"I've Never Cried" is one of the best Jemi stories I have ever written. There are so many twists and turns, love and hate, friendship and betrayal, all while still being a great read. This story has proper grammar and writing format, simply to make...
"I don't hate you, Joe. You're my brother." Nick still wouldn't make eye contact with me, even though it'd been a week since I'd told him what I'd done. He was sitting in his bed with a guitar in his lap - as usual- a stoic look on his face. I hadn't entered his room quite yet, as my black eye still hadn't completely healed, and I wasn't particularly on the market for another. I leaned against the frame of his bedroom door, watching him as I spoke.
"So you're still mad at me, then?" I asked, wishing he'd actually look at me. His grip tightened around the neck of his guitar.
"Joe, I'm not mad anymore." His tone told me a different story. He continued, "I just don't know how to deal with having only one heart, but feeling like I have two that are broken." That hit me hard. He wasn't angry with me, he was just hurting. It was bad enough that the girl he loved left him, but to sleep with his brother? His best friend? Twice the pain. Two broken hearts at the same time, in only one man.
It occurred to me then, that maybe Nick was hurting more than Demi was, and maybe I should have been focusing more on winning my brother back, first.
"Can I come in?" I tried, hoping his anger was at bay. Slowly, he nodded, still looking away from me. He lowered his guitar into a resting position on his lap, and hung his head down to avoid eye contact. I sighed. "I'm sorry-"
"You said that already, Joe."
"I'm not talking about what happened with Selena." I walked nearer to him, finally deciding to sit on the edge of his bed. Feeling my weight on the mattress, he slowly raised his head toward me, at last locking eyes. I wanted to continue, but I was happy that he'd actually looked at me, despite the fact that his face was engulfed in frustration and confusion.
"Then what the hell are you apologizing for?" I took a breath, and began my long speech, speaking slowly to make sure I was saying exactly what I felt.
"I'm sorry that I haven't been a good big brother. You were depressed, and drinking, and trying to work out everything you were feeling by yourself. I wasn't there, and I should have been. But I just got so wrapped up in how much I loved Demi, that I forgot about how much I already loved you." Nick's eyes became understanding, and his frustration completely vanished. I continued, "You had every right to be angry with me for what I did. But I was wrong in more ways than one....I should have been there for you, just like you've always been there for me. So please try and understand... that I am so incredibly sorry for leaving you behind."
He tore his eyes away from mine, bringing his palms to his face. I watched him take a deep breath in, and release a long, shaky exhale. When he looked back up at me, his eyes were a heavy red, but no tears fell. "You're supposed to be my best friend," he said, his voice shaky and deep. I just sat there. "You can't keep doing this to me, Joe. Don't you know how much I hated being angry enough to hit you? You have to stop putting me in positions like this. You have to promise me."
"I promise you, Nick." I responded quickly. If it was going to be this easy to get my brother to forgive me, I wasn't going to hesitate. He needed me, and I had to always be there for him. All he needed was a promise. I owed him that much.
He reached his hand out to shake, and I slapped mine against his palm and we locked it into a fist.
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"I'll hold you to that," he said, smiling crookedly.
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I stood, feeling a bit more relieved now that I had my brother back.
