Flashing lights and screams bounced off the walls of the arena as the winner's name was announced, leaving Cody's sweat slick face lit by Goldust's entrance video as his brother stood tall. But Cody wasn't his brother; he wasn't the perfect child his father had always dreamed of. He was the weak child, the runt, and so he laid on his back in the center of the ring with his ears muffled like he was underwater. Drowning with a thousand hungry sirens howling "CODY".

"THAT'S NOT MY NAME!" Cody screamed, pounding his fists on the mat and throwing his head up to catch his brother's pained gaze. He caught the painted lips mumbling that damned name, so full of pain and love and fear that Cody simply lost control. His torso hit the mat before his nerves could tell him no, you're hurt, stay still and his arms wrapped around his head. The chants of that name still ripped at him, but he found he couldn't press his hands tight enough against his ears to keep their voices out.

Cody wasn't sure what was worse; the thousands screaming for him, for someone he wasn't, or the instant all those faceless voices ceased and left only his brother's shattered voice. Just Goldust pleading, goddamn pleading, for him to come back.

Hissing through clenched teeth, Cody raised himself up and limped out of the ring trying to keep the tears from slipping down his paint smeared face. One last look, Cody promised, then I'm gone. He'll be better off without me.

Goldust stared back at him once he'd turned his head just enough, and he must have seen something in his Cody's eyes because he took off from the stage and towards the fallen star. Cody, grabbing at his throbbing side, leapt over the barrier and ran up the stairs. The screams followed him, but that wasn't what he was most afraid of.

Footsteps, just a bit quicker than his own, were chasing him with the promise of a painful reunion that he couldn't handle. He could never handle facing his brother, the one he'd forsaken. Because of what?

Fingers grazed the back of his suit, just above his hip, and something just snapped out of place in Cody's mind. His legs kicked up a notch, and he rocketed out of the arena, running… just running anywhere there might be safety. Whimpering with pain Cody ran into the back of the arena, barley able to breathe but calming just a little because he was alone. The back was silent, void of any movement but he could hear voices coming toward him.

Ducking into an empty room, Cody squeezed himself into a corner and hugged his knees to his chest, trying to catch his breath and ignore the agony zipping along his body. The sound of a door swinging open echoed down the hallway, and Cody knew that Goldust was near. His body cried for his brother, to hold him safe like he always had, but no. He was Stardust now, and he had to be strong.

The torture in his side lit up like it was punishing him for his thoughts.

"Cody!" He heard Goldust cry out, "Please… Cody, please."

Silent tears ran down the younger man's face, his lips wobbling and throat burning to just cry out his brother's name and fix all this.

Goldust continued to howl his-no, not his, not anymore-name. And oh God, it hurt… but I can't answer him… no…Cody couldn't keep dragging his brother down; he was like a weight on his ankle, hauling him towards the bottom of the ocean.

"Cody, please," his brother sobbed, then added near silently, "don't leave me."

Cody didn't mean to, but he let out an open, broken sob and the reaction was instantaneous. Footsteps pounded towards him, and the door to his hiding place was ripped open. Fake, fluorescent light flooded the room, and Cody was sure that his blotchy face was clear to his brother.

"Cody…"

Goldust took a few unstable steps, then fell to his knees next to the broken man, the name still slipping off his lips. Cody looked away, too tired and worn down to try and get past him and away.

Two muscular, warm arms wrapped around Cody's shaking body, but he tried to shove them off, already pushing off the floor to try to and move at least a little further away. The arms simply tightened around him, a vice he would normally have cherished but now he needed to be by himself.

"No," Cody looked up into his brother's eyes, ready to hiss at him and tell him to let him go and scream as many insults as possible, and froze when he saw the look on Dustin's face. It wasn't the cocky look of Goldust, it was the fearful, dangerous look of his brother. "I'm not letting you leave. I'm going to find out what's wrong and I'm going to fix it, Cody."