Standard disclaimer: I don't own them; I'm just borrowing them for
our entertainment.
And many thanks again to my beta-readers, Jen and Amy
A Tale of Two Brothers
Chapter III -- DNA is Thicker than Water
Scott woke to the sounds of birds and the smell of plumeria from the leis on the desk. He looked at the clock; it was just six a.m. and the sun had yet to rise. Scott lay there for a moment, but then decided to get up. He moved carefully and quietly, trying not to wake anyone. He had no idea what time they normally got up. His body tried to tell him it was later than it was, but he felt rested, so he didn't care.
Scott walked to the dining area and drew back the curtains. It was going to be a lovely morning. He unlocked the door and stepped outside. He stood on the deck, which the family had called a lanai last night, and took a deep breath of the early morning air. The Masters house was perched on the side of a hill; last night they told him they could see all of Pearl Harbor and the Arizona Memorial. Right now, he couldn't see anything; morning light was just starting to break.
"Just wait until sunrise -- you'll love the view," said a voice behind him.
Scott turned. It was Linda.
"I see you're an early riser," she continued.
"Habit," he replied. "It feels like it's later than it is."
"Would you like some coffee?" Linda asked.
"I'd love some coffee," Scott said.
Linda went back to the kitchen and started getting breakfast ready. She soon returned to the lanai and handed Scott a mug, settling herself on a lawn chair while he stood by the rail, watching the sun rise.
"This is Kona coffee," she said. "Do you like it?"
"It's good," Scott agreed. "Nice flavor."
"We'll keep you supplied from now on," Linda smiled. "How do you like living in New York?"
"I like it a lot now," he responded. "Like I said last night, I've been there over four years now. I'll be finishing college in another year and a half and I have a job waiting for me. Then there's Jean, my girlfriend, she's born and raised in New York, plus she's also got her career to think of. I don't think she's interested in living anywhere else." Just then it occurred to him what Linda was really asking. "Were you expecting me to move here?"
Linda liked his bluntness. "When we were told you were alive and well -- we thought maybe we'd finally all be together. But then Mr. Murdock explained everything, and we realized you were building a life for yourself there."
"Is Alex disappointed?"
"A little," Linda admitted. "I have to admit, so am I. I always hoped -- but we have to be realistic. You're a grown man now; I'm just glad Alex will be able to be a part of your life again." She got up to stand beside him and brushed a lock of hair off his forehead. "Your mother and father would be proud of you, you know."
Scott smiled.
They both turned at the sound of the door opening behind them. Alex stood there, hair tousled and sleepy eyed.
"'Morning," he said on top of a yawn.
"You need to get ready for school," Linda said.
"Oh, man!" Alex whined. "I thought I could take off ..."
"Alex, we talked about this," Linda stated firmly. "You'll be back home by 2:15. Let Scott rest this morning. I arranged for you to take Monday and Tuesday off from school, so you'll have plenty of time together."
"Okay," Alex acquiesced.
Linda turned back to Scott. "Let's have some breakfast."
* * *
Ben Masters appeared at breakfast, dressed and ready for the day. It was Friday, so he wore an "Aloha shirt" as did Alex. There was a big difference, Scott decided, between what the locals wore versus what the tourists bought. Colors were bright, but not garish, and patterns were smaller and far more tasteful.
Soon breakfast was over and Alex left with Ben, to be dropped off at school on his way to work in Honolulu. Scott would spend the morning with Linda.
After they were dressed, Linda hauled out some photograph albums. "We saved these for you and Alex," she said.
Scott looked at the photographs and tried to remember. But they generated few mental images.
"I'll have copies made for Alex," Linda said. "I want you to have the originals."
"Thanks," Scott said. It was hard to keep the lump out of his throat.
"We also saved your fathers medals, some things from the house ..."
Scott held up his hand for a moment and Linda stopped. It was overwhelming, she knew.
"Matt told me," Scott began, "that you wanted to adopt me with Alex, but they said my medical condition ... what *did* they tell you?" Scott asked.
Linda grimaced. "First they said you wouldn't survive, then they said you weren't coming out of the coma, then when you did, they said you had lost all your memory. We ... we didn't know what to do," she confessed. "They said you were better off staying there until your condition stabilized, that Alex would be better off if we waited ..." her voice trailed off and she shook her head. "You must have hated us."
"I didn't know about you," Scott said honestly.
Linda looked stunned. "What do you mean?"
"They never told me," he explained. "They told me Alex had been adopted and that I was too sick to be adopted with him. I wasn't told anything else."
"I can't believe it. We called practically every month. How could they not tell you we existed?" Linda felt the old anger build.
"They probably thought it was for the best." The irony that Scott would be defending Nebraska Social Services didn't escape him. "The situation was a little hard to understand. And they didn't lie. I was in bad shape and I did lose most of my memory," he admitted. "I knew my name, and I remembered Alex, but that was pretty much it. Later, I got flashes of other things, but not a lot. I still don't remember much from before the crash."
Linda felt emboldened to ask. "Where did you go, Scott? When you ran away from Omaha? Mr. Murdock told us some things -- that you wound up in a special school. What happened?"
Scott made up his mind then and there that he would never burden the Masters with the truth. What happened wasn't their fault. They didn't need to suffer too. He decided to go as near to the truth as possible, but leave out anything that could hurt them. "I was a runaway and got as far as the East Coast," he said. "Professor Xavier -- you spoke to him on the phone -- he found me and took me to his school. It's a place for kids who have no where else to go, where they can put their lives back together and start over. I still live there when college isn't in session. It's a good place."
"It sounds like Charles Xavier is a very good man," Linda said softly.
"He is," Scott agreed. He smiled, "You'll have to come out there and visit me, now that we know where everyone is."
Linda smiled back. "We'll do that."
* * *
The rest of the day was spent quietly. Scott continued to look at the photograph albums and rested on the lanai. Linda was right -- the view was breathtaking. The panorama of Pearl Harbor lay below them, with the Arizona Memorial clearly in view. The morning and afternoon were very peaceful, but when Alex returned home from school, it was like a whirlwind. Linda showed a lot of tact by leaving the brothers alone as much as possible.
Alex's happy-go-lucky attitude amused Scott; he had an openness and a lack of suspicion that the older boy envied. But it was difficult connecting. Four years in age and an entirely different experience left a gulf between them. Scott was wondering if it were something they'd be able to bridge easily.
Thankfully, Alex was unaware of any tension (or if he was aware of it, he ignored it). On Saturday, the two headed for the shore. There was a surfing competition; Alex wasn't competing, but they'd have a chance to watch the pros and learn. And they could surf afterwards. Well, Scott could watch Alex surf. Scott was a strong swimmer, but he didn't like the idea of having to deal with his swimming goggles in public. Alex and the Masters accepted the "eye condition" story; it was better not to push his luck. He could sit it out on the beach.
They trudged through the sand with Alex's board. He soon hailed a small group of teenagers, also with surf boards.
"Hey guys, we're here," Alex said. "This is my brother, Scott. These are my friends: Russell Yamaki, George Watanabe, and Tuffy Prichard."
"Hey, brah, howzit!," said Tuffy. "We've been hearin' about you for years. We're wonderin' if you existed."
"I do," Scott said with a smile. "I just took a long time getting here." Scott listened to the boys talk with interest. They obviously understood the sport of surfing well and followed it.
Scott had to admit, the competition was fun to watch and Alex and his friends were good guides to the sport. Once the meet was over, the amateurs, Alex among them, started surfing. Alex was good -- very good. On a surf board, Alex's laid-back attitude was put aside. Scott saw part of his own drive to succeed in Alex. Perhaps they weren't that different after all.
They spent the day at the beach and got back to Aiea in time for dinner. Linda was a good cook and the family was obviously used to a wide range of foods. Tonight was chicken teriyaki, rice and mixed vegetables. After dinner, Scott sat outside on the lanai. Soon, Ben Masters joined him.
"Enjoy the surfing?" he asked with a smile.
"It was fun," Scott said. "But at the risk of being a heretic, I don't think I could ever take it up as a sport. Don't tell Alex."
Ben chuckled. There was silence between them for a while. Scott had a feeling that Ben was trying to find a way to say something.
"I feel like I owe you an apology," Ben began.
Scott looked up. "For what?"
"For what happened to you," Ben replied. "For being bounced around by the system. Linda wanted you here from the get-go. But they told us you had a lot of problems and I -- I wasn't sure I could cope with an handicapped child. Social Services in Nebraska was talking about how it might best for Alex for you *not* to be reunited immediately; they thought you were too unstable and would jeopardize Alex's well-being. And I went along with it because I was afraid. I'm sorry; Linda was right all along. You belonged here. Can you forgive me?"
Scott didn't know what to say. In some ways, Ben was responsible -- but not completely. Scott couldn't bring himself to be angry. Bitterness would come in waves, later, but now, all Scott could feel was an odd sense of compassion. Ben Masters had wanted to do the right thing; he never expected that anyone would suffer because of it.
Scott shrugged. "It's water under the bridge, now," he said. "Who knows, maybe they were right."
"And maybe they weren't," Ben said. He rose to return to the house. "You're a kind young man, Scott Summers. I can't turn back the past, I know. But please know one thing -- you'll always have a home with us. Always."
Scott sat on the lanai and smiled into the darkness for a while longer before following him back into the house.
* * *
Sunday was fun. Scott went with the family to church. They attended the church that was attached to the school Alex had attended as a child. Alex took great delight in introducing Scott to one of the nuns. Scott later learned Alex had gotten in trouble for saying he had a brother; the nun had thought he was making Scott up. While Linda had immediately gone to Alex's defense, he enjoyed showing off the proof ten years later.
Lunch was an all day affair at Linda's family's home. Linda's family were part Portugese; Scott had been surprised to discover the Portugese were a sizable population on the island. Her sisters had married into every ethnic group on the island. Lunch was a combination of cuisines, linked together by love and good humor. Alex was an accepted part of the Santos clan; Scott was accepted as belonging to Alex. That was that.
The next morning, while he waited for Alex to get ready (the boy was *not* an early riser), Scott called Jean. He dearly wanted to talk to her. The time difference made it early afternoon in New York, but fortunately, he got her while she was taking a break from the lab.
"How's it going?" she asked.
"It's fun," Scott said. "It's really beautiful here. And the food -- I've been fed, nonstop, since I arrived. I'm going to be at least ten pounds heavier by the time I get back. On Sunday we had dinner with Linda's family in Ewa Beach. They're a trip and a half. But they think the world of Alex."
In New York, Jean smiled. Scott could be incredibly transparent sometimes. "How are you and Alex?"
"He's a great kid, but ..."
"But?" Jean prompted.
"We've got nothing in common," Scott admitted. "He likes surfing and having a good time; about the only thing we *both* like is playing the guitar. He's pretty good."
Jean laughed. "Welcome to the world of siblings. Sarah and I were raised together, but it's not like we have anything in common. You can at least talk to him about music; we don't even have that. Just because you're related doesn't mean you share anything except DNA. And you're four years apart. That can be a huge gulf at times."
"I suppose." A moment of comfortable silence fell between them. "I'd like them all to come for a return visit. Do you think the kids at the Institute could keep themselves in check for a few weeks?"
"I think they'd try very hard for you, Scott. Well, that's my pager going off; I have to get back to the lab. Call me back in a couple of days? I love you."
"Okay," Scott said. "I love you, too." He hung up the phone. Almost immediately it rang again. It was probably Jean calling back for some reason. "Hello?"
"Scott, it's good to hear your voice again. How is the visit going?" It was Professor Xavier.
For some reason, Scott had a feeling the other shoe was going to drop. Things had been going far too well. "Fine," he replied. "I'm having a good time."
"Wonderful. Scott, I didn't just call to find out how you were doing, however. I've been picking up unusual readings from Cerebro, centered in your location." the Professor began.
This can't be good, Scott thought, as he waited.
"At first, I thought Cerebro was merely echoing your presence," Professor Xavier explained. Then he got to the point. "Scott, I believe your brother is a mutant."
The shoe dropped.
* * *
Coming soon, Chapter 4
