Novella #2, Chapter 4: Rough Beginnings (Greg's Perspective)

I was only four years old when Mom and Dad died, and Matt was nine years old. One of the neighbors was with us and while I didn't understand much of what was happening, I still remember how terrified I was when I saw both of my parents laying down in the family room, looking pale and unresponsive. Matt had told me to go to my room, but I couldn't move. He kept telling me to leave the room and to just keep myself safe, but my legs felt like jello and I could feel the tears stinging my eyes. I just continued to stand there, yelling for Mom and Dad to wake up. I didn't want to believe they were dead, so I just kept shouting over and over, 'you'll be okay', like the could hear me. I can also remember never leaving Matt's side for a whole month after witnessing that. Matt kept trying to explain the situation to me, saying that some lunatic was wandering around the neighborhood with a gun and that he hid under the porch steps when the gunman entered our house. He had stayed hidden there until the man left because he was afraid of being seen by him. He remembers how eerily quiet the whole house was and when he saw Mom and Dad's bodies laying on the floor, he immediately ran to the neighbor's house. 

It wasn't easy for Matt to raise me as well as himself, but I trusted him with my life. People would say that we should have been taken into foster care instead, but Matt was determined to keep us safe. He was determined to keep me safe. Now of course, we've had our fair share of fights and arguments, but we were always there for each other in the end. We've always been close even when we were infant and toddler. 

Instead of going to school, Matt persisted in taking up any job he could so that we could one day have a house over our heads. Of course, no one allowed him to work since he was just a kid, so for a while, we lived with our next door neighbor and she insisted on him going to school. Once he graduated high school, we both left and my brother found himself a part-time job at an auto shop. I spent a lot of time with him at that place doing odd jobs for him as well as the other workers there. Some of the guys there didn't stay very long, but the man who managed the place became a father figure to us over time. His name was Harrison and had the looks of someone who was in his late forties. Bald head, a little bit of a beer belly and was always seen with a cigarette in his mouth. We never really got to know each other beyond working hours, but I was fine with that. It was kind of hard to tell when he was being nice to you and when he was being professional, but one thing I know for sure is that he was more rough on Matt than he was on me and I never understood why. I remember when Harrison once scolded him for not waking up on time, and I kind of have to admit that I felt a bit guilty for that. He had told me to wake up him at 7:30 sharp. I was already awake and thought I'd have enough time to go get breakfast for the two of us, but when I came back, it was five minutes after. Just when I had entered the break room, I heard a loud smack. I assume that that came from Harrison and I kind of felt bad for my brother in that moment.

Matt and I continued to work for Harrison and lived in that auto shop until he retired. He said that he was ready to do something else and spend more time with his wife and kids. Luckily by then Matt had allowed me to go to high school while he took over at the shop as the new manager. I've always admired and respected my brother for getting us to where we are now, and I'll be forever grateful for how he's never given up on me. If it weren't for him, I don't know where we would have ended up. And speaking of the devil, here he comes now.
  "Hey, little brother! Do you have time to hang out? I finally have the weekend off. You won't believe how crazy it's been for me these past few days at work." 

"I'd like that. What do you have in mind?"

  "How about we go out to eat first, and then we go back to the Smokey Mountains, for old time's sake?" The minute he said that, I smiled. Matt smiled back and we shared a quick hug. 

"You've got a deal. Just give me some time to pack up."
  "No problem. We'll leave around 8:30 tomorrow morning." With that, I watched my brother head towards the couch and prop his feet up on the coffee table. He seems happier today than he has been in a while. I then decided to turn off my computer and join him in the living room. We sat together on the couch, not saying much of anything. Matt was intently focused on the TV until he turned it off to face me. He began to say something, but I cut him off.
  "I'm glad to see you're feeling more like yourself today. For a while I thought I had lost that."

"I'm sorry you've felt that way, but I assure you that all this stress is just related to work and my relationship with Maya. I've been working long, twelve-hour shifts and Maya's been getting on my case for not making more time to be with her. That, plus she keeps giving out subtle hints about marriage. I know that we've been dating for three years now, but I'm just not sure if now's the right time. I need to find a balance between all of this first." I pondered everything that my brother had just said to me for a moment. I didn't realize how hard he's had it since moving into this neighborhood. Before I could say anything though, he spoke again. "I'm sorry to lay all that out on you. It's just been a rough few months for me. Were you going to say something? Didn't mean to cut you off there." 

"It's fine. I was just going to say that I'm excited for this weekend." 

  "Same here, little brother." Matt offered a smile and gave me a playful punch in the shoulder. He then stood up from his seat and headed off into the kitchen for something to drink. "Do you want some water as well, or a soda?"
"No thanks, I'm good. I was just gonna say that I'm dating someone now. The new girl from school... Her name is Emma." With wide eyes, Matt suddenly placed down his cup so that he could hug me. 

  "That's great news! So excited for you, little bro!"

"Thanks. It's been a little rough though if I'm being honest with you. She's not exactly the trusting type." Matt let go of me and his excitement faded a little. "Oh... Well I'm sure she'll come around eventually. No one can resist your charm and that big brain of yours." Hearing my brother say that made me turn a little red. I didn't expect him to act like a mother in this moment even though he did kind of raise me.

"Well I need to take a shower now, but it was good to catch up with you. Good luck with Emma, and I'm looking forward to our trip this weekend." He put a hand on my shoulder for a minute and then walked away into the bathroom. It was good to see Matt feeling like himself again.