Everything's Fine

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

"Courage is being afraid but going on anyhow." –Dan Rather

He slipped into trailer 24 stealthily, not intending to disturb his father or brother in case they were nursing a particularly bad hangover, which was how he usually discovered his father in the recent months. While he wasn't fond of finding his father passed out cold on the kitchen table, surrounded by an agglomeration of half empty aluminum beer cans, he would have taken that sight over what he was greeted with any day.

"Hey jackass."

Nico flinched at the harsh tone. His brother was sprawled out on the couch, his eyes fixated on a crumpled and torn sheet of paper in his hand. Wordlessly, Nico slipped into the kitchen, claiming a seat at the table and ignoring the presence of his older brother. Or, trying to ignore that is.

"You gotta letter."

The announcement grabbed his attention like a magnet and glanced up from the hoard of empty beer bottles that littered the wooden table.

"Who from?" He asked cautiously.

"Mom."

The tension invaded the small space instantly along with the suffocating silence as Nico stole a look over at the piece of paper gripped tightly in his brother's hands. A torn envelope rested on the floor.

"So you opened it?" He raised an eyebrow testily.

"Nico, Nico, Nico." He sneered mockingly as he got to his feet. "When are you gonna come visit, Nico? I miss you, Nico. Why don't you call me, Nico?" He mimicked, Nico's heavy scowl only adding to the flame in his brother's dark eyes.

So what? Mom wrote me a letter; obviously she's gonna ask about me. He mused to himself, nostrils flaring with undisputable loathing. He knew responding would only make things worse for his situation. Unfortunately, the filter that connected his mind and his brain seemed to be broken and he blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"You jealous or something?" He countered sharply; tightening his grip on the edge of the table and watching his knuckles go white. Restraint was everything.

"Jealous of you?" His brother laughed, yellow teeth showing as his lips curled back in a menacing snarl. "I'd be jealous of chicken shit before I'm jealous of you." He spat, moving forward. Nico was reminded just how much his brother towered over him and he stared down at his shoes. Terrific.

"You went through my mail." He pointed out and flinched as a significantly larger hand was slapped down on the aging table in front of him. His brother was nothing short of sociopathic, but Nico had not yet learned how to not provoke him and often paid for his blind mistakes with a couple of bruises or a split lip. He could feel the tension in the room wear as thin as a strand of hair and he inhaled deeply, avoiding the hate-filled gaze of his brother.

"Someone's mad." He sneered mockingly and Nico bit his tongue to prevent anything stupid coming out. He stood, pushing his chair back with a scrape against the cheap tile floor.

"I'm not gonna do this tonight. I'm going to Jack's." He murmured under his breath. He tried to push past his brother to make his exit but was defeated as his brother grabbed a handful of his hair and yanked him backwards. Pain coursed through his body and he brought a hand to the back of his head. The ringing was back. "What was that for?" He spat, turning to face his brother who bore an admonitory glare in his eyes that made Nico take a half step backwards. He was often reminded of a snarling mangy dog when he looked into the eyes of his brother and only then was he never sure if his older brother was really human or not.