"While he's still healthy, he should run around and have fun. Not stay by my side and cry like a sad cat."
- Carlos Henituse
B- narration in first person
I - narration from the memories of an omniscient perspective
N - narration from the outsider's perspective
~~
Cough!
"D-Don't come any closer Kiki..." A shaking hand gently shoved his twin away from the bed. "You might catch my cold."
It was a common occurrence, for a young child to catch a cold, especially in such a rainy season.
"H-hyung." The shaky voice Cale let out was enough for Carlos to shut his eyes tighter, he doesn't want to see it. His always smiling brother tearing up.
"This is normal Kiki!" Carlos laughed yet remained looking away, not meeting Cale's gaze. "I practiced too much under the rain after all."
"...face..."
"Hm what- ugh!"
Carlos grunts feeling the weight of something on top of him only to meet the tear-filled eyes of his brother.
"Then meet my eyes and say it to my face!! You think I'll believe what you're saying when you're not even meeting my eyes?!"
Cale's tear-filled eyes were so clear that he can even see his reflection in it. Weak, sick, and can't even muster the strength to push his ever-weak brother away.
"Because..." Carlos trailed off before biting his lips and once again turning away from his brother.
Because you'll make a sad expression like that again and I don't want that!
How come you don't cry no matter how painful you are feeling but cry so loudly when another is in pain?!
"And now you're not even giving me a reply!"
Perhaps because the book was telling the story from the older Henituse's perspective, the people outside the memory are not able to see Cale's reaction because of how Carlos with his every bit of effort is trying so much to not look at Cale's face but from the shaking voice of their young master, along with the glimpse of his teary face when he forced his brother to look at him. Cale was really upset.
"Look at me and talk to me damn it!"
"Young master!"
"Cale what is happening!"
The two were probably too occupied to even notice Ron and Jour walking in the room and the two adults were greeted by the meek and usually quiet younger twin of the house screaming on top of his sick older twin. Ron immediately rushed in to separate the two but maybe because of how the act surprised him Cale let out a yelp causing his brother to instinctively tugged his brother back and growled. However, upon seeing that his brother was in the hands of their butler, Carlos gently let go of Cale's hand and tucked himself to sleep.
"Ron keep Cale away from this room for a while. "
"This is how you resolve this?! By not talking to me?! Shutting me off instead of giving me the response?! Just because you don't want to see the face I'm making when you're in this state?!"
Yes.
"You coward!"
I'm sorry Cale.
"Please Cale just keep away for now."
"Fine, I'll keep away!"
Both Jour and Ron could only let the two children continue their fight and the two could only frown. This is not the usual fight these two would have.
This is the first they see Cale raising his voice and the first Carlos is just being passive about it.
The instant Ron dropped Cale on the floor, the kid instantly walked through the door stopping by to turn at his brother.
"Am I... this weak and pathetic that you won't rely on me when it's your turn to be vulnerable?"
Sniff
The door slammed close and silence followed the room afterwards.
Sniff! Sniffle!
I CAN'T HELP IT! I WAS A KID OKAY?! Not to mention out of everything I have to do, it's to get Kiki mad at me!
"Well... that was pathetic!"
My body really did a 180 at that time realizing I wasn't alone in that room and Mom was there.
"I am pathetic. I can't even protect my own brother from a cold."
"Well a cold is a common occurrence."
Jour smiled gently sitting on the bedside reaching out to pat her son's head.
"Did he cry?"
"He cried a lot."
And it was my fault. What an older brother am I.
My mother and I share a glanced before her body dropped on me with a booming laugh.
"Is this how you treat a sick kid Mother!"
"This is how I treat older brother who made their younger sibling cry."
"Mommy you're heavy! Get off!"
"My! What a rude thing to say to a lady."
"Mom!"
Mom laughed like how I always remembered it. Like a gremlin. Playful and annoying but full of life.
She didn't leave despite my forceful wriggling and only cuddled tighter.
"Right now your dongsaeng is probably crying on your Beacrox Hyung or your dad."
"I was wrong you know mommy."
I acknowledge that. I was definitely in the wrong here. I know how much Cale value the people around him. And I know he wanted to stay by my side just like how I would when he's sick. He wants to take care of me when he's still able to walk around, when he's still not as weak as he usually is.
But I'm an asshole.
And I don't want him to writhe in pain if he catches my sickness.
While he's still healthy, he should run around and have fun. Not stay by my side and cry like a sad cat.
"I won't apologise."
"I know." My mom let out a chuckle. "I know so you shouldn't cry and give in just because Kiki is pouting. Okay?"
"..."
"Does this make me your favourite child now?"
My mother cackled like there's no tomorrow. Her feeble arms holding me with soothing pats on my back.
"Car... what if mommy has to go away?"
"Where are you going Mom?"
"Hmm... somewhere far away..."
"And? What are you gonna do in that faraway place?"
"I have to watch over you from afar."
"Don't you always do that?"
"But if mommy do that, she won't be able to stay with you and Kiki, and Dad."
"Mommy Dad can't leave without you, you know that right?"
"..."
"Does Daddy knows you're going away?"
"No. This is our little secret."
'Our little secret'
A thing she would usually say whenever she tells me something important and leaves me a task to complete.
"What do you want?"
I grumbled. But was actually really happy. Yes I'm a pushover. Yey!
"Can you protect Kiki and Daddy for Mommy's sake?"
"I dunno about Daddy since he's actually scarily capable... despite being normal."
I just have the need to add that hoping my dad would hear it somewhere and cry.
"But you know I will protect Kiki with my all Mommy."
"Please do. Mommy will have to go now then."
With a soft kiss on my hand my Mother smiled, patted my head. Kissed me once again before standing up.
"I would tell Kiki to apologise to you okay?"
"Tell him to wait until I'm feeling better though."
With another set of cackles my mother left my room. If I would've known what transpired while I was asleep I would've just forced myself to tag along even if the headache was killing me.
I would've asked my mom to cancel the trip and find another vassal to do her job.
I would've apologised to Cale. And cling to him like my life depended on it.
The next day came, I was all better but everything around me was not. It was a mess.
But not as messy as how I was feeling.
~~
OH. MY. GOD.
WAHAHAAHAHAHA I'm back!!!
I'm really really sorry if this one took a while. I just had our break now and everything is still out of control and tbh I kinda forgot I was writing a fic here HAHAHAHAHAHA