Anders slowly closed the door to his bedroom, breathing out softly and letting his head rest gently against the smooth surface. His eyes were closed as he let the stress of the day finally fall away from him. Shoulders sagging, he let out a few ragged breaths, content to just live in the moment for the minute. While Mike and the others believed him uncaring, selfish and arrogant he truly did care for his family; he just went about showing it in a different way and the endless confrontations with Mike's volatile personality were unbearably heavy after a while.
Opening his eyes again he lifted his head off the door and made his way to the centre of the room. With finesse he carefully removed layer after layer of clothing, folding them all carefully and putting the clean items away in their drawers before placing the dirty items into his laundry bin with a delicacy he seldom showed to the world. Finally bare he stood in the blank bare room, letting the peacefulness of the bare room fill him with a few measured breaths before he stepped into the shower.
It was tradition. His own little tradition. When things became too much for him, the burden of being the family outcast too much to bear he would strip off all his layers, the dirt, the grime, all the things that made him Anders; what made him Bragi. Cleansing it all from his skin, he revelled in the feeling of just being him.
Clean and dry, he stepping carefully back into his clean bedroom before heading towards the closet, letting the towel drop to the floor at the threshold of the door. Sliding it open, his gaze found what he was looking for and he let a small smile cross his face.
He knew what his brothers thought, what his grandfather thought when they saw his closet. That these clothes were from his conquests and he let them think that. If they chose to believe that of him he was not going to correct it. But what kind of pervert did they think he was that kept clothes from those that he slept with. If they left clothing over he simply chucked it out, or had it couriered over to them if he'd gotten to know them that much. He wouldn't want to dirty this side of himself with the acts of Bragi.
He let his fingers gently caress the pile, before eventually selecting a pair of lacy black underwear. He needed to feel beautiful tonight. Slipping it carefully up his legs, he relished in the feeling of lace silkily sliding against his skin. He pulled out the matching bra and carefully hooked it on, pulling out his padding from the drawer next to the underwear. He was not ashamed of what he did but he was not going to make it any easier on his brothers. As he situated the padding in the bra he sighed, at last feeling as though his skin was not stretched too thin.
Anders turned to the cupboard and let his fingers slowly caress his various dresses, trying to find the one that would suit the mood he was in. Finally, he settled on a beautiful red number and stepped into it, letting his personality settle onto him like a second skin.
Sitting himself onto the edge of the bed, make-up firmly in place he gently did up the straps on his heels. He was always meticulous about his appearance; it was something that he took great pride in. But on nights like these it was all he could do to keep himself sane.
Standing up, he surveyed his appearance in the mirror. A short, blond woman with smoky grey eyes looked back at him. Her short, cocktail dress accentuated her curve, drawing the eye to the right spots and away from others. She looked beautiful. A pleased smile crossed his face.
Heading into his lounge, he surveyed the room with disgust. Beer bottles and cans littered every surface; empty food containers piled high on the kitchen bench. In short it looked like a bachelor pad. Pursing his stained lips, Anders got to work.
The next morning, Ty and Mike opened the door to Anders, letting themselves in without bothering to knock. Heading into the kitchen, they stopped short.
'Anders!' Mike yelled, surveying the scene. 'What happened?'
Anders appeared out of the bedroom, dragging a hand through his tousled hair, a sleepy look on his face indicative that he had just woken up.
'Morning bro.' He nodded to them both, and opened the fridge, pulling out a bowl full of batter and starting to cook pancakes on the stove.
'Since when do you clean mate?' Ty asked, surveying the sparkling apartment. He'd seen his brother the day before and it had looked atrocious, so how on earth did it become so clean. He knew Anders would never lift a finger for himself if he could help it.
Anders looked around the room for a moment, and an unusual expression crossed his face before disappearing behind his usual arrogant grin. 'Cleaners Ty! You know me. I always have cleaners on call for when I need them.' He smirked knowingly and Mike glared.
'Good night then?' Ty asked despite himself.
Anders grinned. That strange look crossing his face again. 'The best, my brother. The best.'