Two of a kind (Everett)

[Deleted]

The drive home had been awkward. Really awkward. The thing was that, given Everett would be driving home for the holidays, Kiara could not find an excuse decent enough to take a plane instead. Half of the times she had pretended to sleep, leaning against the door while gazing outside in order to avoid any eye contact or indication for her brother to speak up. The only things discussed included: making a stop for food, drinks, gasoline or to use a toilet. Of course the blonde had wished for that to be different, but she rather did not get into a fight with Ev in a small space like a car nor a couple of days before Christmas. Either way, once at home the avoidance continued, but at least their parents appeared to be oblivious to it and that made Kiara grateful. If they were to bring it up, she feared that Everett would portray her like a whore. Still, she wanted nothing more than to rekindle the bond they used to have. Heck, Ki almost missed his overprotective attitude.

So when Christmas morning arrived and Kiara woke up around 7:45AM, she couldn’t get herself to fall back asleep. Instead she just laid there, hands on top of the blankets while gazing up at the ceiling. Memories kept taking over and she mulled on whether or not to pick up the tradition from back when they were kids again. While their parents had always forbidden them to go down before 9AM on Christmas morning, Ki tended to slip into Everett’s room the second she woke up to flail about what possibly could be in the beautifully wrapped presents. The moment the clock hit nine, they would rush down and dive into the pile of gifts. She missed that. So much. She couldn’t help but think that perhaps Ev would be more acceptant of her presence under those circumstances… hence the reason the knot got cut and she soon found herself sneaking into her brother’s room.

Ev was still asleep, which made her kind of reluctant, but eventually she quietly closed the door behind her, took off her soft cat slippers and slipped under the covers. She made sure to keep a distance, not wanting to wake him up, but eyes did linger for a minute or so. Eventually Kiara closed her own, exhaling a small sigh. She hoped he wouldn’t kick her out.

(((Pajama and slippers)))

[Everett Lilien]

Everett wanted to say it was nice to be back home, to be in his heated parent's house where he didn't have to pay for the heat so he could turn it up all he wanted in the winter. But it didn't feel like Christmas. Mostly because him and Kiara weren't speaking and perhaps that was mostly his doing, but he didn't know what to say, how to get past what had happened. Was he just supposed to accept it and move on? He'd never been very good at that.

He was beginning to wonder if their parents had noticed anything odd between them because there was no way he was telling them or even getting remotely close to that horrid conversation. He'd retired to bed early on Christmas eve, laying in bed for about two hours before he actually fell asleep, racked by thoughts of the turmoil of his relationships with Kiara and Gabe.

It was around 8:30 a.m. when he rolled over and rubbed his eyes, thinking he should probably open them to check the clock, but when he did, his eyes met blonde curls. "Jesus, Kiara!" he nearly shouted. It was more of a whisper actually. "What are you doing?" Talk about being startled.

[Deleted]

Kiara might have drifted off into a slumber again, but that didn’t mean it was a deep one. The moment Everett caused movement in the bed, it stirred the girl and eyelids pretty much fluttered open the exact same moment that her brother blurted out his shock. Of course that reaction made her feel awful. Had it been better had she just applied the technique from when they were younger? Rushing into the room, throwing herself onto the bed and bouncing on him a couple of times to make sure he was aware of her presence? Surely Ev would have appreciated that even less.

Trying to give him a genuine smile, Ki shifted to lay on her side, prodding on arm under the pillow to be a tad bit more comfortable. “Just… wanting to flail about what mom and dad might have bought us?” Her expression did house a touch of sadness, yet she managed to keep the gentle curl on her lips. Hopefully his anger and annoyance didn’t beat those memories.

“I figured you wouldn’t be too happy about me throwing all my fat onto you.” As to explain why she had snuck under the covers. Still, Kiara was on the edge of the mattress, also aware that he might find that out of place. After that she couldn’t help but add a little whisper. “And it felt nice being able to look at you without receiving a glare…”

[Everett Lilien]

Everett was trying really really hard not to be mad that his sister had snuck into his room like she used to when they were little and it was Christmas morning in the Lilien household. Somehow things felt different now. Maybe because it was the fact that he was twenty-three and she'd slept with his best friend. Maybe not.

"Well, I'm not too thrilled about this either, honestly. Considering I don't expect to find a stranger in my bed when I wake up." Sure, she wasn't exactly a stranger. She was his sister, but she might as well be a stranger after the events as of recently. "I don't usually sleep glare. It's nice of you to confirm that."

Honestly he wasn't sure what to say or what she was trying to do.

[Deleted]

Ouch. As if Everett confessing that he was not thrilled about her gentle approach either was not enough, he just had to take it a step further. Calling her a stranger hurt really bad and perhaps he would be capable to look past his annoyance and anger to see the blonde’s features retort and for tears to start brimming. Okay then. Her brother was being crystal clear and Kiara knew better than to ignore the hint.

“Okay”, was all the young woman managed to get past her lips before she turned onto her other side, slipping from under the covers less than a second later. After that, Ki kept her back at him and just walked over to the door. In the doorway she seemed to pause for a moment, hand still on the handle, but eventually she pushed forward and headed out, closing the door behind her. A beaten dog was nothing compared to her.

And that’s how she retreated to her own room, trying to stifle a soft sob for she didn’t want their parents to wake up. It was all right though. Kiara was starting to grow used to the feeling of being abundant or to being erased from others’ lives.

Soon the college student crawled in her own bed again, tugging legs closely to her chest while plucking a picture from under the pillow. One third of it was folded to the back, but fingers slowly bended it back to gaze at the entire photo now. Happy little families didn’t exist. At least not when she was part of them.

[Everett Lilien]

Everett really didn't mean to be so bitter. It just kept happening. He couldn't shake the horror of the situation. In the big scheme of things, he knew that he couldn't let this ruin his relationship with his sister, or with Gabe for that matter, but he just couldn't seem to get over it. It felt like betrayal.

She mumbled an okay and she was out of the room just like that, leaving Everett to stare at the closed door. Christmas morning and he'd just practically kicked his sister out of his room. What did that say about him? He continued to lay there and stare at the door, knowing he had to stop being stubborn at some point and talk to her, talk to them both, because since he'd shut them out, he'd felt very alone. He was always looking for a new distraction to throw himself into so he didn't think about it.

He sighed to himself and pushed off his sheets, padding to the door and opening it. He moved into the hallway and stood in front of Kiara's door, remembering how she used to have a sign saying 'No boys allowed' when she was ten. However, he knew that when he knocked on that door it wouldn't be a ten year old Kiara who thought boys were gross answering the door. It would be the older young woman who had slept with his best friend and somehow he had to deal with that. He reached out and knocked once and then again, standing there and running a hand through his hair.

[Deleted]

What had Everett expected? That Kiara would keep standing in the room, hurt by his heartless reactions? She knew it was a lot to ask from him to muster a tiny bit of affection towards her, but he was her brother… And he had always been there for her, even when the blonde did not need him to be. Right now, however, Ki really had longed to be comforted… but he didn’t manage to care. Ev didn’t know what it like to feel alone. Alone while being unable to do much about it.

When someone knocked on the door, the girl tensed. Had she woken up their parents? If it was their mom checking on her, she didn’t want the woman to see her like this. So the soft sobs got limited and muffled as Kiara used the long sleeves of the onesie to rub at her eyes. “Yes?” She called to the door, trying to keep her voice steady as a glance got cast over her shoulder. It was not who the blonde might have expected to see, but at the same time it almost felt like a relief for she didn’t care about Everett spotting her sadness. He had contributed to it… and it was just hard to keep it hidden now that she relaxed some.

Turning her face away from him again, she tucked the picture under the pillow before once more smoothing the fabric of the sleeve over her eyes. “Sorry for waking you.” Kia mumbled carefully. Ev was probably going to complain about that, right? What else would he be doing in the room of a stranger? After that, another brief peek got cast over her shoulder while she remained laying on her left side. “I’ll be down in a few.” In case he did cherish their traditions.

[Everett Lilien]

Everett slowly cracked open the door first, peeking inside to see his sister with her back to him. She didn't want to look at him and that hit him in a certain way, that he was only contributing to the rift between them. "It's fine," he mumbled in response regarding her waking him. It bothered him when he was younger and it still did now when she jumped on him on Christmas morning to go get their gifts, but it was familiar and representative of their relationship. The fact that he'd dismissed the action when Kiara was trying made him feel rotten.

"You better make it quick," he said next, his voice a bit louder now. "It's getting close to nine." He gestured towards the alarm clock on her nighstand. "We have to be down there at nine sharp. Tradition, remember?" He turned away from her, putting his hand on the doorknob, hoping that would spark something in her. He wasn't ready to talk about what had happened between her and Gabe, but he did miss her.

[Deleted]

Kiara figured it only made sense that she could not muster the courage nor motivation to face her brother. He had slammed her down multiple times before and it was doomed to happen again. Except that it seemed to take a small turn when the young man’s words reached her ears. While it might not have been a smile, a certain light filled her eyes. And despite the fact that she knew it was close to nine, she did take a peek over her shoulder to check the clock either way. The moment her head turned to Everett again, the weakest of smiles could be detected.

“Do… do you want to fantasize about what mom and dad might have gotten us this year?” Ki lifted the covers ever so slightly. “Tradition, remember?” Maybe it was somewhat awkward compared to when they were younger, but it was not as if she requested him to cuddle or anything remotely close to that.

“Or just catch up on what we’ve missed out on?” Ki was careful while asking that, not wanting to push anything downhill again. Ev didn’t have to feel obligated. At this point she was willing to adjust to anything as long as her brother didn’t continue to push her away.

[Everett Lilien]

Everett figured that their tradition didn't include talking about what had happened, it only meant talking about what they thought was under the Christmas tree and their parents still put the gifts there, elegantly wrapped with a bow on top. Some things never changed.

He moved out of the space in the doorway and towards her, climbing onto the bed with the grace of an elephant, which pretty much meant he just plopped down on the mattress. He turned on his side to face her. He still found it hard to look at her, but it was Christmas and...the tradition had to stay alive.

What had they missed out on with each other? Probably a lot. He wasn't sure how to talk about it without bringing up what had happened and how he still wasn't over it. He was stubborn...and could hold a grudge. "How's school?" he asked.

OOC: Writing this I realized that this thread is in December. Holy crap! We should definitely start another more in the present!

[Deleted]

Kiara was way more grateful than she could ever express when her brother plopped down on the mattress. Tucking an arm under the pillow, a more comfortable position to converse was established. While her features might only lit up barely in response, it was more than visible in comparison to the sadness that had been there before.

Everett’s question might be overly simple, but his sister cherished it. “Okay. I think my exams went quite well.” In relation to that: “I also got a new job on the side – playing music for video games.” Studying Music, this could only make a nice addition to her resume. She figured he would be more okay with that than her previous occupation at The House.

“How’s ‘school’ for you? No student has gotten close to killing you?” Being a trainer and all that. Of course it was a little joke. Ki hoped he took it as intended. All the time she pretty much figured, almost as if afraid that speaking louder would undo this deal.

(((We must! *goes to contact you*)))

[Everett Lilien]

"Video games?" That sure got the older blonde's attention. Everett loved video games. "Man, your job is cooler than mine. I might kill you for your job if it involved comic books." He approved of this job. More than approved of it. Her job at the house was not appropriate in his opinion.

"It's okay," he said with a nod, before elaborating on the second part of what she said. "I know you mean to joke with that question, but there is one of my students who is slightly dangerous and I might fear her on occasion." He could do this. This conversation was easy.

[Deleted]

Kiara smirked. “No, you wouldn’t. Besides, comic books are way too boring for awesome little me.” She was just teasing him now, just like she used to do when they were younger. While the girl had liked to read a comic every once in a while, she had never understood how Everett could be so addicted to them. She always blamed it on his lack of awesomeness (which totally was because she had inherited all of that trait).

With a soft chuckle, the blonde readjusted her arm under the pillow. “Need me there to tweak the odds in your favor?” Of course it was doubtful it was an option or that Ev would take it, but she hoped he also read it as her willing to be there for him still. Hopefully it was also like that the other way around.

“How have you been?”

[Everett Lilien]

Everett scoffed, half joking, half serious as he regarded his sister with a glare. "Take that back," he urged her, but he was hardly able to keep a straight face. "Comic books are anything but boring! They're art and literature at the same time! They're damn entertaining!" He couldn't count how many times he'd dragged Ki to the comic book store with him when they were younger. He was sure the only reason she came with was the ice cream they got after at a local shop.

"Ha, you're funny," he remarked. "But no, I should probably actually do my job and try to help her. She's just so angry. I'm trying to get through to her, find a way to make training appeal to her, I guess."


It was so easy to fall back into the jokes between the two of them, so easy that Everett almost forgot why he'd been angry. But when she asked how he was, it came flooding back and the grin on his face faltered slightly. "I've been alright." Which was equivalent to: angry, ignoring Gabe and somewhat seeing a girl that really gives me mixed signals.

[Deleted]

Kiara smirked and then half-way opened her mouth, almost as if she were going to oblige and take back the statement. Instead a grin took over. “Nope, can’t seem to take it back.” Even if Everett would have been able to keep a straight face, his voice might still have given away, especially since the smallest changes were detectable in comparison with whatever contact they had been having the last couple of months. Right now was a nice moment, but Ki feared that she would ruin it again soon enough.

“Awesome and funny”, the blonde mused. “God, it must be great to have a sister like me. You are one lucky guy.” The bright smile did settle down some, but a little one still curled her lips. “What is your trainee angry about? Maybe you just have to sit down with her and listen? What’s her power?”

It intrigued Kiara, and knowing about her brother somewhat seeing a girl would definitely interest her as well. Then she could judge for once, and maybe even give him advice! “A-are we okay, Ev? I miss you.” The blonde whispered, just thinking it would never be the right timing, so she might as well ask now that she had already detected his smile faltering some.