All characters are at least 18 years old.
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Keith
Zach had been shut in his room all night and all morning. I don't know what kind of funk he was in, but he owed me a key. Besides, mom had sent me to retrieve him for lunch. I rapped on his door but received no response.
"Zach," I said through the door. "If you don't answer, I'm just coming in." Nothing. The lack of light coming from under the door indicated the lights weren't on, nor were the curtains open. Luckily the door was unlocked, and I entered to find him lying on his bed. I sighed, approaching him to rip the blankets off of him. That is, until I heard his stuttered breathing. He was crying, or recovering from it. Frowning, I spotted his phone on the bedside table. Time for some detective work. Tapping it revealed twenty texts and three missed calls from Ellie.
He'd gone over to her place yesterday, and whatever had happened had left him like this. They were best friends, so what could possibly have happened? The doorbell rang, and I decided it best not to speak to Zach until I had more information. I left the room and ran into mom, who was coming from the front door.
"Keith? Is your brother coming out?" she asked, looking a bit troubled. "Ellie's here to see him, and it looks... important."
"Oh." Perfect. "Yeah, I'll let him know. Thanks mom."
She smiled and squeezed my arm before returning to the kitchen, and I stalked to the front door. Opening it revealed the girl herself, looking like absolute shit. She was dressed the same, and her hairstyle was such that you wouldn't be able to tell if it were disheveled or not. But her eyes were ringed in red, with dark circles underneath. Seemed Zach wasn't the only one who'd been crying all night.
"Keith," she sighed, sounding a bit choked up, a bit resigned, and a bit relieved.
"What did you do?" I growled, skipping the pleasantries. Her expression immediately crumpled, bowing her head in shame. I'd never seen her like this. She was always a tough girl, had to be to protect Zach. My gut twisted when I was reminded that it was my job. I'd failed him too. But what was happening now... looked like it fell on her.
After a very long spell, she looked back up, avoiding my gaze, her eyes even more bloodshot. "I think... I think I made a huge mistake," she whispered. "He needs you, Keith. As a brother, not... not as anything else. He needs to feel... male." I'd gathered by how Zach had been caged and stuffed and presented to me that she was fully aware of what had been going on between me and him. I guess she wasn't one to judge, with her being gay too and all. But now that I thought about it, who had been the one propelling that vehicle? I had a feeling I was looking right at the culprit.
"So I'm supposed to clean up your mess?" I sneered. Which wasn't fair to say, since she'd been cleaning mine all these years. But based on how she bowed her head again, it seemed she felt it was deserved.
"Please, Keith. Please..." Dark spots appeared on the pavement, accented by the sound of droplets. I took a deep breath and sighed.
"Stop crying and get outta here. I'll take care of it." I stepped right up to her, and she seemed to shrink. "But if he doesn't come looking for you afterwards, you stay away from him, got it? My dad told me to never lay hands on a lady, but he didn't say shit about women, especially ones who deserve it." It was an empty threat, but she didn't need to know that. As much as I wanted to, even the thought of grabbing her by the jacket and giving her a good shake like I'd do when threatening a guy made me uneasy.
She nodded and trudged back to her car, and I waited until she'd driven off before going back inside. Mom had made roast beef sandwiches, along with her signature grilled five-cheese sandwiches. Not only were they really good, they suited my plans well.
"Everything okay, sweetie?" she asked.
"Yeah, I think so. By the way, you don't need to cook for the two of us tonight, mom," I said as I started packing a lunch for the road. "I'm taking Zach out, and we won't be back until late, so we'll just eat out."
"Not another night of drinking, I hope," she replied, sounding slightly disapproving.
"No, nothing like that," I promised before kissing her on the cheek. "Love ya, mom."
She replied in kind and I went to go get Zach. Still lying in bed, still crying in the dark, and the sight made me angry at Ellie all over again.
Focus. Zach needs you.
I exhaled slowly before yanking the blanket off him. He glanced over his shoulder at me, then went back to sulking.
"Not today, Keith. I just want to be alone. Please," he mumbled.