Starkid one shots (Pete And Ted

1. B-B-But I was nice!?

(TW: child abuse, poor parenting, talks of violence, OOC).

To say that Pete and Ted's brotherly bond was strange would be an understatement,

The brothers had nothing in common other than an agonising distaste for their parents

'Parenting style', which appeared to be based solely on the fact that they could blame their constant absence in their kids' lives on late work hours.

Pete was brainy, funny unintentionally, and intelligent.

Ted was often referred to as a sleazeball, a perv, a fascinating example of one that causes mischief and sinfulness.

There was a seventeen-year age gap between the Spankoffski brothers gaining Pete a nickname that if he was honest he hated slightly more than his popular Micro-Peter one, Fix-it Baby.

A fix-it baby is when a struggling couple have a child in hopes of rekindling their relationship,

Pete hated being called a Fix-It Baby because it implies that he was born to save his parents' marriage and since his mother and father were now divorced there's a strong indication he failed.

Despite their vastly differing personalities and decent age gap the bothers were oddly close in a way that no one other than them understood from an outsider's perspective the two were constantly annoying each other and despised one another, in reality, they both cared for each other but weren't sure how to show it other than 'rude' and disgusting comments, and bantering back and forth.

Not that either of them would ever admit it but they both saw qualities in each other they wished to see within themselves.

Pete was shocked by his elder brother's level of honesty and confidence, Ted was brutally and grossly honest if asked a question straight up he'd answer it and he was so confident in everything he said that sometimes the level of clarity and confidence outshined the gross factor of what he was saying, Ted could have a 6-hour long conversation about nothing with a complete and utter stranger and Pete couldn't even work up the courage to talk to people in his class he'd know his whole life.

Ted envied Pete's humour, intelligence, wit and ability to connect with people at an emotional level Ted'd never be capable of, sure Ted spoke to everyone he saw, and sure he and Charlotte were really 'close' but Ted had never been able to truly connect with another human on a level other than physical, not that he'd ever let himself try.

When Pete threw up in the middle of History class and had to leave school he called Ted,

When Pete won first place in a science competition he called Ted, When Pete got detention for helping Stephanie cheat he called Ted, when Pete got beaten to a pulp in front of Pasquallis he called Ted.

And every time Pete called his big brother Ted, he answered, even when Pete wished he hadn't.

A bright light lit up Ted's dingy apartment bedroom as his phone vibrated aggressively on the bed beside the elder Spankoffski brother as he'd fallen asleep before he'd placed the phone on the bedside table.

The phone continued to vigorously vibrate and buzz as Ted pushed his thin tattered pillow against his ears wishing to drown out the noise and ignore whatever spam call he believed he was getting, sighing with relief when the Phone stopped only to be greatly annoyed when the phone started going off again.

With a sleepy yet aggravated sigh Ted sat up grabbing his phone and flinching away from its light as he read the name displayed on the screen, 'Baby brother [:'.

Ted swiped the screen to answer a call, "Heyy baby brotherrr what's up?" Ted yawned.

"Are you drunk?" Pete's oddly sniffily voice came through.