Biker Mice From Mars - Somewhere I Belong

Family Is The Best Of Home

"He ain't at the treehouse either."

Throttle, who had been gazing out of the window of the garage whilst being deep in thought, glanced over his shoulder, only to see Modo stepping off his beloved ride with a worried expression on his face that matched his inner restlessness.
"That's... unexpected", he said quietly, and his bionic eyes darted back to the window to watch the sun slowly disappear behind the skyline of the city of Chicago.
Try as he might, he couldn't stop himself from feeling worried.
Eight hours had passed since Pux's phone call early in the morning had ruthlessly disrupted his very peaceful sleep.
Eight hours since she told him what happened this morning when her mother came to check on Charley like she did every morning.
Eight hours since Vinnie left the hospital, and there hadn't been a sign of him ever since.

Now, it wasn't the first time that the young Martian needed some time alone, and it sure as hell wasn't the first time that he went MIA without telling his bros about his whereabouts.
This was Vinnie they were talking about, after all.
But this time, it was different.
It usually didn't take him longer than two hours to resurface again, a window that was now long closed.
To make it even worse, he had turned off the GPS on his bike.
It was something Throttle had made him promise to never do a long time ago, and it was a promise he had never broken.
Until today.
So yeah.
Throttle was worried.

He was also conflicted, as he had no idea if Vinnie just needed some time alone, which was completely understandable with everything that was going on, or that he might be in trouble.
Both options were actually rather likely, though the police scanner had been quiet so far.
No signs of fights in the streets close to Limburger Tower, or some nasty bike accident with casualties, which made the second option a little less likely.
But still...
Throttle didn't like this.
No, he didn't like this, at all.

Perhaps some might call it naive, but he really thought Modo would find him at the treehouse, the very one from which Vinnie thought they didn't know about.
Which was also rather naive, actually, but then on Vinnie's part.
Of course Throttle knew about the treehouse, and thus also Modo.
There wasn't much that the leader didn't know, he just never told Vinnie that he did as it was clear to him that his young brother wanted to keep this place to himself, and Throttle respected that.
He couldn't blame him for wanting a place of his own, a place where he could be himself, a place where he could unwind if the demons in his head became too loud.
All that mattered to Throttle was that he knew where to find him in case shit would unexpectedly hit the fan.
He didn't like standing in the dark, especially when it came to his bro's whereabouts.
But he was now.
You know.
Standing in the dark.

He had no idea where his beloved baby brother was right now, something that made him more anxious than he liked to admit.
It wasn't merely about his slightly unhealthy need for control but rather about the fact that Vinnie didn't do very well on his own.
He was too impulsive, too reckless to be on his own for more than a few hours, next to that, no one should be alone when being in pain.
And Vinnie was in pain, alright.
He always was, since his life hadn't been easy, but this whole serial killer event hadn't been really helpful, Throttle could tell.
Even though Vinnie tried so hard to cover it up, to act like he was okay, Throttle knew that he wasn't.
Their connection ran deep enough to know that.
And then there is the baby...

"I don't like the idea of him being out there on his own...", Modo said quietly as he sat down next to his tan-furred friend, thereby breaking him out of his thoughts.
Thoughts they apparently seemed to share, which wasn't really surprising considering their close bond.
"Me neither. But he obviously doesn't wanna be found. So what can we do? Beside waiting, that is...", Throttle sighed as he leaned back in his chair, and after pushing his glasses up, he rubbed his sore eyes.
Modo cast him a sideway glance before gazing out of the window again.
"You think he's coming back? I mean, he's pretty freaked out because of the baby. Maybe he ain't ready to become a father..."
Throttle scoffed, shaking his head as he placed his glasses back where they belonged.
"Of course he isn't ready. I'm not sure if he ever will be."