Editor's note: this work contains scenes of fictional incest or incest content.
*****
Having a girlfriend was overrated. That was Ethan's conclusion while sitting in his car after leaving Kara's house. Maybe Cole was right. His big brother had always advocated against Ethan being in a relationship.
"You're like me!" he'd say. "We're born to be free!"
As the engine returned to life after a whole night of quietness, Ethan couldn't fight the smile on his face. Possessiveness was a rare trait to find in someone's brother, but for some reason, Cole had always been just that, possessive of his little brother. Even though Ethan was now twenty-two, age didn't seem to matter. Cole was six years older and still called more often than their own mom to check on him.
Keeping the relationship with Kara a secret was a no-brainer. Cole would turn into a completely different person anytime he found out his little brother had a new girlfriend. Asking the girls awkward questions and monitoring Ethan's activities every hour of every day--
The phone rang with ironic timing. Cole's name bright on the screen made Ethan's palms sweat like a kid caught red-handed at the cookie jar.
"Hey! What's up?" his voice was way too tense.
"Where are you?" that wasn't helping.
"I woke up early and went for a coffee," Ethan cringed at his weak excuse. Not that he disliked coffee, but he wouldn't go out early to get a cup in this weather.
Cole didn't seem to notice, thankfully.
"I'm at your dorm. Thought we were going fishing today, E," the older one said, returning to the usual brotherly tone he'd use whenever they spoke. Hopefully, that meant he'd bought the stupid coffee story.
"Yeah, yeah! We are! I'm on my way. Almost there!"
Hating himself for forgetting something like that, Ethan quickly recapped the conversation he'd had with his brother two weeks ago when he had indeed agreed to a weekend of fishing. Uni life and keeping a girlfriend happy had occupied most of the space in his head lately.
"Alright, cool," Cole put down their call before his little brother could get another word in. Still, nothing unusual.
The uneasiness stirring at the pit of his stomach since he heard his phone's ringtone was gradually fading away. Cole was possessive and controlling, but Ethan had learned to deal with his quirks over the years.
Driving around the corner, he didn't have to look very long to find a good spot for parking. It was a Saturday, so most people had gone back to their homes to spend the weekend with their families.
The sun was blazing. It was a hot day, if there had ever been any. The proximity to the massive lake that gave the city its name meant that humidity was also a factor; so one had to run from one air-conditioned environment to the next to keep any hope for survival.
Still, after three years of living there, Ethan had grown pretty used to it. To the point that he didn't mind standing outside his car, looking at his reflection in the window to make sure it wouldn't be too evident that he had been in naked bliss just an hour ago.
Dark, messy hair was the way he would describe his style any day of the week, so that wasn't a concern. Still, Ethan took a moment to appreciate his genetics. A sharp jaw delineated his frame, accentuating a broad chin with full lips and high cheekbones. The blue eyes were just a plus. No wonder he was as lucky as he was with girls.
He shot a heartbreaker smile at himself and made his way inside with high spirits and even higher self-esteem.
The halls were eerily quiet. The few students that had decided to stay were probably locked up in their rooms with their ACs on full blast. refusing to get out into the world until the sun had gone down and taken some of the heat away.
At the very end of the last hallway, there was a dingy mirror the cleaning crew had refused to touch for the longest time, claiming there were probably some unspeakable horrors stuck to it that would scar them for life. Ethan had to squint quite hard to make out his skinny but athletic shape wrapped in a casual black t-shirt and deep blue shorts.
To the left of the mirror was his room. The door was unlocked for some reason, and Ethan frowned as he suddenly got hit by a wave of cold air as soon as he opened it. The reason for that was clear: somehow, he'd forgotten to turn it off last night. But "somehow" wasn't a good enough explanation. Electricity for a college student was expensive, and a mistake like that could potentially mean having to skip a few lunches the next month.
His keys rang against the One Piece-themed metal plate he kept on his desk. The action of throwing them as soon as he walked past the door was such a natural reflex trained over such a long time, that Ethan failed to notice the massive figure standing right next to the desk, waiting for his arrival. By the time he did, it was too late.
Massive arms wrapped around his slim waist and neck from behind. Instinctively Ethan's hands shot up to grasp onto the chokehold and pathetically try to break it despite the vast difference in his and his assailant's builds.
"What the fu-" he managed to say before the thick forearm pressed against his throat, impeding him from emitting any more sounds.
"Where's your coffee, little brother?" Cole's raspy voice made its way into Ethan's ears and sent chills down his spine.
Tapping lightly on Cole's muscular arm to let him know he was having trouble breathing, Ethan was relieved when the other slightly loosened his grip.
"I threw it outside," Ethan responded through gritted teeth.
"You're lying," Cole immediately shot back. "I saw you through the window. Wanna try again?"
Shit.
"Okay, fine, fine!" Ethan's mind was speeding faster than his heartbeat, struggling to find a believable way to escape this mess without admitting he'd been lying about having a girlfriend for the past six months. "I went to a party last night with Luke and the guys. I crashed at Alex's place because I forgot about our trip until you called me this morning."
The thrumming sound of the AC battling against the heat was the only thing Ethan could focus on as he nervously waited for his brother's response.
One of Cole's arms, the one around his sibling's waist, gave in just enough to let Ethan relax his body.