Anyone watch Eurovision tonight?! CAN'T BELIEVE WE CAME 2ND IT'S WILD 

Trigger Warning: Mentions of abuse, sexual assault

It seemed that despite their best efforts of convincing Emerson that Andy was harmless, at least to those who weren't himself, he still refused to believe them, still insisted Andy was unworthy of anything good in the world. 

Shy had dragged him from the living room and started lecturing him, and he ignored her, waved her away with a dismissive hand, and went to find Remington, who was rinsing the empty Nutella jar under the tap. "What is it?" Remington asked when the younger approached, turning to look at him as he tipped the water from the jar and re-filled it. 

Emerson had a strange, unrecognisable look to his expression. His eyes seemed smaller than they usually did, he mouth not quite a straight line. "We should talk," he said, and Remington stood the jar upside down on the draining board and agreed.

They went out into the garden, which Remington spent a few hours most days reading in, sat by the small pond that had a trickling fountain in the middle. Sometimes, he'd see a gardener trimming bushes and sifting dead leaves from the pond.

Remington sat on the bench opposite the pond and Emerson joined him, sighed, and said, "I just really don't know what to think."

"He's a good person, Em."

"He's basically kidnapped you."

"It wasn't his choice, and I'm hardly locked up inside, am I? Really, he's so good to me."

"This could all just be a front for while we're here."

"I'm telling you, it's not. You wanna check me for bruises or something? Because you can. You won't find anything."

"Apart from the sepsis you had." 

Remington groaned. "For the last fucking time, Emerson, A guy called Gregory gave me sepsis, Andy fucking rescued me. I've told you so many fucking times. He rescued me! He left his work to look for me, then he fucking carried me to his car, and drove me to hospital, and waited in the hospital for hours for them to tell him I was not fucking dead. He literally saved my fucking life, stop being such a huge cunt to him! He's the kindest fucking person I've ever met!" It wasn't that he wanted to raise his voice, just that he was reaching the end of his tether with the way Emerson was treating and speaking about his husband. But he was conflicted, too; Emerson was his brother, had been his closest friend since childhood. He didn't want to argue with him, but protecting Andy felt like something he had to do, something he would have regretted forever if he didn't do it.

"You're lying," Emerson stated, like it was a fact. "You're lying, Remington. You're lying." 

"No. I'm not." 

"He gave you sepsis! He punched you until he gave you sepsis, then he took you to hospital and pretended like it was an accident!" 

"Oh my god," Remington exclaimed. "Are you even listening to me? You can't just believe what you want because it's easier than to believe that Andy's nice and I love him, that's your problem!" 

"You don't...you don't love him." 

"Yes," Remington said, fed up. "I do. I love him. Right now, Emerson, I love him more than I love you." 

"How dare you!" 

Remington stood from the bench. "No, Emerson. How dare you. How dare you come into his house, eat his food, sleep in a bed that he's providing, use his water and his electricity, and have the fucking audacity, Emerson, the fucking audacity, to be so goddamn rude? Get a fucking hold of yourself, man." He shook his head and began to walk away. 

Behind him, Emerson called, "Fine. Let him rape you forever. I don't care. I'm not visiting again. Have a nice fucking life." 

Tears welled in Remington's eyes and he blinked them away as he walked. Inside, he went up to his room, closed and locked the door, sat on his bed, and cried. He couldn't work out what hurt more - that Emerson called Andy all that he did, or that they might never see each other again - but whatever it was, it seemed only to get worse as the minutes went by. 

When, more than an hour later, once he had stopped crying and was aimlessly scrolling Youtube on his laptop, there was a knock on the door and the usual low voice that said, "You okay? Emerson left in an angry outburst." 

Remington didn't reply. He closed the laptop and put his head on it. Maybe his love for Andy couldn't continue, not if he wanted to keep his relationship with his brother. Maybe it was a sacrifice he had to make.