25
Present, Cleveland, Ohio
It’s Sunday, our first day off since we started working in Cleveland. Ethan’s just finished his workout when I walk out of my bedroom, dressed and jabbing gold earrings into my earlobes.
A phone rings and I tense, worrying that it’s another threatening text message. Which is stupid since I already blocked that number. It isn’t my phone buzzing, though. It’s Ethan’s. Wiping sweat off his neck with a towel, he answers it.
“Hello.” A puzzled smile lights up his face, and I’m suddenly curious to know who’s on the other end. Is it a woman? The green stab of jealousy is so unexpected that I sit down on the couch with a thump.
Ethan’s talking into the phone. “What? Now?!” His voice rises, and his eyes widen in alarm. They snap to our front door like he expects marauding pirates to smash through at any moment. His tension transfers to me so quickly that I jump when heavy pounding sounds on the door.
“Ethan!” a deep voice booms from outside. “Open up.”
My eyes race back to Ethan to gauge his reaction. I’m not sure if I should answer the door or go hide in my closet. The hand holding the phone has dropped to his side, and he’s staring up at the ceiling like he’s having a long, private conversation with God.
The knocking continues. I half rise from the couch, ready to move toward the door, but Ethan beats me there. His hand on the doorknob, he sighs and looks over at me. “It’s my brother. Just…ignore most of what he says.” With that vague statement hanging in the air, Ethan swings the door wide.
A hurricane of a man sweeps into the room, already talking a mile a minute. I instantly see the family resemblance. Same light brown eyes, cleft chin, and full mouth. This man’s eyebrows arch higher, and he’s shorter and stockier than Ethan. If Ethan is rectangular in shape, then this man is more of a square.
“Geez, bro, why’d you take so long? Were you naked? Watching porn?” His baritone voice fills our tiny apartment. He half-embraces, half–choke holds Ethan into something resembling a bear hug. “I’ve been standing out there forev—.”
When the man’s eyes land on me, all movement stops as his mouth falls open in a perfect O. Ethan uses the pause to extract himself out of his brother’s arms, prying them off his neck. His brother snaps back into motion, an enormous grin stretching his face.
“Well, well, well, who do we have here?” he asks, stepping closer to where I stand by the couch. After a quick glance up and down, he turns an approving gaze to Ethan.
I frown, offended, about to respond harshly, when Ethan interjects. “Curt, this is Tiffany, my fellow resident. We’re here working together.” I don’t miss the emphasis he places on the word.
Ethan’s amber eyes meet mine. He sends me a silent plea to calm down. I take in a deep breath, puff out my cheeks, and blow it out. I kick my foot at the threadbare carpet a couple of times and try to control my indignation.
“Tiffany,” Ethan continues his introduction, “this is my brother Curtis, Curt for short.”
I nod my hello, undecided if I like this sibling of Ethan’s.
Curt looks disappointed to find out I’m only Ethan’s co-worker. He shakes his head sadly and tells me, “They didn’t have residents as pretty as you when I was doing neurosurgery. I can tell you that much.”
“Oh…thanks?” I say awkwardly, unused to flattery. “Wait. Aren’t you training in California?” I furrow my brow, confused by his sudden appearance.
“Yeah. I’m at Stanford, getting my Ph.D. in regenerative medicine. I’ve got a few days off, so I came back to surprise my little bro and visit some old friends.” He shoots a warm, affectionate glance at Ethan.
“Oh!” My hand flutters up to my chest as I turn to Ethan. “I can’t believe it never occurred to me before. Your parents live here. Are you going to go visit them? Are they coming here, too?” The thought of meeting Ethan’s parents sparks a minor panic in me.
Curt answers for Ethan. “Our folks are away on a cruise. Mediterranean. It’ll last the entire month.” He turns to Ethan. “You timed that one on purpose, huh?” He jabs Ethan in the ribs with a sharp elbow. It must hurt because Ethan winces.
Curt tells me, “Our dad can be a bit of a—” He leaves the rest unsaid, with me trying unsuccessfully to fill in that blank.
“It’s just a coincidence that I’m here while they’re gone,” Ethan grunts out, body curling around his wounded ribs.
I glance between the brothers, noting their similarities and differences. “How far apart are you? In age, I mean.”
Again, Curt jumps in. “A year and a half. But in elementary school, they moved me forward a grade. So we were always two grades apart.” He claps a heavy hand on Ethan’s shoulder and squeezes hard. “Ethan told you I’m wicked smart, right? Got into Mensa when I was six,” he brags, pushing out his broad chest and throwing his shoulders back.
Surprised, I look to Ethan for confirmation, who rolls his eyes and nods. “It’s annoyingly true. He really did test in when he was six.”
I do a double take when I see Curt’s wide smirk. It’s a mirror image of the one Ethan uses to annoy me.
Curtis flings an arm around Ethan’s shoulder, dragging Ethan down to his height. “I’m a good big brother, though. Did Ethan ever tell you about the time I kicked a kid’s ass for him?” Delight spreads over his face when I shake my head no.
He continues his story, keeping a firm hold on Ethan, who has begun to squirm. “It was all on account of Ethan’s braces and his neck gear.” Curtis chortles. “Remember that, Ethan? How you had to wear that neck thing for an entire year? Goddamn ugly contraption.” Ethan is turning a shade similar to a ripe tomato. “Anyway, I’m allowed to tease Ethan about it because I had to live with his skinny ass. But when another kid in his class started heckling him, calling him metal mouth and stuff like that, I stepped in. I gave the kid a reason to get braces of his own. Popped him right in the old kisser.” He waves a fist in the air.
It’s probably not the right response, but I laugh at the story, which makes Curtis beam and earns me a betrayed look from Ethan.
“That’s funny. I did a similar thing in school. Cracked a kid’s tooth for tormenting my friend,” I admit without thinking, picturing Dominic crying as the principal pulled me off him.
Two sets of amber eyes blink at me in astonishment.
“What?” I say defensively. “It’s okay when a guy does it, but not a girl?”
Curtis eases up on Ethan, allowing him to stand to his full height. Rubbing his neck, a sheepish Ethan admits, “That is kind of a double standard.”
“Damn right it is!” proclaims Curt. He points to me. “You give ’em hell whenever you want, Red.”
Guess both brothers like to assign nicknames. I sigh inwardly, already knowing that I’m going to be called Red for the rest of the day.
The brothers continue to razz each other, alternating which one of them tells me silly stories about their childhood. They’re trying to outdo each other. Ethan ranges from looking mortified to happy. Curtis is hysterical, saying the most outrageous things. They’ve soon got me in stitches, laughing until my stomach hurts. I’m enjoying this brotherly interaction. As an only child, I’ve never seen siblings this close up before. It’s a bit like watching lion cubs play with each other at the zoo. The same rough housing with a hint of aggression.
We order in for lunch, play card games, and put on a baseball game to watch with beers in our hands. I contemplate giving the men time alone, but they automatically include me in every activity. It’s nice, being enveloped in their familiarity and treated almost like a family member.
At one point, when Ethan goes to the bathroom, Curtis tells me in a hushed voice, “You guys are lucky to have Ethan in your residency. He’s supersmart and hardworking. Plus, he’s nice, too nice if you ask me.”
Curt stares at me with calculating eyes, begging me to contradict him. I don’t. He continues, “When Ethan left here, several nurses cried. Real tears. Of course, some of them just wanted in his pants. Lucky bastard got the better looks, but still, they didn’t want him to leave. That’s how great he is.”
“Do you ever tell Ethan those things?” I whisper back, hoping Ethan will stay in the bathroom and not interrupt this conversation. “The nice things you just said about him, about being smart and hardworking.” I add, “Not the getting in his pants part.” Given the flatness of Ethan’s voice when he talks about his family, I have the impression he doesn’t always feel like he belongs with them. If he knew how Curt views him, it might heal some of that hurt.
Curtis snorts in response. “You’re clearly an only child, Red. Brothers don’t do that. We don’t say sweet stuff to each other unless Mom makes us.” I’m about to convince him that’s stupid when Ethan returns and we drop it.
At twilight, Curtis offers to play catch with Ethan at the park down the street.
“Why?” Ethan scoffs. “You know I’m way better than you.”
“Yes.” Curtis sends exaggerated head nods and eye flicks toward me. He lowers his voice. “I’m trying to make you look good in front of the beautiful lady, you dumbass.”
I act like I’m not listening and pretend I don’t notice the blush that spreads over Ethan’s cheeks.
In a songlike voice, Curt calls, “You’re coming along, too. Right, Red?”
I’m already reaching for my sneakers. “I wouldn’t miss it.”
Both men smile at me, so pleased it makes me freeze. I’m not used to making people this happy. It feels a bit like responsibility.
Ethan produces a worn baseball and glove that I’ve never seen before. When I give him a questioning squint, he shrugs, trying, and failing, to appear casual. “Keep it in the bottom of my suitcase.”
We are off to the park. As the sun sets behind them, blazing warm red, pink, and yellow, the brothers throw the ball back and forth. I watch them from the bleachers, holding a hand up to shade my eyes.
Curtis was right. Ethan looks good with the ball and glove in his hand. A gentle wind tugs on his clothing, pressing his shirt tight against his muscular chest. His biceps flex, straining his sleeve, as he sends the ball with near-perfect accuracy across the field. It’s a little hard not to stare. When I pry my eyes away and see Curtis watching me with a sly grin, my cheeks warm and I know they’re turning the same color as the sunset.