The Tree in the Forest

Chapter Four

                                   ~~~

  School has begun again and you are in awe at how different sixth grade was from fifth grade. The homework load is larger and the work is different.

  That doesn't stop you from enjoying your weekends, though. It also doesn't stop you from thinking about that sleepover during the summer.

  That thought remains stuck in your mind, no matter how hard you try to shake it out.

  You've made plans, however. You are going to ask Bro about it. If John was old enough to know, then you were too.

  "Hey, Bro, can I ask you something? You have to promise to answer the question honestly." You say. You were currently sitting on the couch, Bro sewing up one of his stupid puppets next to you.

  "Yeah, lil' bro. Ask me anything." He answers, not looking up from his work.

  "What happens during sex?" You ask, almost shamelessly. Bro stops suddenly, holding the needle in his hand so tightly that it could've broken under the pressure.

  "Well, uh, it's something that you'll learn about later. I'm sure the school will tell you about it next year." He was avoiding the topic. Why?

  "No, I want to know now. Why won't you tell me? John knows about it, so why can't I?" You pout slightly. You weren't leaving without answers.

  "Dave, why do you want to know so badly?" He put the puppet and needle on the table in front of him.

  "When I had that sleepover in July, you had that friend over. John heard the two of you and said that you were having sex. You and your friends always make that noise when you bring them over. What is it that you do with them anyway?" You query, not looking away from him for even a moment.

  Bro looked around nervously and took his sunglasses off, placing them next to the puppet.

  "Listen, my friends aren't really my friends. They're my job. That's my job. I hate to have to tell you this way, and I hate that I have the job that I have. Dave, do you really want to know what happens?" He says, looking into where your eyes would be if you didn't have your sunglasses on.

  You nod. He explains that sex is when someone "makes a baby" with someone, but later says that you don't have to make a baby every time. He tells you that you don't have any family members that you don't know about. He also says that it was his job to do those things for other people.

  You are shocked. That can't be a job! How does that even work as a job? You just don't understand. There's so much about Bro that you don't understand.

  You sit there, mouth gaping. Bro looks ashamed and hangs his head.  You shut your mouth and hug him. He hugs you back, holding you tightly.

  You can't shake the feeling that there's still something he's not telling you, but you won't ask anymore. He already looks upset and defeated.

  Bro doesn't go back to working on his puppet, but instead tells you that you can watch whatever you want on the TV, and retreats to his room, locking the door behind him.

  You don't watch anything. You just sit and think over what he just told you. You try to wrap your head around it, but you can't. It doesn't make any sense.

  You feel bad about making Bro say those things, but at the same time, you don't. You wanted answers, and you got them, but you didn't think that getting those answers would cause Bro to act the way he's acting now.

  You go to your room. You stop at Bro's door for a moment, and think about knocking, but you don't. Instead you just keep going.

  You lay in your room, looking out the window, not caring about how much the light hurts your sensitive eyes. You aren't even thinking at this point. You don't know what to think about.

  You just blankly stare at nothing. You decide to not ask Bro anything else about that for a while. He always seems upset afterwards, and you now vaguely understood why.

  How could you be so stupid? Bro obviously didn't want to talk about it, but you forced him to do it anyways. You're awful.

  You continue to mentally berate yourself for a while before you walk out of your room again. You see the open door to Bro's room and talking.

  He was in the kitchen talking on the phone.

  "I need help with him. Can you just please come over? Just stay until I can get my own shit in line. I'll help pay for your recovery. . .Thank you so much." Bro said. You noticed how his entire mood seemed to change in a matter of seconds. It went from worried to relieved.

  Who could be coming over? You hoped it wasn't your Aunt Delilah. She was just as bad as Leanne. Judgmental and rude. And annoying. You can't forget annoying.

  "Bro?" You say quietly as you walk into the kitchen. Bro flinches, but relaxes when he sees that it's just you.

  "Hey. You good?" He asks, obviously calmed down from the previous events.

  "Yeah. Are you? I shouldn't have asked all those questions. Sorry." You apologize, your voice much smaller than normal.

  "I'm fine, and don't blame yourself. I can't be angry at you for asking." Bro said, kneeling down to your height, giving you a smile. Weak, but genuine.

You smile back, and he ruffles your hair, making it stick up in random places.

You're happy that Bro isn't holding some sort of grudge against you. He's never done that, but you would never erase that possibility.

~~~

Oh, look, an update.

Bro is a male prostitute if you haven't figured it out yet.

Dirk is Bro by the way. I just wanted to make that clear.

How do you guys like it so far? I'm trying to make the transitions go faster and only focus on the main points and plot builders.

I'm way out of my comfort zone lol

But yeah, hope you enjoyed it!

~Ghostie