A secret revealed (Brendan)

[Alyssa James]

Alyssa wasn’t exactly in trouble as she was escorted to her brother’s classroom. There were no classes going on today. She was wondering why he was here so late, she should’ve have been home as well though. She was on campus after the curfew her father had set, which was eight, and she had been caught with some cigarettes in her hand. To the Hammel officials, that was the first time they had caught her. She had been smoking about for three years, but no one knew that. Not even those she considered close, and that was few. She pulled her shirt up a little more, hoping to hide the fact that it was so low cut in the first place. There had been a couple of other Meta boys, but none that were worth remembering in her mind. The official had a tight grip on her arm and she wrenched it from his hand and had seen what mark it made on her arm. “Do you mind?” she growled, walking a little faster in front of him. She wondered what her brother would say to all of this.

It was completely stupid, making a teenager march to her older brother’s classroom just because she was caught with some illegal drugs. It’s only illegal because she’s fifteen. Her eyes rolled into her back of her head and she made a huffing sound much like a dog. It seemed she was taking on more traits of a dog the further she got into her power. It was scary. She didn’t like shifting, especially the pain that came with it. It was like a bad dog following when its master said no.

They had finally came to a stop in front of his door. And open it went, and her eyes went wide. She wasn’t expecting him to be in. The officials gave him the information they were sent for, and she looked away of whatever looking he was giving her. Lyssa was in no mood to deal with her brother. She already knew it was going to reach their father and then she would have to deal with him and he would compare her to her younger sister Ollie and quite frankly, that pissed her off. “So how’s it going Bren?”

[Brendan James]

The day was over, yet Brendan sat in the fluorescent-lit art room. Most of the teachers knew at this point that he was often here until after most of them had left. It was because of this the janitorial staff knew him. They knew to expect to see his light on. And knew that he wasn’t bothered when they made their way into his room to clean. He actually requested that they do much less than was required in the other room. Most just empty the trash bins and vacuum.

One could never aim a spray bottle of cleaning product properly enough that it didn’t get everywhere. And no student’s artwork would get destroyed on his watch. So after the vacuum was turned off and the cord rolled up, Brendan nodded towards the older man. “Thanks Frank. Tell the wife I said hi.” With a smile and a ‘goodnight’, the other man left the room.

Now, most would suspect that because he was sitting in his classroom in the evening, that he’d be planning out different ‘lesson plans’ for his students. But actually, he was working on a surprise for them. The windows were open, allowing the cold air in and the fumes out. You see, Brendan’s room was filled with rectangular black tables, large enough for two students to sit at. And he was painting them white. Tomorrows project would be one for the entire room to work on.

Together, they would decide on a mural. When the tables were pushed together, it’d make one complete picture. Of course, he’d let the kids decide what they wanted to paint. And of course, it had to be school appropriate. But each student would be working on his or her own table. He was just lucky he had an even number of kids.

It was as he was finishing painting the last table white that the door swung open. He hadn’t been expecting to see Al, but he wasn’t surprised. Nor was he surprised that a school official was escorting her. Sighing, he put down the paint can, with the brush in it on his desk, and approached them. As the incidents were relayed to him, he stared at his kid sister. Of course, her shirt concerned him, but so did the red mark on her arm. “Yeah uh huh… Thanks.” And the brother waved a hand dismissively at his colleague.

Another sigh, then he grabbed the paint can, and continued painting the table. “Grab a seat. I’ll only be a few minutes. Then we’ll go grab some dinner downtown.” As he painted, spreading the white slowly until the black was completely invisible, he tried to talk to his troubled sister.

“So… Tell me, what happened?” He what happened of course. The man who brought her here had told him. But he was giving her a chance to explain things from her point of view. He knew what it was like to be a teenager. He knew what it was like to think the world was out to get you. He, however, did not know what it was like to be a teenager without having the parent you were closest to around. “Who grabbed your arm?” He glanced at the windows. The art room had a lot of them, which he was thankful for. If it didn’t, he’d surely have passed out by now. And he’d leave them open over night too. Let the paint dry and the room clear of the smell.

[Alyssa James]

Alyssa had no intention of answering his question. Or to go to dinner with him in downtown. She was more concerned of what her father was going to take away from her this time. It was a selfish thing to think, but the only things she had left was her computer and phone. Both she deemed necessary for her everyday life. She rubbed the red mark on her arm, and gave a huge sigh. She was sitting in her brother’s teacher chair, wishing she had a better connection with him. She spun in it, wishing she wasn’t there. Anywhere but there. Her mind wandered to the boys she had been hanging out with. They were tall and cute and knew she was a Meta. Not something she normally advertised, but she had wanted some smokes and she needed them badly. She had hid some in her bra, and her hands itched to pull one out.

She adjusted her bra a little and felt all three of them break at the same time. She gave a slight growl and pulled them out, not caring what her brother saw or what he did. She held the precious smokes in her hand and threw them into the garbage can. She looked into her brother eyes and said very loudly and clearly, “Yes, I smoke. I’ve been smoking for three years. And not to mention I’ve been out on more dates than half the girls in Pilot Ridge. Although I haven’t had sex yet, I think it might be coming to that time. The red mark is from that fucking official, he thought it was his right to hold my arm so damn tightly. I guess I don’t blame him because I can shift into a damn wolf. And hell, sometimes when I shift, I feel like killing something. An animal. Stupid animal instincts, even though I am completely human in it. Are you happy now? You know what’s going on!” She screamed the last part and stood, pushing the chair back into the wall. She was shaking and constantly running her hands through her hair. Tears were running down her cheeks. She hated being open with her brother, she absolutely hated it. Then why was she so open now? She wasn’t sure, it was confusing. She stayed standing up, the shaking less severe, but tears still ran down her face.

[Brendan James]

A child. That’s what Al was acting like. Sitting there, refusing to speak to him. She was behaving like a petulant child. But that was fine. Silence had never bothered him before and he’d remain quiet until she spoke. Not that her growl counted, but it made him glance up at her to see what exactly had her frustrated. Smoking too? Well he wasn’t exactly surprised actually. Though still disappointed.

He only stopped working when she stood up and began talking, holding the paint in his hand. The fact that she was dating… Gave Brendan the greatest discomfort. This was Al after all. His baby sister. He still remembered being excited when his parents first told him he’d be having a little brother or sister. Of course, like every boy, he’d been hoping for a brother. But when she’d been born he remembered thinking how pretty and small she was and he had just wanted to hold her and keep her for himself.

Virgin! His sister was a virgin. That word alone gave him more relief he’d ever felt before in his twenty-eight years of existence. But he’d be more relieved later. He needed to focus on the troubles at hand and his sister was having plenty of them. And seeing her cry was too much. Brendan didn’t think of himself as somebody easily turned to putty. But his sister was in pain. She was scared and hurting. And Brendan didn’t feel as if he’d been any help to her. Silence filled the air after she’d finished, tears still running down her face.

Without a word to his sister, Brendan reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone, and dialed it. The other line was picked up immediately. “Hey dad.” The man listened as his father spoke, rushed in concern which was nearing anger. “Woah woah woah, dad. Al’s right here with me.” Now that his father knew she was safe, anger took over. “No no no no. I meant to call you earlier. Al said she would help me with a project I’m gonna do with class.” He listened as the anger again changed, but this time annoyance and confusion. “Yeah well we’re almost done here. You and Ollie good for dinner, because I was gonna take Al out.” Another moment. “Ok dad. Bye. Love you too.”

After hanging up, the phone back in his pocket, he approached Al. “Yes. I’m happy to know what’s going on.” Placing the can of paint on his desk, he looked at his sister. “Come on. Just a quick bite to eat. I’ll let you pick any place you want.” Stepping closer towards his sister, he reached out with both hand and carefully wiped the tears from her cheeks. “We can talk, not talk. Whatever you’d like.”

He thought it was hopeless, offering her time with him, just the two of them. But he wanted to. And thought that possibly letting her make the decisions might make it more appealing.

[Alyssa James]

Lyssa stood there, the tears still fucking running freely. There was some kind of inside of her door that had finally came unhinged and let her open up to her brother. Suddenly, all the behavioral problems she had been having come back to her in one huge rush. The anger in her father’s eyes, the complete and total lack of trust and hate in Ollie’s eyes. Then her brother. He had been there for her ever since she had been a total teenager. There was a look of relief when she said she was still a virgin, had he thought otherwise? It was hard, to think that her brother thought she was out getting laid all those nights. When the boys made moves on her, she crushed more balls than anyone she knew.

She listened as her brother called up their father and made some kind of excuse for her. Surprise was written all over his face, he didn’t normally cover for her, especially if she was doing something extremely stupid. They were to go out for a bite, that sounded nice. When he bent down in front of her, she gave him a hug. She didn’t let go, burying her face into his shoulder.

He was so familiar. Lyssa felt like she was at ease finally. She couldn’t promise herself that she would be the perfect little thing like her sister Ollie, but it was nice to get away from being resented and all the resentment that seemed to fill her. “Alright, I’ll go out to dinner with you,” she said softly. “But, I don’t know where to go.” It felt nice being normal for once. She wondered what her father was going to do. A text buzzed in her pocket.

It was from one of the guys she had been caught hanging out with. Pulling away from her brother, she checked her phone, Hey baby, when’s the next time we can hang out? She wasn’t sure how to respond and quickly put it back before he could read it. “I’m ready when you are Bren.”

[Brendan James]

Shock. That was the only word that could describe how he felt when Al hugged him. And yet, that word didn’t seem nearly strong enough. It was as if in only a manner of a minute his sister had understood everything. That Brendan had only wished to ever be there for her as a friend and protector. Exactly what he’d imagined a brother should be. Despite his shock, he still managed to have control over his arms.

Wrapping his arms around her small frame, he squeezed her tightly to him and gently stroked her hair. “Good. Because honestly, I wasn’t going to be taking for an answer.” He said with a chuckle. Honestly, he’d be good to skip on dinner. Feeling as if this moment alone was a huge stepping-stone in their relationship, he was unwilling to move and prove he was wrong. But his stomach was already angry at him for having ignored it for so long already.

He let her pull away when her phone went off. Of course his eyes were on her the whole time. But he didn’t push her to share with him. This… calm area between them was something new and he wasn’t ready to upset the waters just yet. Even though he did want to know. The fact that she seemed to ignore it though, comforted him a bit.

“Well I’m ready now, so lets go Al” He said and slung his arm over her shoulders and lead her towards the door. And then he remembered what she had said about the Hammel guy being the one to hurt her arm. “Oh… And don’t worry about that jackass. I’ll take of it.” Thinking about that grown man gripping his baby sister’s arm like that angered him. So much that he considered chasing him down. But no. Al didn’t need to see that confrontation.

“You in the mood for some greek food? There’s that Pyrrhos’s Place. Or we could go to the coffee bar, Kali’s Kafe, if you want that instead.” Having Al with him, things smooth for the moment, made him the big softie and push over he always was with Ollie. But comparing the two girls was like comparing apples and oranges. Actually no, more like apples and bananas. He’d never understood the apples and oranges analogy. They were similar, in many ways actually.

[Alyssa James]

Lyssa gave a small smile when he said he would take care of the official. She could almost understand why he had gripped her so tightly. She had quite the reputation around the campus, not only as the girl who dated guys constantly, but as the shifter. She was dangerous in wolf form, the only thing she wanted to do was run, run into the forest that surrounded Hammel Institute, and never come back. Unfortunately, she couldn’t hold her form for more than four to five hours. It was always a burden. She sighed and let her brother steer her out of the classroom.

She wasn’t sure what she was in the mood for. “Whatever you want,” she said smiling. She thought of what happened the last time they had gone into town together. She had disappeared because she had shifted and disappeared into the woods. Of course, she had her human mind, but to stay away from everyone, she acted like an animal.

All she really wanted to do was spend more time with him. She didn’t want to go home and deal with her sister who hated her more than anything, but only because she brought so much pain onto the family. After her mother died, she went on a rampage. Starting drinking coffee and smoking not four days afterwards. It seemed that her mother didn’t even have time to get cold in her grave. “Whatever you want,” she repeated, a little quieter.

[Brendan James]

Brendan was liking this. His arm was around his sister and she wasn’t recoiling or throwing a fit or pushing him away. He wished that this would last. But… Well lets just say he was enjoying the calm before the storm as much as he could.

“Well I’m partial to the coffee bar myself. So if you don’t mind.” He smiled down at her, leading her to his car in the parking lot. Of course… Brendan had suspected she’d been drinking coffee. She wasn’t as discreet with the evidence like she should’ve been. But Brendan helped to cover her tracks because he didn’t think it was a big deal. Not even worth mentioning to their father. It would most likely just upset him that his baby girl was growing up and was so distant.

The smoking though… He wasn’t sure how his father still hadn’t noticed. Brendan was fond of cigarettes too. The occasional one at least. Of course, he’d known before his sister told him. Cigarette smoke clung to ever piece of you. Your clothes, hair, and even vaguely your skin smelled of smoke. But he’d get on her case about that later.

Finally at the coffee shop/bar, Brendan pointed her towards a small table top for two. “There’s a table right there.” And he steered her towards it, pulling her seat out for her. As soon as they sat down, a dark haired waitress appeared, handing them both a menu. “I’ll be right with you folks. Here are your menus to look over.” Just as quickly as she appeared, she was gone.

Looking over his menu, but not really paying any attention to what was actually on it, he asked, “So… Would you like to two about things that have been going on or just enjoy ourselves for right now?” The restaurant was a tad busy. The day was nearly over and people we’re present and drinking. Nobody appeared to be completely smashed. Yet. But things were a tad loud.

[Alyssa James]

Lyssa almost resisted when he put his around her. She had not been used to being touched in a friendly manner, even by family. When they arrived at the shop, she took her menu, holding it in front of her face so she could choose. She chose not to answer his question until she had her answer fully thought out. There was thin ice between them; one wrong move could send him into anger or her into frenzy. Being in a loud place and being a rebel had never stopped her or even fazed her. If she wanted to get up and leave, she would do so, not caring about the stares or the look her brother would give her. This gave her comfort in something she couldn’t face or control. She chose a dinner special and of course, had gotten coffee. A waitress, not theirs, stopped by and filled their cups up. “I don’t know Bren,” she said looking down at her cup and stirring in sugar.

“There’s a lot that’s been going on. This might sound like an excuse, but this all started when mom died. She just died, not being able to say goodbye to us. I was at school Bren, and of course, you were in New York. You know, it felt like you didn’t even care. It felt like, you moved away from us because you were tired of your two little sisters. You never called or wrote us. New York is a long ways away! And when mom died, I just kind of…lost my purpose in life. I wanted to start cutting, but even I draw a line at my rebelling. So I took up and smoking and hanging out with people who shared that kind of pain. It was a huge effort to even get out of bed, and Ollie… She hates me. You know that? She’s never liked me, but now she just plainly hates me. She’s the good one, her curfew is two hours longer than mine and she’s 12!” Her fist banged on the table, bringing some eyes. The pain in her blue eyes seemed almost instant and was gone the moment it was there.

“It just seems like no one cares anymore.”

[Brendan James]

Waiting for her to answer him, Brendan followed Al’s lead and looked at his own menu, kind of mimicking her moverments. Not mockingly of course. But he remembered from his general sociology class in college that when in a stressful situation, mimicking the other’s movements was supposed to put them at ease.

Only after she ordered, did Bren give his. A burger and a beer. He hated beer. Absolutely despised the taste, preferring hard liquor. But he thought tonight it might help to make things more… Easily discussed. Though he was maybe just a little uncomfortable drinking it. For years having done his best to never drink in front of either of his sisters. Again, he thought it might make things easier. For Al to see that he did things everybody did? He wasn’t sure… He hadn’t thought it all the way through. But he knew he was going to want something to drink tonight and he wasn’t going to drink anything harder than a beer with her around.

Though, when she started talking, she had his full, undivided attention. While he was listening to everything, he was listening more carefully to see if there was anything he had done.

And when she confirmed he was at least a little bit responsible… He dropped his eyes to the ground. He had been young when he moved to New York. Only nineteen. Staying close to his family wasn’t really his top priority then. All he knew then was that he lived far enough away from his parents that getting in trouble wasn’t really ever a concern to him. Of course he’d taken advantage of it then. And the repercussions were only just now coming back to bite him on the ass.

He’d been successful so far at keeping his emotions from his face, trying to put Al at ease that he wasn’t judging her but simply listening. Not that he would ever judge either of his sisters. But when she said she’d been considering cutting, his head shot up with his eyes wide. His little baby sister. The one he used to watch and care for when his parents went out. Though the blame wasn’t entirely his, he felt as if it were entirely his.

Feeling as if he had just been repeatedly punched in the stomach, Brendan struggled to say anything. He couldn’t find his voice. And even if he could, he didn’t know exactly what he’d say.

“Al…” He paused, still unsure of what he’d say exactly. But he decided talking was better than not talking. “You have to believe me Alyssa. We all care. Dad and I more than anybody else.” With his looking similar to a sad dog’s, he reached his hand across the table to pat her’s. “Ollie…” he sighed. What was he supposed to say? Ollie was upset about their mom’s passing, yes. Not nearly as much as Al, but she was still upset. “Ollie’s having a hard time too Al. She doesn’t remember mom. She’s already forgetting things.” But then he remembered he’d been told that in confidence. “Don’t tell her I told you that. She’s afraid it’ll upset dad.”

Both of his sisters having such a hard time… It made Brendan feel weak that he couldn’t simply fix things and make it better for them. He was supposed to be their protector after all, right?