Mitch

     Mitch was born to a married couple living in the country side. They were expecting a child, but they never knew they would have twins.

     Mother never worked, but Father often has to travel for his business. He would leave his family for months at a time. Still, he made a lot of money doing it, and he needed the job to care for his two growing boys.

     Mitch and his twin weren't identical. Mitch was taller and bigger, while his twin was always smaller and thinner. The only thing they had in common were their vibrant green eyes. It made them stick out in a crowd. Mother always called them her emerald jewels.

     School was tough from the beginning for the two boys. For a few years of his early life, Mitch talked with a bad stutter. His twin was the only one who understood him at the worst of times. The twin was picked on for his small size. He wasn't very confrontational, and would simply let other people mess with him rather than fight back. Neither of them got along very well with other kids. Still, they always had each other. Even when Mitch got older and lost his stutter, he would always remain by his brother's side.

     They shared a bunk bed in their countryside home. Nathan always slept on the bottom, but his twin would more often then not climb down from the top to sleep with him. He was afraid of heights, and the bottom bunk was bigger, anyways. The boys would usually end up turning their room into a fortress of blankets and pillows. Some days, Mother couldn't even enter their room without knocking something down.

Things took a turn for the worst when Father lost his job. The two boys had just turned eleven. Mother had never worked a day in her life, and the family had no savings account or any money to fall back on. They were forced to move away and back to Mother's hometown. Neither of the boys new about it. It was evident to their parents that they weren't going to be able to take care of them both. Mother took the twins on a shopping trip in the big city. She spoiled them both rotten, money or no money. The two of them just though it was a late birthday present.

     "Come on, Mitch. It's time to go", Mother grabbed her elder son's hand and pulled him out of the clothing store.

     "What about ******? He's still trying on those shirts", Mitch pulls a little at Mother's arm, not wanting to leave his twin alone.

     "****** is already in the car with Father. He's picking us up right now", Mother replies. Mitch nods in understanding and follows her to the idling car. Father grips the steering wheel nervously as they get in. Mitch climbs into the car, expecting to see his twin, but the backseat is empty.

     "Where's ******?", he asks, confused. Father jerks the car into motion before he can even finish the question. Mitch's eyes widen, and he looks back at the store that quickly fades from view. "What's going on? Why are we leaving him!?".

     Mother breaks then, caving in to the stress and guilt. She explains how Father lost his job and bout the move. She's trying desperately to make Mitch understand, but he can't do it. He can't leave his twin. Father has been driving a little over the speed limit, but they're still not out of the city when Mitch pulls up the lock to his car door. He pops open the door and it nearly smacks him in the face. Father slams on the breaks, but the car is still moving when Mitch tumbles out. He lands hard on his shoulder.

     Both his parents might have yelled or screamed at him, but Mitch was already up and running. He ran back down the twisting streets until he found the clothing store again. His twin was outside, crumpled to the ground with his face tucked to his knees. He looked so scared and alone. Mitch crashes into him and clings to his twin. He yelps, but quickly realizes who it is, and cries. He thought that Mitch had left him. The two of them stayed by the store for a day and half before the owner chased them away. Their parents didn't come back.

     The years following were a lot tougher for the twins. They had no idea how to get by on their own. Mitch was sure that if the police got a hold of them, he'd be separated from his twin. Both of them feared that outcome above all else. No police. No hospitals. The two of them did many unsavory things to survive. They'd pick up odd jobs from whoever they could find, and stole whatever else they needed. They even found an abandoned building in the middle of town to sleep in. Everyone in town knew there were a pair of homeless twins running around, but they just blended in with the rest of the street rats. A small group of teens eventually all lived in that abandoned building. Mitch was in charge of them since day one, but he did his best to make sure they were all taken care of.

     One of the girls was the first one to hear about the experiment. A few scientists were looking for homeless inhabitants of the city to perform a psychological evaluation. The flyer promised the candidates would be anonymous, and each participant would get paid a hundred dollars. It was almost too good to be true. Mitch felt a little skeptical from the start. His twin thought it was a good idea, but suggested that the two of them go first to check it out. Mitch reluctantly agreed.

     "Right this way", the lab assistant says, hurriedly leading them out of the building's lobby. Mitch was impressed with the 15 story office building, but he was even more amazed that the building had 20 underground floors. His twin felt a little uneasy when they started decending to the 15th basement floor. He's always been extremely perceptive. 

     The 15th basement floor opened up into another lobby area. Numerous hallways and doorways lead off from here. A female doctor was waiting for them, and she looks the boys up and down with a calculating gaze.

     "Bring them both to the third lab room for a blood sample", she says, speaking to the assistant. Mitch doesn't like the sound of 'blood sample'. He tries to speak, but the assistant interrupts him and ushers the twins into the lab room. The doctor pricks both of their fingers with a small needle and takes it over to a microscope.

"I thought we were just suppose to fill out a form", Mitch quietly asks. His twin is positive that something is wrong now, but the assistant is blocking the door back to the elevator.

"Twins, I see", the doctor ignores Mitch and continues to talk to the assistant, "Their blood type is very common, though. They're not what we're looking for. You should still take the big one to basement level 19, since he may prove useful".

Before Mitch can understand the situation, the doctor pulls out a gun from her coat. She points the barrel at the twins before they can even react. Mitch jumps when a loud bang rings in his ears, but he doesn't feel any pain. He slowly turns his head to look at his twin. He's frozen, staring at the growing crimson stain on his white hoodie.

Mitch screams when his twin crumples to the ground. Armed men storm into the room and pull the bigger twin back out of the room. Mitch fights and kicks all the way, but it doesn't matter. His twin is dead.