Unhinged √

15.

If I die young, don't lay me to rest. Light me up in an open field so I can find a new path.
- Tyler Harden

       Tyler. That used to be the most yelled name in my house, even after my parents died, especially after that. While the rest of us were noticeably changed by what happened, Tyler seemed to not have been affected at all. He dropped out of school without a fuss, just like I and the rest of our brothers did.

Everything Trevor had us do, he'd do it with a smile. He joked about everything, even when we'd gather up all our change so we could buy something for Pokello to eat when she got back from school while we stayed hungry, he'd find a way to make it seem funny.

Tyler was hearty, never serious and when our grind paid off, he didn't spare any expense. He believed in living in the moment, to the fullest. He liked to tease the life out of me and most times he made it his mission to piss me off, calling me little cub and dousing my pancakes in honey but he was still always the first person I talked to about my problems, most of them.

He hardly had any solutions but he always reminded me to take a breather, nothing was worth that much headache. He was less like an older brother and more like a friend, the best one I ever had.

      Tyler loved meat. He said it was why he loved thick girls because real men eat meat, not bones. It had been his idea to get steak that afternoon, we were all lazily lounging at home so it was a welcomed idea.

He had thrown me my keys with a huge grin, whooping and calling it 'blood time' even though it was something we did regularly. Steak, beer and the company of family? It was always a bomb.

We were all pumped as we exited the gull after lunch, arguing good naturedly when I noticed him, white with a jacket too expensive for that side of town.

We stayed in the hood, hardly straying from there and while there was money in the street, most people liked to play it low so this white dude in his shiny leather jacket with his head down stuck out like a new toy in an abandoned basement.

I was going to point that out to my brothers but he pulled out a gun so fast and fired in our direction, twice.

   Everything happened slowly. Tyler's groan was deep as he fell backwards, almost missing Greg's arms that reached out to catch him. They crumbled to the ground as Chris pulled out his gun and started to run down the street. My brain finally caught up to speed and I ran behind him with a vengeance, overtaking him in seconds but the guy was gone and the streets were empty.

We ran back to the front of the gull where my brother was laid out.
"How is he doing?" Chris asked as he crouched beside Greg who was putting pressure on the wounds.

"Not good". Tyler laughed, coughing up blood.

"Shit. That was for you bro". Chris told his twin.

"For real?" Chris nodded and Tyler laughed again.

"Guess I'm a hero then". He coughed up more blood.

"Get the car!" Greg ordered and Chris ran to do so. I took his place beside our brother, taking his fisted hand in mine.

"Little cub".

"Stop talking!" I scolded but he only smiled.

"Get out of this town bro. It's gonna be so fucking boring without me to keep you on track". He groaned as he tried to laugh again and I could hear Chris pulling up.