When Fate Laughs

Later, he'd realize that he had known all along. But that day, all Shane knew was that he was oddly excited.  No one would have believed that, even if he ever decided to share such an emotion, which he didn't.  There was no reason he should be excited about going out. In fact, he shouldn't be going out at all. Maybe it was Trent's insistence that they go to their friend Ryan's barbecue, but if anything, he should have been nervous. Tamara certainly was. He'd almost asked her to come along for company, they should be together anyway, but he knew she'd refuse, and be angry with him for even asking. Trent was always the wild card of the three of them.  He suspected Trent was having a bad day, which could take the day in a number of directions, none of them good.  Shane just promised her they would be careful and that no matter what, he would make sure he and Trent showed up tomorrow.

Despite Tamara’s concerns, Shane was looking forward to the barbecue.  Perhaps Trent was right and they just needed to relax and have fun for a change. After showering, he laid on his bed, staring at his closet. He decided on a kelly green t-shirt, which Daniella had given him because, as she explained, green was his color. Daniella. He should end that soon. They had only been seeing each other a few months, but Shane knew that despite their implicit monogamous status, it was only a matter of time before she started the "what are we doing" conversation, and he couldn't explain that he was just biding his time. She had started "accidentally" leaving things around his apartment, a toothbrush once, her earrings another time, a pair of shoes (in a bold move, she left those under the coffee table instead of his bedroom). He smiled each time she did it. It usually bothered him, but from her it was somehow endearing. Maybe he was just getting soft, or lonely, or impatient. Luckily, no one had said I love you yet, but he was almost sure she loved him.  If he were a different person he was sure he would be madly in love with her. But he was who he was, and more importantly was who she was not.

As he gave himself a final once over in the mirror, his cell phone rang. "Yeah, I'm just about ready to go." He'd had to shout over the music in the background, which meant Trent had been pre-gaming. By the end of the night, Trent would definitely be drunk, meaning either Shane would have to drive Trent home and crash there, or he would have to drag a loud and obnoxious Trent through his lobby and down his hallway, aggravating his neighbors in the process. Despite the embarrassment, he generally preferred the latter. He could sleep in his own bed, and both he and Trent could leave whenever they wanted to the next day.

"Well come downstairs pretty boy, I'm up the street."

Shane rolled his eyes, but only out of habit. In reality, he was very lucky that he and his brother were so close, despite being complete opposites. He and Trent, and Trent's twin sister Tamara, had always gotten along well despite the age difference, and had only gotten closer after the accident. Shane had always looked up to each of them, and despite almost always being sure of himself, he usually sought their opinion on things. He couldn't ever remember fighting with either of them over anything serious. Trent and Tamara, on the other hand, fought like cats and dogs, but even still would do absolutely anything for each other. Once, when Tamara found her first apartment after college, Trent and Shane spent all day helping her move in, even though Trent and Tamara weren't speaking at the time. It made for a long day since Trent refused to ask her where anything was supposed to go, which meant he and Trent had to work double time when Tamara tried in vain to move boxes back to their correct location. He smiled at the memory. Shane often felt like the big brother when they argued, even though he was five years younger.

As promised, when Shane reached the lobby, Trent was already parked in front. As soon as he slid into the passenger's seat and eyed his brother, Shane knew this was a bad day for Trent. Daniella would have referred to his aura being off, or some such nonsense. Shane didn't know what it was called, or if anyone other than him and Tamara would notice, but what he did know was that Trent would definitely be sleeping in the guest room tonight.

"Baby brother! Glad you showed up at least. I can always count on you. I love that you're so dependable." Shane knew something was wrong when Trent insisted on going out, but he was accustomed to Trent's highs and lows and thought that maybe Trent just didn't want to be alone today. Trent's passive aggressive tone indicated Shane was foolish to brush aside his concerns so casually.

"I'll drive."

"I'm not drunk. I just had two beers before I left."

Shane wasn't sure if that were true, but in any event he didn't care. There were limits. "That's not really the point, is it?"

"Look, I just called my baby brother to see if he wanted to hang out for a few hours. If you want to play Mary Poppins all day, be my guest." Trent jumped out of the SUV and walked around the back of the car, slowly, to the passenger's side. Shane walked around the front of the vehicle. He understood Trent, but that didn't make him any easier to deal with when he was like this.

They rode the entire way in silence, letting the Jay-Z blasting from the stereo and Shane's road rage speak for them instead. Despite his worry about his brother, and the impending dread at Tamara's reaction tomorrow, Shane couldn't help his excitement bubbling up. It made no sense, but he didn't question it. He let himself simply try to enjoy the possibilities of what was to come.