Brother of Brothers
by
The Analyzer
Chapter 2: Cold Flames
Yutaka was chatting on the phone with his friend, planning a meeting among college mates, when Tomoki came running through the living room.
"Slow down!" Yutaka said.
"Sorry. I'm a bit late."
Tomoki slowed as he reached the door, replacing his house slippers with shoes. He waved to his parents.
"I'll be going to Takuya-onii-chan's! Be back later."
"Have fun, dear." Mrs. Himi smiled.
"I will."
Tomoki vanished out the door, and mother and father smiled at each other. Yutaka finished his call and sat down.
"It's so nice that Tomoki has a good friend to look after him." Mr. Himi said.
"I hope he isn't giving this Takuya too much trouble." Yutaka said. "You know how demanding he is."
"Don't be so hard, Yutaka." Mr. Himi.
"He hasn't been so bad lately." Mrs. Himi said. "He's become such a tiny gentlemen, it's precious."
"He hasn't asked for a lot recently." Mr. Himi said thoughtfully. "Whenever a commercial for a toy or video game comes on, he states interest but doesn't ask us to buy it. I wonder why…"
"I'll grant he has gotten better," Yutaka said, "though maybe he's demanding gifts from this friend of his."
*Good luck, Takuya.* Yutaka thought.
To tell the truth, Yutaka had noticed the changes in his little brother as well. One morning, Tomoki was the same needy, clingy boy Yutaka had always known. Then he disappeared for the day, and by the time the parents worried about where Tomoki had gone, he returned a changed boy. Tomoki gave a sudden hug to Yutaka, proclaiming that he was the best big brother ever. It had been a bizarre and embarrassing scene for Yutaka, so he had been glad when Tomoki took his affections to his parents. The next day, Tomoki insisted on doing a couple of chores.
*What's gotten into him?* Yutaka thought. *Was he trying to suck up to us? No, he's too sincere for that, even at his most bratty. Is it connected to these new friends of his?*
Yutaka wasn't entirely approving of Tomoki's new friends. He hadn't met them, but from what Tomoki said, they were all older than him – four guys and a girl. Yutaka had seen far too many people take advantage of their underclassmen to believe this was totally sincere. Still, this was Tomoki's issue.
*I don't need to take care of him.* Yutaka said. *These are his battles. I'll leave them to him.*
Well, as a bonus, Yutaka didn't have to deal with Tomoki being as much of a brat. Sure, Tomoki was out of the house most of these days, but that just gave Yutaka more peace when he stayed at home. Unless these friends presented a danger to Tomoki, Yutaka wouldn't rock the boat.
Yutaka gazed at the magazine in his bedroom. It was a clear, peaceful day, but Yutaka wasn't in the mood to go out just yet. Some instinct told him it was time to remain home, and Yutaka wasn't the sort to take walks in the morning anyway. As today was a weekend, Yutaka couldn't help noticing Tomoki also decided to stay home. From what Yutaka had observed, he seemed a bit sad and kept glancing at the clock.
*Did he have a fight with his friends?* Yutaka had thought.
However, it wasn't Yutaka's problem. Yutaka himself had fought with friends many times, and either they made up, or the friendship ended. It would probably hurt for Tomoki if it was the latter, but that was life.
Yutaka was roused by the sound of the doorbell. There was the distant creak of the front door being opened and a glad cry from Tomoki.
"You're here, Takuya-onii-chan!"
Yutaka raised his head. That boy Takuya was here? Yutaka couldn't deny he was curious about the boy that meant so much to Tomoki. Throwing his magazine away, he went to investigate.
A boy of around eleven was chatting with Tomoki. He looked friendly enough, smiling easy and gazing warmly down at Tomoki with fiery eyes. The goggles on his head caught the glare of the overhead lights, and he waved a gloved hand around.
"Nice of you to invite me over." Takuya said. "Especially after…"
Tomoki shook his head. "It's no big deal. Want me to show you around?"
"Of course."
Yutaka stepped closer. "I assume this is the Takuya you have always spoken about, Tomoki."
"Oh, Onii-chan." Tomoki said. "This is my friend, Kanbara Takuya. Takuya-onii-chan, this is my brother, Yutaka."
"Hi." Takuya raised a hand. "Tomoki has told me a lot about you."
"Has he, now?" Yutaka raised an eyebrow, turning his gaze to his brother.
Tomoki blushed. "Not anything bad, Onii-chan."
"He has good things to say about you." Takuya said.
"That is surprising." Yutaka said. "Anyway, I hope you've been treating my little brother well."
"Of course." Takuya sounded offended. "I'm a big brother. I know the danger when you mess with the younger sibling of someone."
"Do you want to join us, Onii-chan?" Tomoki asked. "We're about to play an awesome videogame Takuya-onii-chan bought. It would be fun!"
"No, thanks." Yutaka brushed a dismissive hand. "I have my own work to take care of."
"Ah, right." Tomoki said. "Oh well. I'll show you to my room, Takuya-onii-chan."
Yutaka watched Tomoki and Takuya go, observing Tomoki's sincere enthusiasm about the game and affection for Takuya, and Takuya's fond tolerance. Yutaka felt the slightest twinge of jealously. Tomoki had rarely spoken to Yutaka like that, even with his recent change in personality. Not that Yutaka cared – he wasn't going to be jealous of someone who hasn't even hit puberty – but it was strange.
*How did they meet?* Yutaka thought.
There was a distant click, and Yutaka turned his head in the direction of the sound. There was Tomoki's door, having just been locked. Yutaka tensed. Why would Tomoki lock the door? Unless he wasn't the one who locked it…
Yutaka inched quietly closer, his house slippers muffling his footsteps. He leaned his head toward the door, awaiting for the sound of muffled yelps or fists striking bone.
But nothing. He heard the digitized sounds of a video game going on, with Takuya and Tomoki exchanging amiable boasts. Yutaka shook his head. He was being paranoid. Tomoki had locked himself in his room before, to give a good cry over some slight. To have some privacy with his new friend was unusual, but not something that should really raise Yutaka's worry.
Putting his brother and Takuya out of his mind, Yutaka went back to his own thing.
Takuya became a regular visitor to the Himi household for the rest of the week. Even on schooldays, Takuya would come and game with Tomoki, or play some other games. They hung out in the living room most of the time, but they often locked themselves in Tomoki's room, gaming there or whispering in worried tones.
Yutaka wouldn't have cared for this if the hushed whispers didn't become a common occurrence. He found himself increasingly pressing his ear near the door, trying to eavesdrop. He couldn't understand everything, but words like "Legendary Warriors," "Bokomon," and "Spirits" were occasionally audible.
Yutaka had no idea what these words meant, but he looked them up on the computer. The term "Legendary Warriors" was a generic name for many heroes in anime and manga – any attempt to narrow down the search was futile. "Bokomon" wasn't shown to be a word at all, and after cruising several spiritual sites, among other places, he came across a definition for "spirits" – a slang term for a drug. Yutaka shook his head, and closed the browser. It was very unlikely that Tomoki was involved in drug trafficking.
*Tomoki, becoming a gang member? That's laughable.* Yutaka thought. *I doubt he would have the courage to even be a messanger.*
One day, Yutaka was filing through his college books, deciding what to keep or what to throw away. An annoying friend of his called up recently, and told him that any undesired books could be recycled to her used book store later that afternoon. Yutaka acquiesced so she wouldn't make a speech about preserving the environment. He was just contemplating whether to put his street culture textbook into the discard pile when two familiar voices passed by his room.
"I wish he didn't lose his temper like that."
Yutaka froze, and then made sure the textbook slipping out of his grip wouldn't thud on the floor. He listened closely.
"Don't worry, he just snapped." Tomoki said. "He's probably cooling down now."
"Still, I should teach him some manners." There was the sound of a fist punching an open palm. "If only I could get him to stop what he was doing and…"
"Maybe we should apologize."
"Apologize? Ha, if he had a problem, he should have told me honestly if he wanted more time."
"Still, I don't like fighting." Tomoki said.
"Believe me, I'm not enthusiastic about it either." Takuya said. "But you understand. We got to do what we got to do."
"Yeah, like in the Digital World." Tomoki replied.
*Again with the Digital World.* Yutaka thought.
Yutaka sat back as the talk faded, mind churning with worry. Was "Digital Worlda codename for some videogame, or something else? Judging by the conversation, it appeared to be something more unsettling. Maybe not the yakuza, but probably something as violent. Yutaka tried to tell himself he was blowing this out of proportion but the "teach him a lesson" part bothered him. Yutaka had enough of this vagueness. He was going to confront the two and at least clear up the matter. Abandoning his textbook sorting, he left his room.
He found Tomoki and Takuya gaming again, exchanging good-natured boasts as their avatars fought.
"I need to talk to the two of you." Yutaka said.
The two boys glanced at one another but paused the game all the same.
"What's up, Onii-chan?" Tomoki asked.
"You look serious." Takuya said.
"I have a reason to be serious." Yutaka sat down, folding his arms. "What is this Digital World you keep mentioning?"
Takuya and Tomoki flinched. Looking a bit pale, the pair exchanged worried glances. Yutaka waited with increasing impatience for a response.
"Well, you see…" Tomoki averted his eyes, thinking.
"It's an element in some kind of video game!" Takuya said quickly. "That's right, a video game demo that the two of us and our friends tried out a few weeks back."
Yutaka raised an eyebrow. "I see. What is this video game called?"
Again, the exchange of glances and Takuya stuttered out an answer.
"Di – Digital Frontier. Yeah, that's what it's called. Right, Tomoki?"
Tomoki nodded rapidly. "Yup!"
Yutaka looked between Tomoki and Takuya's excessively sincere expressions. It was a good story. Video game companies have done demos with children and made events out of them before, so it wasn't too hard to believe. But his lips thinned.
"You aren't telling the truth."
Tomoki flinched. "Onii-chan…"
"Why aren't you being honest?" Yutaka demanded. "Is there something you're hiding from me? Something dangerous?"
"Of course not, Onii-chan! What makes you say that?"
"You talking about fighting. 'You got to do what you got to do.' Wasn't that what Takuya said?"
"I wasn't talking about fighting fighting." Takuya protested. "I had a quarrel with my little brother Shinya, and-"
"Did it involve violence?"
"Of course not. You might play a little rough with your little brother, but you would never really hurt him!"
Yutaka examined Takuya's resentful, outraged countenance. His gaze was truthful on that front, Yutaka admitted. Takuya would protect any family, whether blood or honorary, to the last breath. He was a protective, fun big brother, and Tomoki looked up to him for that. But Takuya wasn't telling the truth about everything. Yutaka felt that sliver of jealously expand quickly, and that feeling momentarily overrode his logic.
"I don't trust you." Yutaka said. "I doubt you would keep my brother safe. I know you're part of something unsafe and I don't want Tomoki to be a part of it."
"What are you trying to say?" Takuya demanded.
"Do I have to spell it out for you? Get out! Stay away from my brother!"
"Onii-chan, stop!" Tomoki said. "Takuya-onii-chan isn't dangerous. He's my best friend."
"My word is final!" Yutaka snapped. "Get out, Takuya. Out!"
Takuya looked like he was going to stand his ground. He looked angry, and prepared to fight. Yutaka wasn't too concerned, being bigger and stronger than someone who wasn't even a teenager yet. Then Takuya exchanged a look with Tomoki and sighed, relaxing. He turned around and left the house. Tomoki watched Takuya go and looked at Yutaka in concern.
"Onii-chan, what's wrong?" Tomoki said. "What has gotten into you?"
"Tomoki," Yutaka said, "don't hang out with that boy."
"Why?"
"He's dangerous, don't you know that?"
"He isn't. I can't tell you everything, but Takuya-onii-chan protected me when dangerous stuff did happen. I can say he isn't involved with the yakuza, or any sort of gang that I know of."
Yutaka turned away. "My decision is final. Please stop talking about it."
"I know you're being protective of me and I appreciate that, but you made a mistake. I hope I can make you see that soon."
With that, Tomoki slowly went to his room. Yutaka was rooted to where he stood, anger and guilt boiling in him.
*Why does he have to be like that?* Yutaka thought.
Tomoki was no longer whining whenever he didn't get what he wanted. Instead, he was going the kicked puppy route. Tomoki had gazed at Yutaka as though his reverent image of his brother had been proven brutally wrong. Yutaka hated being guilt-tripped like that. But on second thought, Yutaka suspected that Tomoki wasn't being manipulative there. Tomoki, for reasons lost to Yutaka, now looked up to the elder sibling and was disappointed with how he acted.
*This is their problem.* Yutaka thought. *If they just told me what they were talking about, then we wouldn't be here.*
True, Yutaka didn't give them much of a chance to explain but they openly said that it was a secret. They exchanged looks like members of a secretive society and were still in the process of practicing good lies. It made Yutaka feel afraid and slightly left out that his younger brother was a part of something he wasn't. And for Yutaka to basically kick Tomoki out of that society meant getting rid of the friends that made him a better person. Yutaka was surprised Tomoki didn't aim low with his comeback or let loose some high-pitched insults.
*Did I do the right thing? Was I in the right?*
Yutaka shook his head. The matter of Takuya and Tomoki's friendship was becoming more complicated than he thought. Deciding to put the issue out of his mind, Yutaka went back to going through his textbooks.
Yutaka fumbled for the keys. He tried to have his things where he would need them, but the stress of another college semester made him absentminded. He had just bought another set of books for his new classes, a set of books that weren't easy to find because the cashier misplaced them. He wasn't in a good mood when he found the keys at the bottom of his book bag. He was hoping the key to his college mate's room still worked (Yutaka was a college commuter but he hung out in his friends' dorm rooms often) when he heard a creak in the house.
Yutaka looked around the abandoned living room, dropping his book bag on the couch.
"Hello." he said aloud. "Is anyone here?"
Silence. Yutaka had been home alone before and this hadn't bothered him, but the events of yesterday set him on edge. He walked quietly toward his room, as though the creak of a wood panel would bring out a gang of menacing thugs from behind every piece of furniture. Yutaka carefully gripped his doorknob and turned, the door swinging slowly as he got a good look of his bedroom.
Someone was sitting on his bed. Takuya grinned and jerked a hand.
"Yo!"
Yutaka stared. Then slowly, he picked up a forgotten textbook from the floor and held it up like a weapon.
"What are you doing here?"
Yutaka approached, raising the textbook above his head. Takuya put up his hands hastily.
"Hey, hey, I'm not here to hurt you. I just want to talk."
Yutaka paused three-quarters from the bed. He cautiously lowered the textbook.
"Talk? A likely story."
"Hey, it's true. I'm here to explain why I'm not some hitman, like you probably think I am…and why I'm not a threat to your brother." Takuya looked thoughtful for a moment. "Oh, you can pat me down even, just so you would believe me."
Takuya stood and put his arms out, gazing sincerely at Yutaka. With the textbook still in one hand, Yutaka patted forward and felt Takuya for any weapons. As much as Yutaka was dubious about the boy, he steered clear of the less public areas. By the time Yutaka stepped back, he was sure Takuya was being truthful on the talking front.
"This is silly," Takuya complained, "I'm not even twelve. What makes you think I'm some sort of card carrying member of the yakuza?"
"I've heard of gangs recruiting younger." Yutaka said grimly.
"Nah, I'd be the cool older brother who lures kids into safe activities in commercials." Takuya boasted.
"Tomoki likes cool, older brothers then." Yutaka grimaced.
"Well, yeah," Takuya watched him closely, "that's the issue, isn't it?"
Yutaka shook his head. "Why would I be jealous of an eleven year old boy?"
"Why would you be paranoid about an eleven year old boy being a gangster?"
Yutaka sighed. "Alright, I admit, I was ridiculous there."
"So you are jealous of me."
"Partly. Still need an explanation for those strange allusions to fighting."
Takuya sighed. "That was…look, let's just say we're no longer in danger now, and we are better off because of the experience."
"I need more details."
"I'm sorry, I can't say anything more. You wouldn't believe me even if I told the truth, and I've got the feeling the same could be said for Shinya. Come to think of it, few would believe I was innocent if I showed up in their room suddenly, even my own friends. I wasn't thinking there. So I'm sorry about that too, Yutaka. I won't ever do that again."
Yutaka crossed his arms. "You don't have to address me so familiarly…but I accept your apology."
Takuya stared as Yutaka thought over the former's words carefully. Yutaka felt like kicking himself. How could he suspect anything of this boy? Sure, Takuya wasn't the most polite of people but children rarely were and he was kind to Tomoki. Even when Takuya was clearly bending the truth, Yutaka didn't detect any malice behind the action and was amazed the boy already learned that lying could be used for good as well. And if Takuya lied with good intentions, then…Yutaka uncrossed his arms, and looked away.
"Just tell me one thing." Yutaka said. "Did anyone die in these mysterious exploits?"
Out of the corner of his eye, Yutaka saw Takuya flinch. Takuya's eyes turned inward, clearly struggling to search for a response that wouldn't displease Yutaka.
"Let's just say," Takuya finally replied, "that many got critically hurt, but they all went out right in the end."
"That is the best answer I'm going to get out of you?" Yutaka asked.
"I'm telling the truth there, at least." Takuya said defensively.
Yutaka locked eyes with Takuya for a while, before seeing Takuya wasn't going to back down.
"Oh, alright." Yutaka said. "But if anything like this comes up again, tell me."
"Can't promise you on that." Takuya said.
Yutaka rolled his eyes. "Never mind, then. Anything else you want to tell me?"
"Back to the jealously part. Y'know, you don't need to feel that emotion."
"Oh?" Yutaka raised an eyebrow. "And who are you to tell me how I should process my emotions?"
"Because," Takuya replied, "you are his brother."
"And?"
"I might be special to Tomoki, but you're his family. Tomoki is special to me, but he couldn't replace family."
"So my brother isn't as special?"
"I'm saying he's an equally special category to family. Geez, you'd think someone who is a brother would understand that."
"What was that?" Yutaka took a step forward.
"Nothing!" Takuya stood straight, looking like an honest soldier.
"You are trying to say you and I are both equally special to Tomoki?" Yutaka asked.
"Yeah." Takuya replied, trying not to sound exasperated.
Yutaka's eyes went inward as he assessed this answer. To be frank, he spent more time with his friends or by himself than with his family. They can be too sickeningly sweet at times for Yutaka to spend too much time around. Yet if Yutaka's parents or brother were harmed in any manner, he might react protectively like he had against Takuya. He would react similarly if his friends were endangered. His friends and family were in two separate categories, yet if Yutaka was forced to choose between the two, he wouldn't know what to decide.
"You see?" Takuya said. "Two separate, yet equal categories."
"I get it." Yutaka said. "You know, for someone who hasn't even hit puberty, you can be pretty wise."
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?"
"You're young. Young people aren't supposed to be wise like that."
Takuya crossed his arms. "Hmph. Shows what you know!"
"Are you trying to start something?" Yutaka said.
"Maybe!"
This combative exchange elicited a laugh from Takuya, and Yutaka could barely hide his smile himself. When they settled down, they exchanged friendly looks toward each other.
"Why don't we be friends, Yutaka?" Takuya held out a hand.
"Friends?"
"Yeah. We're both big brothers who are concerned about our annoying young siblings, even if we show it in different manners. We have a person in common, and…do you play video games?"
"Some arcade games, but I have some practice on the console."
"Excellent, that's perfect!"
Yutaka raised an eyebrow. "Why do I have the feeling I'm going to regret this?"
"No, no, you won't." Takuya waved his hands. "Though there might be some annoying moments…"
"I won't listen unless you fully elaborate on what you're muttering about."
"I want you to meet my brother and bond with him over video games!"
Takuya said all of this in a rush, bowing. Yutaka watched the younger boy, digesting the information and cautiously analyzing it. When Yutaka didn't immediately answer, Takuya blinked and looked up.
"Oh, that was silly of me. I shouldn't have requested it. You probably find Tomoki annoying enough, you don't want to deal with someone like my brother. We can do something else, we can-"
"I'll do it."
Takuya gave a double take. "Come again?"
"I'll bond with this kid over video games." Yutaka raised his head. "Might as well make up for that misunderstanding. Besides, he can't be worse than Tomoki, right?"
Next time…
Raining Bonds