collection

brothers? no, twins.

They simultaneously took in the looks of each other, noticing the bruises that were spread across both of their skin. Ryan's hair was unusually disheveled, and Carter's usual demeanor of strength was cracked. They both seemed broken. Neither made any attempt to acknowledge the other as they both headed for the kitchen. It was long past midnight, and their house was quiet and dark. A small light glimmered white in the kitchen, just above the stovetop. It illuminated the room slightly, making the visions of both of the boys well enough to gauge where they were and what they were doing.

    Ryan grabbed the ice pack, handing Carter a large bag of frozen peas. They sat at the table in silence, icing the wounds that neither of them knew just how the other obtained. But they weren't stupid. They were twins. They shared a lot, and it went without saying sometimes. They understood each other in indescribable ways, and they both silently agreed not to speak of the events in detail. They both agreed to pretend the scars were gotten while with each other.

    "You alright?" Carter was the one to break the silence, his long hair hanging in his face as he asked. Ryan jumped at the volume of his voice. It pierced the pristine air, startling him.

    "Fine. You?"

    "Been better."

    "Was it Aria's boyfriend?" Ryan questioned, referring to the bruises that stained Carter's skin. He thought for a second. He decided to nod. Both of them knew it was a lie.

    "Who roughed you up?"

    "I don't know his name."

    Carter merely pursed his lips. He chugged the water bottle sitting in front of him. He wasn't sure whose it was, but they were all family, right?

    "You need me to do anything?" Carter finally answered, and Ryan shook his head.

    "I can handle it."

    "Despite what's happened between us recently, our pact is still on, you know. I've got your back. No matter what. Especially now, with Darcy being sick and all. I know I've been shit at being a brother recently, not to mention a twin, but I'm sorry. I meant it." Carter said the words that had been resting too close to his conscience for comfort recently.

    "Thank you." Ryan answered, nodding his head. As thankful as he was, he didn't know how to answer his brother. He didn't have anything to offer him in return anymore. From the time they were young, Ryan had always opted to help Carter with his school work if he could provide protection from those who would prove to be a threat to Ryan's physical being. Ryan could usually take care of himself in numerous departments, but handling bullies was not a strong suit of his. It was Carter's strongest suit.

    Now that they were out of high school, the summer stretching into a lifetime of freedom, Ryan was sure Carter would decide not to attend college. He wasn't much of a studier. He was good enough at sports to secure himself a scholarship, but Ryan was sure he would deny all of his college acceptance letters politely. He was never the type. All he wanted to do was own a company, entrepreneur his way through life. Ryan guessed he was just a bit more practical than his twin.

    "How's Holly?" Carter croaked, coughing quite violently afterwards.

    "Good. How's Aria?"

    "Still in a relationship with someone else." Carter laughed, "I've never seen someone treat a woman so horribly. She's far too good for him. I hate seeing her take his bullshit." He scoffed, rolling his eyes. He attempted to brush off his feelings for Aria. He tried to act as though he didn't care about her as much as he did, but Ryan saw right through his act.

    While they sat, they continued to chat sporadically. They were interrupted at a quarter to five, when their father came barreling into the room.

    He took a seat at the table, a cup of coffee now brewing. Their father didn't drink coffee.

    "You two look exhausted. Go to bed." He muttered, and both of them obliged, sure he had heard snippets of their conversation. Sure he was not stupid enough to believe the stories they were going to tell him about the bruises on their faces, and the scars on their hearts.