Big Brother Ben

Monday was the worst day in the whole week, even worse then Wednesday. Wednesday was just the middle of the week, the half way mark. When compared to the horrible Monday it was a wonderful Friday. Monday was the start of the week. Where you had to go back to school, back to work, back to the real world.

Today, this Monday was the worst of them all. This was the day that Jamie was moving out to live with her boyfriend. The day that I had to get up way too many hours before my classes. Where Jamie threatened bodily harm if I didn’t pick up my stuff off the living room floor and get it organized. I was even going to have to go to school later and then my job after that. Then to top it all off James wasn’t talking to Jamie and I was appointed peacemaker and the in-between guy that as to do everything.

It was only ten o’clock in the morning and we had barely even put a dent into moving Jamie out of her room and we had been up for four fricken hours. Four unbelievably long hours of unending work, unending arguments, and not enough aspirin in the entire world to make my headache go away.

“I’m taking a break,” James announced after dropping one of Jamie’s numerous dressers into the moving van. I having taken a seat on the edge of the car was all for this break.

“I agree and this break should last until they finish moving everything,” I suggested with a grin trying to lighten his mood a bit. He smiled back at me and collapsed next to me.

“Ya, well it seems like were doing all the work any ways. Every time I see Jamie and what’s his face they’re just making out and messing around. You’d think that she would help us since she’s the one that’s moving out,” he complained. I didn’t say anything as he continued to rant on and on about Jamie and Wayne, but mostly about Jamie.

“My, My, my little brother you sure do lead an exciting life,” no not him, anybody but him. I refused to open my eyes and confirm my worst fears. Instead I felt around and grabbed onto James hand and started yanking on it like I was a little child.

“James, please tell me I did not hear Ben’s voice, that I fell asleep and was just having a nightmare,” I whispered frantically in the directed that his hand was.

“Let go of my hand, you dimwit,” he easily extracted his hand and moved far away from me, well I assumed he moved far away from me, cause I still refused to open my eyes.

“Of course it’s me Ryo,” I was then yanked up to a standing position and into an uncomfortable hug with my big brother.

“Freedom, let me have my freedom,” I said desperately.

“I’m so glad to hear the excitement in your voice,” Ben says sarcastically and pushed me away. I watched as he looked around the area, at Jamie’s stuff lying about around us, at random things really. Ben looked almost exactly like me except he looked older, and was taller. I try to ignore that last one though and pretend that I’m the taller one out of the two of us.

“Why are you here?” I ask, while thinking ‘when do you leave?’ in my mind. I was hoping soon, in fact minutes would be best.

“Didn’t you get my message?” he turned to look at me with a look of confusion. I shook my head I had know idea he had even called.

“No, did you call?” He gives me the ‘duh’ look, which I in turn stick my tongue out at him. We really did have a mature and loving relationship, it was just buried deep, deep, deep in our backyard somewhere.

“Well if I left a message then I must have called,” he said sarcastically.

“Either way I didn’t get and so you should leave and try to leave a message again. Then you can come back here and ask me if I got that message.” I suggest. James I noticed was no where in sight, the traitor. Leaving me here with him, I mean all day I haven’t left him alone with Jamie, what kind of friend was he? He was suppose to stay here until my brother left.

“No can do, I need to crash at your place for a few days,” he grins at me when I start sputtering and making sounds of protests. “And it looks like I came just in time for you to have room for me on your couch.”

“But Ben, why can’t you go stay at Mom and Dads,” I whine.

“Can’t I have to tell them something and well I have to sort of work up to that kind of thing. So while I do that I’m going to stay here with you.” Then without another word he was gone and walking towards my apartment.

With a load groan I fell back against the truck. The world really was against me. I had done nothing wrong and I was being punished by having my brother come stay with me. How was that fair? Wonder what he has to tell our parents? Maybe he’ll tell me, I love secrets. Especially if I can hold it over them forever, those were the best kinds. It was even better that it was my brother’s dirty secret. With an evil little grin I hurriedly got up and rushed to catch up with Ben.

By the time that I did catch up with him he was already sitting down at the kitchen table drinking coffee with Jamie and Wayne. James was no where in sight, probably sulking in his bedroom. When I entered the room Jamie looked up and smiled at me, Ben just continued to sip his hot beverage, and I have no idea what Wayne was doing and I really didn’t care so lets just skip over him.

“Hey Ryo I almost forgot you had a brother named Ben. Isn’t it weird that your brother’s name is the same name as Honor’s roommate.” She stated. Honor had a roommate? Wait how in the world did she know that Honor had a roommate or that his name also happened to be Ben? That was pretty strange, who would have thought more then one set of parents would want to name their child that horrible name. I mean if they had been graced with my wonderful name it would have been understandable, but Ben, no can do. Look at my brother all around horrible person with horrible name see it fits. I was going to ignore the fact that my logic for hating the name Ben was pathetic, but its not like any body but me will know.

“Jamie how’d you that? Did you become Honor’s stalker without me knowing, cause he’s suppose to be my stalker. And a stalker can’t have their own stalker.” I wonder why that didn’t sound silly when I was thinking it in my head?

“Ryo remember what Mom said, you can’t have any more stalkers after the last one,” Ben piped in from his seat. Jamie snickered, remembering the incident that had happened to cause the ban.

“That wasn’t my fault, really,” I protest. I mean how was I to know that he would take me so seriously. I had been laughing when I made the suggestion, I really shouldn’t be held accountable for that instant.

“Sure it wasn’t, Ryo, not your fault at all,” Ben said in that condescending voice that people had a tendency to pick up around me. Muttering under my breath about stupid intruding brothers I left the kitchen and into my soon to be old sleeping area. Not having anything else to do I started to throw my clothes into the basket that Jamie had given me. I wasn’t exactly sure if they were clean or dirty, but not really caring tossed them all in together. I had to do laundry anyway, so no big deal.

When I had finished the small task I was amazed that we had wood flooring. I had always thought it was carpeted. Well you learn something-new everyday. Now that I had done that enormous task I decided that a nap was in order. Hopefully when I woke up, my brother would be gone, James will not be pouting, Jamie would not be moving, and something to do with Honor. I’m not sure what, but I thought I’d throw him in for good measure. There’s always something entertaining to do with him or around him or happening to me.

Hours upon hours later, with only one short nap in all of that time we had finally finished moving Jamie out of the apartment and me into my room. It was just in time too cause I had a class. I was running a bit late, but James offered to give me a ride since he had a class too. Normally I would have had to take the bus. He was probably up to something and that’s why he was being nice.

Class went as usual, teacher talked, I wrote something down, students asked questions, etc, etc. Once that was over with I had to go to my super duper fun job as a waiter in some snobby restaurant. Where the people there were mean and snobby and ugly and did I mention snobby. If the tips weren’t so good I would have quit ages ago. Alas though I needed this job, unless I was offered a higher paying position that would guarantee that I got paid more then I ever did in a day. I seriously doubted that would happen, but hey I can dream can’t I.

Two hours into my shift and everything was going as usual. I had only broken one glass that whole night and it was only in the back so it wasn’t that big of a dock in my pay, which was great. Some girl name Cynthia had up and quit so we were a hand short, but that also seemed to be normal. Of course usually somebody would just call in sick, not quit. It means we’ll hire somebody new and they’ll be called newbie and get all the crappy tables and do all the dirty work. Yay, for newbie I can’t wait till he or she gets here.

“Hey Ryo new table!” my co-worker whom I named secretly in my head Secret Orange Sock Man a.k.a. SOS, ignore M, a.k.a. whatever his real name is.

“Thanks Johnny my boy,” I say while putting on my waiter face. Which means smile, but not too much or you’ll creep the customers out. I learned the lesson the first day, some lady through her water at me cause of it.

Glancing around the room to my area I saw the new customers chatting happily away. A woman and three men The man that was sitting next to the woman had brown hair with unnatural streaks of white laced in it had his hair tied back into a sleek pony tail and he looked awfully familiar for some strange reason. Since he and the woman had their backs to me I couldn’t see his face to determine if I knew him or not. The other two men both had short black hair and I didn’t recognize either of them.

“Ryo get going!” SOS man pushed me out into the room. I wasn’t sure why, but I felt a bit anxious about going over to that table. So instead of going straight there, I made sure all my other tables had everything they needed before I went over there. Without looking at the familiar man I placed their menus in front of them and started the usual introduction.

“Good afternoon, my name is Ryo and I’ll be your waiter, is there anything I can get you while you order?” I ask in my cheery voice.

“Classic Ryo, just classic,” my oh so familiar stalker said from his seat by the lady. Trying to hide my grimace I looked at Honor.

He was way different with out the make up on, though still very hot, not that I would ever admit that. He was in very nice semi-formal wear like the rest of his companions, though he was still wearing his earrings and from the looks of it added another. Wow I would never had gone in a fancy restaurant like this with all those earrings, maybe one or two, but four, no.

“What are you doing here?” I demand forgetting the fact that they were my customers and that I wasn’t suppose to speak that way to them.

“I didn’t know that you worked here,” he says completely ignoring my question like the rude bastard that he was. If I wasn’t a decent person the things I’d do to him for his stupid not answering my question ways.

“Well I didn’t know you had a roommate that as the same name as my brother, so there,” I wonder why I had the urge to stick my tongue out at him and fold my arms across my chest. I restrained myself from doing either of those, barely. I made it up to myself by doing it mentally instead.

“My aren’t you feeling childish today,” Honor says with a laugh.

“I am not childish,” I state. People keep getting the wrong impression of me, they all seem to think I’m childish. It’s obvious that I’m not and they’re all just crazy and blind and some other stuff.

“That could be debated,” This time I am the bigger man and decide to ignore that and go back to my original question.

“Why are you here, besides stalking me?” I don’t think that I should have added that last part cause the others at the table all started laughing. Blushing, I had sort of forgotten that there were other people at the table. Normally when I meet Honor and he goes all mean on me were by ourselves. Except for that one time with Jamie. Though if I think about it we haven’t met all that often.

“Well you see dear Ryo I own the place,” he says with a smirk.

This is the part where everybody starts laughing and saying got you…again, but they didn’t. The other people all had straight faces on. Honor was looking way too smug for this to be a joke. It as to be a joke right? He couldn’t own a restaurant, could he?

“Your lying,” I whisper, staring at him in disbelief. Honor frowns at my unusual action.

“I’m not, what’s wrong with you?” he asks. I stare at him, confused and for some reason hurt. Without another word I turned around and walked back to the kitchen, ignoring Honor calling to me.