Yo! Ok, sorry this took so long. As I mentioned on my profile, this one is kinda on hold right now till I finish my main project, Cowboys with Swords. But, since I'm stuck on that one, and it really has been quite a while since I updated here, I decided to update. Homestuck belongs to the huss, I just made the plot. Reviews are welcome!
I admittedly wasn't entirely honest with Kurloz when he asked what was wrong. It wasn't so much a car accident as our mother had hit the gas instead of the brake when pulling into the driveway and had almost crushed Eridan between the porch and the front bumper. Aranea didn't move Eridan until I got home, just as I'd asked, and now I was looking my baby brother over to determine the extent of his injuries. Mother is inside, sleeping off another drunken day, and dad was off at work.
"You're in luck little man." I say finally, looking at his pained, tear-stained face. "It's just a broken leg. Doesn't look like you got anything else hurt. When dad gets home, you want to go to the hospital and get it casted?" My tone is gentle, a small reassuring smile on my lips.
Eridan nods silently, wiping his eyes under his glasses. I ruffle his hair gently and get up to go to the bathroom, calling our dad. A few moments of short conversation and he is on his way home with the spare car and I go back outside to sit with Eridan.
I honestly don't know why our mom is like this. She used to be ok, when we were younger. I don't know what prompted her to start drinking so much, but it's been getting worse over the years. I'm terrified that one day she won't stop. That she'll go too far and one of my siblings will end up dead. The thought wakes me up in a cold sweat most nights.
Finally dad gets back in his beat up orange truck, the engine rumbling dangerously. We really needed to get the thing fixed someday soon. "Is Eridan ok?" The first words out of his mouth make me smile. At least our dad can be counted on when push comes to shove.
"Yeah, he's ok. Just a broken leg." The relief in his eyes is what I imagine may have been in mine when I saw Eridan was mostly ok when I got back. Between the two of us we get Eridan almost painlessly into the truck, loading the girls in as well in case mom wakes up while we're gone.
The trip is rather pleasant, dad talking about his work with the construction company, and the girls talking about some boy trouble or other. Mostly I just tune them out, staring out the passenger window as we went down the road. Now that I know my brother is alright, and the bone will be set soon so he can heal, my mind goes back to that lunch with Kurloz.
It had honestly been the first time I'd felt so comfortable with someone, and we hadn't even tried to talk about things. Sure he couldn't speak, but he had his notebook. We'd just sat together, watching a TV show, and eating chips with his homemade salsa. It was cozy and nice, and had Eridan's emergency not come up, I think I might have stayed there all afternoon.
I wonder idly why I seem so at ease with him, given the fact I haven't even known him for a week yet. Technically it's only been three days. I sigh softly and Eridan tugs gently at the sleeve of my shirt. "What's wrong? You seem really distracted today?" He mumbles.
His perceptiveness catches me off guard and I clear my throat. "Ah, nothing little guy. Just thinking about stuff. School. Maybe getting a job. I made a new friend recently too." Eridan smiles at me, seeming to be satisfied by the answer.
I'm more preoccupied with the fact that I don't want to tell anyone about Kurloz. Usually I'd be bragging left and right about making a friend, especially one that looks like him. But that would also require telling my little brother, who depends on me for everything and looks up to me, that I had tried to kill myself. Because I can't handle the cutting and getting high, our mother, the guys at school, the constant lies.
I lie about my injuries, I lied about the nature of Eridan's injury, I lie to myself about my own interest in Kurloz, though I can feel the truth sitting in my gut. A truth I'm not willing to face just yet.
For now I put Kurloz out of my mind, focusing on my little brother as we arrive at the hospital. I wait in the lobby with him, telling him fish jokes and going with him when he goes back to get an x-ray. I already know it's broken, having had several of my own broken bones, and once it's casted, dad stops at a fast food place for dinner. Mom is still asleep when we all get home, and everyone heads quietly for their rooms. Eridan is out cold in minutes from the pain medication, but I stay up for a couple hours to finish the history homework haven't finished yet.
I'm more disappointed than I care to admit that Kurloz hasn't texted me by the time I'm turning off the light and curling up under my covers to sleep.