reece-mitchell:
Fighting to not roll his eyes, Reece gripped the bottom of his chair hard when the urge to punch the man before him became incredibly overwhelming. He was having a lot of difficulty with that lately - controlling his anger - and usually these kinds of outbursts, attacks against him, left him wanting to fight. Still he looked generally annoyed with Kevin, with Casey, before he counted to ten in his head and blew out a large gust of a sigh. He needed to keep cool, he needed to remember that Kevin was just upset and that he didnât mean what heâs said about Reece leaving Casey but there was something to be said about his behavior. âSo, what?â He shrugged sarcastically, lips pursing in distaste at the conversation. âSo weâre all just supposed to stop our lives for Casey, hm? What do you think growing up with him was like, huh? Yeah it wasnât exactly fun - It was tiring. So excuse me if I donât want to worry about Casey right now. I have other issues in my life going on right now, not just Casey. And as for Caseyâs whereabouts, didnât I tell you heâs fine?â He was on the verge of yelling but a quick glance from an elderly couple kept him from doing so. âHeâs with our cousin at the moment.â He placated, not telling Kevin which cousin but allowing him to get some more information. âHeâs with our cousin and heâs better off there than he is here. Otherwise, he wouldnât have left, would he? As his brother, as someone he still talks to, I know heâs fine.â Reece challenged, so done with this conversation as it had become an attack of how he treated his brother. âAnd Caseyâs not some fragile little doll, okay? And screw you for thinking that he canât handle things; he is incredibly strong. Heâs not someone you have to walk through life, Kevin. He can be perfectly independent on his own! And itâs people like you who make him doubt himself. When you coddle him and make him believe thereâs something wrong with him then it becomes more than just helping him when he extends a hand and asks for help.â
Reece had given a lot for his brother when they were children. When anyone threatened Casey, hurt his feelings, Reece was the first person to meet the assholes face with a sharp punch to his jaw. He would threaten anyone who messed with his brother and heâd gladly take the punishment that came with doing so. But people didnât realize, or failed to acknowledged, that Casey needed a lot of attention and Reece felt as if he suffered because of that. Their parents were largely doting and worrying over Casey and Maggie and Reece largely fell to the background on the days when Casey would have another breakdown. Unfortunately, because of his brothers frail mental capacity, that was a lot of times. When Reece left for the Air Force it had been the first time that heâd ever truly done something for himself. He was always trying to be the best for his parents, the star older brother to Casey and Maggie, but this was his chance to get out from under his family and do his own thing. But no one seemed to care too much about that, they just branded him a terrible person because he left his brother behind. What was he going to do? Rope Casey to his bag and carry him along to Afghanistan?
Reeceâs words sounded like an accusation, as if he didnât know Casey enough, as if he thought Casey needed protection and wasnât fully aware that in fact, all this time Casey had been the one taking care of him, saving him from madness. He knew it. His worry in that moment had little to do with what Casey was or wasnât, or how different he could be. He had known people deemed as ânormalâ who had the same struggles as Casey, who had gone through similar things, and Reece did not know it but the idea of Casey harming himself was the one thing he could not bare. And this had very little to do with strength, but that sometimes things simply got too hard for anyone. Kevin stood up in attempt to calm himself down, clenched his hand into a fist, could feel his hand trembling and before he knew it, he was throwing a punch at Reeceâs face. Kevin was no fighter, he knew he didnât stand a chance before anyone, but he had gone out of control in that moment, pushed by some kind of rage and frustration he had been piling up since the day of the robbery.Â
âDo youâ Do you even hear what youâre saying?â Kevin asked, still fuelled by the anger that Reeceâs words had brought upon, leaning forward and into Reeceâs personal space, as if he could in any way be threatening. He could feel his blood boiling, his hands and legs trembling as he tried to keep himself up. âYouâreâ youâre saying growing up with him was exhausting, that it wasnât fun and basically, from what I assume, that heâs always been a load in your life, because thatâs exactly how you sound, and then you tell me, ME, that heâs not a fragile little doll. As if I donât already fucking know it! You know shit about me! You know shit about us! You know shit about your own fucking brother. So donât fucking come pointing a finger at me, saying people like me make him worse, when Iâm one of the few people whoâve treated him like a human being and not a fucking sacrifice.âÂ
