Disclaimer: Don't own it.

Relentless, yes, it's true.

My motor mouth runs over you.

Alligator- Tegan and Sara

Prologue

It's weird, seeing her cry. Yeah, he's grown up with her, spent years studying the odd behavior of his younger sister. But she's never been one to cry.

He remembers taking care of her when she was little, when she still allowed him to, she was always so, demanding, but not because she cried, never because she cried. She just always craved attention, especially his.

He remembers one day when she was five and he was seven. They had been playing tag out on the terrace, it was hot summer day, the air heavy, a storm was coming.

Their mom watched them from the living room as she folded laundry. He was it, a rare occurrence and he was running around, trying to catch his little sister in their confined space, but she was faster, always dodging his hand and sending him a mischievous smile over her shoulder when he failed to reach her. But all it took was one glance, and she tripped.

The smile left his face and he rushed to his fallen sister, he stumbled to the ground, scraping his own knee and gathered his sister as best as he could. Her brown eyes were glazed with tears and her bottom lip jutted out as she tried to keep them at bay. He searched her for any injuries and found both of her knees were scraped badly, blood slowly seeping out of her wound. "Are you okay?" He asked softly.

She shook her head but didn't say anything, just swallowed thickly, trying to contain her sob. He frowned and stood carefully, trying to carry Alex with him, but he wasn't strong enough, yet, instead, he wrapped his arm around her and half carried her into the loft, hurrying to the bathroom, ignoring the look of concern on their mother's face.

He set her carefully on the edge of the tub and struggled to gather a wash cloth and band-aids, finally he did. Wetting the cloth and dabbing away the blood on his sister's knees. She flinched when the cotton got stuck in a cut, but still she didn't cry. "Sorry," he said sheepishly, he finished his task, blowing on her scrapes before putting her Barbie band-aid over the cuts. He looked up and smiled at her gently, "You okay now?"

She smiled widely before pushing him away, "You're it!" She exclaimed and ran out the door.

*****

He smiles at the memory and looks down at his sleeping sister's form. Her head rests in his lap, her arms wrapped tightly around his torso. She looks upset, even in her sleep, but she still hasn't cried. He clenches his fist, bunching up the fabric of her shirt in his hand. He's seriously contemplating killing that bastard. He's not one for violence, but he's seriously considering it after this last guy broke his sister's heart.

Their mom called him, earlier this week, insisting that he leave Cornell and come home for the weekend. Alex was a mess, her newest boyfriend; a douchebag named Kyle, had told her he needed a "break" and then proceeded to flounce around the high school with Alex's once again nemesis, Gigi.

Alex stirs in his lap, blinking rapidly, trying to rid the sleep from her eyes, "Hey," she says, her voice still thick with sleep. "You're still here?"

"Yeah," he whispers, "You okay?"

She shakes her head, her eyes growing wet once more, "No, I—" She trails off, choking on her words.

Justin's eyes soften, all contempt he has for Kyle leaving him for a moment, instead he focuses on the girl in his lap. This, force of nature, that's kept him on his toes for the last seventeen years. He gathers her, careful of her small of her body, and pulls her into his lap, she rests her head in the crook of his neck and wraps her arms around her brother, openly sobbing now, soaking his neck with her tears.

He doesn't mind, just wraps his arms around her tighter, reminding her that he's there, that he isn't going to hurt her. He's her brother; he was made to protect her, to comfort her, to take care of her. He kisses her hair, "Shh," he whispers in her ear, his lips brushing her earlobe, "I've got you, Alex. You're safe."

And, god, how he wishes that were true.

He wishes that he wasn't hazardous to her, wishes that he could protect her.

Especially from himself.