, he refused to acknowledge them and their blatant favouritism.

Saxon parted his lips to say more but in the end, just decided to let this slight, peaceable mood between them remain before it could sour like every other interaction they'd been having frequently these days.

Nigel tried his hand waiting patiently but the virtue really wasn't his strong suit. In the end, he'd sighed so long and so frequently Saxon could barely keep his concentration.

"Shouldn't we talk about it?" Saxon finally found a topic to rescue the other from the misery caused by having to wait in the stagnant silence. Obviously, the one topic he was most curious about.

"You want us to talk about it?" Nigel was surprised but didn't let it show. It was the unwritten rule of their family. Problems magically disappeared so long as they swept it under the rug. But it was the elephant in the room for a reason. It didn't just disappear into nothingness by tossing it aside. So, did he finally acknowledge that now?

"If not?" Saxon queried. "You made everything so awkward, ditching so long as I turned the conversation to what suddenly happened for you to start avoiding me in general."

Oh, Nigel was disappointed. So he'd been thinking too much. He'd meant them.

"So?" Nigel was indifferent. "Talk if you want. I have nothing to say to you."