Nick was standing at the kitchen sink when he saw an old pickup truck pull into the driveway. He threw the dish rag down on the counter and continued to stare. His younger brother climbed out and headed towards the front door. Worry was beginning to set in, it was unlike Aaron to just show up unannounced especially when he should be away at college. The brothers both arrived at the front door at the same time, Nick having to unlock the deadbolt before allowing Aaron in.

“What are you doing here?”

“I had to talk to you,” Aaron replied, long fingers going through his blonde hair.

It didn’t sound good, Nick knew immediately something was up. His hands went into the front pocket of his sweatshirt and he motioned with his head towards the living room. They walked one in front of the other until both were seated. Nick was on the recliner, perched as close to the front as he could while Aaron lounged comfortably on the couch.

“So?” Nick finally blurted out, breaking the silence that had washed over the two.

Aaron’s feet pushed back and forth on the carpet, his eyes staring down at his dirty tennis shoes. Nick was about ready to say another word to get his brother to talk when the younger one finally looked up and met his eyes.

“I quit school,” Aaron said quietly.

Nick blinked a few times. “What did you just say?”

The younger of the two took a deep breath and said his words again. He made sure to continue before Nick could say anything. “I took a lot of classes and took a lot of time to think. I know what I want now Nick. I know what I need to be happy. And it’s not to be on some campus far away from home.”

“You can come back after you’ve finished school,” Nick butted in, shaking his head. He stood up and put his hand on his face – just trying to soak in everything Aaron was telling him.

“Too late,” Aaron replied. “I turned in my papers. I’m done. I want to come back home…I want to take over dad’s business.”

Nick’s eyes widened as he turned to look at his brother.

“Listen Nick. I know how to fix cars. Both you and dad have taught me everything there is to know about them. I can fix just about anything with my eyes closed. You know that,” Aaron said, standing up as well. He was fully prepared to plead his case if need be. “I took some business courses, have a certificate in business management. I can handle everything…”

Nick shook his head.

“Why the fuck not?” Aaron shouted. He was getting angry with Nick’s inability to listen to his reasoning.

“Because I said so!” Nick’s temper was matching Aaron’s quickly.

“You are fucking dad you know?!” Aaron shot back. “You don’t have control over my life or what I want to do.”

Nick shook his head. Aaron just wasn’t getting it . He could have everything at his fingertips, a life of ease. Nick didn’t want his little brother to live like he was, struggling to figure things out and continue to take care of business how he believed their parents would have wanted things.

“You need to finish school, have a career…wife, kids…house with a white picket fence…the whole fucking nine yards,” Nick finally said. “I won’t let you settle for anything less.”

Aaron laughed, shaking his head as his hands went to his hips. “You are trying to get me to live out your fucking life…well the one you fucking wanted. Mom and dad are dead Nick. DEAD! That doesn’t mean you or I need to stop living, or…”

Nick didn’t let Aaron finish his sentence before he balled up his fist and punched his brother square in the face. Aaron immediately grabbed his nose, blood oozing out of his fingers.

“You fucker!” Aaron shouted before leaving the room to go get a towel and hold it to his nose. When he came back to the living room, Nick was gone. He decided to give his brother some time to think or do whatever he was doing at the moment.

Going back to the kitchen, Aaron worked on getting his nose to stop bleeding then made sure the nose wasn’t broken. Thankfully it would be fine after the swelling went down. As he was throwing something away, something caught Aaron’s eye. Out the window, he could see Nick moving about in the yard. Apparently he found some way to release his frustration. Aaron watched as Nick chopped several logs and stack them against the shed.

“I guess I’ll cook us some dinner,” Aaron mumbled to himself with a heavy sigh. He walked to the pantry and looked inside. There wasn’t much inside so he opened up the fridge and rolled his eyes. Obviously Nick hadn’t gone to the grocery store in a week or so, the cupboards were bare and all the fridge had in it was some ketchup, an old sandwich and some apples.

“Well fuck…” Aaron complained. He started opening up more cupboards to see what he could find. Finally he spotted two large cans of Chef Boyardee. It was perfect. Grabbing both cans, he found a pan and got everything on the stove. It didn’t take long to heat up and soon Aaron was carrying two full bowls out across the back deck.

“Eat,” was all he said as he handed a heavy bowl towards his brother. Nick looked at Aaron for a moment and then took the steaming bowl into his hands. He watched as Aaron sat down on the back deck and began to eat. It took him a few minutes but he soon joined his brother.

The two remained quiet as they ate their dinner. Finally, Nick stopped and looked over at Aaron. “I’m sorry about hitting you.”

“It’s fine.” Aaron’s reply was short as he continued to eat the rest of his food. He didn’t want some long drawn out apology from Nick. He just wanted his brother to see how it was time to live.

Nick sighed and his eyes fell down onto the nearly empty bowl in his hand. He pushed the spoon handle around with his thumb before saying, “If you really want to take over dad’s shop…then I guess it’s okay.”

Aaron wasn’t expecting that much. His eyes seemed to bug out of his head but when he looked at the seriousness of his brother’s face, he broke out into a grin.

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