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Chapter 5: Definitely Too Soon

None of my brothers had been quite so lucky, however. Their pasts were dark and often brutal and they still carried the scars from those times, whether they liked to admit it or not. I'd gotten very familiar with the symptoms and always tried to do whatever I could to close the wounds a little, or at least distract from the pain.

That's how I recognized that Sang was like my brothers. I wasn't sure how yet, but I would find out. First, though, she needed to learn that we were not going to hurt her. We were not enemies or threats. If I could convince my angry little brother of that after he'd arrived from Greece, I could convince this sweet and beautiful girl.

Whenever I got sad or insecure, I distracted myself with laughter and sweets and fun. Over time I'd learnt that my coping tactic helped distract my brothers too.

And thus my plan to distract Sang had been put into action. I chuckled in triumph.

She'd laughed today and had experienced what it was like to accept our help.

I may not have been successful in planning the chimney prank, but the sound of her cute giggles through the fireplace had soothed my pride.

Not that it was terribly hurt, anyway. I had a rubber pride: you could drop it countless times, but it would always bounce back up.

I turned on the water and washed my hands in the sink. Once my hands were cleared of the big chunks of yuck, I grabbed the underside of my shirt to lift it over my head. I needed a shower.

The sound of Cupcake's giggles still echoed in my mind and I couldn't help but sigh contently as I remembered the happy and relaxed look on her face.

Argh!

The shirt brushed over my hair and a cloud of dust descended over my face, finding its way into my shut eyes. It burned. Get it off me!

In a panic, I blindly felt around for a clean towel. My eyes burned. There was the sink. Ouch, no that's no towel. Yes! I finally felt one hanging on a wall and roughly pulled it to me.

I could have used it to save my eyes from the torture they were under, had it not been so stuck on the hanger. Instead, I felt unexpected resistance and tugged a bit harder.

Something gave and slammed into the sink with a loud boom. I scrambled to get away from the counter. Apparently whatever fell had broken the tab and water was spouting everywhere.

Apparently, I say, because I still couldn't see and my eyes still burned.

Great.

I turned around to move further away from the sink when I tripped over the towel I'd grabbed. A momentary flash of confusion came over me in which I wondered about the length of the towel, seeing as it had managed to wrap around my legs and I was still holding the end.

I tried to hold on to something, anything, but without the use of my eyes my flailing arms couldn't find any purchase.

I let out a loud, North-worthy grunt as my bare back hit the cold tiles hard.

CRASH!

This just got better and better. Whatever I'd pulled off the wall had come with me and, judging by the sound to my left, had broken the glass wall by the shower.

Water from the busted sink rained down on what must have been a pitiful scene and I couldn't help but chuckle.

Then I laughed.

Rubber pride, Luke, rubber pride.

"LUKE!"