My eyes dropped to the small stain of blood on his white shirt.
Maria stepped between us, trying her best to hide her concern. “Baby, you’re bleeding…”
Zach’s eyes stayed on mine for another moment before lowering to his girlfriend, all anger and frustration disappearing. Then his eyes dropped to his chest and the small patch of red from his undone stich.
Her hand came up to his jaw. “Sit with me?”
“Yeah.”
I watched Maria convince my brother to sit down, before subtly turning to me and speaking when he was out of earshot. “Sorry, Matteo. He just needs a minute. I’ll make sure he’s okay.”
I would’ve liked her, had she not been the reason he was bleeding in the first place.
To avoid any further arguments, I simply nodded.
Turning to walk away, Zane settled his hand on my shoulder. “I’ll go check on both of them. Give it ten minutes.”
Zane Takashi was an ex-assassin from Tokyo and an old friend. One who’d helped me get revenge on the man who took my parents off this Earth.
I nodded, appreciating the help as always, and headed off toward the bathroom to cool down. Once inside, I threw water on my face to cool down.
“Fuck you! You’re not my father!”
“No. I am your older brother. And you will respect me,”I spoke low, barely managing to control my anger, the only thought calming me knowing that I was talking to him.
“Really?I couldn’t tell. Haven’t seen you in three years!Now you want to be in my life?”
“I’ve been busy with–”
“Yeah, I know. You’re always busy. That’s fine but don’t come back here and pretend you give a shit about me!”
I stared at fifteen-year-old Zach. For the first time, completely speechless. Surely, he had to know I cared about him – more than anyone.“C’mon. I just wanted to see my little brother, Rafe.”
“Don’t call me that!”His fist hit the wall, leaving behind a huge dent.“What the fuck is wrong with you!?”He walked away, running a hand through his hair and refusing to meet my eyes.
Rafael, his middle name, was what mom used to call him.
“Look, I’m sorry. You’re right. I won’t tell you what to do. Let’s just start over, alright?”
“I have somewhere to be.”
I took a careful step forward, not wanting to scare him off now that he was calming down.“Basketball game, right?”He looked up, finally meeting me in the eye properly.“I’ll come too. Watch you play. That’s our thing.”
“Whatever. I don’t care.”
I knew he cared.
“Let’s go. I want to get a good seat.” I threw my arm around his shoulder, and for the first time he didn’t push me off. “How many three-pointers do you think you’ll shoot tonight?”
I stared into my eyes in the mirror.
No matter how much I tried, I could never get it right with Zach. I always said the wrong thing. Made the wrong decision. To say we’d grown apart, was a nice way to put it.
With my hands resting on the counter, I let my head hang low as I breathed deep to calm myself down.
The sound of the door opening made me aware.
But the heels hitting the marble floor – along with their depth and pattern I’d grown to know too well – made my shoulders relax.
