To be honest, after all the horrible things the three of them had gone through, faking their own kidnapping felt pretty mundane. Didn't make it any less horrible but still. It was too easy to be jaded nowadays.

Roy wasn't being awfully subtle about having ulterior motives, even if those motives were extremely unclear. He just said he needed a lot of money really quickly. Any normal person would've just gotten a job or programmed a scambot but Roy wasn't normal, was he? No, logically he had to record his children being held hostage and use it for ransoming! It's not like he could be tracked down in the virtual world anyways. How... clever...

Duck wasn't all too keen on being tied to a chair in a dinky basement that "smelled like rats and gasoline." Though Yellow had always been obedient to his father, he did find this a bit... odd. Even in comparison to what had already happened. They were mostly concerned for Red though, who hadn't made a single enraged comment or even so much as shot a glare at Roy. They'd be nervously awaiting it all day and through the entire filming session and yet- Nothing? He read his few lines and then it was over.

Yellow sat on his chair, swinging his legs and tapping to himself. Duck had already walked out the basement for his lunch break. That was a fun way to think of it, they were just actors! Yeah, just performing for a movie like on the TV and his dad was the director. That's all it was... Yellow said he didn't want to eat, but he'd really stayed behind so Red wouldn't be alone.

"...So..." he started after ages of silence. "Are you... okay?"

Red blew his hair out of his face and it almost immediately fell back in line. "What do you mean?"

"Well it's just... you're usually not this... fine? With anything dad wants to do. So I was just asking if you were okay. Sorry."

"Don't apologize. I'm fine." He didn't make any subtle movements, no little personable tics. Nothing.

Yellow furrowed his brow and clenched his teeth. "N- no. No you're not? I can tell. I'm not stupid."

"I am fine."

"No."

"Mhm."

"Nuh-uh."

"Uh-huh."

"UGH!" Yellow threw up his arms and pushed himself off the chair, nearly tripping over the rope lingering on the ground. "No you're not! I don't like you being like this, not at-all! Why aren't you being- being anything?! Aren't you upset? You're usually the one upset right?" Red shot a very quick concerned glance as the boy flexed his fists in frustration. "You don't have to pretend everything's fine! That's m- my job! Why don't you care? Y- you're being really weird right now and- and I don't think I can take any more weird!"

The little boy's body shivered and he tugged on the sleeves of his shirt. Yellow looked as if he wanted to say more, but after a moment's deliberation, he simply left to join Duck.

Red fiddled with his hair absentmindedly, not really thinking about anything for once in his life. It was liberating in a weird way, not being bombarded with horrific thoughts all the time. Not feeling anything, and of his own free will too. Still, it wasn't exactly pleasant, but this was the only way. If he let himself think about what was happening too hard, if he even started showing intense emotion again- well... he was too scared to think about what might happen. Besides, so far nothing bad had happened because of this. His inaction and apathy seemed to have more pros than cons. Yellow just didn't understand why it was good to not be upset about this. To not be anything about this. It was his only way to survive.

But if it proved detrimental... Red wasn't exactly sure what he'd do then.

He had decided to not ask his brother's to do the same. It likely wasn't good for their mental health. Besides, they were younger, and they weren't depressed. They had more energy than him.

...

Duck woke up to Yellow crying into his pillow. The (virtual) moon was still high in the sky. The little boy hopped out of his bed and walked over to console his brother.

"It's okay, I'm here."

Yellow leaned against Duck as his breathing slowed to normalcy. He clenched his shirt and slowly opened his mouth.

"I just- everything, y'know? It's a lot."

"Yeah I get it. But hey, it'll probably be over soon at least."

"What makes you say that?"

"Well uh-" Truthfully, he didn't have any reason to believe that but- "its good to be optimistic!"

Yellow wiped his eyes. "Mhm... you're right." He paused and looked over at Red's empty bed. "I'm glad you came to help and not... Red."

"What? How come?"

"He's being really really REALLY weird!"

"Wow, three really's. This must be serious."

Yellow nodded and pushed Duck off the bed. "You should go to sleep now. I'll be fine."

"You sure get over things quickly..?"

"Of course I do!" he smiled ominously.

Duck glanced over at Red's bed as he slid away from Yellow. It looked as if no one had touched it in days. Maybe he should talk to him...

...

Duck had the taller boy cornered in a hallway.

"Alright, spill the beans. Why're you acting so weird right now?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well Yellow told me you're acting weird, and I thought about it and yeah, you have. You know what I mean! You're acting so- so NOTHING! You're being weird and empty and not caring and I don't like it! It's not you at all. You can tell me if something happened, I promise I won't snitch!" Duck looked pleadingly at his brother, thinking about how fun it would be for him to confide in him. It could be a little secret if they wanted!

Red subconsciously smiled before forcing it away. No. Nothing.

"It's easier this way. If I don't care, I'll be okay. This way."

Duck's face contorted into confusion followed by frustration.

"WHAT? HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT!? We- we go through so much GARBAGE- how can you not care? D- do you not care about us? About me and Yellow?"

Red's eyebrow twitched slightly. "It's Yellow and me."

Duck floundered desperately, muffled his scream, and punched Red in the arm as hard as he could, which wasn't very painful. He glared at Red, hoping his visible anger would awaken something in him and he'd go back to being his normal self. Nothing happened.

"I- I..."

"I really do care Duck. I care so so much that it hurts. It makes me want to die. It makes me want to hurt someone. All of this? This stuff happening? It's too much. I don't want to have to handle it. I don't want to think about it, I don't want to feel about it." He leaned his head slightly, his hair falling in front of his face as he started to slide down the wall. "I'm too tired to do all that. So I'm just... not. Doesn't that make sense?"

Please. Please let it make sense...

Duck looked down at his older brother, curled against himself on the floor. "That sounds like a horrible way to live! You- I don't understand! What about us, can't we help you with this? Can't we all do this together so you don't have to feel like giving up? We don't have to handle this alone... right?"

"I shouldn't drag you into my brain. I don't think that's very good for little kids."

"I'm not a little kid! I'm ten years old, and I can help my older brother feel better if I want to!"

"It's not about feeling better, Duck," Red stated with a bite. This conversation was growing uncomfortably close to having to explain to his little brother what Depression is. That was the opposite of what he wanted. "Look, just go to bed. Now. We're not talking about this anymore."

"Wh- but-"

"Go. Now."

Duck groaned in irritation and muffled another scream. "UGH you're so annoying! Why are you like this? G- I-"

He didn't understand at all. But that's okay. Red didn't really expect him to anyways.

"I HATE YOU!"

He didn't mean it, Red rationalized as his little brother stormed off back to his room. He didn't understand. He didn't actually hate him. He just had nothing else to say.

And if he really did hate him, well, it's not like he didn't deserve it. It was his fault after all.