⊰ ⋰ brother dear ❗❗❗ ⊱
( ✖ )
for once, jaeho listened. his mouth was zipped shut for the time being. there was a stutter in the rise and fall of his chest, overcoming the soreness that had settled in his core. still, he breathed. he watched in admiration as his brother swirled the air around them so effortlessly. their household was always alive with the trio of air, water, and ice. jaeho remembered being seven, and he shuffled over to his mother. there were many mysteries behind apollo — like how he controlled the air when neither parent did. if he hadn’t been so young and crippled with naivety, he would have seen the sweat on his mother’s brow. these things just happen, she told him. and he believed her. from the start, apollo was special. even his name was different. there was never room to imagine that he came from elsewhere. his mother swiftly sewed shut his gaps of doubt whenever the threads were wearing loose.
laughter rumbled through him at apollo’s spot-on imitation of their mother. she was quite predictable. jaeho’s gaze fluctuated between his brother’s face and his hands, observing the careful movements — and he listened. “i already feel like shit,” he drawled, pretending like it was some joke. “besides, she might worry less if i ignore her. she knows me too well. she would hear it in my voice and come straight down here.” the last thing either of them needed was a parent rampaging through campus. both of them lived somewhat secret lives here, and he didn’t want to wreck their chances at privacy. “i wouldn’t be the only one dead if she saw what we were up to here...” he noted, revealing that he actually considered his brother in situations like this. neither parent knew the extent of apollo’s pastimes, and it was better that way. “she’s old. spare her the remorse.”
deep down, he knew his brother wasn’t perfect. ace sure loved to act like it and show it off, but living beside the guy for nineteen years taught him a lot. regardless, his heart was in the right place. jaeho assessed the damage. while his body was still pulsing with pain, he wasn’t leaking. that was an improvement. “thanks,” he interjected, feeling rather awkward. expressions of gratitude weren’t natural for him, especially towards the other. “i didn’t mean to bother you. i was almost caught out after hours, and this was the closest place. you can imagine what would happen if i was found this late like this.” expulsion was a constant threat that oscillated over his head. “i... don’t want to be expelled,” jaeho informed, answering the question he had been asked earlier that day. briefly, he went quiet. there was something else, but he knew apollo didn’t want to hear it. “i think this is just the way i am, ace. this behavior isn’t some phase — it’s me.”
