Brothers, Cousins, House Plants

“This thing feels a bit weird, don’t you think?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
Mik and I were sitting down on the precipice of the roof of a residential tower in the city of White Sands, on New California. We were watching the towers of the business district tumble as our ship’s glassing beam turned the streets there into molten rivers.
“I mean… you and me.”
“What about you and mean? What ‘thing’ are you referencing?”
“I mean, our friendship.”
“What of it?”
“Isn’t it the oddest little thing? A guy like you and a guy like me becoming close friends.”
“I do not see it that way.”
“Well, umm, I don’t know. I mean, it feels strange. Like… like… I don’t know.”
“Mik, are you all right?”
“Oh yeah, yeah, it’s just I’ve been thinking about this for a few days now and I can’t quite explain it. It’s as if… it’s as if this shouldn’t happen. This couldn’t happen. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Not to me. Not like this.”
“You doubt our friendship?”
“I doubt… if I deserve it.”
“Oh, Mik. You should not be the one thinking these thoughts.”
“Oh? Why’s that?”
“Because they are more like my own.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I had always seen you as outgoing, boisterous, loving and longing to interact with other people.”
“And you do that too.”
“No, no I do not. I often find myself slipping away, sulking in the dead of night, watching the perimeter, reading a book, sleeping on my own. I do not wish to mingle with others. Well, present company excluded.”
“Aww, no, that doesn’t seem like you.”
“You lie, but I appreciate it.”
“No, I’m serious. Every time you talk, you speak with purpose. You don’t mince words, you tell it as it is. You don’t have to go wild or loud or explosive or anything like that. You can still manage to just grab the attention of everyone in the room, and no yelling. And that means that when you do yell, watch out!”
“And I appreciate your qualities too, Mik. You reach out, while I look in. You act, while I think. And you are always by my side. You have been a closer, greater brother than my own kin.”
Mik chuckled, shuffling awkwardly in his seated position. He shot a nervous smile at me.
“Come on man, what are- what are you trying- trying to make me cry?”
“No, I just want you to know how important you are to me. Brother.”
He nodded at me, and gave a wide grin.
“Sangheili do not cry, you know, but I admire the effort you’re putting into this. Brother.”
“Woah,” uttered a familiar Kig-Yar voice. I turned around and saw Tes and our stout Unggoy, Basab, standing not far behind us. “What does that make us?”
“Cousins,” I answered.
Tes shrugged. “Eh, I’ll take it.”
“Yeah,” added Basab. “Could’ve been worse. Could’ve called us house plants!”
The four of us shared a chuckle.
Category:The Weekly