Boys Are Trouble

Nick was staring at me. I wanted to tell him to stop but I didn’t have the energy to even open my eyes and look at him at that moment. I was so disappointed that the man who had been the one to do all the crazy, death defying stunts his whole life was now condemning himself to the grave without even knowing if he was sick or not.

What happened to you Jordan? I wondered but I couldn’t think of an answer for that.

“Jordan told you what crawled up his butt, didn’t he?” Nick asked finally.

“Yeah,” I opened my eyes and glanced at him, he looked really worried.

“I know there’s something going on with him,” he told me. “I’ve been feeling this sense of dread and anxiety for a little while, I couldn’t understand it until Jordan started acting like a dick downstairs. What’s going on with him Anna?” Nick got off the couch and went to the sliding doors. “And why doesn’t he tell me what it is? I’m his twin, I sense when shit is flying!”

“I don’t know why he won’t tell you.”

Nick turned away from the glass. “Does he think I won’t understand?”

“I don’t know Nick. I really don’t.”

“You’ll tell me what it is,” he told me.

“No,” I shook my head. “He’s not even sure about what’s going on himself; I don’t want to add any unnecessary stress on you when it could turn out to be nothing.”

“Unnecessary stress?” Nick repeated angrily. “Do you think it doesn’t stress me out to know that he knows I can feel what he’s going through and he won’t even tell me about it?”

“What do you want me to do?” I asked him. “Do you want me to tell you that Jordan thinks he’s dying?” Nick’s eyes went wide and his jaw dropped. I sighed, I didn’t want to be the one to tell anyone this but I needed to talk to someone about it. “He’s going to get mad at me for this.”

Nick was at my side in a second flat. “You can’t say that and not tell me what’s going on Anna!”

“I didn’t mean to tell you.”

“Anna please, he’s my brother…”

I sat back against the couch and took a deep breath. I told him the story Jordan told me about the moles and the day he was at their parents’ house with Jenna. “He went in yesterday to have them removed and sent off to be tested. I guess the doctor didn’t look too optimistic so Jordan took that as a sign that the doctor thinks the test will come back positive for cancer.”

“No!” Nick pushed off the couch again. “There’s no way that my brother has cancer! He’s got way too much going for him to get sick now.” He was shaking his head. “He’s not sick; he’s not going to get cancer.”

Nick’s reaction pushed me back over the edge and I could feel the tears again. “Nick please,” I stood up and crossed over to him. “I don’t want that to happen either but there is a chance that he does and he is sick.”

“Don’t!” He pushed me away. “I don’t want to hear you talk like that, Jordan isn’t sick.”

“The test hasn’t come back yet,” I told him but he wasn’t listening to me, he was saying that I wanted Jordan to be sick and other hurtful things like that.

“NICHOLAS!” I grabbed his shoulders and shook him. “I don’t want Jordan to be sick; I love him just like you do! But I can’t help but he scared and worry about what could happen!” I released him and sobbed, “He thinks he’s dying and he’s talking like he is giving up already.”

“Jordy is a fighter.”

I wanted to tell Nick to go and talk to Jordan, to see how much he wasn’t thinking about fighting this if he was sick but I didn’t have a chance too, Nick grabbed the handle of the sliding door and yanked it open. Without as much as a look back at me, he slipped through the opening and slammed the door shut behind him.

I couldn’t watch them as Nick approached Jordan. I knew he would be mad at me but I didn’t care at that moment, he needed to see that I wasn’t the only one who refused to let him give up.

Mike came out of the bathroom a half hour later and joined me in the living room. “Where are the boys?” He asked. “Oh,” he looked puzzled when I pointed towards the balcony and saw Nick with his arm around Jordan’s shoulders. “Is there something I should know?”

“I think you should ask Jordan that,” I told him.

He plopped down next to me, “I think I’ll wait until they are finished whatever they are doing out there. Unless…should I be worried?”

“Until next week, there really isn’t anything anyone can do for Jordan.” I turned to him. “How about we talk about something that we can do something about?”

Mike smiled, “Sure, what’s on your mind Trouble?”

“You,” he raised his brow. “And Eric.”

“No,” he shook his head. “That’s none of your business.”

“Ok,” I sat back again. “But I have to say this…”

Mike groaned. “You don’t have to say anything.”

“Eric told me that you aren’t happy here –”

“What?” Mike chuckled, “Eric shouldn’t be talking to you about us.”

I shrugged, “He told me that you weren’t happy here and he’s dreading the day that he comes home to find that you left him.” Ok, that wasn’t exactly what he said but it was close enough to sum up how he was feeling. “Are you thinking about leaving him Mike?”