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My brother's been so weird since August. He thinks I don't notice, that I don't know him well enough to know when he's hiding something from me. He should know better. We're twins, we know each other just as well as we know ourselves.
I tried asking him about it, to get him to open up. What I got was a handful of defensive quips that turned into earfuls of angry outbursts and a week of the cold shoulder. I gave up eventually, it's worthless to try to get Shane to confess once he has his mind set, not to mention impossible.
Shane may be a dead-end source of information, but his friends prove to be the perfect alternative. They're loud and brash at best, and crude and obnoxious at worst, and I avoid them as often as I can during class. However, when it comes to their defacto leader, they'll basically shell out any information – gathered from Shane's own confessions or otherwise – in hopes it'll help me knock some sense back into my brother.
Turns out I'm not the only one who noticed Shane's recent attitude. My brother isn't as subtle as he thinks he is. According to his peers, he's been putting off or outright bailing out of regular after-school hangouts, with the excuse of needing to be home early to fix things regarding his gaming setup. When I told them that Shane has been coming home later than usual, they seem genuinely surprised.
We parted ways, with the boys promising to report any further peculiar behavior from my brother's end. Between that time until now, it feels like a rip-off of a James Bond movie with how seriously they're taking this which really shouldn't surprise me. Their concern for their friend outweighs practicality, I guess.
So far, the information we've gathered doesn't raise any major flags; Shane still abstains from peer outings in favor of either schoolwork or his desktop set-up. And as usual, he's never actually home early to comply with these excuses. I've checked his desktop and everything was set up the same way they were two months ago. Other than a new mouse, nothing really changed.
Therefore the question still stands: What is Shane doing with all his time?
Somehow, though, he still manages to complete schoolwork. His homework is well-written to the point of our professors don't notice that it's written hours before it's due. He participates in group assignments despite having so little time to research and work on it.
My brother is a lot of things but I would have never guessed a miracle worker would be one of them.
"Alright, class," Chef Clancy claps his hands once, a sharp loud sound to gather all of our attention. "I'm going to dismiss you early since I have to attend a meeting. But please do research and familiarize yourselves with the five mother sauces. We'll be working on them next week so wait for my message in the group chat. I'll be sending you the recipe for the sauces as well as the dishes to serve them with."
The students — a mix of Tourism, HRM and HRS — gather up their belongings, stuffing their bags as Chef kept barking out reminders to particular students.
"Kelly, I'm still waiting for your group's portfolio. Jason, yours as well. And Lorelei–" Both Shane and I pause to look at him, Chef shaking his head as if to scold himself for forgetting. He waves a hand, gesturing for my brother to come closer. Shane zips his bag closed before walking towards our instructor. I pretend to busy myself with my own things, checking to make sure I don't forget anything, as I listen to their conversation.
Apparently, my brother's not fooling our professor as well.
"Shane, have you been feeling alright? You're not as… ah, what's the word? Not as...active as when the semester started."
Shane looks at anywhere except for chef's eyes, hands nervously fisting at the hem of his uniform. "I'm fine, chef. Just trying to adjust to HRM life, is all. Been an IT student for almost a year. It's just me adjusting from sitting down on a swivel chair to standing up in a hot kitchen for three hours."
Chef doesn't buy it, judging by how he inspects my brother to read his body language. "Well, if you ever need help catching up, don't be afraid. This college is here to help. If you ever need to borrow our syllabus, let me know. I'm sure I have a spare copy I could lend you."
"Thanks, chef. I'll remember that."
"Now, go ahead. You and your sister head down for lunch. I heard we're getting beefsteak again so you may wanna get down there before they run out."
With that reminder, Shane and I gather our bags and start our trek down to the cafeteria. Our college building isn't big; A former car dealership office with five floors and a space originally used for cars now transformed to function as a half-court. Most of the facilities are in a less-than-decent state of repair, like the lone elevator that always seems to need fixing and the useless drinking fountain on the second floor.
A far cry from the university my brother and I transferred from. Though, it's a humble building and everyone seems to be friendly enough so it's good enough for us.
Shane's phone rings for a call, and I have to muffle a laugh bubbling from my throat. He actually downloaded the McCree "It's High Noon" voice line file for a ringtone.
He curses under his breath as he reaches to retrieve his phone from one of the pockets of his black slacks. A split-second is used to identify the caller and another to accept the call. We step aside to let a group of Senior High students through.
My brother answers with a hushed tone, as if afraid for me to hear the conversation.
"Yo, I told you I'd meet you there... No, class is already over. I'm heading–… 'M with my sister... Yeah, okay... Cool... Yeah, 'kay bye." He hangs up and places the phone back in his pocket.
"Yo, sis, why don'tcha go on ahead without me?" He suggests, rubbing the back of his neck. "I gotta meet some of the guys in the computer lab."
'I highly doubt that' is the reply in my mind. Instead of saying that, I raise an eyebrow and cross my arms.
"I promise, I'll meet you at the library for our next class. This is just really important. Please?" He folds his hands together, fingers interlaced, and he's got that puppy dog look in his eyes. "Please."
I let out a sigh. Even if I didn't let him go, he'd still find a way to sneak away to his mystery endeavor. "Fine. 1 PM, okay? I'll be at the library."
His lips spread in a relieved smile, his eyes flashing the same emotion. "Thanks, sis. I promise–"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm the best sister ever," I dismiss with a wave of my hand. "Now go to your oh-so important meeting. I'll see ya later."
He jerks his head in a nod, adjusts the strap of his bagpack, and turns to go up to the fifth floor, going up to steps at a time to quicken the pace. Once he's out of hearing range, I take out my own phone from my bag and dial the number of one of his friends, Nick.
I sit on the plastic bench in the hallway as I wait for Nick to pick up. Thankfully, I didn't have to wait for long.
"Yo, Crimson!" His boisterous tone combined with a high volume is enough to make my head throb. Add in the chattering of people in the background on both ends of the call, and I could feel a migraine coming in. "What's up? Trouble in paradise?"
"Yeah, you could say that," I confirm with a defeated sigh. "By any chance, is Shane with you?"
He pauses, then answers with genuine confusion. "No, why?"
"Well, he just got a call from someone and he told me that he had to meet you guys at the computer lab."
"Huh, that's weird. We're not even on campus right now."
That would explain the auditory bustle on his end. "Where are you, anyway?"
"We're at the mall right now. D'you need us to–"
"No need. I'll handle this. You guys have fun. And try not to be late for our Tourism class. We have a quiz today and I saw your grades' early computations," I hiss, letting it emphasize my point. "And trust me, you'll need the extra points."
A breathy chuckle serves as a reply to that. "Roger that. See ya."
I end the call and tap one corner of my phone on my chin, pondering what my course of action will be. On one hand, this is the perfect opportunity to see exactly what Shane's hiding but on the other...well, the cafeteria's beefsteak is really, really good but is only served once every few weeks.
I let out an annoyed huff, unable to believe that I'm passing up a good lunch just because Shane's been a bit wacko lately. I adjust the strap of my sling bag and head upstairs to the third floor, where the computer and kitchen labs are located. I stay close to the walls as I near the end of the hallway as I hear two male voices, one of which I recognize to belong to my brother. The other one, I'm not sure whose, thought I'm fairly certain I've heard it before.
As the hallway ends with a right turn, I peek to the right and...–
Oh my gosh.
The scene before me is something I never expected to see. An older guy, maybe an upperclassman, towering over my brother who was leaning against the wall, hands fisting the taller man's shirt. The older guy's forearms bracket Shane's head as one of his knees between my brother's legs. And probably the strangest thing, Shane doesn't seem to mind.
In fact, I think he'd enjoying it, judging by the amused smile on his face.
I look away, trying to process what I just saw. I have a boiling feeling in my gut that maybe that wasn't something I wasn't supposed to see. Don't get me wrong, though.
Shane's not in anyway straight, the only straight about him is that he's a straight-up asshole, so seeing him with a guy isn't a surprise for me. What I find shocking, however, is how much older the other guy is. My brother and I are 19, sure, but I didn't think he'd be with someone who looks five years older than him.
"Dustin, this is not the time nor the place," Shane reprimands, though there isn't much heat to his warning. The guy -Dustin, I correct myself- whines and backs away from nosing my brother's neck.
"Oh, c'mon, Shane."
"No means no, Gredlun."
Dustin huffs out a protest before completely backing off. "Fine, but at least gimme a kiss before class starts?" Shane rolls his eyes but gets up on tip toes anyway to place a kiss on the taller man's freckled cheek. Dustin's eyes slip close, content with the brief show of affection, and opens them again once Shane pulls away.
"There, ya got your kiss, ya prick," Shane points out with a toothy grin, which Dustin replies to with a sincerely happy smile. "Now, I gotta go. My sister's probably waiting for me in the library."
Dustin lets out a whine, followed by a childish pout, and nuzzles at my brother's cheek. Shane places a hand on the other man's chest, though not doing anything to push him away.
"Aw, c'mon, baby boy," I nearly gag from the nickname. Seriously, Shane? Baby Boy? "I'm sure she can wait for a while more." Despite his assumption, he does step back, allowing my twin to push himself away from the wall. Shane picks his up his travel messenger bag from the floor, slinging in across his back.
"No, she can't. Not when I promised I'd meet her there."
"I'll still see you after school, yeah?"
"Have I ever missed a date?"
Dustin huffs out an amazed laugh. "Oh, so they were dates?"
I decide not to wait until their conversation was over, running out of the hallway and up the two flights of stairs to the fifth floor. I stop in front of the library, catching my breath and wiping the sweat from my brow. Shane arrives ten minutes later, hair mussed and escaping its hairtie, uniform wrinkled and dishevelled around the collar and chest, but probably the most suspicious is his lips, which were red and kiss-bitten.
"Hey, sorry, I'm late," He wheezes out as I greet him with a high five. "The guys wanted me to help 'em out with their powerpoint presentations."
I want to call him out for it, tell him about my eavesdropping, but I figure he probably keeps his apparent relationship a secret for a reason. "Speaking of presentations," I start as I open the door to the library, the cool air making me shiver after being out in the warm hallway. "You got an idea about what you're gonna do for the Task Performance Evaluation?"
He lets out a tired groan. "Man, which one?"