Nolan's eyes slowly fluttered open as the sunlight beamed down on him as he laid in his bed. He propped himself up on his elbows and sighed. he looked around his room as he lifted up one hand to attempt to rub the sleep out of his eyes. He looked down at the dog that laid at the foot of his bed. He smiled softly and lifted the covers over his legs and moved to place both feet on the ground.
He groaned as he realized he had slept with his prosthetic on and stood up. He fumbled around in his room and eventually made his way to his door. He opened his door and then walked downstairs to the kitchen. He looked around and looked for his parents. He continued to look around as he realized that it was 4 AM. He groaned and walked over to the stove and picked up the kettle. He moved over to the left to fill up the kettle.
He took the kettle and placed it back on the stove. He hummed softly as he grabbed a mug and a tea bag and placed it into the cup. Nolan turned around as he heard creaking coming from the staircase. Nolan slowly walked over to the staircase and looked up to see Gabe standing halfway down the staircase.
Gabe stopped moving at the sight of his brother. "Why are you awake?" he asked her as he walked down the stairs to meet his brother at the bottom, "Oh is that tea?" he asked with a scoff as he pushed the cup aside and set down another one. "Coffee is much, much better," he told his brother as he got one of the coffee pods and put it into the dispenser.
Nolan sighed and rubbed his head. "Ah, and the migraine is back," Nolan muttered to himself as he took a seat at one of the stools at the island. He propped his chin up with his hand and stared at his older brother as he moved around the kitchen, preparing his coffee. "Why did you come back?" Nolan asked Gabe as he leaned forward.
Gabe ran a hand through his hair and turned around to face his younger brother and leaned against the counter. "Once I graduated University I didn't really know what to do. I just thought it would be best to come home for a while." He told Nolan with a shrug. Nolan nodded slowly as he heard the kettle whistle and went to get up and go get it, however by the time he was standing Gabe had already picked up the kettle and poured his brother his tea.
Nolan watched his brother, slightly stunned that he would do something for him as he walked over to the fridge to grab some milk. he got out the milk and placed it beside his seat as he watched Gabe set down the steaming cup of black tea in front of him. "Uh, Thanks." He told his brother as Gabe gave a nod in response.
"So, What are you doing up so early?" Nolan inquired as he took a sip of his tea. Gabe took his coffee's pod and put it into the recycling. He pulled his coffee out and poured some milk into it before walking around the island to take a seat beside Nolan. Nolan turned to face his brother. "Look, do you honestly believe that I should come along with you on this trip?" Nolan asked. Gabe put down his Coffee and glanced over at Nolan. "Honestly, I don't want you to come at all."
He bluntly told him. Nolan's eyebrows furrowed at his brother's answer. "Would it really be that bad?" Nolan questioned as he turned back to face forward, rather than looking directly at his brother, slightly disappointed with the answer that was given. "Look, Nolan, it's not like I wanted to follow these rules that Mom and Dad set up for us," Gabe told him, "Why would you want to follow them either? I thought last night that you wouldn't want to do anything with me." He said as he crossed his arms. Gabe turned to look at Nolan and released a pent up sigh.
Nolan sighed. "I don't really know if I want to. I'm not totally opposed to it but that doesn't mean that I want to spend three months in a van with you." He told Gabe honestly. Gabe sat silently as he sipped his coffee. "Look, I know that I am not an amazing brother but It's not like I'm going to do anything bad to you. You do know that right?" Nolan asked him.
"I don't know Gabe if you were actually here when I was younger than maybe I would know the answer to that question." He told Gabe as he stood up. "I'm going back to my room," Nolan mumbled as he took his cup and walked over to the staircase. Nolan turned around one time to take a look at Gabe, only to see that he was not paying attention to him. Nolan sighed and walked up the stairs and into his room.
Gabe kept his eyes glued to his steaming cup of coffee, knowing that Nolan had glanced at him, expecting a reaction. He knew what Nolan had said to him was true, he just didn't want to say it out loud and completely commit to the idea that he was a horrible brother. Neither of them had an incredibly easy life. Nolan struggling with his cancer at a young age and Gabe struggling with anxiety his entire life lead the two to not get along incredibly well.
Gabe got up and walked over to the couch and sat down. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back to rest on top of the couch. He moved the cup of coffee from its spot resting on his lap to the table beside the arm of the couch. as he thought about his relationship with his younger brother he slowly managed to drift off into a deep slumber.
