Disclaimer: I do not own NUMB3RS or the characters so please don't sue.
A/N hey people this is my first ever numb3rs fic, so please tell me what you thought of it. This story idea came to me after watching an episode on a DVD and we were told that Charlie likes going on hikes when he wants to be by himself but where does Don go? So read and enjoy, and please review.
I sit here looking out over the city, the one I spend so many of my waking hours protecting, it's quite up here which is one of the reasons I like coming up here after a hard day at work.
Looking up at the sky I sighed this case and taken it's toll on everyone in the team but any case that involved children was hard I tried to will my mind not to think about the case to think of anything but the case. My mind flashed back to the first time I had come here it was two nights before my high school graduation.
FLASH BACK
"Get lost Charlie you are the most annoying person on this whole planet," I yelled at my thirteen year old brother as I kicked him out of my room 'why does he have to ruin my whole life.' I thought to myself 'this is meant to be my graduation the chance for mom and dad to focus on me for a change not that little know it all,' looking around my bedroom I noticed that the baseball trophy I had won last year was missing, and I knew exactly where to find it.
I stormed up the hall to Charlie's room pushing the door open I let it slam against the wall Charlie looked up in shock at the noise seeing me Charlie's face lit up as he asked me. "Hey Don do you want to play basketball with me?"
END OF FLASHBACK
Come to think of it the only times I have seen Charlie's face really light up is after I have praised him for the work he has done in order to help me and my team. Dad has told me that Charlie would do anything to get my approval and that when he get's it, it is as if he had won a million dollars.
I sighed 'if only I had been more patient with him more understanding then I would have realized that none of this was easy on my brother, slowly my mind drifted back to that day.
FLASHBACK
"Why the hell would I want to play basketball with you," I yelled at my little brother Charlie quickly scrambled onto his bed and tried to hide under his blankets. I walked over to his bed a pulled the covers off him; grabbing the front of my brothers shirt I lifted him off the bed.
"All right Chuck," I said using the nickname I knew my brother hated, "you have ten seconds to tell me where it is if you don't you will be sorry."
Charlie tried to squirm out of my grip which made me hold him tighter, I glared at him but it had no effect as my brother looked at anything but me.
'How on earth could I be related to this per… wait know he wasn't a person normal people didn't ruin their older brothers graduation just cause they were smart no only freaks did that, that's what my brother was a freak and I was stuck with him, but thankfully that was only till the end of graduation then he would be going to Princeton I couldn't wait for him to leave.
"Well?" I asked shaking him; slowly he meet my gaze tears filled his chocolate brown eyes
"Where's what Don?" he asked, disgusted that my brother would even pretend to not know what I was talking about I threw him into the bookcase.
"Don't you dare play dumb with me you little freak you know perfectly well what I'm talking about, so don't act so stupid." I was mad he had taken something from my room and decided to play dumb about it.
"It's, it's on my desk I was going to give it back to you Don honest." Charlie whispered pain evident in his voice and eyes.
"Yeah well you shouldn't have taken it in the first place didn't mom teach you not to go through other peoples stuff or was she just worried about your maths?" I grabbed my trophy off my brother's desk and returned to my bed room.
Sighing I sat at my desk and started counting, any minute now mom was going to come through that door and tell me how much Charlie looked up to me, how I should let him borrow my stuff as he thought all my stuff was cool and blah, blah, blah.
Exactly 55 seconds later mom walked into my room and sure enough the lecture started. "Donald Eppes how could you even think about doing that to your brother? He looks up to you why can't you just let him play with you for once it wont kill you." I stood there only half listening to what mom was saying. I had heard this speech so many times I could almost repeat it word or word, but it was better then getting the first amendment lecture from dad, I swear my parents are just trying to bore me to death.
"Are you even listening to a word I say?" Mom asked me, I sighed "Yes mom I was listening and I'll try to include him…"
I was going to continue when I noticed the look that mom was giving me; she didn't believe me and I couldn't really blame her.
"Mom I promise I will try and include the fre… I mean Charlie in some of the things I do promise." I said giving her my best innocent look, mom sighed she knew I was lying to her. "All right good, she said walking out of my room.
Not even ten seconds later Charlie walked into my room, his eyes bright with hope, "Did you…did you really mean it Don can I really hang out with you?" I just looked at him before answering.
"Of course you can't you're a freak why would I want to be seen doing anything with you? I just said it to get mom off my back." I saw the tears starting to form in my brother's eyes, 'man he is such a baby,' I thought to myself.
I watched as Charlie walked out of my room his head hung in defeat, ok so maybe it was wrong for me to say that I wouldn't do anything with him, but he is such an annoying little brat that gets all of mom and dads attention and I just have to live with it. Now where is the justice in that?
I laid on my bed tossing my baseball up in the air and catching it, when I heard dad come home I listened as he greeted mom and then came up the stairs.
I turned and looked at my bedroom door as it opened, I sighed as dad walked in, I could tell by the look on his face that mom had told him what I had done and that he had also been talking with Charlie.
"Donald Allan Eppes" He bellowed "You know better than to treat your brother like that, he respects you and only wants to help. He might be a genius but he is still your baby brother and a member of this family so you might just start treating him like one."
Before dad could continue on how family was suppose to work together I yelled right back.
"Yeah dad cause this family so gets along with each other, not. Everything's about Charlie, how smart Charlie is, how Charlie needs more friends, how much Charlie adores his big brother every single little thing is about Charlie. The only time any one ever pays attention to me is when I get in trouble. I don't know why you call us a family dad if you ask me we're just four people that live under the same roof, well guess what now there's only going to be three of you cause I'm leaving and I aint ever coming back."
With that I grabbed the keys to my car and stormed out of the house ignoring both mom and dad, getting in the car I drove and drove having absolutely no idea where I was going.
END OF FLASHBACK
That night I drove until I reached where I'm sitting now, I stayed up here all that night and most of the next day.
When I got home there were cop cars outside the house, I went round back and came in, mom was sitting at th dinner table crying, in her hand was a photo of me taken earlier in the year.
I was about to speak when my little brother walked in tear tracks running down his checks, he looked at me and just stared, mom looked up to see what had got Charlie's attention.
Seeing me mom got up and pulled me into a hug Charlie joined the hug.
I later found out that once I had stormed out of the house mom had sent dad after me, when he got back home around midnight and told mom and Charlie that there was no sign of me they called the police mom and Charlie stayed at home whilst dad went and searched with the police.
I never told my family where I disappeared to that night, and now I can come up here to be alone and just regather my thoughts before going back to reality.