The Other Brother

Reminiscing

It had been days since I last saw him and even since I last got out of this bed.
Ran had been nothing but great to me this entire time. He got up earlier than usual to cook us breakfast and even stayed to keep me company in the guest room to make sure I was fed. He even went out of his way to come home for lunch to make sure I ate again.
Late night when he gets back from work, he ran warm baths for me, as well as going out of his way to brush my hair out for me once I was done bathing . It was nice being taken care of.

Late one night Ran came knocking at my door
"Hey y/n can I come in?"
I sat up,
"Come in,"
He stepped in.
"It's been a while since you've come out. Do you by chance maybe want to have dinner out here with me tonight?"
Feeling better than I was a few days ago. I thought why not?
"Yeah i'll be out in a moment."
He smiled at me.
"See you in a bit."

Later I stepped out of my bedroom. The smell of food filled my nose, a smiling spreading across my face. Wow he must've gone all out. I thought to myself.
Stepping into the dinning room, there Ran was, sitting down at the end, looking at his phone staring expressionless. I walked over and slid out the chair beside him, sitting down. He looked up from his phone and at me, he flashed me a warm smile.
"Hey how are you feeling?"
Ran asked, putting his phone down on the table, placing his head to rest on his propped up hand.
"I'm feeling better now, thank you for taking me in.."
I looked down, fiddling with my fingers.
"You're always welcomed to stay here and for as long as you want."
His tone and eyes softened as he looked into my eyes.
"Has Rindou said anything to you?"
I looked at him nervously. He scoffed to himself.
"Hah. He's been freaking out since you left. I go into work every morning to hear him ramble on about why he doesn't understand why you left. He says he's been texting and calling you."
Ran sipped his wine, chuckling to himself, shaking his head in disappointment.
"Well.. I haven't been checking my phone. It's been in my bag on silent."
I looked down at my lap.
"My brother doesn't matter right now. What matters is that you need to eat and I made plenty of food for you."
He placed a plate full of food in-front of me. The aromas of spices warmed my body, edging on my hunger. I guess I hadn't realized how hungry I was.
"Thank you Ran."
I smiled to him.
"This means a lot to me."
He set his fork down, wiping his mouth.
"It's nothing, really. You can stay for as long as you want."
He took another sip of his wine.
"Thank you so much."
My body felt warm. It had been a while since someone showed such affection. It felt comforting knowing Ran cared for my wellbeing.
"You don't have to thank me y/n. But I do have a question though. I know it hasn't been that long since you left the house but have you thought about what you're going to do next?"
I paused a moment before answering.
"I think I want to work things out with him and see where we can fix any errors in our relationship."
Ran clenched his jaw.
"I see."
There was a moment of silence.
"y/n what if he cheats on you again? Are you seriously going to stay?" There was a shift in his tone. It was stern.
"For all you know he could've been cheating on you for a while and you want to go back?"
He crossed his arms across his chest. I stayed quiet, looking down at my lap. Again there was. long pause. Ran pushed his chair out and stood up.
"I'll be in my room."
He placed his napkin on the table and walked off.
Maybe Ran is right.. Would going back be worth it? He could cheat on me again. If I go back this one time would I just stay and be miserable? Those were questions I continued to ask myself through the rest of my night. 

The whole night I had been up thinking about Ran's words. If Rindou cheated what makes me think he wouldn't do it again? Thinking about me and Rindou made my heart ache.

Throughout me and Rindou's relationship he was always my rock. I had known the Haitani brother's since our last year of elementary going up to our first year of middle school.
Rindou was truly my partner in crime through out everything. I saw him grow from a young boy into the man he is. From having nothing, to having everything in front of him that he's ever laid his eyes upon. I was there through all his struggles and pain.
Me and Rindou were tied to the hip, always causing trouble for our teachers and fellow classmates.
I chuckled to myself at the thought of our memories as children together.
The day we met I remember a handful of male classmates were picking on me, throwing me and my stuff to the ground. At this time we were still in elementary school about to go on into middle school. I was constantly being bullied. I always had stayed quiet to myself and kept away from others. I was such a shy girl who just enjoyed the company of books and drawing characters to play out in my head.
On that day when I was being picked on everything happened so quickly. One minute I was on the floor crying and pleading, next moment there he was. Rindou Haitani, standing in front of me, holding his hand out to me. His face was bruised up yet he kept a bright grin across his face. He always did. And from that day on there wasn't a moment where me and Rindou weren't together.

I miss that Rindou.