Brother

Her bare feet touched his. Her thin legs twisting between his. He tried to roll over onto his stomach but the girl on top of him was keeping him pinned to the ground.

"Mghhh..." he moaned, rubbing his tired eyes. His vision was upside down and the ceiling looked so far from him. He took hold of the girl and sat up with her. She was still asleep, her fragile body completely limp and defenseless in his arms.

Masao and Yoli had fallen asleep on the living room floor while having a late night chat about his life. He had kept most things private as he always did but he shared with her the most important things that she wanted to know about him. The gist of it was that all of his relatives were dead aside from his older brother who he hadn't had contact with since they were teenagers.

At some point when they were kids they got separated and his brother managed to reconnect with him a few years later. Masao had no interest in keeping close with his brother since it was obvious that he wasn't the same boy knew when he was little.

"Yoli, wake up," he shook the girl until she opened her eyes.

"Masao? What happened to us?" she asked, her eyes wide. He wasn't wearing anything but his boxers, and his hair was unkempt so it was natural for her to question what he had been up to since he usually slept in his clothes.

"You insisted on washing my clothes...something about them being dirty," he said.

"That's right! Masao needs to wear something nice to see his brother," she bounced, knocking him back onto the floor with a thud.

"Aughhh, at least shock me first will 'ya?" he complained, having trouble breathing with her weighing down on him.

Just like before, he agreed to see his brother again because Yoli wanted him to. Something about her made him unable to say no. He hated the fact that he was willing to give her anything she wanted.

After getting a shock, and putting on his spare set of clothes he locked up the apartment. They walked to his storage shed to get his motorcycle. It was wet outside but it wasn't raining so they could travel without getting soaked.

He vaguely remembered where his brother lived. He had only been to his house once, and that was when they were reunited for the first time since they were little. That was a few years ago, so his memory was foggy. He had no way of knowing if his brother was even alive anymore. They didn't have each other's phone numbers, and neither of them were rich enough to have instant messengers implanted into their skin.

After a two hour trip through a bunch of residential areas and a few smaller cities, they arrived in the small town of Tateyako. The town was south of Central City. It was created after COT took over Japan, and most of the residents living there were against COT and hated everything they stood for.

"We're here. Now I just need to remember where he lives..." Masao scratched his head. They had stopped on the side of the street so he could take a short break. Riding his motorcycle for so long had completely worn him out, and he yawned with exhaustion.

"How much further will we go?" Yoli laid her head against Masao's back. She had been enjoying the scenery on their trip. The further you got from Central City, the less congested and disgusting things got. There were still rough areas and everywhere was unsafe, but the sky was seemingly brighter.

"It's somewhere around here," he said. They looked around the town for a bit until he stopped in front of a very small structure made of wood. It looked like a small outhouse, something that would easily crumble if it wasn't tended to. Masao parked his motorcycle behind it and opened the door.

Inside of the small hut was nothing but a dark staircase that went underground. Yoli peeked around his back to see what was inside, holding onto him when she saw the seemingly endless set of stairs.

"What's down there?"

"This is where he lives. Come on," he said plainly. He didn't have enough energy to waste on words at the moment.

"But it's..." she wouldn't follow him in even when he had already taken a few steps inside. He waited for her to follow, but it was clear that she was too scared. She stood stationary at the top of the staircase, her eyes round.

"Do you want to hold my hand?" he offered. He held it out to her, and she slowly placed her hand in his.

With their hands wrapped together, she followed closely behind him. The darkness wrapped around them as they went deeper, and the only sound was their own breath.

Eventually the stairs came to an end, and a final metal door greeted them. He could feel her gripping his thick hand, and he felt somewhat sorry for the girl. He had put her through so much fear and anxiety in the time that they had known each other.

"Ren. Open up," he said, banging on the door. They waited for a minute until the doorknob turned and light flooded onto the staircase. Yoli followed behind Masao as he stepped inside of the makeshift bunker.

His eyes quickly adjusted to the lighting. The bunker was small, but cozy and familiar. It was a mess inside with gadgets, artwork, and books strewn around the small living room. The main room served as both a kitchen and a living room, with two doors leading to what were presumably a bedroom and a bathroom. There were tons of candles lit around the room.

"Saoooooo!" Ren flung his arms around Masao, rubbing himself closer to his brother.

Ren was taller than Masao by a few inches, and he looked healthier. Of course, because of Masao's condition his health was far worse than the average person. Ren had shoulder length purple hair, and his long bangs were swept to the side and covered his left eye. His most striking feature was the two horns sticking out of his head. They were somewhat short and twisty, and were blue and purple. Yoli was intrigued by his horns. He was only a year older than Masao (24) but he was much stronger and appeared more mature.

"Get off of me you weirdo," Masao tried to push Ren away from him.

"Oh~ You sweet little thing...my younger brother coming to visit me in this day and age? What a surprise!" Ren continued his dramatic display of affection, hugging him tightly.

"It wasn't my-" Masao stopped immediately when Ren bit into his neck, his warm lips pressing against his skin. Masao's hand twitched, his already tired body unable to respond to the sudden attack. Ren's teeth pressed sharply into him as he gently sucked on his flesh. Yoli watched in horror as Ren assaulted Masao's tan skin.

Ren's hands had tight control over Masao's position, completely ignoring the protests of his weak brother.

"You're hurting Masao!" she cried, shoving herself in between the two men. Ren immediately let go of his brother and stared at the girl between them in confusion.

"Who might you be?" he questioned with a smile. Masao immediately wiped the spit off his neck, grimacing at Ren's improper behavior.

"I am Yoli. That is what Masao calls me!" she asserted herself. She was never very loud when she was alone with him, but Masao now knew that when it came to defending him she wouldn't mess around.

Ren looked up at him as if to ask "how do you know her?"

"It's a long story...she's living with me right now, because I'm protecting her from COT," he sighed. Ren smiled, patting her on the head affectionately.

"Yoli? You're quite the cute one...has my brother really found someone who's just his type? I guess I'm no longer needed..." he pouted. Yoli tilted her head with confusion. Masao could do nothing but grumble, finding Ren's weird comments towards him to be disgusting. When they were little, Ren had always been affectionate towards him; that was just his personality.

But over the years, it seemed to have rocketed into a weird, uncharted territory. Basically, Ren became a pervert. He guessed is was a combination of trauma, seclusion and loneliness that caused him to express extreme attachment and oddly sensual behavior towards anyone he met.

"We just came to visit for a day. We'll be out of your way by tomorrow," Masao said. Ren nodded, and they all sat down on the various chairs in the living room. The next hour was spent catching up. Masao explained how he met Yoli, and Ren told them about how his life was going.

Similar to Masao, Ren was a shut-in. He conversed with the people in town, but that was rare and he preferred to be alone in his bunker. He lived deep underground because he was afraid of COT. Living there was the safest place for him to be, especially considering that his appearance and personality would get him shunned in society.

The biggest news for Ren was learning about Masao's heart condition. He hadn't seen his younger brother since before the accident, so it was a big shock to hear that he was now unable to care for himself and live normally.

"Agh...do you have a bed I can knock out in?"

"Of course. You two can use my bedroom tonight. I'll sleep on the couch!" Ren smiled, pointing Masao towards his room. He rubbed his eyes and retreated to the bedroom.

"Don't do anything weird to Yoli," he warned before he shut the door. With Masao asleep, it was just Ren and Yoli left to talk.

She was hesitant to ask him the questions she wanted to, but she knew that Masao wouldn't give her any answers.

"Why did Masao get separated from you? What happened to your family?" she asked quietly. Ren considered her question for a moment, until his friendly smile returned.

"You're curious about him? He didn't want you to know, did he?" he asked. She nodded shyly. Ren saw right through her, and he knew his brother better than anyone. "I don't mind telling you, but you shouldn't bring it up to him. I think he's still traumatized, and he wouldn't appreciate you prying into his past."

She lowered her head in shame. "It's...wrong," she whispered. She felt guilty for wanting to know more, for wanting to understand why Masao was hurting. It wasn't just because she was curious, or she wanted to understand him, because in her mind she already understood him like a language she was fluent in. She wanted to see his pain, and ensure that nothing could hurt him ever again. She wanted to use her own hands, no matter how weak they may be, to protect the man who saved her.

"Don't feel bad. You're a sweet girl; I can tell," he winked. "Me and Sao grew up on a farm in a rural area."

Ren began to tell her about their past. "It was me, him and our parents. He loved the cows, and he was always helpful to our parents. I was a sick child, one who always had a fever and struggled to stay healthy."

Yoli listened to him intently. Everything he said about Masao she stored in her head like a precious memory.

"COT had already taken over Japan when we were born, so our parents tried their best to protect us from them. We were shut off from the wider world and didn't know what was really happening out there..." Ren's smile turned sorrowful and he shook his head with a chuckle. "I developed a tumor in my brain when I was 9. He probably told you that COT runs the only reputable hospital in Japan, right? Well, our parents decided to take me there so I could have the tumor removed."

He paused, fixing his bangs. "We went to Tokyo and left Masao on the farm to watch the house. COT knew that it was only Masao there though, because they tracked our every move once we got to the hospital," he picked up a cup from the table between them and took a sip from it.

"Is Ren still sick?" Yoli asked with worry.

"Hahah! Not at all. I recovered from that tumor a long time ago. That hospital visit is why I have these horns though," he set down the cup and pointed to the spiral horns on his head. "COT is known for their crazy human experiments. They wanted to try implanting objects into the human skull. I was their most convenient patient, so they put these on me."

He tugged on them to show her that they were real and continued his story. "At that time COT was still struggling to control the country. Their goal was to seize all the family owned farms so they could have a monopoly over the country's food. Just another classic tactic of controlling us. You can see how this was the golden opportunity for them..."

"What happened to Masao?" she questioned.

"I'll get to that. While COT was on their way to our farm, I was being treated. We had no idea that they were taking our farm while Masao was there all alone...I have no idea what they did to him when they found him, but they sent him to a facility in Central City meant for protected citizens."

She shifted nervously in her seat. She didn't want to imagine what Masao must have felt at only eight years old, trying to protect his home but being taken to a foreign city by a bunch of strangers.

"When I was healed from surgery, we were released from the hospital. The problem was that we were now stranded in a large, dangerous city with no protection or way to get home. Things ended up poorly for us and my parents were killed by a street gang," he said casually. He took another sip of his drink, ignoring Yoli's gasp. "I didn't know where Masao was, and my parents were dead, so I ran. I hid myself from everyone and eventually found my way here."

"Wow...Ren is so strong," she said in awe.

He chuckled, crossing his arms with a smirk. "If I'm strong, then Sao must have the powers of a God. How I lived was easy compared to him," he sighed. "You know, COT stands for the "conspiracy of truth". They told the Japanese people that they could offer a life more pleasurable than what they already had, and offered it as if it was a fact. It's subjective though...I think the life they forced Sao to live was far from beautiful."

She mimicked his pose, crossing her arms too. "What happened to him?" she asked again.

"I only know what he told me a few years ago, so it might not be a satisfying answer. He ran away from the facility and survived on the streets of Central City for a few years until he formed a gang with a friend of his."

"Oh, Hideo!" Yoli smiled sweetly, connecting the dots. She knew Hideo was one of Masao's closest friends, and she had even met him in person.

"Sao was scared, and he changed so much from how he was when we were little. It's like he's...in a completely different world. The way he lives is so different from me that I barely recognize him as my own brother anymore."

"What do you mean?" she asked, kicking her feet that were hanging off the chair.

"Ah, I guess all people change," he laughed. "But it's like his soul itself is different. He has this faraway philosophy of life that guides him, something that keeps him grounded. I've never met another person with a sense of self like that."

Ren shrugged, leaning his head back against the couch.

"I know that...Masao is very important to me," she said with a shy smile. Ren raised his eyebrow at her, a smirk forming on his face.

"Do you like him or something?" he asked her with a teasing tone. Yoli didn't blush at his comment, since the idea that Masao could be more than a friend didn't even exist to her.

"I like him very much. He is my favorite person," she declared. Ren sighed, looking at her with a hint of jealousy in his eyes.

"I've never loved someone before. Nobody, no matter how hot a woman is...she'll never be enough to make me feel something," she smiled painfully.

She tilted her head, and didn't quite understand what he was talking about.

- - -

Darkness fell over the town, and Yoli went to join Masao in the bedroom. When she stepped inside the strong smell of incense filled her nose. It was dark inside, with only a single candle burning. From the light of the candle she could see the bed placed against the wall, with Masao laying in it. She stood there for at least a few minutes trying to decide what to do.

She didn't know if it was okay to lay down next to him, but there was no other option. What also bothered her was the faint tingling in her stomach. Masao was just sleeping, but she couldn't break her eyes away from his peaceful face. His hair sloppily fell over his nose, and his arm was on top of the blanket. She wanted to stand there and stare at him forever, but she started to feel a little creepy. She blew out the candle and climbed into bed with him.

"Mnnnhh..." he groaned quietly. His eyes slowly opened and he stared at her. They were facing each other, their bodies only a few inches apart. "Yo...li?"

"Is Masao still sleepy?"

"Yeah..." he sounded nervous and confused. "You shouldn't be sleeping this close to me."

"Why not?"

He couldn't stand her innocence. He was so tired, so fed up with everything, yet a part of him still had enough energy to imagine all kinds of messed up things.

"A girl like you isn't ready to be so close to a man. It's dangerous, didn't your parents teach you that?" he explained. "I wouldn't do anything to you, but it's still...weird."

"There is nowhere else to sleep..." she pouted.

"Ugh, you always insist on being as close to me as physically possible," he flipped over, his back facing her. "It's fine. Just don't keep me up, okay?"

She laid in silence for a few minutes, listening to the sound of him breathing. She could only see the faint outline of his back in the darkness, and she wanted to reach out and touch him.

"Masao..." she said. He grunted a low "mmn?".

"What was Ren doing to Masao when we got here?" she asked in a whisper.

"Huh?" he immediately turned over. "Ren?" She waited for him to answer her question, not bothering to say it again. "Oh...Ren..."

How was he supposed to explain that to her? What Ren did to him was something that he would never want her to have to see. Yoli was the most innocent girl in the world, so seeing something even as tame as that could be detrimental. At the same time though, he felt that protecting her from the realities of the world was wrong and made him just as bad as Wataru. He never intended to protect Yoli from the truth, or to treat her like some angelic foreign species just because she was naive and uneducated.

"He was trying to give me a hickey. Do you know what that is?"

"Ummmmmn...no."

He laughed to himself. Of course he expected her to have no clue what it was. "It's basically a bruise that you get when someone sucks on your skin really hard. It's mostly a thing done between people who are...err- in a romantic relationship."

"W-What? Ren and Masao are in love?" she said in a panicked and worried tone.

"A-Ah, no! Ren's just a weirdo. He thinks he has some obligation to mark me so people won't try to hurt me, but it ends up being really creepy and awkward," he sighed. There was no easy way to explain the odd behavior of his brother, because even he didn't understand it. "Thanks for helping me get out of it earlier."

"Mnn. I was..." Yoli grew quiet and he wondered what she was going to say next. "Will Masao do that to me too?"

His mind blanked, and not a single thought was able to process for a second.

Yoli wants me to kiss her on the neck, and give her a hickey.

Yoli...wants me to...

"No, no, no, no, you misunderstood everything," he said quickly. "Only people who like each other are supposed to do that. You and I are just friends, roommates and companions. I would never..."

Touch you like that...

He knew that what she was asking of him came from a naive place of curiosity, and possibly jealousy. Yoli didn't see him in any sort of romantic or sexual way. She was just curious, because she saw Ren doing something to him and wanted to know what it was like. She was always so clingy and attached to him, that he also guessed it was because she felt left out or jealous of Ren for being able to touch him in a way that she never had.

"I want Masao to be happy like Ren was..." she countered.

Oh, so that's what it is. She saw how happy Ren looked, and she wanted to see me make that face too.

"It's not really appropriate for us to...to do that kind of thing."

She didn't bother to respond to him. Instead she nuzzled closer to him, curling up against his chest and resting her head against his body.

"Masao will hold me like Ren held him, and I will do the same," she offered.

He couldn't figure out what to do. He couldn't deny that he wanted to do everything she was asking him for. He wanted to touch her, to teach her about things that were foreign concepts to her innocent mind. He wanted to know her better than anyone else. She was his type, and the most perfect woman for him. But...

If he ended up hurting her in the process he would never forgive himself. If COT took her back and found out that he had "tainted" her, he would be done for. Was that a risk he was willing to take.

"..."

How long could he continue to be with her, and not end up wanting more?

"Okay," he said softly. Mustering up the little strength he had in him, he leaned his head towards her neck. He didn't bother to sit up or anything. Yoli's breath hitched when he touched her neck. He hadn't done anything like this to a girl in a long time, since way before the accident. He knew that he could still do it though, and skillfully.

He closed his eyes, his hand trailing up her back to rest on the back of her neck to make her stable. He didn't want to hurt her, but he wanted to leave a mark. Hearing her soft whimpers was making him go crazy. She was exactly what he'd always wanted; a small, fragile girl who was easy to take control of- but most importantly, needed to be protected.

She didn't complain or ask him anything while he was sucking on her neck. When he was done, he let go of her like the whole thing was a formal transaction.

"My turn," she whispered. He had almost forgot about that part. Yoli slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes like he always did. She put her hands on his shoulders, helping him sit up. His posture was bad and he wanted to lay back down, but he tried to stay awake for her. She reached forward and brushed his hair out of his eyes.

She placed her hands on his shoulders, bringing herself closer to him. Instead of going for his neck she neared the skin above his collarbone on the left side of his body. She pushed the corner of his shirt off his shoulder to make room. He could feel her warm breath against his skin, and then her soft lips made contact. If the lights were on it would be obvious that he was blushing.

She was mimicking the motions that he did on her, trying to replicate the feeling. It was cute, but it made him feel weak. Her mouth against his skin, slightly biting into it felt wrong. He didn't want it to stop though. He ran his fingers through her hair, letting out a long and exhausted sigh.

I want to be with her forever. I don't care what kind of torture I have to go through. Even if she only sees me as a friend...

If I can't be with Yoli, then I don't want to live.

Those were the things he realized as they shared this moment together. He knew it would be hard, even deadly, to keep her with him. COT was searching for her. They would do everything in their power to get her back. That's why he vowed right there and then to never give her up.

He moaned quietly, shutting his eyes and immersing himself in the feeling of her skin against his. Her arms slowly wrapped around his back, making him feel even more vulnerable. He could barely even think with her so close to him.

I'll never touch another woman ever again. Please. Please let this last forever...