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“Amane! Amane wake up!”
Amane batted his brother’s hand away from his face and rolled back over, burrowing into the warm sheets even as Tsukasa’s chilled fingers tried to tug them away. It was too early, the sun not even properly up yet. Their bedroom was still awash in shadows, weak moonlight filtering in through the window over their shared desk.
“Amane! It snowed!”
He should have known better than to try and jump up while Tsukasa’s voice was loud in his ear; they both ended up in a whimpering tangled mess on the floor, Amane holding his forehead while Tsukasa rubbed his cheek. But Tsukasa would not be deterred by something so trivial as a bruise when the first snowfall of the season was right outside their window.
“Come on, Amane! Let’s go play.”
Amane reached out and snagged the hem of his brother’s nightshirt, tugging him back before he could hightail out the door and into the cold. He had no doubt that Tsukasa would throw himself headfirst into a snowbank without shoes or a coat, and then complain for the rest of the day about being cold. Amane rubbed his eyes and looked at the clock, groaning as he hauled his brother back under the covers.
“Amane, no! The snow!”
“It’ll still be there in a few hours, Tsu. It's not even five in the morning. Go back to sleep, and we’ll go play as soon as we’re done with breakfast.”
Tsukasa huffed beside him but didn’t try to get back up, curling into a ball under the covers and pouting. Amane couldn’t help but laugh quietly, ruffling the head of choppy dark hair identical to his own before he threw his arm over his little brother and cuddled into the warmth. Almost immediately, Tsukasa turned and snuggled into him, and Amane knew he’d be out in a few minutes despite his excitement. And sure enough, the soft snuffles turned into quiet snores as Tsukasa flopped bonelessly against him, and Amane took the chance to get a bit more sleep.
Surprisingly, it was sunlight and not his little brother that woke Amane first. Tsukasa was still sprawled across the bed in a very good impression of a starfish, drooling over the pillow as Amane hopped out of bed and hurried to the bathroom. The rest of the apartment was quiet, their parent’s shoes already missing for the day; he shouldn’t have been as relieved by that as he was. The kitchen was how’d he’d left it last night, his and Tsukasa’s dishes still in the strainer from dinner, and he put them away before he started on breakfast.
Tsukasa would like pancakes, and it was something warm and filling to keep them going while they were out in the cold. And Amane could get stuff for lunch set out, so when they came back in shivering he wouldn’t have to fumble his freezing fingers around the knife. He moved through the kitchen quietly, keeping an ear out for the telltale pad of Tsukasa’s bare feet against the floor once he was awake. It was times like this he missed being at Obaasan and Ojiisan’s house. Obaasan would already have had breakfast ready for them, and Ojiisan would have asked them their plans for the day.
Amane shook his head to dispel the sadness. There were still a few weeks until winter break, and even then they might not be able to make it out to the countryside to see them. He stared down at the pancake mix, sinking his teeth into his lip before he reached over and turned the burner on. He could imagine all he wanted that he and Tsu would live in that sprawling house, but it would not change the fact that they lived here and not there. That they only had each other to rely on.
“Amane!”
“Kitchen!”
Amane didn’t turn from where he poured the batter into the pan, watching the edges bubble and turn golden as Tsukasa bounced to his side.
“Can you do the rice for me? After that, I think I’ll have everything and then we can eat.”
Tsukasa cheered and bounded away, and Amane heard the rice scatter into the bottom of the bowl before the faucet turned on. He hummed along to the radio, flipping pancakes onto the plate as Tsukasa sang his rice song before he dumped everything into the cooker and hurried to the fridge. Amane turned the burner off and grabbed the plate, snatching two forks and knives from the drawer as Tsukasa set butter and syrup on the table.
It was a mess, as it always was when they had pancakes. Tsukasa managed to get syrup in his hair, and only Amane’s quiet scolding that they wouldn’t be able to play outside if they had to have a bath first kept the destruction to a minimum. After that, it was easy enough to persuade his brother to help clean up and get dressed, running a damp towel through his hair to get most of the sticky mess from the strands. Amane made sure they were properly bundled up before he nodded, adjusting Tsukasa’s purple hat before his brother grabbed his hand and dragged him out the door.
The air was cold and sweet, and Amane burrowed into his red scarf as he locked the door and hurried behind Tsukasa. The sky was a heavy stormcloud gray which meant there was more snow on the way, wind whipping through the empty reaching branches and flinging the loose snow everywhere.
“Amane, come on!”
He took Tsukasa’s purple mittened hand in his red one, smiling wide as they both jumped off the step into the snow. It crunched under their boots, and Tsukasa took off to make wide spirals before he threw himself to the ground. Amane followed at a slower pace but flopped down beside his brother so they could make careful snow angels before they kept going.
They joined a snowball fight with a few of the neighborhood kids on the playground, Amane rolling them and Tsukasa throwing with wild abandon but never once missing a shot. And Amane should have known better than to turn his back on his brother, shrieking as Tsu shoved his cold fingers down his collar and they both ended up looking like melted snowmen after he tackled them into a drift. After that they wandered through the little graveyard, dusting snow off the memorials and adjusting the toppled flowers before they headed back towards the apartment to find something they could use as a sled. Yukimura-san caught them comparing pieces of cardboard when she came down to throw out her trash and gave them the cracked washbasin that was just big enough to fit both of them.
They trekked up to their stargazing hill, pretending to be monsters as their breath fogged the air around them as they hauled the basin to the top. Tsukasa immediately jumped in, but Amane took a moment to scan the area. Everything was quiet and peaceful, soft snow piled high against the tree line beneath them. The town glowed with warm light as the clouds darkened the sky, and he turned from the sharp wind with a gasp as it rushed around them.
They cut curving lines into the snow as they rushed down the hill. Tsu laughed wildly as he tumbled from the basin, rolling to a halt at his brother’s feet. They went again and again until it shattered beneath them, flinging them both into the air and into the cold powder. Amane shook the snow from his collar as he stood, dragging his hat farther down over his chilled ears as he stood and began to gather the pieces of plastic. Tsukasa was still laying on the ground, and worry seized Amane’s chest as he sprinted across the field to his brother’s side.
“Are you okay?”
Tsukasa tipped his head, nose and cheeks bright pink from the cold but he smiled and nodded. They both shivered as Amane hauled him to his feet, throwing away the broken pieces before they linked hands and headed home. They slipped and skidded on the ice as the temperature continued to drop, the sky darkening as tiny flakes tumbled from the clouds. They were both shaking by the time they made it back to the apartment, snowflakes clinging to both their lashes as they huddled together as Amane unlocked the door.
They knocked the snow loose from their boots before they abandoned them in the entryway, Tsukasa sprinting for the bathroom as Amane detoured to the kitchen to start the rice and then to their bedroom to grab their pajamas. By the time he made it to the bathroom, Tsukasa was barely visible under the froth of bubbles he’d dumped into the tub, and Amane sighed at the heat that soaked into his skin as he lowered himself in on the opposite side.
He didn’t bother to open his eyes as Tsukasa made him a bubble crown, waited until he’d finished to reach for the shampoo, and scrub the syrup from his little brother’s hair. They hurried out of the tub after that, drying off and bundling into warm jammies before taking turns drying each other’s hair. Tsukasa’s hair was a fuzzy halo once Amane finished, and he laughed before Tsu grabbed the hair dryer and turned it on him. They laid their damp clothes over the edge of the bath before they headed into the kitchen, socked feet slipping as they piled rice into bowls and waited for the leftovers to heat up.
Amane didn’t bother to head to the table, just sank to the floor to eat since the oven was still warm. Tsukasa crowded up against him, elbows bumping as they listened to the wind howl outside the front door. They sat in comfortable silence, both a bit surprised by the late hour. Amane had thought they’d spent at most two hours running around in the snow; instead, it was just after four in the afternoon. They cleaned up their dishes, Amane making them cocoa as Tsukasa put everything away.
After that, they scampered back to their room, piling all their blankets onto Tsukasa’s bed so they could lean and watch the snow through the window. This was one of Amane’s favorite parts of winter; getting to curl up with his brother and drink cocoa as they waited for the window to frost enough so they could draw stars and bunnies and kittens in the condensation. He dropped their empty mugs on the desk before he yawned and turned the radio on before he dragged the blanket over them. Tsukasa turned and burrowed into his side, humming as the music shifted to something soft and familiar.
Amane tucked his brother under his chin, curling his arms around his twin so Tsukasa’s heartbeat thrummed under his palms. His little brother giggled as he carded his fingers through his hair, curling his fingers in the back of Amane’s nightshirt as he snuggled in closer.
“Hey, Amane?”
Tsukasa’s voice was barely a whisper in the quiet of the room, and Amane tipped his head so that Tsu could know that he was listening.
“I love you, Ama-nii. You’re the best brother, ever.”
Amane tightened his arms around Tsukasa, pressing his forehead against his brother’s so he could look into the amber eyes that matched his own.
“I love you too, Tsukasa. I couldn’t have asked for a better brother.”
Tsukasa smiled wide and burrowed closer, then flopped on his back so he could point to the constellations they’d made on the ceiling with paper stars. Amane smiled and did the same, listening as Tsukasa rattled off facts from the book they’d just gotten until his voice got quiet and he turned back to fold over Amane.
“Tomorrow, can we go sledding again? And make a snowman? I won’t shove snow down your shirt, promise.”
Amane snorted and dug his fingers into the ticklish spot under Tsukasa’s ribs so his brother squirmed with laughter. He knew it was a lie because it was one of Tsu’s favorite things to do. But they would go sledding and build a snowman, and Amane would forget and give Tsukasa an opening. Then they’d come home damp and cold, have cocoa and watch cartoons until dinner. They’d have all winter to play in the snow and run wild, years and years to go sledding and make cocoa.
Amane tugged the blanket up higher as the wind howled outside the window, Tsukasa curling up tighter before he drifted off to sleep. And Amane wasn’t far behind as the hazy melody from the radio lulled him under, Tsukasa’s quiet breathing and familiar heartbeat echoing in his ears. They’d be like this, forever and ever. Until the last star in the sky burned out, they would be together.