Explosivus (part 2)

Part 2: Little Brother

Luty and I walked along the dirt path, going down while observing the crops around our house. Dad's job is to take care of those crops... I know he's not the only one in charge of that, most of our neighbors live here because of that job or at least that's what Pa' told me. If I remember correctly, Conrad's dad also works in those fields...

"Luty..."

"Hm?"

"Do you want us to stop by and get Conrad? We haven't played with him since you two fought..."

"..."

He just kept kicking a small stone as we walked, as if that was more important than the question I had asked him. Conrad was the same age as Luty, but for some reason they didn't get along very well. Last time I had to separate them, they were arguing because Luty told him he didn't want to talk to a "dummy"... My little brother has always had a distant attitude, I worry that he won't be able to get along with others. It will be best if I force him to go with him to apologize-

"You're right, I was the one who started the fight..."

"Ah?"

Well, that was a surprise... By the time I reacted, I was smiling at him, so my little brother can be a good person when he wants to.

"But... Not today... Frey, can you come with me tomorrow? I'll try to get along with him..."

"Sure! Whenever you need me I'll be there."

He kept kicking the little stone, although I could tell he was more nervous than before. So he just decided to apologize... I'm sure they'll be very good friends soon. I worried over nothing.

After 15 minutes we finally left the fields behind and started to see the huge houses in the distance. Despite being in the same village, it was like entering another dimension. That's why we loved exploring the area... Huge houses, some even 3 stories high, all side by side... Although most of them didn't have a garden! Which is why I still prefer where we live. We passed through some alleys, taking the shortcut we knew well to get to the Market as soon as possible.

When we were just short of crossing one street, we started to hear the voices of many people... This place was very lively, everyone in the village was kind and almost always smiling. Dad has no idea what he's talking about, this is not dangerous at all... Everyone here knows us and they have always treated us well.

"Hurry up!"

"Hey! Wait for me!"

Luty suddenly started running, I did the same to try to keep up with him, soon we found ourselves running in the middle of the market. It was a huuuge street full of people, with shops on the sides selling all kinds of things... Mostly wood carved figures, food like fruits and meats...

You could hear all the people talking cheerfully, without worries. Sometimes the lady who sells figures gives us one that she has left over and... It can't be! By the time I realized it, Luty was already too far away. I sped up as much as I could, he had left the limits of the Market and started climbing up into the forest area.

"Luty!! Wait!"

He's completely ignoring me... I'm tired... I followed him uphill for a little while longer until he stopped in the area where we used to stay and observe the village. He sat down to wait for me, while I was out of breath using the little strength I had left to sit next to him.

"I... told you... To wait for me... Aaaah"

"Hahaha sorry, Frey. It's just that I was really happy."

He just kept his happy face, staring intently at the village... I guess it doesn't matter... At least I managed to make him happy. I also observed the village; from a distance the people looked like ants, the shops with different fabrics on their roofs formed a really beautiful variety of colors. Despite being just a merchant village, there are always many visitors from other cities... It feels good to see that we are not the only ones enjoying that place...

"We're lucky to live here, aren't we Luty?"

"I guess."

"You guess...?"

I looked at him intrigued, suddenly his joy was gone... It wasn't unusual for him, in fact, the reason I had to defend him so much from Pa' was because of that... I've never known why, but Luty can be radiant, happy and suddenly put on that gloomy face he has now. He tends to argue about the strangest things and, sometimes, I've seen him cry while laughing... This last part was a secret between us, I never wanted to tell our parents because I didn't know if it was something good or bad...

"Dad and mom prefer you..."

There it is. Why do you say that? We were having such a good time... Best to calm him down.

"I don't see it that way, they love us both a lot."

"And why is it always me they yell at...? They don't even trust me enough to let me come here alone..."

Well, the truth is that from today on, they weren't going to let either of us come... But this is not the best time to tell him.

"That's because they're worried about you... They scold me a lot too, but it's because we still have things to learn."

"If you say so... I wish I could be alone..."

"Luty, look at me."

I took his cheeks in my hands and made him stop looking at the ground, even while hugging his legs I forced him to direct all his attention to my eyes.

"No matter what happens, you will always be my little brother and I will be there to take care of you. It doesn't matter if you get punished, I will share the punishments with you and it doesn't matter if you get hurt, because I will be there to make you feel better. So don't say things like you want to be alone..."

"..."

He looked at me with his eyes open for a couple of seconds, while I did the same with the happiest face I could show him, smiling in a somewhat forced way in an attempt to make him see my feelings. Finally he closed his eyes and hugged me... Seriously... Sometimes it seems like Luty is six years old instead of ten... I hugged him back, while stroking his head...

"Thank you for always being there for me..."