Chapter 3 - The Good, The Bad, The Painful (Posted 19 February 2011)

A/N: I went shopping today and saw a woman that looked like Mrs. Hayfer which got my spirits high enough to write this chapter lol :D Plz enjoy and don't forget to review!

"Drake!" Megan caught him just as he was about to walk out the door.

It was the morning after he'd heard their mom say she was divorcing Walter, and he didn't want to have to face Josh. It was super early, like a whole hour before he even had to leave for school, but he didn't want to stick around. He felt like an intruder in his own home, uncomfortable within the walls of the place he thought was his home. But they felt like they were caving in on him, crumbling like everything else in his life. Who would want to stay in a house like that? Certainly not Drake.

"What?" he asked quietly, as if maybe he would just disappear if she didn't hear him.

"What's wrong with you?" Megan asked with sadness in her eyes. "You don't even notice when I prank you anymore. You don't answer when someone says your name, I've been talking to you for ten minutes and you haven't responded at all! You just sulk around the house, stay in your room all the time... and you and Josh don't even talk anymore..."

"I don't sulk."

"Wow. Those are the most words I've heard you say in weeks." Megan said. "But seriously, did you do something to piss Josh off again?"

"You shouldn't say words like 'piss' Megan." Drake said casually.

"I'll say it if I want to. But come on, just tell me what you did and I'll help you fix it. I can't stand when you to fight. You don't even fight, you just... don't do anything... I hate how you get when this happen. It scares me..."

"I didn't do anything."

"Well then he did something!" Megan prompted with big eyes. "Tell me what it is! I'll..."

"He didn't do anything either."

"Oh, come on." Megan put her hand on her hip. "I know you two. One of you had to have done something."

"Nope."

"Then... what's wrong? He's your brother... why won't you talk to each other?"

"He has no reason to talk to me. He's not our brother anymore." Drake said, admitting it to himself for the first time.

"What do you mean? Did he say he was done with you again? I swear I'll kick that boy's ass from here to Tuesday..." Megan put up a fist.

"Megan, don't say 'ass' it's not nice." Drake said. Then he looked at her. He thought she heard their parents' arguments too. But her lack of knowledge on the situation told him otherwise. "You... didn't hear..."

"Hear what?" Megan asked cautiously.

"Mom and... Walter were fighting last night..." Drake couldn't call him Dad. He wasn't his dad anymore. That's the second father he's driven away.

"So what? They've been fighting forever."

"You really didn't hear what they said?"

"No..."

"Megan... Mom and Walter are getting a divorce."

Megan's eyes went wide. But then she shook her head. "Drake, they've been saying that just as long as they've been fighting. They never mean it."

"You don't understand. Mom filed. She had him served at work! It's over, Megan. Walter isn't our dad anymore and Josh isn't our brother. That's why we're not talking. He knew it was coming. I refused to acknowledge that I knew it too."

"But..." Megan actually let some tears bead on her cheeks. "That still doesn't explain why you and Josh aren't talking."

"Yes it does." Drake said like it should have been obvious. He was pretty sure that even if he wasn't as intelligent as he was now, he would have been able to figure it out as soon as he knew Josh wouldn't be his brother anymore. "We're not brothers anymore. There's no reason for him to talk to me now. He doesn't have to put up with me at all now that we're not family. It's just gone back to how it was before our parents got married. We don't talk."

"What? So... it's like all those years you've spent together... don't mean anything to you?"

"It's not me. Josh is the best thing that's ever happened to me. But he doesn't want to be bothered with me anymore. And I have no right to expect anything of him anymore. I don't want to force him into talking to me. I'm happy with any smile or word he'll spare for me. But I..." Why was he telling all this to his little sister? She didn't need to be burdened with this. But it was so hard to keep it in. And when he said one thing, it just pushed the next thing out, creating a flood of thoughts that turned into words. He had to stop himself. But he couldn't. "I don't understand why he wants it this way... I thought things were good between us. I thought we would have stayed friends even if our parents split, you know, I just assumed... but I guess I just need to face the facts. He was only pretending to be so close to me. He was just tolerating me, trying to make it through this whole brother thing until he could get out of it. And now... he's free of me."

"But Drake... he's... I thought... you two were like ultimate brothers. Always there for each other. Josh wouldn't just give up on you like that..." Megan choked.

"Well, I don't think he sees it as giving up on me. Josh doesn't do anything half-heartedly, even if he doesn't really enjoy it. If there's something he's got to do, he does his best until the very end. And that's what he's done. He's been the best brother ever, the best friend I could have asked for. And now it's the end. It's over. He doesn't have to do it anymore."

"Drake, I can't believe Josh would do something so... heartless... doesn't he know how he's affected your life?"

"Does it matter?" Drake asked sincerely. He didn't think it did. It was over. Nothing more could be done.

"Yes! Drake... you're not a quitter! Go talk to him right now!"

"No."

"Drake!"

"No!" Drake said loudly without quite yelling. He didn't want to yell at Megan. None of this was her fault. She may have pulled pranks on them sometimes. Well, all the time, really. But she was always there when it counted. But Drake? He wasn't always there.

"Well... what are you going to do?"

"I was just on my way to school when you stopped me." Drake said, hoisting up his heavy backpack to show her.

"I meant about Josh."

"Nothing."

"You can't just do nothing."

"I can. And I will."

"But you love him! I love him!"

"So? Megan... I'm sure he'll still be willing to talk to you. It's me he wants nothing to do with."

"That's... that's so..."

Drake turned around and walked out the door, slamming it shut before she finished the thought. He had to get out. He could have sworn the walls had literally started moving towards him. So it was off to school. Off to earn another A+ that would go unnoticed by everyone except his teachers, which were just as confused as he was, albeit for different reasons.