Night Falls

Twenty One

The front door of the bar is pulled open and a short girl, short enough to draw attention for her height alone, steps inside. Her white v-neck is fitted across her chest as her necklace hangs loose around her neck. Her green eyes scan the fairly empty room–still too early for the post-work rush–before landing on the familiar figure hunched over the varnished counter. She takes a deep breath before walking over and climbing onto the stool next to the defeated man.

The bartender greets her almost immediately.

"I'll take whatever IPA you've got." The girl orders and the bartender nods as she thanks him, her long hair bouncing with the motion.

"Hi ya, Kirstie." Scott greets his little sister with a glance.

Kirstin frowns, always hating when Scott calls her that.

A silence falls between the two siblings until the bartender returns with Kirstin's beer. She takes a sip, using the moment to gather her thoughts.

"So, Vine's dead?" Kirstin asks as she returns her glass to the coaster. Scott's lips purse as he nods before taking a sip from his glass–Whiskey. Neat. The way Scott always took it.

"Well, at least the fucker will burn in hell." Kirstin says with a straight face. "Good riddance." She takes another drink and Scott shakes his head back and forth.

"I didn't want him dead, Kirstie," Scott's voice is low as they stare at nothing. "I wanted him rotting in jail for the rest of his pathetic life, and knowing that I was the one who put him there." Scott lifts the glass to his lips, letting it hover there.

"All these years," Scott's voice is solemn. "And it's over, just like that." Scott's lips wrap around the rim of his glass and he finishes off his drink before dropping the empty cup loud enough to get the bartender's attention. Scott throws up a hand, signaling for another, and the bartender nods.

Kirstin sits next to her brother, her tongue darting over her painted lips as she chooses her next words.

"Either way, mom would have been proud of you." Scott glances at his little sister. "Dad too, for that matter." Kirstin's fingers tap in a rhythmless beat against the bar. "If they could have seen everything you've done," Kirstin smiles softly at the recollection of her parents. The bartender appears and places another drink in front of Scott. Kirstin watches as he lifts the glass, taking a slow swig, wondering how many her brother has had.

"And what am I suppose to be proud of, Kirstie?" Scott growls after a beat, shifting his body on the stool to face his little sister. "I finally had mom's killer, and yet again, he managed to one-up me." Scott shakes his head and shifts back to face the bar. "One final time."

Kirstin purses her lips and takes a deep breath as Scott takes another drink. Scott had been Kirstin's hero her whole life, and Kirstin just wished for once, her big brother could look in the mirror and see even half of the man she saw; the man who raised her, when he was just a child himself. The man who played both the roles of mom and dad after their mother died and their dad closed himself off to the world. The man who's dedicated his entire life to helping others, even at the cost of his own happiness.

"I get it, Scott, I do." Kirstin picks at the label of her beer bottle. "But look at all the good things you've done. You may not have gotten Vine," Kirstin pauses at the name. "But how many criminals have you put away? How many people have you saved?" Kirstin shakes her head.

"I know this wasn't how you wanted this to go, but I'm really proud of you, Scott." Kirstin places a hand on her brother's shoulder. Scott doesn't flinch at the touch, cause no matter how proud Kirstie is of him, Scott couldn't find it in himself to feel the same.

Kirstin's hand falls away from her brother's shoulder and she takes a huge gulp from her bottle. A silence falls between the two until Kirstin clears her throat and rolls her shoulders back.

"So, uh," she taps her hands against the bar. Scott raises his gaze to his sister, hearing the importance in her tone. "Jeremy asked me to marry him."

Scott's eyebrows shoot up and his lips fall open.

"No, shit." He smirks. "What'd you say?" Scott chuckles as her face falls and she huffs.

"Yes, you doof!" She says, shaking her head.

Scott smiles, tight but true. He couldn't be happy for his little sister, but there's a pang of jealousy that Kirstin's been able to create a life for herself when Scott still couldn't get over their mother's murder twenty-seven years later. Besides Kirstin, his mother's case was all he had, and now, that was gone.

"I'm happy for you, Kirstie." Scott pats her shoulder. "Really." Scott smiles. "Mom and dad would love him." Kirstin's eyes crinkle as she smiles back at her brother.

"I know." Kirstin takes a deep breath as they stare off in front of them.

Scott shakes his head and lifts his glass in air.

"To true love," Scott toasts with a smirk and Kirstin rolls her eyes.

"Jerk." Kirstin clinks her glass with her brother's.

"Bitch." Scott spits playfully, remembering all their stupid fights and name calling growing up. Kirstin laughs before they take sips of their drinks.

The two sit there, both feeling slightly better than when they walked in.

"So," Kirstin shifts in her seat. "What now?" She asks hesitantly.

Scott raises his glass and puckers his lips, gnawing at the corner before taking a drink.

"I've got no clue, Kirstie."

A/N

That's right biotches!!! We ain't done just yet!