I Love My Brother Part 2

By Todd

The ride home from the airport is picturesque to say the least. The Sierra Nevada Mountains gently then abruptly rise upon leaving Reno, NV heading towards the California state line. And of course the largest buildings in the city are casinos. I recall seeing my brother take a long hard stare at them casinos. It was merely an afterthought.

Darkness had begun to fall as we arrived at my house. A sense of peace had come over me as soon as the car came to a stop. I was happy to have a member of my family in my home. And for twelve days.

The next morning I had to go to work, so I decided to be the nice brother and give him my car. Not once did the casinos pop into my head. I expected to see my brother when I got off of work later in the afternoon. When I got home, my car nor my brother were present. No worries, I thought, he'll be home soon. My girlfriend came over and we had a nice dinner during which the entire time I quietly wondered where my brother was. At around nine o'clock concern had morphed into a displeasing taste in my mouth then ultimately became anger. Eventually we fell asleep none the wiser on the whereabouts of my most recent visitor, as well as my only mode of transportation.

I was on the phone before I had fully, truly awakened the next morning. The Highway Patrol, the local hospitals, and the Sheriffs Dept. were all checked and rechecked. Anger had dissipated and what remained was deep concern bordering on panic. My girlfriend could sense my uneasiness and chose to keep her distance. Occasionally she would come and put her hand my shoulder and ask if she could help, to which I would repeatedly say no. The morning crept on and still no sign or word or even telephone call from my brother. Why couldn't he just call and say where he is? Is he hurt? Did he go off one of the steep mountain roads? I decided I needed to get some fresh air. The plan was to get on the mountain bikes and head out for a couple of hours. By the time we had gotten our act together and proceeded to go on our bike ride, it was 2:00 pm.

It pulled up like a flash, more like a ghost. It arrived as soon as I exited the house; my car, with my brother inside it. I didn't know whether I wanted to hug him or hit him. Without raising my voice I disappointingly asked him where the hell he was. He proceeded to tell me that he went to the casino and while he was there he had met three girls. At this point I was too interested in which direction this story was heading to be angry. I asked why he didn't call me. Only to be answered with a Sorry dude. He continued with his yarn. The night apparently went well for him. According to him there was consensual fornication with one of the three girls. Immediately the man inside of me took over and congratulated him, which consisted of a high five or two. However afterward, I quietly scolded him with side-to-side headshakes. I love my brother, so I forgave him and moved on.