Chernoff Brothers

8

It's around 3 am when I enter back into the mansion and go downstairs to my room. When I enter, I notice that Elijah is asleep but Ice is standing by the window smoking. When he sees me, he just stares at me. I go to the bathroom and change clothes and then I go back into the bedroom. I grab my cigarettes and light on up.

"You okay?" Ice asks me.

"I'm fine. Why?" I ask as I sit on my bed.

"You don't seem fine".

"I'm completely fine".

"As you wish" he turns his back at me.

"Do you want me to call you somehow else too?".

"Ice is fine".

"Good".

We remain in silent for a while until he throws his cigarette away and turns to look at me. I look back to him back then I look at my hands.

"What?" I say as I check my knuckles out.

"He didn't mean it".

"Yeah. Whatever".

"He really didn't. He was just angry".

"I didn't tell him that I wish he was dead. I was angry too. That doesn't give him the right to say shits like that".

"We grew up without you, Levi. We had you only until I was 4 years old and he was 5. We had you as a father figure and then you left".

"So you think that I ran away?".

"I didn't say that".

"That's what you meant".

"That's what our father told us".

"So you believe him over me".

"He's our father".

"Whatever" I throw my cigarette away and then I look back to Ice. "I know that I wasn't always the greatest brother to you" I look back to my knuckles.

"Levi, you are the one that was always there for me since 4. The only one. I mean, you practically raised me" I look at him. "You weren't just a brother to us. You had to be more than a brother. You had to be a father and ... And a mother after a few years to keep us safe".

"That wasn't fair".

"I know. I never said that I did".

"Father had once said 'son, if you don't like me, that's fine. It's not my job to be liked' ".

" 'it's my job to raise you right' " he finishes my sentence.

"Yeah. And he didn't".

"We are not childs anymore though. We have to forget about it".

"I never was".

"You helped with ours".

"That wasn't fair for me".

"I know".

"I want an honest answer, Ice. Do you believe that I ran away and never came back for you?" he stares at me but then he shakes his head.

"No. I remember how father was at you" I look at him.

"Remember what?".

"That you took punishments for us. I remember that really well. Umm ... That he made you drop out of school" I stare at him. "The fights that you and that cuts that he gave you with his knife" I touch my face. My scars. "I had seen everything" I look back to him but I don't talk. I feel like my voice will betray what I feel. "Eli didn't see anything. He doesn't know anything".

"How ... How do you know?" I ask him and try my very best not to show that it hurts me to remember all these.

"I was watching you" I run my hands through my hair. Ice comes and sits next to me but I keep my hands on my hair, hiding my face from him. "I saw what he did to you. I saw everything" I take a deep breath.

"Why didn't you talk to Eli?" luckily my voice didn't betray me.

"You think that he would listen to me" I look at him. I'm sure as hell that my eyes are red even if I'm not crying.

"Why not?".

"He loved you, Levi. He got really bad broken when our father told us that you died. He loved you more than me".

"Well now he hates me".

"He doesn't want to get close to you because he thinks that he will lose you again".

"Only if they kill me, you two will lose me".

"He is scared to lose you. He wanted to die when he learned that you died" I look at Eli.

"Suicide?".

"Yes" I look at Ice. "The scars faded. He couldn't leave me like he said. He was to protect me".

"He was a kid".

"He thought that he had to be always near me and all these".

"You don't sound happy".

"He is overprotective" I look at Eli. "He's just scared. He will change".

"If you think so".

"I know that he will. He needs time".

"That attitude doesn't show me that he will change, Ice" I look at Ice. "He blames me for something that I didn't do. For something that I'm not responsible for".

"