Characters: Devin and Lissa
Word Count: 625
TW: Mild violence
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Devin had never wanted to be responsible for anyone the way he was his sister. He'd never wanted kids and, while Lissa was definitely not his kid, he still felt like he had to parent her after their parents passed. After all, she was all he had left and dammit, he wasn't about to lose her too.
Truth be told, he was fucking exhausted. The constant fighting and worry, the recent move, the stress of it all, it had him sick to his stomach.
And there was Lissa. Out galavanting around with some guy when they needed to be laying low while Devin worked out a better living arrangement for them. Needless to say, he wasn't thrilled when she slipped into their makeshift home, trying to be as quiet as possible.
It wasn't as bad as her brother made things seem. Sure, she hadn't been home in two days, but that didn't mean she had fallen back into her worst patterns. Hell, she was only a little hungover and that had been only alcohol instead of her usual vices of any drug she could get her fingers on.
She didn't understand what Devin's issue with her new boyfriend even was. Especially given her brother's taste included a friend of hers at one point.
It was beginning to make her absolutely stir-crazy and if he kept pushing, she was going to hit him. Not that it would do much since he never swung back and that was equally unsatisfying.
She had been trying to get in and to her room without his notice, but she should have known better. He was leaning against the wall, eyes dark with anger and concern and all she could do was sigh and try to prepare for the fight that was sure to follow.
"Where the hell were you, Liss?"
"None of your goddamn business, Dev," she shot back, rising to the challenge in his tone with her own stubborn refusal to back down.
"It is my goddamn business when you fucking disappear for two days!" he snapped, pushing away from the wall and taking a step towards her, checking her over for any visible signs of injury.
"I'm an adult and you're not my fucking dad!"
It was a low blow, but she had used it enough times since the loss of their parents that it didn't really phase Devin anymore. It had hurt the first few times she had thrown it in his face.
"Thank god for that because I can see why some animals eat their fucking young."
The argument was familiar, the same lines thrown back and forth a dozen or more times at this point. If there wasn't so much tension in the room, it would have been almost funny.
"Oh go fuck yourself, you miserable fucking dick," she growled as she pushed past him, intent on making her way to her room.
Devin grabbed for her arm, trying to stop her. He hadn't anticipated her turning and swinging on him.
The punch connected and Devin stumbled, his grip tightening on her wrist for a second to keep his balance. It wasn't the first time she had reacted like that but it was the first time she had done it sober.
"For fucks sake, Alissa! What the fuck?!"
"Let go before I fucking do it again!"
"FINE!" he yelled, dropping her wrist and holding his hands up. "If you're going to take off for more than a goddamn day with whatever shady fucking prick you're playing bedwarmer for, at least have the goddamn decency to let me know you're fucking alive."
"Go to hell, Devin," was her parting remark as she walked away, leaving him to rub the blooming bruise starting to color his jaw.
Character(s): Devin with guest appearance of sleeping Zayde
Word Count: 358
@mythandmonsters
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The storm raged on outside, sheets of rain pelting the windows of the motel. Cracks of lightning streaked the sky, bathing the room in flashes of bright light, even with the heavier curtains drawn.
How Zayde could sleep through it was a mystery to Devin.
He wanted to get up, to pace the room until the storm passed, but he knew if he tried to untangle himself from his boyfriend, then and only then would Zayde stir. It hadn’t been like that before, but being on the road and staying night after night in unfamiliar places had taken a tol on the both of them.
Devin understood though. It had been a rough couple of months for both of them. Lissa too, he reminded himself. She could have stayed at that bar and no one would have minded, but she refused to stay anywhere without him and he understood that too.
After so many years of only having each other, he doubted he and Lissa would ever live more than a few feet from one another.
Thunder made the room shudder, pairing with another flash of electric light and the power flickering enough to set the alarm clock’s glowing numbers to flash 12:00 am despite it being closer to three.
Gentle fingers moved to comb through Zayde’s hair, making sure he stayed asleep. He needed the rest when he could manage it and Devin wasn’t about to deprive him of that just because of a storm.
The storm would pass eventually, he knew it would, and the morning would be that sort of cold and hazy grey that happened in warmer winters. Cold enough to be annoying but enough to turn the rain to ice and snow.
He wondered if the storm they were living in would ever pass too, but he was less hopeful about that.
For now though, they had each other. Their merry little band of three, on the road and looking for anywhere to call home, if only for a couple of nights.
It was the last thought to cross Devin’s mind before he drifted back to sleep himself, still touching Zayde for comfort.
