KEREN

"Come on, Ethan, we're almost there." He wrapped his around Ethan's back and they stumbled their way to the doctor's house. "It'll be okay."

"Keren," Ethan said with a soft laugh. "It's really not a big deal."

If anything happens to him it'll be your fault. Keren ignored Ethan's quiet protest and reached the end of the block, where the doctor who often worked and assisted Father's associates from their hurts and woes from their created enemies. On the porch, Keren knocked with his free hand, tapping his foot to the tune of his impatience as the soft drizzle splattered against the wood. It pounded in his eardrums and sent a soft touch of wet grass into his nose. Tongue between his teeth, he shook his head.

"Well..." Ethan tilted his head. "Looks like he's not home."

Keren knocked again. Harder, for good measure, until it made his knuckles red.

Relief swept through his hand when the lock clicked and Dr. Evelion slid open the door. "Well, what happened here?" he questioned. "Usually I get your father's men, Ethanius."

Keren opened his mouth for the truth, but his brother dealt out a powerful lie.

"I tripped," Ethan said and rubbed the back of his neck, clinging onto him. "Fell. hit my head. It happens." Keren frowned when Ethan's arms squeezed around his shoulders, a silent urge. A warning to keep the silence all through the truth. "I wouldn't be bothering you with this, but..." Ethan eyed him, a squeeze to his brow of terrible playfulness wrought with pain. "I don't think Keren would've taken no for an answer."

"Better than what I usually get. Alright, come in." Dr. Evelion stepped out of the threshold, and Keren let Ethan guide them both in. "Take a seat wherever's comfortable."

"We alone?" Ethan rubbed his temple as he sat down on the couch in Evelion's living room. Keren tried to take the least amount of space as Dr. Evelion shut the front door and came closer to his brother.

"Yeah." He glanced at him, and Keren pressed his back into the corner to avoid the all-encompassing shadow. "You can sit down, Keren." He tugged up a chair in front of Ethan and slipped out a thin light from his bag. "Your brother's right to get you to come to me though. You really don't want to mess around with a head injury. Those can be quick killers." He raised the low light to Ethan's eyes, and Ethan winced. "Are you dizzy at all?"

"Somewhat..."

"I'll have to warm up my scanner just to make sure." Dr. Evelion dropped his bag at his side and hauled himself out of the chair. "How recent did this happen?"

Keren opened his mouth once more, all for a truth, lost in lies.

"Tenish... minutes ago? I slipped in our kitchen. I spilled some water, meant to clean it up — my heel slipped and I nearly cracked my head open on the counter," a far more elaborate explanation.

One Dr. Evelion took without question. Only a single, simple nod and dragged out a thin, white instrument, fluttering on two sides. "This is going to take a couple minutes to warm up. I'll be right back." He went deeper into the house.

Keren escaped from the corner and reached Ethan's side, who folded his hands and looked up at him. "Why did you lie?" he hissed.

"What?"

"Why did you lie about what happened?" Keren questioned and sat in Dr. Evelion's chair. "Ethan—"

"Because he doesn't need to know. He just needs to figure out if there is something to be concerned about and do his job. Besides, I can handle this myself," Ethan said, firm. "Keren, I'm fine. Really." He prodded his cheek. "I appreciate the concern, but I've told you that you don't need to worry about me." He sent the heel of his hand into his forehead, pushing him backwards.

Dr. Evelion's footsteps drove him into his cowering corner as he grabbed the humming instrument from the stand and headed to Ethan, who straightened himself out. "Alright." He tapped the screen with one hand. "I'm just going to take a quick look at the imaging. If all looks clear, I'll just have Keren check on you for the next twenty-four hours and if nothing comes up you should be okay, but if you have other complications I want you to come straight to me." Ethan shrunk when he brought the instrument closer to his head, where the hum turned into a thick, clunky whir.

Keren swallowed pain when Dr. Evelion finished up and put the instrument away. "No severe damage, but take it easy, Ethanius."

"Yeah..." Ethan headed for him. "Let's go, Keren."

Streetlamps cast a dim orange glow over the street as he and Ethan waddled their way back home — a cruel reflection of what he wanted when he was younger and ignorant. A dream of flight found in a ship museum, with Ethan too far away from him. "Ethan," he murmured. "Do I make things hard for you?"

"Where is this coming from?" Ethan asked dully.

Everywhere. Maybe I really am just the problem. Maybe you're so far away from me that I can't get you back and I'll lose you like I lost Miama and it'll be my fault. Keren let the words die on his throat. "Nowhere."

"I see." Ethan eyed him, and Keren gasped when he tucked his arm closer around his neck to pull him closer. "Hm..." He ruffled his hair, then smiled, a pale reminder of what they used to have. "You irritate me sometimes, but no, you don't make things any more difficult than they are. You're fine." As they walked, Keren scowled when Ethan pinched his cheek. "Are you sure it's coming from nowhere?" His expression turned serious. "Is it what happened at the casino? Is it bothering you?"

It was his chance for his own lie. "Yeah. Yeah... what did you do to him?"

Ethan's brow creased with heaviness. "He's alive, if that's what you're worried about — but no one likes a cheat."

"Oh." Keren tucked closer and hobbled his way back home with Ethan using him as a crutch — a small gesture. But I want him to trust me. He doesn't need to be scared of trusting me. I won't betray him, I'm not like the people in this life. He can rely on me. Keren dug his fingers into Ethan's jacket. "I don't think I'm cut out to be a dealer." I... just can't get people to respect me the way Ethan can.

"You'll find a place where you belong." Ethan rubbed the side of his head.

In the sky. Among the clouds. On the wings of freedom. Keren hauled Ethan up the steps of their house and ignored the beacon of light the casino tossed through the overcast clouds of Eteran. "Promise me you'll take it easy," he said as he guided Ethan inside. "I... I don't want you getting hurt - anymore. Worse. I don't want you worse than you already are." He fumbled over his words and flinched when Ethan glanced at him. "I-I don't want to lose you like we lost Mom."

Every mention of Mother brought forth a flicker of her in Ethan. His lips parted in confused despair, and he nodded. "Alright, if that'll make you feel better," he said, and Keren hobbled him the rest of the way to the couch to sit him down.

Just trust me. He repeated the mantra against Ethan's trust nobody. He laid in bed, but found himself unable to sleep at the cracking sound of Father's fist against Ethan's face, a hard shove and stumble into a sharp counter. Morning light bloomed out of the window, and he hauled himself from his bed once more to check on Ethan and lost count of the times he forced himself awake in the night.

Ethan remained right where he left him last night; on the couch with his face stuffed into a pillow. He sorted through the fridge, but found his appetite waning at the sight of the counter, of the crack echoing through his ears as he bustled over to the couch and moved the books on the endtable closer to his brother. "Ethan?" he asked and placed a hand on his shoulder.

He lifted himself out of the pillow with a weary blink before burrowing back into the pillow.

"Do you feel any better?" Keren pushed.

"I'm alright."

I'll take that as a no. Keren swiped the remote from underneath the couch and sat on the ground with his back against it, flicking through the channels for something to tear himself from the choking tension their father created. Legs crossed, he found himself hypnotized by the thin layer of innocent static over the truth around him. Father's car was gone from the driveway — to the casino. "Ethan?" he tried, then turned at his lack of response. The static swept through his spine, and he shuffled over to poke him in the side of the head. "Ethan, hey."

"Keren, trying to lie down here."

Keren scoffed. "You hate this."

"You know me so well." Ethan rolled over. "Just try and keep it down."

Well, at least he seems in a neutral mood if anything. I-Screen remote abandoned, he settled himself and ignored Ethan's bizarre mystery books. His own boredom flashed through his knees, and he stretched them out in an attempt to quell the raging flames. A shuddered exhale left his lips, and he chewed on his tongue and forced himself to his feet, wandering to the back panel of the couch. He swiped his finger across the panel which revealed parts of the bedspread, tugging out the blanket. Its hem criss-crossed into fabric stars, and he unfurled it. Over the bend, Ethan lifted his head, and raised an eyebrow.

"Now what are you doing?"

Keren approached him from behind, lifting the blanket over him. For a taste of that fleeting freedom of innocence, he dropped the bundle straight on top of Ethan's face. "There."

Ethan tugged it off his face, where his slight curls bounced from the motion then considered him with a tired scowl. "You are very lucky I don't feel particularly motivated."

Keren ignored him and sorted through the fridge for some leftovers or an easy breakfast. A twitch went through his fingers at a car's approach, and he closed it to put himself between Ethan and the door when a suited individual stepped out of the driver's seat.

He can trust me. I won't let anything happen to him.

Keys jangled for the confrontation, and terror choked his throat and made him bleed.

The door revealed Chalen, who came to a stop at the sight of him. "Keren? Ethan?"

Keren relaxed. "Oh, Chalen. I thought you were... someone else." He brushed the back of his head and scooted to Ethan's side instead when Ethan lifted himself to investigate him.

"Chalen?"

"I was wondering why you didn't come in at your usual time, but Jesti offered to fill in for you again," Chalen said, then blinked. "Did something happen?"

One for the truth, buried underneath a terrible lie.

"I tripped."

Unlike Dr. Evelion, Chalen raised both his eyebrows in suspicious disbelief. "You... tripped?"

"Yes. Believe it or not, Chalen, I'm not perfect. I can have off days." Ethan scowled into the pillow. "What do you want? Does Father want something?"

"I actually haven't talked to the boss since he got to the casino," Chalen answered, and slipped out a cigar. "Well, if you're not feeling well I won't pressure you any. We haven't had issues since the—" His eyes darted to him, and Keren bit on his tongue. "Incident."

"I suppose so." Ethan's brow folded deeper when he glared at Chalen from over the rim of the pillow.

"Anyway," Chalen said after a tense moment of silence. "Keren, how about me and you go for a drive around the city? I'm going to try and show you some safespots, but I want to talk to you about some things."

"Safespots?"

Chalen's jaw clenched with the cigar. "Just... in case."

Oh. Oh... Keren breathed deep, and gave up on his innocent life. "Okay. I understand." He took a single step for his broken dreams, but an electric jolt swept through his heels and straight into his heart.

A trickle of malice.

A cascade of intent.

Chalen tipped his head. "Is something wrong, Keren?"

Keren looked back at Ethan, who curled into the cushions without a word of argument, and the electricity strangled his heart. "I... don't want to leave Ethan alone. He tripped... bad."

"We won't take too long," Chalen said. "And I'm sure Ethan needs sleep if his fall was as hard as you and him say. Any issues with that, Ethanius?"

Ethan pulled the blanket over his head.

Did I... imagine that? Keren hurried over to his side and pushed the remote underneath his arm. "I'll be right back. I won't be a burden."

I can't be the reason anything happens to you.