That night, Theo found himself remembering Simon. Who wouldn't? Simon was the brother he could tell his deepest secrets to and Theo wasn't afraid of being shunned or having it become spread around. Simon helped him with his homework and explained everything in a way that Theodore could easily understand.
Simon was always there for him, no matter what.
Theo rolled over and looked at the empty bed between his and Alvin's. The covers had been pulled off and it just looked like a regular mattress covering the bare skeleton of the bedframe.
Theo lost count of the many times all three brothers snuck into each other's beds to spend the night. Especially when Theo got nightmares. Simon always knew how to soothe him (running his fingers through his hair and rubbing his back always worked well), then would let Theo share his bed. Then later, Alvin, feeling left out, would join. It was a tight fit with them together, but it was fun and completely worth it. But now since Simon was gone, Theo had to cope with the nightmares by himself, and neither brother shared their bed.
Theo sat up further and saw Simon's pillow. In an almost dream-like state, Theo slipped out of bed and walked to Simon's bed. He gently stood by it and stared. He didn't know what to expect, but stared nonetheless. He leaned over and saw the small crater that Simon had made in his bed because he was always on it; doing homework, studying, or sleeping. Simon could always be found there.
Theo grabbed the pillow and held it to his nose. Taking a deep breath, his eyes filled with tears at smelling his brother's scent. It might not sound like much to anyone else, but Theo treasured it deeply. He kept the pillow pressed to his face as he quietly sobbed.
He felt like it was his entire fault for letting Simon die.
"What are you doing?" Theo jumped at the quiet voice. Turning to Alvin's bed, he saw the red-clad chipmunk resting on his elbows and looking at Theo, a slightly confused look on his face.
Theo quickly put the pillow down. "Remembering," he replied gently, looking down again. Theodore heard the familiar creak of Alvin's bed as Alvin got up and came up to Simon's bed with Theodore.
"Does it smell like him?" Alvin asked while motioning towards the pillow Theodore so quickly put down. Without looking up, Theodore nodded, tears forming again.
Alvin gently reached for the pillow and sniffed it carefully. Memories flooded him as well.
Alvin remembered the time Simon had done his science project for him, and gotten first place. He remembered on the first day of school, he was very nervous while Simon was confident. Simon actually helped Alvin find his best friend that he still has to this day. Alvin remembered a long time ago, he was going to fall out of a tree in their backyard, and when he did, Simon was there to catch him. More recently, Alvin could almost see himself wrapping Simon's burnt hand.
That memory triggered new memories. Memories that Alvin so deeply wanted to forget. He remembered seeing Simon sitting on his bed, taking off this glove he had on, but was wincing. Alvin came over and after a bit of pressuring, Simon let Alvin examine his hand. Alvin concluded it was a bad burn and tried to help Simon move his fingers again. It worked somewhat; he could move his fingers better than earlier. Then Alvin dressed the wound. That was the last thing Alvin and Simon did together.
Alvin reluctantly put the pillow down again and looked at Theo, who was staring at him. Alvin walked around the bed and gave Theo a big hug. Theo, though very distraught about Simon, was grateful he still had Alvin. Theo squeezed Alvin ever so slightly, listening to his heartbeat and steady breathing.