Brothers

Chapter 8 - Moving In

Ryan had contacted someone to sell the house, and it must have been a popular house because someone contacted us right away. Already, the house was someone else's and we were packing to go to our new apartment.

I still didn't want to move but I had no choice since someone was waiting for us to leave.

We took a bus a short distance and then walked a few miles to get to the apartment building. It was further away than I thought, as I recognised nothing around us. The apartment, room 3G looked emptier and even less bright than before. The furniture that had been there for show was gone and without it, the room looked vacant. Ryan had sold most of our furniture and things online before so we had nothing to put in the house to make it look better.

We did have a couch to put in the main room though. We also had a measly coffee table for the dining part and a mattress for the bedroom.

When you first walked into the house, you stepped onto a hardwood floor which is where the little coffee table was. Next to that part, to the right was a little room with a hole in the wall to make it seem more open, which was a kitchen. In the kitchen was a fridge, oven, microwave, dishwasher, and tons of cabinets. If you walked forward you passed a hallway and the line of carpet. In the living room square we put the couch against the wall and on the opposite of the room was a discoloured spot on the wall where a TV used to hang.

We both threw our backpacks of blankets and stuff into the only bedroom and stood, looking around.

"Hey I'll sleep on the couch." Ryan said. I didn't want him to but I couldn't very well tell him I wanted him to sleep with me. Just no.

At the end of the living room was a sliding glass door that opened to a tiny porch. I was standing on the porch while Ryan was doing whatever on his computer inside. I watched the people walking down on the street below me and I listened to the noise of the millions of people walking by. I couldn't help but thinking how innocent all of them were. They all probably had parents and even if they didn't they were old enough to live on their own.

Another thought occurred to me too. What if suddenly someone just died out here? Like my dad, or my mom. What if someone just dropped dead on the sidewalk, or what if one of these cars just accidentally turned into someone else?

"Hey." I jumped but then realised it was only Ryan.

"Sup?" I was leaning my arms on the rail of the porch and he did so too.

"Nothing. I was just looking for a new job."

"Am I going to have to get a job too?" I was still watching one person in a bright red hat walk down the sidewalk without care. The sun was beginning to set and her hat went along with the colours in the sky.

"I don't know. If you don't want to you don't have to."

"But your job can't possibly make enough to pay for the apartment all the time. I mean, plus food, clothes, I don't know."

He stared forward at the people too and I wondered if he had ever thought what I thought. "OK, maybe you will."

"What should I do?" I asked.

"Get a part-time job somewhere close." The way he spoke annoyed me. He spoke to me but the way he said things and his tone made me think he wasn't trying to talk to me. I decided to head back inside and he followed.

"I could make dinner."He suggested.

"OK." My shoes were on the floor so I shoved them into the corner by the door. "Maybe I should go around town tomorrow and see what jobs are open."

"Oh, OK. I need to go to an interview tomorrow anyways so that'll work." He went to the kitchen and I dragged my blanket to the bedroom. I meant to throw the blanket onto the bed but I ended up going with it and curled up into the blanket. I didn't want to think, I didn't want to eat, I didn't want to do anything. I dragged myself down into feeling lonely and lost and helpless.

Ryan came in when I was almost asleep and flicked on the light. "Dinners- Are you sleeping?"

"What? No." My voice was muffled by the blanket wrapped around me.

"Are you tired?" I saw through a line in the blanket he was holding a plate with something that looked like shrimp and rice on it. I didn't give him any response because I was, but I wasn't. "Go to bed if you are. Eat first though."

He set the plate down on the bed near me and left, turning the lights off again. I moaned to myself as I sat up and took the plate. I was right, it was cooked shrimp and rice. I ate a bit so Ryan wouldn't get mad and then tossed the plate onto the floor where my dresser once was. I felt tears come as I suddenly wanted my own room back.

I told myself I was just tired and that's why I was sad so I closed my eyes, but I didn't sleep. I heard Ryan moving around outside. I opened the window and continued to watch as the amount of people and cars died down until there were very, very few people outside. I left the window open and tried to fall asleep once more but still, I couldn't. This place wasn't where I always slept ever since I was little, and I couldn't get used to it.

Ryan stopped making noise eventually and I came out to see what he was up to. He was dead asleep on the couch and the clock on the oven said 2:07. He looked uncomfortable. He was crammed on the couch sideways and the couch was definitely not long enough for him but he'd obviously gotten comfortable enough to fall asleep. I walked slowly and softly so I wouldn't wake him up. I shoved my back against the front of him into his arms and laid there. I could feel his breath against the back of my head and felt instantly tired. I eventually managed to get some sleep but not enough.