AN: I've decided to give this one a try and see how it goes. In this story, Shawn and Hunter are fraternal twins and are the same age. This story is fictional and shouldn't be taken for granted since Shawn and Hunter are best friends in real life. Reviews are welcome if you want to tell me how this goes.

Chapter 1: A Broken Brotherhood

"You can't catch me!"

"We'll see about that!"

Shawn ran through the tall grass as his brother ran after him with the intent on tickling him. Hunter grabbed his brother and held him down and tickled him in his ticklish spots, which he knew well, Shawn laughing hard and outstretched his hands to grab Hunter and tickle him back to outsmart his brother. It worked a little and Shawn soon manged to pull Hunter down into the grass beside him, the two both panting and laughing from the running and fun. Shawn smiled and looked around the field, seeing the sun set in the horizon. Hunter balanced his weight on one arm and looked at the sun, a feeling soon tugging at his heart.

"Shawn?"

"Yeah?"

"We should get home. It's getting late."

Shawn gave Hunter a worried look. "No, Hunt, I don't want to-"

"You know Mom's gonna be worried sick about us. Daddy too."

Shawn shook his head, looking at the ground, but Hunter stood up and grabbed his brother's arm, pulling him up gently, and placed a strong arm around his waist. Shawn sighed and walked along his brother as the sun disappeared in the distance. Hunter glanced at his brother and saw the worry on his face, knowing what was going through his head.

The two walked down the forest path as the sky was getting darker and darker. Shawn laughed at all the lightning bugs coming out of the trees, but Hunter tried to hurry up and get out of the woods before they could be seen, tugging on his brother to walk faster. Shawn gave in and walked faster.

Since they were fraternal twins, Shawn and Hunter were the same age, they were now both seven, and did everything together. Most children at school didn't seem to notice they were brothers because one looked very different from the other. Hunter had a tall height and a hint of muscle in his arms while his eyes were brown and his voice was normal but had a bit of an accent to it, which was from his father's side. Shawn had a Texan drawl, which was from their Mom's side, and had blue eyes and a slightly smaller body but was about the same height as Hunter. They both had dirty blonde hair and a sense of humor when it came to having fun.

As soon as the two reached a wooden fence, Hunter let go of his brother and crouched down to pick up a loose board and hold it for his brother to go under. Shawn crawled under the fence and got to the other side just as Hunter managed to crawl under the fence. Shawn extended his hand and Hunter grabbed it, Shawn pulling to let his brother free of the loose board over him. With three pulls, Hunter slipped free and quickly ran across the yard with Shawn and towards the backyard. They always called it the "Garbage can" since the yard was full of old junk.

Hunter and Shawn managed to dodge the junk and quickly found the side of the house. Hunter reached out and felt a long object in his hand. He tugged on it and smiled at his brother. By this time, the sky was completely dark and the lights outside the house were too dim to offer light. Hunter tugged on the object again and signaled Shawn to grab it. Shawn took the object and jumped on the side of the house, moving upwards with the object until he reached a wide space. Hunter followed and watched Shawn open the window and then extended his hand. Hunter took it and climbed into the window and landed feet first into the room. Hunter pulled up the rope as Shawn flipped on the lantern on the dresser. They knew where everything was since it was their room.

Hunter untied the rope's end from the air-conditioning unit and sighed. But Shawn's loud gasp forced him to turn around quickly.

"What is it?" He asked.

Hunter saw Shawn standing next to the lantern, not moving and scared stiff with his mouth moving so he could breathe slower. Hunter looked over and saw a large figure sitting in the corner of the room, a pipe in hand and smoke flying into the air. Hunter gasped under his breath and took a step back, careful not to fall out the open window.

"Where have you two been? Didn't I tell you to come up here and do your homework?"

The rough and slurred voice echoed through the room. Hunter began to shake, smelling a strong odor of alcohol, and looked at Shawn, seeing the worry on his face. The figure got up and instantly grabbed Shawn and threw him against the bed, causing Shawn to scream and breathe harder. The figure held Shawn's hands down and stayed on top of him, throwing the pipe on the floor.

"Didn't I tell you that?! Didn't I?!"

Hunter stepped forward and spoke softly, "Y-Yes, we did our homework."

The figure's eyes darted towards Hunter. "What'd you say?"

"I-I said we did our homework."

"Before that. What did you say before that?!"

Shawn whimpered under the figure's hands, indicating that more pressure quickly applied to the hold he was in. Hunter gulped and stood his ground, recollecting what he said.

"I said 'yes.'"

The figure stiffened. "You say 'yes sir' to me! Understood?!"

Shawn whimpered as the figure's fingernails dug into his hands. Hunter grew angry to see his brother like this, but managed to look the figure in the eyes.

"Yes, sir."

"Good," The figure pushed up and let go of Shawn, who laid there stiff, not moving at all. Hunter raced over to his brother and pulled him up, Shawn's soft whimper turning into screams when the figure came towards the two boys with a belt.


Hunter opened up from the darkness over his eyes and saw how blurred his vision was. He tried to straighten up, but his arms and legs ached so bad he couldn't move. He looked over and saw Shawn next to him, his eyes closed and his mouth and nose covered in blood. Hunter managed to gain some strength and turn over on his side, yelling softly when the pain in his ribs kicked in. Hunter saw how peaceful Shawn looked, but at the same time he looked a mess. He brushed the hair out of his brother's eyes and tried to crawl closer, but couldn't find the strength to do it. He felt a chill go up his spine from the breeze outside the open window. It felt nice, however, since Hunter's skin felt hot and burning. He heard Shawn stir in his sleep and saw his brother's blue eyes looking at his brown eyes.

Shawn limply smiled and whispered, "A-Are you okay?"

"Yes," Hunter whispered, touching his brother's hair. "Please go back to sleep."

"I don't want to take orders anymore." Shawn whispered, tears in his eyes.

"Don't worry about it." Hunter touched his throbbing head and winced when he touched a bruise on the corner, blood still pulsing from it.

Shawn crawled towards his brother and laid his head next to his brother's chest and closed his eyes. Hunter wrapped one arm around Shawn and closed his eyes, hoping a good night's sleep would take care of everything.