|Doppelgänger| Five Hargreeves

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟗𝟏

After getting a bus and arriving at the address Allison had texted me, I quickly saw her, Claire and Klaus standing in front of a building, seemingly waiting for me to arrive. I rapidly took off my blazer that was dirty with blood and wiped my face with it, trying to get rid of the bigger stains, before hiding it behind my back. I wasn't expecting Claire to be present. If I knew, I wouldn't have shown up looking like that. Halloween was two months ago, I couldn't even use that excuse.

_"Hey. Oh, wait, what happened?"-I said once I got closer to them and noticed my brother's state. He was dirty from head to toe with what looked like actual dirt, his clothes were similar to the ones he used to wear years ago, his eyes and posture were tired.

_"You're here."-Klaus said, not answering my question, a small smile appearing on his face. He slumped over to me and gave me a hug, practically putting all his weight on me.

_"We could ask you the same question. Are you alright?"-Allison asked me, also noticing my state. I hugged Klaus back and patted his back.

_"I am, it's a long story. Fake blood."-I had to lie for my niece's sake. I don't care that she was 16. To me she was still an innocent kid. I decided to ask again.

_"But seriously, what happened? Why do you look like you were buried alive?"

_"'Cause I was."-Klaus answered, letting go of the hug and shrugging his shoulders. My eyes widened.

_"What? How? By who?"-I started to check the man for injuries, but he weirdly seemed okay. Except for the needle marks on his arms. I slowly looked up at him, his eyes saddened. Allison and Claire stood in silence, the same emotion also present in their expressions.

_"Yeah, about that...Sorry."-He sounded like he tried to come up with an excuse, but failed. I pressed my lips into a line, and hugged the man again.

_"You don't have to apologize to me. You can always try again."

_"That's, uhm...That's why I called you, actually. There's a, uh, meeting happening. I just wanted to have you guys waiting for me. You know, family support and all."-Klaus looked at the building, a sign on the door with the A.A's group name and multiple meeting hours. I quickly understood what he meant, and nodded.

_"Of course. I'm happy you called me."-I gave him a small smile.

_"Do you want to go in?'-Allison asked, putting a hand on his back and carefully directing him towards the entrance as he nodded. We walked with him, watching his reactions to make sure he was ready and alright with that.

We entered the building, me checking around to see in which room the meeting would be. It was pretty normal, looked like a community center, a common place for the A.A meetings to happen in. I had a slight remembrance of picking Klaus up there sometimes, but I'd never really got inside.

After just a couple of minutes, we reached the room that Klaus signaled was the one. The door was slightly open, and before we let the man go ahead and enter, the three of us stood in front of him and gave him a comforting look.

_"Are you ready?"-Allison asked, taking a deep breath as if she was the one about to go inside. But that was important for all of us. I understood the feeling.

_"I think so. We're already here, can't back up now, right?"-He let out an airy, a bit awkward chuckle. I tapped his shoulder.

_"We'll be right here waiting for you. If you need anything, just come outside."-I reassured him, and the man nodded. It was his turn to take a deep breath.

Klaus walked inside the room, disappearing to our eyes. Allison, Claire and I looked at each other, a mix of worry and pride in our eyes. We decided to just stand by and patiently wait for my brother to come back. Claire started to pace around more nervously in the corridor, which was understandable too. Allison took that chance to talk to me.