My brother

My hand brushed through the soft nestles on the tall stem. I pulled my hand from the peculiar flower. Long purple petals that darken by the centre of its bosom and hung by the round thin tip. The long stalks sprout from the centre with nectar exposed. A bee flew in and buzzed around the flower before flying away. My behind was a little sore as I felt the solid ground push the tiny stones into my buttocks. I stand up slowly with my upper back leaning with my hand to dust my jeans. My eyes scanned across the fields before staring at the house. "Where's he?" I wondered with bated breath with my hands on my knees staring at the miniature building. I spotted a tiny body appears from the open doorway and heard a faint creak of the closing backdoor. The figure had a white shirt with a red stripe by the neck and marched steadily towards the hill. By the foot of the hill, I could hear loud stamps snapping and bending twigs and dry leaves. I would have not come around this weekend but he called me here. I kneel waiting for his arrival but I feel agitated for the brief meeting. His soft brown hair was a messy drape on his clean-shaven sides. His light blue eyes always seemed cold and confrontational just like his father. His lips widened into a smile and uttered loudly "Hope I didn't keep you waiting?" I smiled at his warm reception. His face cools as it settles into a blank expression. His head slumped with his tracing the forest floor. I watched his perplexing act of silence with worries. I could not help but feel he must bothered about the incident on Monday. Sarah and I burst into laughter standing by the corner of the buildings at school. I remember heaving and spotting his lean figure shuffle past us from a distance. His baggy blue jeans and black shorts with black long sleeves. He walked by with eyes on the ground as if avoiding any form of contact. My eyes saw the pedantic expression of his wrinkled forehead, a visible titled eyebrow and pursed lips. The view of his face became obscured as he ventured off the school premises into the parking lots. Sarah questioned his troubled demeanour and posed theories of his current state. I ignored her meek understanding of his personal challenges as I watched his figure disappear behind a row of trees. "hmmm Jake, are you good?" I asked with my head leaning forward. Jake shook his head before raising it and beaming at me. "Well, the last few days weren't quite steady". "I don't think they were meant to be easy," I stated and caught a strange look on his face. His face widened into an uncomfortable surprise as his eyes dazed. I couldn't comprehend his visceral reaction but remained poised with my eyes trained on him. His chest filled with air and exhaled as his nerves seemed to relax. "I wasn't… look school wasn't great also. Is what I meant." I noticed a sense of unease and a flash of rage that vanished. "I mean it's close to winter break and I can help you with the history project," I responded enthusiastically. His one hand raised to scratch his neck with his eyes averted and muttered. "No, I can do it myself," Jake turned his head with his eyes fully focused on me. "I called you here about few days and I wanted to thank you and…". Thank me? I thought my fingers were tempted to curl but with resistance, my fingers were stretched out. I felt confused and angry about declining my request. Wasn't I a good friend, I should try harder? I slowly became aware of Jake's silent observation of my mere reaction. Jake didn't react but was anticipating some response. I composed myself and exclaimed, "Oh, it wasn't an issue… I mean we kind of like. Friends." Jake stared at me with a stony chilled expression before stammering. "Yeah, we are friends?" his face betrayed his words as it revealed a sense of discomfort but had a light sarcastic tone. I came to a startling realisation after a brief second of silence. "Oh, I'm sorry please forgive me! I thought we were friends just forgive me, Please." His eyebrows rose in bewilderment with his head leaning back as his arms raised above his chest. Jake lowered his arms and pondered for a moment before responding. "I asked you out here so I can know if you will keep it a secret?" "You mean about your father? I will not say anything." I noticed Jake sigh a breath of relief and had a quivering smile that fell back down. His head lowered and seemed to gaze on to his right on the ground. His eyes met mine with a snap of his neck and muttered. "Oh well, Goodbye. See yah at school…" I watched Jake backtrack with his boots shuffling through twigs and wet leaves. I watched his silhouette fade into the thickets as sounds of rustling branches breaking and snapping can be heard. I stood in silence staring forward in the direction back into the house. I thought that quick phone from the crack of dawn was urgent. I remember my vision was smudged with recognisable outlines of objects scattered on my desk by my side. Light emitted from the phone illuminated the objects that colour more distinctive. My hand slipped from under the blankets and reached above the phone. My ears can hear the device rattle on the wooden surface. My fingers held the edges of the hardware and pulled my hand towards my face. My eyes winced at the burning light and felt the vibration stop in my hand. I noticed a notification that stated an unknown number hung up at that moment. In that instant, A message was sent as I saw a popup on my lock screen under the notification. I unlocked my device and pressed my notification. The messenger app opened with a single message sent. It's Jake, we need to talk. I noticed above by the taskbar the unknown number was the same as before. The next popup immediately after realising the full scope of the situation. Behind my house by the forest at 07:00 am. I read the two messages again and felt a smile creep on my face.

The yellow wool fabric was drawn with red bands resting by the edges. The scarf lay in a spiral mess on the duvet next to my phone. The black screen switched on with light emitting in the shadowy room. I ignored my phone, picked up my scarf, threw it over my shoulders and arranged is around my neck. I picked up my phone and shoved it into my pocket. I threw my bag over my back and hung it on my shoulder. I took a single step to throw the curtain aside by the windows. The driveways were with white heaps littered on the light cement. The grass was hidden under a thin layer and

 my eyes noticed tiny golden patches. The roads revealed twin lines of dark tar on each lane on the white road. I try to look across the yard beyond the road but the thick bush of branches obscured the view into splotches of colours and recognisable shapes. I stepped back from the window and made my way towards my bedroom door. His hand held an egg in one hand and taped firmly on the edge of a pan's rim. The yolk descends from the cracked shells as the crackling of oil transforms translucent liquid into white. His head raises from the stove and his head twists slightly to see his son standing by the foot of the staircase. "Morning, Chevy. Breakfast?" his low firm voice asked as the sound of cutlery and a plate set on a table. I approached the kitchen counter and rested my forearms on the red marble with a thin glass layer. The stove plates only had a pan with a sizzling egg on it and a kettle was boiling water. His back was hung quite low but was big and strong. His burly thick arms moved bacon from one plate to another plate with tongs. I found the sight to be strange but never to the point of humour or discontent. He spun on his heels and strolled across to the end of the counter with a plate. The plate settled with klink on the surface and slid on the surface closer to me. The plate was littered with pieces of bacon and two sausages on the side. "First day of school should be a blast since the long weekends and…," He walked while speaking towards a counter and reached under to pull open a drawer. His hand retrieved a fork and spun on heels while speaking passionately. " you know I thought for a while but you should help out at work. There will be pay received with that little help… y'know just food for thought." He stood with a fork in his hand watching his son with his greasy finger holding a bitten piece of bacon. He lays the fork on the counter as his ears perk up and traces the smell with a turn of his head. He violently steps towards the stove and pushes away the pan from the fire. I watch my father lay the fried egg on a plate. The yolk laid on the white safely but the edges of the whites were charred lightly. He lets out a sigh but turns to me with a smile before pressing further. "So how about it?" I lower my eyes onto the further edges of my plate with traces of bacon fats. "I don't know. Maybe I will take the offer but I want to hang out with Alice more." My father claps his hands enthusiastically and smiles proposing "Yeah, you can bring Alice to work with ya. I mean extra- extra help is great, especially someone like her." I step away from my counter and stamp across the kitchen towards the kettle. I pull my flask resting by the wall close to the kettle. I stepped back as my upper back leaned away and my arms reached up. I pull back the cabinet doors and bring down my Chocolate coffee mix. I prepare the mix and pour the hot water halfway into the flask. I turned to walk toward the fridge but my dad stood in the way. His outreached hand presented the milk cartoon. I grabbed it from his hand with a hushed thank you and poured the contents only to be filled well below the limit. "Dad, I will think about it," I told him while holding eye contact before breaking away from the kitchen and entering into the living room space. "Oh, good luck in school kid." I heard with my hand firmly on the doorknob before twisting to push out into the cold morning. I stepped down the porch, walking down the concrete path towards the pavement. I turn to the right and walk down the street. The street slants downward in a shallow slope with a view of everything. I turned my head across the street from the house and stared at the top left window. The window was dark with curtains drawn. Above me, curtains of branches lay above my head along the way as trees stood uniformly by front yards. I walked looking down at the Street sign on the pavement. There was a figure standing by the yellow street sign. The clothing was all dark and black but the dark chocolate jersey and a red scarf strewn above her shoulders stood apart. My steps became wider and more relaxed as I reached gradual rest to a levelled plane. Her long Light brunette hair was a mess with tendrils of hair falling away from the flow and even resting openly bent away from the fold. My steps must have gotten louder due to my advancements as the girl's head snapped in my direction. Her face was a thin but slender face that complimented her tiny nose and full lips. The tips of her nose and the wide soft regions of her cheeks were a soft weak pink. Her eyes seemed small due to her solid wide eyebrows. The soft dark eyes squinted as her lips curved into a smile. I always found her smiles to be quite warm and almost appreciative of your presence. It may be the reason I befriended her. "Hey," She uttered with a low breathy voice as her forearm raised to wave her hand. "Hi," I greeted back once I reached the bus sign next to her standing on one side. Between the bar, from my peripheral, I noticed her little movements as her eyes shifted to look at me before looking towards the distance in front of her. "How was your break week… I actually spent it with my cousins and my uncle (y'know the cool one). It wasn't as great but yours could be great?" After ending her detailed inquiry, I answered. "Not much really, I didn't go out but sat in for movies and reading." "You know you could have called and hung out with me and even with my uncle; it would have been great." I turned my head and looked at her soft dark eyes with wisps of hair reaching her eyelids. "It's okay you know, I was enjoying my own company for a while and uncle is probably cool." Her dark pupils seem to smudge as her lips pull into a small soft smile. Her arm rose and punched my arm softly. "Well, not too much praise; His drinking is still a problem." The bar blocked half her face but she leaned onto one side showing her face fully. I noticed her soft features and messy style that paint a warm innocent character with poor organizational skills and time management. Since childhood, I found myself as her friend though it began as a simple long-term habitual social contact that fostered into a relationship formed from observations of our characteristics. I never saw her as a friend to be quite frank; I just would find myself in situations sitting next to her, playing with her and being punished together. I remember watching her cry, Her small hand gripped a dark green plastic arm and her arm dragged on the sand the rest of the toy. I felt a lack of emotions of reflection and guilt over my poor actions against her but stood in silence watching her reaction. Her cries died down into whimpers and sniffles with her eyes staring at me. I prolonged the eye contact only to find an object flash from my peripheral vision and plunge my left eye into darkness. My finger traced on the rough blue wall running on the bumps. My knees ached for a while from sitting cross-legged staring at the wall. My left eye felt numb but stings of pain will spasm at the touch. My head turned and looked across the room. She sat still without any movement and stared at the wall quietly. My parents would boost and tell us as teens how they walked into the room to find us playing and laughing as though we were being punished.