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White takes an embarrassing few moments to realise what the message means – and after that, what it means . He and his dad talk to each other in Thai, and it’s not like he doesn’t talk to his dad’s co-workers and their kids, but he doesn’t do his schoolwork or any other writing in his native tongue, so he’s honestly not that used to seeing it in writing. He hasn’t forgotten how to read or anything, he’s just... caught off-guard by it.
But it’s the implication of the message that eludes him for a little while. He stares at his phone with confusion clouding his mind, then a slow-building elation in the back of his chest.
This person knows his brother.
It doesn’t look like they necessarily like him, though. One rule for Black, another for the rest of us? It’s an odd message. What rule does he think Black is breaking? It could be what this “Sean" must think is the false information on his profile, something in his picture maybe, or perhaps it's something he’s seen in person but isn’t saying out loud, for some reason. It doesn’t matter; this person knows his brother .
Making the facebook page had been a whim, last year; he’s not really allowed social media. His father says it’s because of their position, that he shouldn’t be too publicly accessible, and White mostly believes him. But there’s an unspoken other reason, isn’t there? He’d made the page because the girl he’d been casually seeing at the time had made fun of him for acting like a grandpa, not having twitter or facebook, and he’d chosen the option that he thought would be most easily explained away if his father had found out. But he hasn’t found out, yet, and now White's own unspoken other reason for making the account is actually being realised.
He shallows and glances around himself. It’s a stupid impulse; he’s in his final year at university and living alone, but somehow he’s never gotten over that feeling that his father is staring over his shoulder, waiting for him to disobey or mess up or just reveal himself as... something.
Uneasy, he looks back down at his phone and decides to leave this decision until he’s woken up a bit more. It’s the morning, he has things to do today, and the growing nerves that are doing battle with the glee in his chest are not going to be conducive to concentrating in his seminar.
He swipes the app closed and the notification away and finishes his breakfast.
Several uneasy hours later, he’s sitting alone in a café near the university and trying to concentrate on his reading when he gives up the battle. He turns his phone over and unlocks it, heart beating unreasonably fast for what he’s doing.
The message request is still sitting there, not yet marked read.
He has to switch the phone keyboard, first, and then he starts trying to answer it.
I’m not P’Black, but I’d like you to- Delete.
This is actually his younger brother, do you- Delete.
What rule do you think he’s breaking? Also, I’m- Delete.
How do you even explain this situation to someone outside it? He’s sure this person has no idea Black has a brother, let alone an identical twin, and the antagonism in the opening question makes White think he has to tread very carefully, in order to avoid Sean assuming he’s being pranked and blocking him, cutting off this connection for good. He has to respond well.
Eventually, he settles on sending proof first. There’s a locked folder on his phone of all the old photos he managed to keep, of the two of them, and he selects one of his favourites. It shows the two of them, a few months before they were torn apart, sitting on a beach. They aren’t dressed to swim, their outfits match each other entirely except for White’s glasses, and they’re hugging side-on. He likes this picture because his head is on Black’s shoulder and Black is resting his own head on top of White’s.
Mostly, he chooses this picture because his glasses are showing and he doesn’t think it would be easily faked.
He sends the photo and follows it up with a message.
I’m Black’s twin brother. Do you know him? I’d like to get back in contact with him, if it’s at all possible.
It’s not the perfect message he’d hoped to send, and he spends too long considering whether or not to address the antagonism in the original message, but he hopes it’s enough to get a response from the person with the bizarrely empty profile.
After he sends it, he clicks back onto that profile and starts to quietly panic. It’s really empty, and that makes him think that maybe he was wrong about his father not knowing, maybe this was all a test, maybe his father has found out about his disobedience and wanted to see if he’d go further-
Bzzz.
A notification from Sean. Fuck. The preview says it’s an image. His heart is in his throat.
He looks over his shoulder at the café behind him, like his father will have broken his retirement and flown back to Russia just to chastise White for this breach. Seeing nothing unexpected, feeling frustrated with himself, White taps on the notification.
The photograph makes him tear up. It’s Black. The first new picture of him since they were kids. He’s sure Todd would have pictures, but he’s never been brave enough to ask, and his permission to keep talking to Todd was always conditional anyway. This picture is freely given, and he decides he doesn’t care if this is a trick from his father.
It doesn’t seem likely to be, anyway; the photo is clearly a candid shot, showing Black (his brother) sitting with someone’s arms around his shoulders, although it’s cropped oddly. The other person in the shot is barely visible, and the photo has thick white stripes on either side. Maybe that’s Sean?
While he’s staring at the photo, his phone buzzes again.
Black doesn’t use social media, so I really can’t put you in contact. I’ll let you know if I hear anything new about him, how about that?
The tears are still in his eyes, and the confusion of the feelings that have been following him around since that first message just intensifies at this news. There’s some relief, like he’s got a final opportunity to back off, stay obedient to this one firm rule he’s always been held to, but there are a lot of other feelings too.
This is his first free connection to his brother. A connection that his father won’t be keeping an eye on.
Could you please tell him I’m trying to get in contact?
The message isn’t read immediately, and he finds himself sitting there until his coffee goes cold. He’s halfway down his refill when he finally gets a reply.
I’m sorry, I can’t. There’s bad blood. Neither of us talks to the other. There’s no way.
Fuck.
It shouldn’t surprise him, not from that first message, but for some reason it really does. He slumps forward and considers his phone. He could push; if there’s bad blood there’s clearly some social connection between them that he could use to get the news across... but if White pushes too hard, Sean might stop replying.
It’s this message that really convinces him it isn’t a trick, though, and that this guy really does know Black.
Feeling almost as defeated as he is relieved, he sends his answer.
I understand. Do you have any other pictures of him?