Jae sat on the floor, a deep scowl on his face.
His back leaned against the cushion bench which was placed at the foot of his bed. The LED flatscreen loomed before him. It presented him with colorful and high definition graphics. The soft but rapid tapping on his console filled the room. The audio of the video game flowed directly in his ears, using a headphone.
He wore his glasses since he was near the visuals, along with a fit white shirt and gray shorts. His arm muscles slightly bulged while his elbows rested on his thighs. The game engrossed him away from reality. It transported him to another world and challenged different parts of his intellect.
It was also fun, of course.
A knock on the door pierced through the loud bass of the game music.
He would have thought that he imagined it if he didn’t hear it again.
He paused the game and pulled off his headphones, listening intently.
The knock didn’t come again.
Instead, Logan went ahead and opened the door. He had an impassive expression. His emerald eyes were downcast. His shoulder pushed up against the frame, his hands tucked in the large front pocket of his hoodie.
Jae forgot about his game and rose to his feet.
Alarm bells rang in his head. He had seen the live stream a while ago. He thought everything was doing well. If his brother was here, did it mean that he was rejected? With the way things flowed, he would have figured they finally got together.
“Logan? What’s wrong?” He asked in a rush, bolting towards Logan, “What happened?”
His hands hovered in mid-air. He didn’t know if he should touch his brother or not. The stance hinted him that maybe Logan wanted to be alone. Then, he rethought about it. If that had been true, his brother wouldn’t have gone to his room.
…
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…
Other than Logan’s mouth, nothing else moved.
“Did Skye come to your room that day and try to seduce you?”
Jae had an out-of-the-body experience. The soul inside of him broke away and flew into the air. His brain shut down, causing all of his bodily functions to cease. He felt cold. He felt hollow.
He felt dead.
(A/N = Cailin munchs on popcorn: Well, he does seem to be as good as dead. Oof.)
“Don’t hide it,” Logan said. His gaze flickered towards his twin’s daze look, “I’ve seen and heard what she could do. It wouldn’t be surprising at all to know it’s true.”
“Wha—Why—” Jae gasped in between breaths, “Did Alex tell you about this?”
Logan bumped his shoulder, entering the room.
Jae followed him with his sight. He shuffled his feet as his brother strolled further inside. Color seeped back into his lips. Pieces of his consciousness clung together and reformed his ability to think. Light slowly glistened in his blue eyes.
Facing the opposite wall, Logan raised a hand and revealed the flash drive. He held the small storage device among its fingers. His back stayed upright. His head stared straight. He answered,
“Not exactly.”
He stepped to one side, lowering his arm. He twirled the flash drive like a fidget spinner.
Jae stared at it. Confusion etched in his expression, “What does that have that I don’t know?”
Logan blinked at his twin, “You don’t know about the conversation between Skye and Alex?”
“I know they talked but Alex never showed or narrated the details of what happened.”
Emerald eyes found the floor again.
“She tried to trick Skye into admitting to it” Logan paused, taking a deep breath. The moment Alex gave him the flash drive, he wanted to check it right away. The only reason he didn’t push through was because she had insisted for him to view it in his own room.
“That didn’t happen,” he continued. He walked closer to his twin, his eyes hardening like green crystal orbs, “But something about it did caught my attention. Skye had asked Alex instead if it was you who told that story.”
The gap closed to a meter wide. “How it couldn’t have come from me… because that meant that you finally told me about it.”
Logan took a deep breath. He lifted the flash drive again, the corners of his lips curving down.
“Is it true or not? Answer me.”
Despite the bright lights, Jae saw the room darken. The storage device glared against his lenses. His brother turned into a mere shadow behind it. Hidden fury gleamed out of emerald eyes. Flames ignited from within, the green jewels unmelting.
Jae heaved a sigh.
Somehow, he should have known that things would become like this. It would have been peculiar if Skye’s reappearance didn’t reopen this. His lips stretched into a hard line.
Before him, a second chance presented itself. He weighed his options.
Did he even deserve this opportunity?
Logan didn’t waver. His twin couldn’t tell if he even blinked.
That quiet resolution cleared away the storm over Jae’s head. His brother wanted the truth. He demanded and deserved to have it. Other voices echoed in his thoughts, guiding him to the right choice. He scowled as he closed his eyes.
A huff exhaled out of his nose, “It’s true.”
Sharp pain jabbed his jaw, buckling him to the knees. He kept his mouth open and cradled his lower jaw in his hand. He moved the joint slowly. It triggered another agonizing strain.
Jae snapped his head to the side and tilted upwards.
Logan shook his hand, seeming to release its tension. He glared down at his twin and showed him no mercy, “That’s for not telling me the truth back then.”
With it finally out open, the younger Parker twin didn’t hold back. The pile of uncertainties he had dissipated. A wide clearing replaced it. It showed in his eyes. They shined with a new warm glow.
“I’m sorry” Jae breathed out. The ache faded into a dull one. He stayed in his position, his arm and his knees supported his weight.
“I couldn’t make up my mind. You were a mess after mom died. It was only when Skye moved here that you improved. I didn’t think she’d leave. I was ready… READY… to take that fall if it meant that the two of you had another chance” He blabbered. Even to him, he couldn’t make out his point.
“I thought…” he choked for air, “I thought it would get you another chance to be happy.”
Logan had Alex’s infamous deadpan expression.
“Jae?”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t ever think like that again.”
A chuckle escaped Jae’s lips. He pushed himself until he sat with his legs tucked underneath, “Well, I was desperate. I know that I couldn’t cheer you up. I tried and I failed many times. Then, she came along. She was able to do it. She was like the light of hope that entered your life.”
If he could go back in time, he’d slap his younger self and tell him to wake up. That girl had horns, not a halo. It had also been wrong to rely on her for Logan’s emotional and mental support.
“Light of hope?” Logan scoffed. He shook his head again, gazing at the floor. His memories played like an old movie. He could see why Jae would think that way. He didn’t truly blame his twin. He knew it had been out of good intentions.
Yet, it didn’t excuse the action.
“Do you know why I broke up with her?” Logan asked rhetorically. He offered a hand for his twin to take. He didn’t want to dwell on hard feelings.
“No, I don’t” Jae accepted it gladly. He stood up with his brother’s help.
Logan raised an eyebrow, still holding his twin’s hand, “Then, how about what we promised mother?”
“To never fight with family.”
As soon as he said it, Jae realized what his brother meant.
“Exactly.”
Jae fell at a loss for words. Light broke through the haze in his vision.
The Parker twins had a moment. Their hands still connected, they made peace with their past and with each other. This renewed the pact they created when their mother was alive. It re-tied the strings and created a strong knot. New threads slipped in and thickened a bond that ran deeper than blood.
“Promise you won’t do it again?” Logan said, a pointed look on his face. He added pressure on the grip he had on his twin’s hand.
A small smile appeared on Jae’s face, “I promise.”
They released their hands.
Logan scratched the back of his neck, “Geez, you and Alex are alike.”
“Speaking of Alex…” Jae began to say. He crossed his arms over his chest, taking over the interrogation, “When were you planning to tell me that you like her?”
His brother blinked innocently, “You don’t know? Did I need to tell you that?”
The older Parker twin rolled his eyes and flicked Logan’s forehead, “No, I’m sure almost everyone knows. Telling me directly is different though.”
Logan pouted, soothing the sore spot, “How?”
Jae ignored him and persisted in his own questioning, “So… do you like her or not?”
He received a snort, “Of course, I don’t.”
Before he could say anything back, Logan cut in with another sentence.
“I love her.”
