7
Notes: Hi! I'm an only child and I've always wanted siblings, so I thought it would be nice to bring in Neela's younger brother and see how he shakes things up a bit. This takes place somewhere in Season 11, but we're pretending there's no Michael. I have a vague idea of where this is going, so bear with me. And as always, thank you so much for reading.
Disclaimer: I don't own ER. Did you really think I did?
Ray slowly walked up the stairs and began the trek down the long hallway towards the apartment. It had been one of the longest days he had ever had at the hospital; 36 hours, 6 traumas, and 8 deaths later, he was almost at his door. Finally. Slipping his keys in the door, he gently opened it so as not to wake Neela—it was almost two in the morning.
It was completely dark…or so Ray thought until he glimpsed a small candle burning on the coffee table and the soft sound of the television, barely audible unless you were sitting right in front of it. Tiptoeing towards the couch, he found Neela doing exactly that: sitting cross-legged in front of the television, blanket wrapped around her, watching "Silence of the Lambs" and poised to cover her eyes at the slightest indication of a scary part. She looked so cute Ray couldn't help but laugh out loud at the sight of her. Neela hadn't heard him come in, and as a result, she jumped a mile into the air at the sound of his laughter just behind her.
"Jeez! Ray! You scared me half to death, I'm watching 'Silence of the Lambs' and you come up behind me without saying a word! At least make some noise next time."
Ray smiled mischievously. "You know, normally you tell me to make less noise, but if you insist…"
"Ray!" Neela had thought Hannibal Lector was behind her and Ray was standing here cracking jokes.
"Sorry," Ray said in a genuine tone. "I promise I'll make sure you know when I'm home next time."
Neela had been about to respond when suddenly, with one swift movement, she covered her eyes with the blanket that was wrapped around her shoulders. Neela wasn't one to shriek during scary movies; covering her eyes did the trick, though. Ray always made sure that there was a blanket on the couch whenever they watched anything remotely scary on television together. He had teased her about it endlessly—he found it utterly amusing that his strong-willed, fiery roommate could be so frightened of men with chainsaws and cannibal psychologists.
Neela couldn't take it anymore—she pulled the blanket down from her eyes and scurried to turn off the television before she saw anything else. Ray and Neela were plunged into darkness.
"I'll get the lights," Ray offered.
"Thanks," Neela replied. She picked herself up and walked toward the kitchen while saying, "Umm, I ordered some pizza earlier. There's tons left over in the fridge if you're hungry. Extra anchovies," she added with a smile.
Ray returned the smile and plopped himself down at the kitchen table. "That sounds really good after having had half of a sandwich at noon yesterday."
"Yikes, busy shift?" Neela said as she placed two plates on the table and stuck the leftover pizza slices in the middle.
"You have no idea," Ray responded as he began devouring his first slice. "How was your day?"
"It was alright. My younger brother called from England to say that he was coming to visit next week. We haven't seen each other in more than two years, and he's on holiday for a few days so…" Neela said all of this a little too fast than she intended; she was afraid Ray wouldn't be okay with it.
She was pleasantly surprised. "That's cool. He's the one you help put through school, right?" Ray said calmly, now intently working on his second slice.
"Yeah, that's him." Neela didn't know what else to say.
"How old is he?" Ray said, curious to know if he'd be babysitting or taking him out for drinks. He didn't exactly know how much younger Neela's brother was.
"He's 14," Neela replied. Ray's breath caught in his throat and his brows unconsciously furrowed as he heard Neela's words; a distant memory flooded his brain. A soft, youthful voice was ringing in his ears…
Ray, can you show me how to shoot free throws? The kids at school make fun of me because I keep shooting air balls…
Alright come here, give me ball. It's really simple okay, you just bend your knees a little and line up your fingers right there…
"Ray? Ray, are you okay?" Neela had never seen such a pained and drawn look on Ray's face before. It worried her.
"Uh what? Yeah, yeah I'm fine, sorry just a little tired that's all." Ray had no other excuse. He suddenly didn't feel like eating anymore.
"Are you sure?" It was Neela's turn to furrow her eyebrows.
"I'm sure. I think I'm going to turn in," was all he managed before dazedly getting up from the kitchen table and began walking to his room. All Neela could do was watch him and wonder if it had been something she said.
O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O
Neither Ray nor Neela brought up the issue of Ray's sudden mood change that night. In fact, Neela began to wonder whether she had just dreamt the entire episode. She was too preoccupied to worry about it, however, because her brother was arriving in less than 24 hours and she was still busy trying to clean the apartment enough to at least make it presentable. She doubted he would care, but he certainly wouldn't appreciate Ray's dirty clothes on the couch nor Neela's books stacked so high on the coffee table that they covered the front of the television set. Despite their age gap, Neela and her brother got along well and she was more than excited to see him. She wasn't too worried about him getting along with Ray either—they were definitely two very different people, but she was sure they would find something to talk about. Or at least she hoped they would.
O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O
"So what time is he getting in?" Ray asked Neela, both of them standing near the admit desk and attempting to finish charting before the end of their shift.
"Eight-thirty. It's a really long flight; I just hope he's sane and awake enough to grab his bags and wait near the door of the terminal," Neela responded with a slight chuckle.
"Well I'm going home after my shift, but if you need anything—like take-out—let me know," Ray stated with a look that said 'You didn't cook, did you?' Both he and Neela knew the horrors of airplane food all too well.
"Thank you for the offer, but I actually did cook this morning…and don't look at me like that, Ray, I know my food probably isn't the best, but it's something…Ray, stop rolling your eyes, I'm serious…"
O-O-O-O-O-O-O
Neela didn't think she'd be at the airport on time, but lo and behold, she had actually arrived a whole ten minutes early. She spent the time wondering how much her brother must have changed since the last time she saw him—he had been thin and slightly taller than she was, with a light in his eyes that could brighten a room.
She didn't have to wonder for too long because before she could look up, he was walking up to her—duffle bag strung over his shoulder—with a smile she hadn't seen in far too long. He had changed so much in two years that she didn't know she was staring at the right person until he flashed his smile at her and said her name.
"Neela! It's so good to see you," he said as he dropped his bag on the floor and embraced his sister in a huge bear hug. Neela was in utter shock—he was only 14, but at almost 6 feet tall he looked much older. The last time she had seen him, his shoulders were just about as broad as hers were and now he was enveloping her in a hug that almost covered her entire body.
"Oh my God, Jamail, what have you been eating? Don't tell me you're taking those protein shakes your friends were telling you about, because you know they're not good for you…" Neela didn't even stop to say a proper 'hi, how are you?'
All Jamail could do was laugh. "Neela, relax. I've just been working out a little bit, that's all." Seeing the look in his sister's eyes he added, "No protein shakes, I promise."
"Alright, as long as you know not to drink them…man, it's so nice to see you! How's everything? How are mum, dad, everyone?"
"They're fine, they sent you homemade spices and some other stuff—I've got it all in my bag. You know how mum is…" Both Jamail and Neela rolled their eyes and let out a laugh that sounded almost exactly alike. They headed out of the door and began walking toward Neela's car.
"So how are you? Do I have to officially call you 'Dr. Rasgotra' now, cause you know that sounds bloody awful." It felt good to tease his sister after not having done so for ages. He was planning on doing plenty of it during the next week.
"Very funny. What about you, Mr.I-can't-fit-through-the-doorway-I'm-so-damn-tall?" She didn't realize it until that moment, but she had missed her brother tremendously these past two years.
Jamail laughed and looked at Neela with playful eyes. "So umm, is Ray okay with me staying at your place? Cause you know I wouldn't want to come between…"
Neela stopped him before he went any further. "Oh don't be an idiot, Jamail…don't look at me like that, I'm serious, we're just friends."
"Yeah alright," was all Jamail said. He placed his bag in the trunk of Neela's car and they both proceeded to get in. They spent the duration of the ride home talking about all of the developments back home—what their parents were up to, who had been married, who had finished school, and all those other little things that Jamail knew Neela would want to know. They were in front of the apartment before either of them knew it.
Stepping over the threshold and through the door, Neela and Jamail found Ray huddled on the couch sound asleep, Neela's blanket wrapped around him in the cold winter weather. Neela let a slight smile spread across her face, which Jamail promptly caught.
"I knew it!" he whispered while glaring at Neela.
"Jamail, shut up," was Neela's response. Not paying attention to where she was going, Neela promptly tripped over Jamail's duffle bag and landed squarely on the floor with a thud, waking Ray. Jamail bent over laughing so hard he had to clutch his stomach while Neela franticly tried to pick herself up off the floor and dust herself off. Ray looked at the two of them and felt like he had missed something.
Quickly getting off the couch, Ray neatly folded Neela's blanket back in place. He cleared his throat as he walked over to Neela's brother and said, "Uh hi, I'm Ray, Neela's roommate…"
Reaching out to shake Ray's hand, Jamail replied, "Hi, I'm Jamail…my friends call me Jay." Jamail knew how to read people—just from Ray's introduction he could tell that he was going to like this guy. "It's nice to finally meet you, Neela talks about you all the time," and with that Jamail winked ever-so-slightly at Neela, who returned the favor by giving him her death stare.
Ray laughed; he felt slightly nervous but he had no idea why. "Well, good things I hope," was all that came out of his mouth.
Ray had never seen pictures of Neela's family; the only place she kept them was in her room and he liked to respect her privacy. But there was something about Jay that somehow made him feel like he'd met him before, or that they had known each other for a while. He and Neela looked very much alike—they have the same smile—but the bright green of Jay's eyes surprised him. In fact, they were the same shade of green as…Ray stopped himself before he could finish the thought. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, just like the night he and Neela were sitting at the kitchen table; Ray didn't want that to happen again. He wasn't going to drudge up memories that it had taken ten years to forget, and he really didn't want to make a fool out of himself in front of Neela's brother.
Neela's voice put an end to his musings. "So are you hungry? I made some lentil soup this morning…" The incredulous look on Jamail's face made Neela trail off what she was saying. "…why is it so utterly surprising that I cooked? Ray gave me the same face today…" At this point Ray and Jay exchanged knowing looks and instantly burst into laughter at Neela's obvious irritation. "…I mean I'd like to see you try cooking this stuff…" She was stopped by the gentleness in Jay's voice.
"Listen Neela, it's no big deal, okay? I'm really not picky. Anything you have in the fridge is fine—you know, leftover pizza, sandwich, anything."
Ray spoke up before Neela could go off again. "We've got some pizza in the fridge, if you like extra anchovies?"
Jamail's eyes lit up. "Love 'em."
O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O
Jamail devoured the pizza like nothing she had ever seen…well…maybe except for Ray's eating habits. The three of them were sitting at the table, talking about Chicago and the city life and how different Jamail and Neela's small English neighborhood is. Neela was amazed at how much her brother had grown over the past few years, not just physically but emotionally. He had never been the rebellious type, but there had been those moments when she had wondered if he would ever stop to think before he acted—like the time he rode his bike all the way to the next town to find…wait, what was he looking for? He had been a kid then, but even though he was only 14, Neela knew he wasn't a kid now.
"You can have my room, Jamail, I'll sleep on the couch." He was on vacation and Neela wanted him to at least be able to sleep in without hearing the racket she and Ray made in the morning.
"As tempting as that sounds, I think I'd rather sleep on the couch. I don't know how I'd feel sleeping under purple sheets," and with that he shot Neela a fake grimace.
"Alright suit yourself." Neela rose from the table to gather up the dishes as Ray and Jamail did the same. They were all completely worn out, not least of all Jamail who had not slept in the last 24 hours.
After making sure her brother was comfortable, Neela said goodnight. Ray turned in just a few minutes afterwards. Slowly closing the door of her room, all Neela could think was, I wonder what this week will bring.