BROTHERS (standard:romance, 1242 words)
Author: BENTLINK	Added: Apr 11 2011	Views/Reads: 2876/1898	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
You can count on your older brother when things get tough.

BROTHERS 

“Hello, little brother I thought I might find you here.  How come you
are not at home getting ready for your big day?” 

“Hey Bert, I just needed a little space to get my head right.  I didn't
want to get all quite and worry Betty and the kids so I walked over 
here to look at the river and think a little about things.  They all 
think I am getting a hair cut, funny huh, haircut I mean the hospital 
will shave my head in the morning and then any hair I try to grow back 
will fall out from the chemo and radiation.  You know Bert I am worried 
about this operation because I haven't set aside as much as I wanted to 
for Betty.  If anything happens, the knife slips or the lights go out 
in the middle, well hell you know what I want, right brother?” 

“No, Dan I'm not sure I do know.  Did you say you want me to take care
of your family or are you talking about something else?” 

“Well of course I want you to look after my family but I am also
thinking about after the surgery and if I do not come back.  I mean if 
it's still me but not me you know what I'm talking about I can see it 
on your face.  You must promise if I am not right then you will help me 
out.  I need to know Bert; I need to know you will do what needs to be 
done” 

“I don't want to talk about this any more little brother?  Lets just go
back to the house and order a pizza and drink a beer or two before you 
have to stop eating and drinking for the hospital trip and no more talk 
about after.” 

“Hang on just a minute Bert lets just sit on that bench over there and
look at the river for a little while.  Do you remember when we first 
moved here from over in the country?  Mon and Dad told us how good it 
was going to be.  We were going to have paved streets where we could 
ride our bikes and the bigger school would have all kinds of different 
classes so we would get a better education.  I remember our bikes got 
stolen the second day after we got here and we had a fight almost every 
day after school.  Some days we would have two fights, one on the way 
to school and another on the way home.  You know I never did mind those 
kids calling us hillbillies I sort of felt proud of it after you beat 
the crap out of the ones doing the calling.  You have been the best big 
brother a guy could have.” 

“You never talked that way when I stole you catcher's mitt and I know
you will never forgiven me for wrecking your old ford truck when I went 
on that beer run.” 

“Well yes I sure liked that little yellow truck but I did say you could
use it.  I guess neither of us needed any more beer that night.  We 
need to be getting back else Betty will be worried and sending our kids 
down to the barber shop and then all over looking for me.  You know its 
funny but Betty has not had much to say about my cancer or even let on 
that she is afraid for me.  How is it that women can cry so easy 
sometimes, even over a little thing like burned food or a lost ring and 
then be closed up and hard as those river turtles when a something like 
this cancer comes along? 

“Dan I don't know much about women but I do know everything is going to
work out, you are going to come out of this just like you went in but 
without the cancer.  Now let's go let Betty off the worry hook and you 
can relax with your family.” 

“You know Bert all those fights we had are sort of like this cancer
operation, hard but necessary in order to get home safe.  You always 
made sure I was taken care of and that I got out of harms way.  You 
were always there when it counted, so promise me now that if I am not 
really myself afterward you will do what needs to be done so that I 
don't end up being an embarrassment to you or Betty and the rest of our 
family.  Now there is one more thing and then we can go home.  This is 
the very last thing, I promise.  Do you remember when I was working 
over east at a big power plant job on Three Mile Island? “ 

“Remember hell yes I remember Betty was calling me every day, sometimes
both early and late  to see if I had heard from you. 



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