Chapter Eleven

"He Thinks He's A Bat!"

"Wow, she's hot!" Zac sighed in utter desperation, hanging upside down off the couch.

"You go kick his ass!" cheered Taylor breathily, practically salivating.

"Yeah, knock the vampire dude down!" agreed Zac.

On the TV screen, Sarah Michelle Gellar rammed a stake through some dead guy's heart.

"You go, Buffy!" crowed Zac.

"And he's gone!" Taylor jumped to his feet, pumping his fist in the air. "He's back to his skanky, smelly, sweaty, disgusting, rotting, horrible, dirty-"

"Describing Zac again?" asked Isaac from the doorway, an amused smile playing on his lips.

Taylor flushed. "Uh, no. Just the vampire's grave."

"You two on Buffy overdrive again?" Isaac raised his eyebrows, then looked behind him. "Come on in, Rhia. Don't mind the family idiots."

"Hey guys," grinned Rhia, walking into the room and perching beside Isaac on the couch.

"Hi Rhia," mumbled Taylor and Zac in unison.

"Is there any particular reason you're hanging upside down?" Isaac asked Zac.

"Nope."

"Thought not." Isaac rolled his eyes. "Honestly," he said to Rhia, "you'd think by the time he was thirteen he'd at least be able to sit upright."

Zac stuck his tongue out in response.

"And there we go again…a prime example of maturity - sticking your tongue out at your big brother!"

Rhia laughed, slipping off her tennis shoes and tucking her feet up underneath her on the sofa. "Aww, he's cute."

Zac grinned charmingly. "Why, thankyou, Rhia. I find you rather attractive myself. Hear that, Ike? I'm cute. Nur-de-nur!"

Taylor leaned forward, face to face with his brother. "Zac, I think you should sit up now. You're kinda red in the face."

"No, I like hanging upside down."

"Great," muttered Isaac. "My little brother has an identity crisis - he thinks he's a bat!"

"And when did I ever say that? Huh?" challenged Zac, holding out his hand. He'd decided that he did feel a little queasy, having hung upside down for a good few minutes.

"Zac, let it go." Taylor took hold of Zac's hand and pulled him up to a sitting position.

Zac shrugged. "Okay. I'll save Ike the humiliation of me beating him again."

"You wish, Animal." Isaac leaned back against the couch.

"No, Ike, you wish."

"Guys, I need to talk to you." Mr Hanson burst into the room.

"Hey, Dad." Taylor sounded surprised.

"Do you want me to go?" asked Rhia.

"No, no, Rhia, you can stay. It's hardly private any more."

"What isn't?" Taylor had spied the newspaper in his dad's hands and had a horrible feeling that it was something to do with this dramatic entrance. But he hadn't snuck into any nightclubs; he hadn't gotten drunk since Josh's party… Oh, no! Taylor thought. Nobody can have found out about that…only Zac knows… "I didn't do anything," he said holding his hands up in mock-surrender.

Mr Hanson gave a nervous laugh. "No, Tay, you didn't, buddy. Look, sit down."

Isaac frowned. "Dad, we are sitting down. You sit down."

His father laughed nervously again. "Ah, yes. Look, guys, there's no easy way to say this. I think we need to schedule a press conference."

"Why?" asked Zac cagily, almost scared of the answer.

Mr Hanson sat in the armchair. "There's been a report written…in quite a few papers…"

"What does it say?" asked Isaac. He was getting worried now.

"Well," started Mr Hanson uncertainly. "It specifically involves Tay and Zac. Umm…"

"Dad, come on!" Isaac prompted, sounding frustrated.

"Well, it says here that…um…that you two are sexually involved with one another." He turned red. "And they have this picture." He held up the paper. There, on the page, was a large photo of Taylor and Zac in the alcove at that clothing store at the mall.

Taylor gasped, a look of panic spreading across his face.

Mr Hanson cleared his throat and continued, looking suitably embarrassed. "It says how their reporter spotted you at the mall and followed you. Apparently, he caught you in women's clothes, Zac, then he went on the witness a "passionate and emotional display of affection" between the two of you."

Taylor bit his lip, hanging his head in shame. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

"I'm not!" announced Zac angrily. "What we did at the mall that day is none of anyone else's damn business! And if I choose to be an upstanding citizen and be there for my brother when he needs me most, no matter how emotional and affectionate it might be, then I will. I'm not gonna apologize for loving my brother. Last time I checked, it wasn't a crime."

Everyone sat in an uncomfortable silence. Mr Hanson twisted his mustache between his thumb and his forefinger; Rhia looked at the ground; Isaac appeared to be deep in thought and Taylor was staring down at his lap, a tear sliding slowly down his face. Zac leaned over and put an arm around him, pulling him close.

Finally, Mr Hanson spoke. "I'm proud of you guys."

"You are?" Zac looked at his father in utter astonishment.

"Especially you, Zac. I mean, I don't know why Tay's been upset the past few weeks, but I do know that around the time of that mall trip, he started to get a lot better. Whatever you were doing in this picture, it worked. It's nice to know that you guys know how to take care of each other." He smiled. "If we schedule a press conference, and you say that, it'll all be great."

"You think?" Taylor stared up at his father through watery blue eyes.

Mr Hanson stared right back at his second-oldest son. He had no idea what exactly Taylor had been going through these past few months, and he wasn't going to press his son for the gory details. He would tell him if he wanted to, in his own time. But he did know that whatever had happened had hurt Taylor incredibly. All those days - weeks, even - spent up in his room, quietly sobbing his way through the next melancholy CD and box of Kleenex, not communicating with anyone. He also knew that Isaac and Taylor had fallen out over the situation; he could tell because Isaac had mooched around the place looking like someone had just told him his dog was dead.

Whatever Taylor had gone through, it had been bad. But lately, Taylor seemed to be perking up a bit. Okay, so maybe he wasn't the personification of sugar 'n' spice 'n' all things nice, but there had been a noticeable improvement.

All the same, Walker Hanson knew that, right now, Taylor was fragile. Taylor had always been fragile. Isaac and Zac were much tougher, much more resilient than the brother between them. Taylor was more sensitive - not that Isaac and Zac weren't sensitive, and not that Taylor was a simpering, helpless weakling, just that he had to be approached with more caution and care. Given a whole lot of love, Taylor was the happiest, sweetest guy imaginable. But when he felt that he was unloved, people had to do their absolute best to prove that he was important to them. Obviously, Zac had found some brilliant way of showing his love for his brother, and that had helped him through this. Unfortunately, some trashy tabloid reported had also found Zac's brilliant way of showing his love for his brother, and was now spreading horrendous untruths, which could tear the family apart. With Taylor in this precariously fragile state, anything could turn him back to the depths of his bedroom, feeling depressed, unloved and unworthy.

Just looking at his son, the cornflower blue eyes filled with unshed tears, and the trail that that one single escaped tear had left down his flushed cheek on his otherwise pale face, Mr Hanson felt his heart sink. He knew how ruthless the paparazzi could be. But he had to be strong for his sons, all three of them. "Yes, Taylor," he finally replied. "I think so. You three have been through scandals before."

"But this is different!" cried Taylor. "They think we're in love with each other!"

Mr Hanson shook his head sadly. "It makes you wonder what the world's coming to, when brothers can't even express their love for one another."

"It's sad!" Isaac jumped to his feet, suddenly jerking back to life after speaking for the first time since the breaking of the news. "I say we go to that press conference and give them hell!"

"Ike, don’t be an idiot!" Rhia grabbed his arm, pulling him back down onto the couch.

"I dunno, Rhia. That's exactly what I feel like doing," admitted Zac.

"Well, we're not going to." Mr Hanson got to his feet. "We're going to arrange a press conference, sort all this rubbish out and then continue like nothing's happened."

"I hope you're right, Dad," Taylor said quietly, looking up at his dad in his clear blue eyes.

Mr Hanson looked down at his son, feeling an ache deep in his heart. So do I, Tay, he thought. So do I.

***

The press conference was scheduled for the following Tuesday. That morning, Isaac sat alone in the bathroom at the small restaurant they were holding the conference at. Nobody saw the need for a big, Planet Hollywood style arrangement, as they were only dealing with local newspapers for the time being.

He sighed, smoothing back his ponytail with his sweating hands. Ike had to admit that he was more than a little nervous about appearing in public. They hadn't done so since the mall appearance, when Taylor had walked out, leaving Isaac and Taylor to deal with a couple of hundred angry fans and a livid set of parents.

But this was different. This was actually hurting them. Okay, so Taylor's disappearing act hadn't exactly done them any favors, but this… Isaac rested his chin is his hands, staring at the sticker on the cubicle door, telling him to wash his hands once he was done using the bathroom. This stuff had really gotten to Taylor. It wasn't the same kind of thing he'd had with Gabbie, like he wasn't crying for days on end, but he had been very quiet and subdued, and doing a lot of thinking. Isaac knew that he was blaming himself for this mess, feeling that if he hadn't been so upset, then Zac wouldn't have needed to comfort him and everything would have been fine. Isaac and Zac had reassured him time and time again that it was not his fault at all, and that if he couldn't turn to his brothers for some love and support, who could he turn to? But, as usual, Taylor wouldn't listen, and so he'd been going around with his 'woe is me' face on.

Right now, Taylor was freaking out in the backstage side room the restaurant had provided. Hence the reason Isaac was shut in the poky, two-cubicle bathroom. He'd just had to get away, or Taylor would have ended up making him very nervous as well, and Isaac knew that Zac could get him to calm down.

Just then, there was a squeak as the door to the bathroom pushed open. "Ike? Ike, are you in here?" There was a knock on the cubicle door.

Isaac leaned over and unlocked the door.

"Hi." Zac walked in and shut the door behind him, leaning against it and sitting on the floor. "What's up?"

Isaac sighed. "Nothing. I'm just not sure I'm ready for this. I mean, they're gonna eat you and Tay alive over this, you realize that, don't you?"

Zac nodded. "Yeah."

"I just don't want to see you guys get hurt, y'know?"

Zac took his hand and squeezed it. "Thanks, Ike, that's sweet."

Isaac smiled. "Are we on?"

"Mmm-hmm. Come on, Ike. It'll be okay. We can handle it."

"I know you can, but can Tay?" Isaac frowned, worry-lines creasing his forehead.

Zac pressed his lips together, thinking hard. "You know what, Ike? I think he can. I think he's stronger than we give him credit for, and I think that if we're there for him, and they don't go hounding specifically him, then he'll be okay."

Isaac nodded slowly. "Yeah, I think you're right, Zac."

Zac grinned. "Of course I am!"

Isaac shook his head. "Come on!"

They left the dank bathroom, blinking in the bright lights of the hallway. Taylor was standing outside. "Where have you guys been?!"

"Call of nature," lied Zac. "Are we ready to do this?"

"We're ready," replied Isaac and Taylor in unison.

"Okay." Zac laid his hand out in front of him and Isaac and Taylor placed first one and hand, then the other on top of Zac's. "Let's do this! Squash on three!"

"Squash?" asked Taylor, wrinkling his nose.

"Yeah, squash. As in squash the rumors. Or the journos. I don't really care which," explained Zac. "One…two…three…"

"SQUASH!" they shouted together.

"Good luck, guys." Mrs Hanson kissed them each on the cheek. "Go get 'em."

Isaac, Taylor and Zac ran out on to their platform, camera snapping and flashes blinding them with every step of the way. They took their seats behind the large wooden desk, purposely sitting Taylor in between Isaac and Zac, as the latter knew that he would need the most support of the three.

Isaac decided to start. "Hey. We've decided to hold this conference because we think that there are some rumors that have been written about us that need cleared up. These rumors have been very distressing to us, as a band and as a family, so we hope that today, things can be straightened out."

"Taylor, Zac, are you gay?" yelled a woman in red, cutting Isaac off.

Zac looked reassuringly at Taylor, then leaned forward, speaking into his microphone. "No."

"Then what exactly were you doing at the clothing store?"

"Looking for clothes," replied Zac, taking a sip of his water.

Isaac hid a smile. Zac was doing great. He could even see that Taylor was looking slightly amused and was beginning to calm down.

"Besides that."

"Not much really. We bought some ice cream, walked around a little…"

"Mr Hanson, I am referring to this picture!" The lady held up the picture of Taylor and Zac embracing. "Explain that."

Zac took another long drink of his water. "No," he said finally.

"Mr Hanson, what are you and your brother doing in this picture?!" The journalist was starting to sound exasperated.

"Hunting for the Red October."

Isaac almost choked on the water he was drinking, but decided that he'd better intervene before Zac said something offensive. Again. "I think that should remain private between my younger brothers."

"So they've got something to hide?" The lady stood up, a challenging look on her face.

"I think they have," chimed in a bearded man. "I think they're gay."

"Yeah," agreed a man in a Mickey Mouse tie.

Taylor lowered his head, forcing back the tears that were welling in his eyes. Crying in public was hardly going to disprove that he was gay. But it hurt. It hurt to think that he couldn't turn to his brothers for support without some idiotic journalist twisting it into something disgusting and horrible. If they were saying he was gay, Taylor could cope with that. He certainly wasn't homophobic, and felt nothing but respect and admiration for people who'd decided to go public. But saying that he was gay with his little brother was just sick. He bit his lip, tasting the blood spreading through his mouth. But he didn’t care. All he cared about was getting out of that press conference.

Zac glanced sideways at Taylor. He looked like he'd rather be getting seven fillings at the dentist without the Novocaine injection than doing this. Shaking his head, Zac leaned forward. "Look. We are not gay together. Taylor is my brother. I'm allowed to hug him without it meaning anything…um, shall we say…sexual."

"I don't do that sort of thing with my brother!" yelled the guy with the beard.

"Then I feel sorry for you," shrugged Isaac. "The three of us pride ourselves on having such a close relationship. If you guys find that odd, then it's you that have the problem. Not us."

"Taylor, you're not saying much. What are your thoughts on the matter?" asked a young woman in a black suit.

Taylor looked helplessly at Zac. "Um, well, I agree with Ike. We didn't do anything wrong."

"But are you really such a wimp that you have to rely on your brothers so much?" The man in the beard jumped to his feet. "I mean, it's pretty obvious that he's the one in control of whatever sordid little sexual thing you guys have going. He's - what - two and a half years younger than you are? This is disgusting, Mr Hanson, disgusting. Public displays of affection like this? Oh, no, I'm sorry, not acceptable. I think people like you need locked up!"

Taylor stared at him for a moment, wondering what the connection between getting a hug from your brother and going to jail was. Then the man's harsh words hit home and Taylor reached the end of the line. "I'm sorry," he choked out, pushing back his seat and running off the stage, walking out on his second public appearance in a row.

An excited murmur bubbled amongst the crowd of bloodthirsty reporters, each whispering their own theories on why Taylor had run off like that.

Isaac and Zac sat helplessly on their chairs, seeing Taylor collapse into his mom's arms at the side of the stage. Mrs Hanson looked at them over her distraught son's shoulder, urging them to go on. Isaac shifted into Taylor's seat, figuring that brotherly solidarity might be of some help.

"Ike, let me handle this, okay?" whispered Zac.

"Are you sure?" frowned Isaac.

"Trust me." Zac looked Isaac right in the eye, and Isaac had to agree.

Zac stood up, leaning over the desk and speaking straight down the microphone. "Look what you did." He pronounced each word carefully and slowly. "Look what you did. You guys want the truth?" He saw every single reporter in the hall perk up, pens poised over notebooks, legal pads and clipboards. "Okay, you got the truth. Tay's had a hard time lately. I'm not going into details, because, quite honestly, it's none of your business. I was simply there for him. We happened to be at the mall when he reached his breaking point. He needed a hug. A hug is what he got. And I'm glad I was the one to give him what he needed. If I can't be there for my brother, who can I be there for? And if he can't turn to me, who can he turn to? And if you guys do or say one more thing to get any of my family in tears again…"

"What, Zac?" taunted the lady in red. "You'll call us transvestites like you did last time? Or maybe you'll kick us like you seem to perpetually do to photographers."

"That was two years ago," Zac pointed out. "I've grown up."

"Yeah, and out!" sniggered someone.

Zac stood stone still, and Isaac jumped in. "Look, you've already gotten one of my brothers in tears today. Don't do the same to Zac."

"You know what?" spoke up Zac quietly, sadly, even. "You know what? Screw you all! That's right…screw you! And you! And you! The whole lot of you. Who exactly are you to be judging me or my family? You're all trashy tabloid journos. You don't have a hope in hell of winning the Pulitzer Prize!"

"Zac…" Isaac placed a hand on his arm, hoping to restrain his brother.

"No, Ike! Just who do they think they are? If my brother is down and needs some love and support, I should be able to give it to him without all this crap! And judging me by size…hello! It's called growing up! I think before any of you judge me or my brothers, you should go home and take a long, hard look at yourself."

With that, Zac spun on his heel and stomped offstage.

Isaac hung his head, meekly following behind him. The Hanson press conference of August, 1999 was officially a disaster.

***

"Was it really that bad?" Rhia rolled over on Zac's bed, looking across at Isaac, who was lying stretched out on Taylor's bed.

"It was worse." Isaac buried his head in his folded arms. "I've never seen such a disaster in all our seven years of performing!"

Rhia moved over on to Taylor's bed, rubbing Isaac's back gently. "Are you mad at them?"

Isaac sat up, facing his best friend. "No. I'm mad at the journos. Not Tay and Zac. Just the journos. I really can't believe that they'd pick on two little kids like that!"

"Ike, honey, they're not little kids. They're sixteen and thirteen," Rhia pointed out cautiously.

Isaac pushed his hair back. "I know. But they're my kid brothers, Rhia. Even when we're in our fifties, they'll still be my kid brothers. And you know what? There wasn't a single damned thing up there that I could do to stop those hounds from hurting them." He looked sadly at Rhia.

"Is this what this is about?" Rhia asked gently.

Isaac nodded, not trusting himself to speak without rambling on and on unwittingly about the situation.

Rhia reached out and took his hands in hers. "Ike, they're growing up. They're not the little kids who you used to share baths with, or change their diapers and stuff. You have to let go; let them make their own mistakes and stick up for themselves. You can't protect then forever. You gotta let go, sweetie."

Isaac shook his head sadly. "I'm not ready to let go, Rhia."

Rhia wrapped her arms around him, pulling his close and holding him against her chest. "Ike…"

"But, Tay, Rhia…he's not ready…he needs me…and Zac."

"He does," agreed Rhia. "And you can't let go totally. But when they want to do stuff on their own, you have to let them. It’s for their own good. And you can't feel bad whenever horrible things happen to them, like today. That wasn't your fault at all. You know that?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, Ike, they're growing up, but they're not growing away from you. They'll always need you, always want you. But they can't be dependent on you. If it helps, you guys are the closest group of brothers I know."

"Really?" Isaac looked up at her.

"Sure. You guys have a bond that I wish I had with Neil."

"You and Neil are close."

"Were close," corrected Rhia. "He's been acting weird, Ike. But we're not talking about Neil and me. Do you know what I mean, with Tay and Zac?"

"Yeah, I think I do."

Rhia smiled, squeezing Isaac closer to her briefly. "Where are they?"

"Getting a lecture from Mom and Dad about why you shouldn't let the opinions of petty small-minded junky journos get them down and how they should be more like me. Which means I'm an insensitive clod."

"No, it doesn't, and you know it, Clarke Isaac Hanson!" Rhia laughed. "It means you're more mature and more grown up."

"Ike, grown up? Yeah, right!"

"Hey, Zac," grinned Isaac, as Zac threw himself down on his bed.

"Look, if you guys wanna increase the population of Tulsa, please don't do it on my bed!" Taylor flopped down beside Zac on the bed.

Rhia blushed, letting go of Isaac. "He needed a hug," she explained. "Ike here is suffering from an acute case of Big Brother Blues."

Zac raised his eyebrows. "And that would be…"

"He feels bad cos you guys got stick at that conference."

"Rhia!" hissed Isaac. "They didn't need to know!"

"Sure they did," protested Rhia mildly. "They can tell you that they're fine and none of this is your fault."

Taylor crinkled his forehead. "Ike, you don't seriously think that was your fault, do you?"

Isaac shrugged. "Well, I didn't do anything to stop it."

"There wasn't anything you could do, Ike. They were out to get us. And get us they did."

"But, Tay, they got you in tears. I'm your big brother. I should've been able to stop it."

Taylor shifted over to his bed, sitting next to Isaac. He put his hand on his shoulder. "Ike, you're right. You're our big brother. You're not God, Moses or any other miracle worker. You did all you could and helped just by being there."

"He's right," agreed Zac, nodding his head slowly.

"Really?" asked Isaac.

"Yes." Taylor grinned, squeezing Isaac's shoulder. "If you weren't there, it would've been worse."

"Really?"

"Definitely." Zac rolled over and peered at Isaac, who was now appearing upside-down in his vision.

"We need you there, Ike. You're like our grasp on reality," smiled Taylor. "So don't go telling yourself you’re useless, okay? We need you, don't we, Zac?"

"Yep," muttered Zac.

"I need you guys, too." Isaac looked at Taylor and Zac, feeling incredibly soppy and ridiculous.

Taylor squeezed his brother's shoulder one more time, then flopped heavily back down on Zac's bed, making a loud popping sound.

"Yeah, yeah, just break my bed, why don't you?" muttered Zac.

"Oops. Sorry, Zac."

Zac shrugged, rolling right way up again.

"Are you guys okay now?" asked Isaac.

Taylor nodded. "I feel really silly."

"Don't, Tay. You didn't have to sit there and take that." Zac looked at his brother, his caramel eyes warm and friendly. "I wouldn't have…oh, wait, I didn't."

Taylor ruffled Zac's hair, ignoring the agitated look on his brother's face. "Nope, Zac, you didn't."

"Taylor! Zac!" Mrs Hanson's voice floated upstairs.

Taylor and Zac heaved themselves off the bed and ran downstairs, leaving Isaac and Rhia alone in the room again.

"See, dummy," grinned Rhia, leaning close to Isaac. "I told you they still needed you."

"Oh, Rhia," sighed Isaac. "What would I do without you?"

"Probably live a meaningless, empty existence," Rhia giggled, her emerald green eyes dancing.

Isaac joined in the laughter, reaching out and squeezing Rhia's arm.

Instantly, Rhia stopped laughing, and winced.

"Did I hurt you?" asked Isaac, anxiously.

"No, no," Rhia assured him.

"Rhia, you're almost crying, let me take a look."

"No, I'm fine," protested Rhia.

Isaac grabbed her arm and yanked up her sleeve.

"Isaac! I said no!" snapped Rhia, jerking her arm away and her sleeve down.

But not before Isaac saw the huge, purple bruise on her arm. "How'd you do that?"

Rhia laughed nervously, sounding strained. "It was silly really..."

"What was?" persisted Isaac.

"This…I…I…walked into the banister. God, I'm so dumb!" Her voice was filled with false cheerfulness, and she slapped her hand to her forehead.

"Is that really what happened?"

"Yeah!" Rhia laughed brightly. "I'm a klutz, Ike, you know that. Anyway, I have to go. I'll see you later!" she called, running out of the room.

Isaac frowned after her, thinking hard. Rhia's banisters in her house weren't tall enough to hit her as high up as the bruise had been. Sure, the upper part of Rhia's arm was pretty fleshy, and therefore would bruise easily, but that was a sore one. There was something funny about it, Isaac thought. But was there anything he could really do about it without annoying Rhia?

***

Zac lay back on the red sleeping bag, squinting through the gap between the boards of the timber at the gradually darkening sky. He was lying in his treehouse, waiting for Libby. They were getting into a set routine now, being used to the secret sessions mostly every night. Zac would wait in the treehouse, and some time between seven-thirty and eight, Libby would sneak up, and they would talk and make out until they called it quits.

At first, meeting at Libby's had seemed like a good idea, until Libby's mother had torn down the treehouse, saying that Libby was getting a little old to be playing up trees. So they'd reverted to the Hanson treehouse, praying for no disturbances, and besides Jessica walking in on them once, they'd been fine.

Sighing, Zac closed his eyes. Things between Libby and himself had been hotting up nicely over the past few months, and now that the temperature was dropping, and the days were getting shorter as summer turned to fall, they had the perfect excuse to snuggle down together under the stars. It was so romantic, and it felt so right. Zac didn't even care any more that Libby was still seeing Corey. As long as he got to see her, everything was great.

He really thought he loved her. Everything about her was just…perfect. The way she screwed up her nose when she didn't like something, the way she chewed her thumbnail when she was lying, the way little wispy bits of hair curled around her face… Zac could go on forever, listing all the things he loved about Libby. Even when she wasn't there, like just now, he could feel her presence beside him and that made him feel all warm inside. Zac Hanson was finally falling in love.

"Hey!" Libby appeared at the top of the stairs, joining him on the sleeping bag and planting a kiss on his cheek.

"Hey, yourself," murmured Zac, pulling her down close to him and wrapping his arms around her.

Libby kissed him for few minutes, teasing his tongue with her own, then abruptly pulled back.

"What's up?" asked Zac, confused.

Libby pushed back her brown hair. "I'm bored. Don't you get bored just lying here, night after night, just making out?"

"No," shrugged Zac.

"Well, I do."

"Gee, thanks, Lib."

"No, Zac, don't get me wrong," protested Libby. "You're a great kisser." She smiled. "A phenomenal kisser. But tonight, I wanna go for a walk or something."

"Okay," agreed Zac.

They left the treehouse and the Hanson's backyard, their arms wrapped around one another.

After walking in silence for about twenty minutes, Libby spoke up, frowning. "I thought all the cars were in the drive tonight?"

"They were," replied Zac. "My parents are in, and Ike and Tay have got this dumb obsession with fixing up this old radio we found in the basement."

"But there's Honey and Ike up there."

Zac swore softly, staring at his brother's girlfriend getting very, very physical with someone who definitely was not his brother. "Lib, that's not Ike."

"No way." Libby shook her head. "You mean she's…"

"Yeah. She's cheating on him. We know."

"You know?"

Zac sighed. "Remember Josh's party? Well, me and Tay found them there. That's Scott Allcorn. You know him?"

"He's on the school football team, I think."

"Yeah. Well, he's Honey's ex."

"Wow, does Ike know?"

"Nope. We decided not to tell him. I don’t want to hurt him."

Libby turned to Zac, staring right into his warm, brown eyes. "Zac, baby, don't you think that you're hurting him more by not telling him? I mean, he probably thinks that Honey's at home or at a relative's or something, and she's out fooling around with Action Man here."

Zac leaned his head on Libby's shoulder. "It'll kill him, Lib. Ike's had a crush on Honey for like three years."

Libby rubbed the back of his neck. "I know it's hard, baby, but you gotta be cruel to be kind."

"I know," sighed Zac.

"So you'll tell him?"

"Yeah. He's tough, I guess. He can take it. We've been through worse than this, after all those rumors after the press conference last month."

"He can handle it," Libby assured him.

As Zac watched Honey disappear down the alleyway, kissing Scott as they walked, he just hoped Libby was right.

***

"Ike, it doesn't go there!"

"Where does it go then, Mastermind?" asked Isaac, wielding the screwdriver like a knife at Taylor.

"It goes here," Taylor told him superiorly. He connected the wire around the screw, then tightened it, taking the screwdriver from Isaac. "See?" He grinned as the radio crackled to life.

"Calling all units! Backup required at Thompson's Jewelers on Independence! About to foil armed robbery!"

"Oh, nice going, Tay. We picked up police radio!" Isaac rolled his eyes.

"Cool, huh?"

"It's illegal!"

"Aww, Ike, nobody's gonna know."

"Tay, I'm not-"

"Ike, you're so boring!"

"It's-"

"Come-"

"No, I-"

The doorbell rang, interrupting them interrupting each other.

"I'll get that," called Isaac, jogging to the door. Pulling it open, he was surprised to see Martin Gibson on his porch. He wasn't a regular caller to the house. "Hey, man, what's up?" asked Isaac.

"Hey, Ike. I need to see your brother."

"Which brother?" asked Isaac. "If it's Zac, you're outta luck."

"No, it's Taylor."

"Okay, sure, he's in the kitchen. We're fixing up this old radio, but the dumb-ass has managed to pick up police radio. Wanna join us?"

Martin shook his head. "Look, Ike," he said, sounding impatient. "Can you send him out here? This is kinda private."

Isaac pursed his lips, surprised. What sort of secret did Taylor have going on with Martin Gibson? As far as Ike knew, Taylor didn't like the Gibsons much at all. He'd never really hung out with Martin, as Martin was two years his elder. Ike hung out with him more, yet he still wasn't very close to him. This whole situation was puzzling him. "Sure," he replied slowly. "I'll just get him."

He walked back through to the kitchen, finding Taylor fiddling with the radio, which he'd dismantled again. "Tay, Martin's out there to see you."

"Martin?" Taylor looked blank.

"Yeah, Martin Gibson."

"Oh, right. What does he want?"

Isaac shrugged. "Says it's private."

Taylor frowned, then left the kitchen without saying a word, closing the front door behind him.

Isaac walked out of the kitchen, planning to go upstairs to his room, but as he walked past the front door, he noticed that Taylor hadn't shut the door properly behind him. He didn't usually eavesdrop on people's private conversations, but there was just too much intrigue surrounding this whole thing.

He crept towards the door, and crouched behind it, making sure he was hidden from view. He couldn't see either Martin or Taylor, but he could hear them clear as day.

"Katie?" Taylor was saying. "What have I done to Katie?"

"You slept with her!" growled Martin. "She's fifteen, you shit-head!"

Isaac raised his eyebrows. Taylor had slept with Katie? Hardly likely; he couldn't stand the girl.

"I did not!" Taylor protested.

"She says you did," retorted Martin staunchly.

"When?" Taylor walked past the crack in the door, and Isaac saw him throw his hands in the air.

"Josh's party."

Isaac could hear Taylor suck his breath in sharply. Could Katie possibly be telling the truth?

"Look," began Taylor, "I didn't sleep with her. We came pretty close, but I stopped it."

Isaac practically toppled over. Taylor had almost slept with Katie? This was news to him!

"And you think that makes everything alright?" cried Martin. "You know how hung up she is on you!"

"Is that my problem?" asked Taylor.

"You encouraged her!"

Isaac had to agree with that one.

"So how far did you guys go?" continued Martin. "Were all your clothes still on?"

Isaac could practically hear his brother squirming.

"Not exactly," he answered in a small voice.

"And are you proud of it?" yelled Martin.

"Look, it was a mistake!" shouted Taylor. "A huge, horrible mistake! It didn't mean anything, we were both tipsy and I apologized!"

"You apologized? You apologized!" Martin laughed a short, bitter laugh. "Oh, well, that's okay then. As long as you apologized, it doesn't matter that she's hardly spoken to anyone for more than a month! It doesn't matter that she barely comes out of her room! It doesn't matter that she's turned down five dates this past month! As long as you apologized!" He walked back past the door, blocking Isaac's view before hissing, "You bastard! You low-down, self-obsessed bastard! As long as you get what you need, it doesn't matter about Katie! It doesn't matter that you leave her there crying! As long as it suits you!"

"No, Martin, I-"

"You bastard!" Martin yelled it this time and there was a loud crashing noise.

Isaac jumped to his feet and burst through the door, frozen to the spot when he saw what had happened.

Taylor was lying sprawled on the porch, blood spewing from his nose and mouth. Martin was sitting on top of him, fist raised to hit him again.

Taylor coughed; Martin was a big guy. "Martin," he choked. "Don't…"

"Don't what?" Martin's eyes were flashing angrily.

Taylor cowered in fear. He didn't think he'd been so scared in his whole life.

Martin began to lower his fist.

Isaac suddenly regained control. "NO!!!!" he yelled, rushing towards them. He grabbed Martin by the shirt. "You get off my brother. Now!"

"This little shit raped my sister!"

"Don't be an idiot. He didn't even sleep with her."

"But he told her he would!" Martin glared at Isaac.

"Look, get off him! You'll break his ribs!" shouted Isaac.

Martin grabbed Taylor by the shirt, lifted his head and banged it off the porch one more time.

Taylor's eyes closed in pain and a groan escaped his lips.

Martin rolled off him, getting to his feet.

"You stay the hell away from my brother," warned Isaac, his tone hard.

Martin kicked Taylor in the ribs, a sickening crack caused by his heavy boots. "And you, you little bastard, stay the hell away from my sister!" He turned and stomped off the porch, climbing into his car, revving the engine and screeching away at top speed.

Taylor moaned, the tears that he had ordered himself not to spill whilst Martin was there finally welling up in his eyes. He rolled over on to his side, the pain blatantly obvious on his ashen face.

Isaac knelt down beside his brother. "Tay? Can you hear me?"

Taylor nodded weakly, clutching onto his sides.

Feeling terrible, Isaac pulled Taylor close to him, stroking his hair. "It's okay, Taybear. You'll be okay."

"I didn't sleep with her, Ike," he whispered.

"I know you didn't," Isaac assured him. "Don't speak. I'll get you upstairs."

"You can't carry me. I'm too heavy." Taylor's voice came out small and weak.

"Shh." Isaac lifted Taylor into his arms, gasping under the weight. Sure, Taylor was skinny, but he weighed a ton. He struggled through the door and upstairs, laying Taylor on Zac's bed. "I'm just gonna go get a basin and a washcloth."

"Ike?"

"What?"

"Don't tell Mom and Dad."

"I won't," promised Isaac as he returned to the bedroom, basin and washcloth in hand.

Just then, Zac appeared in the doorway. "Ohmigosh!" he gasped. "What happened to you?"

"Long story," murmured Taylor.

Isaac wet the washcloth and dabbed it over Taylor's face, removing the blood. "Pinch," he instructed, and Taylor held his nose. "You've cut your lip," Isaac told him. "Open your mouth." Taylor complied. "Your teeth are okay, though. Well, none are missing or anything, so I guess that's something. Let me see your chest."

Taylor rolled over, letting Isaac pull up his shirt.

"Holy cow!" Zac's eyes almost popped out of his head.

The left side of Taylor's ribcage was such a mess, it would be totally black and blue in the morning. There were scrapes, red areas and deep red patches, indicating burst blood vessels under the surface of the skin.

Isaac pressed along Taylor's ribs gently. "I'm sorry, Tay," he apologized when Taylor moaned. "I know it hurts, but I need to see if they're broken."

"Well?" asked Taylor, after a few minutes of Isaac's poking and prodding him.

"I think they're okay," mused Isaac. "I bet it hurts, though," he added.

"That's an understatement," murmured Taylor.

"How are you feeling?" Isaac frowned, placing his hand against Taylor's forehead.

"You mean besides feeling as if I've been hit on the chest by a lorry?"

"Well, yeah." Isaac smiled.

"Okay, I guess. My lip's stinging a bit, and I'm in agony over my ribs, but I'll live."

"What happened?" persisted Zac, deciding that he was sick of being ignored.

Taylor filled him in, Zac wincing sympathetically in all the right parts. "Are you okay?" he asked, sitting closely to Taylor on the bed. "Who does that jerk think he is, beating up on my big brother?" He leaned his head on Taylor's shoulder.

Taylor smiled, resting his own head on top of Zac's. "You're sweet, Zaccy."

"I know."

***

Zac sat in the dark kitchen, dressed in boxer shorts and a gray T-shirt, drumming his fingers off the wooden table. He watched as the digital clock on the oven flashed from 01:13 to 01:14. He had been lying in his bed, rehearsing in his head what he should say to Isaac - who'd been upstairs in the study on the computer - when he eventually came to bed. After lying there for an hour, Zac had given up and headed down to the kitchen, hoping that a snack would get his creative juices flowing.

Seven cookies and three glasses of milk down the line, Zac still couldn't think of a tactful way to word what he had to say to his brother. How do you tell someone that their girlfriend is cheating on them? Zac asked himself.

The light flickered on, bathing Zac in the bright artificial glow.

"Zac, what are you doing up?" asked Isaac. "Sitting in the darkness? Going morbid all of a sudden, are we?"

Zac smiled weakly. Isaac seemed so happy. Could Zac really burst his bubble? "I could ask you the same question," he muttered.

Isaac sighed. "Come on through to the family room. It's more comfortable for sitting in the darkness."

Zac followed Isaac out of the kitchen, and Isaac was right: the carpet was much softer and warmer on his bare feet than the cold kitchen linoleum and the sofas were softer than the wooden chairs.

"Is Tay keeping you awake too?" asked Isaac.

Zac frowned. "Tay?" As far as he knew, Taylor was fast asleep in his bed.

"What happened to him tonight. It's really shaken me up, Zac."

"But he's okay, right?" Zac squinted at Isaac in the darkness; neither of them had bothered to turn the lights on.

"He'll live. But how could someone do that to him? I mean, it's Tay…" Isaac wiped his eyes agitatedly, even though he wasn't crying, or even close to it.

"Ike, we're kinda biased. Remember not so long ago, you'd have been quite happy to kill him?"

"Oh, Zac, I would not!"

"But he wasn't one of your favorite people."

"He was. You guys are always my favorite people - all eight of you. But he was just being an asshole." Isaac shrugged.

Zac smiled. "You came through for him today, though. If you hadn't stopped Martin, who knows what would've happened." He shuddered at the though.

"Don't, Zac." Isaac grimaced; it was hardly the kind of thing he wanted to think about. "So how come you're up. What's on your mind?"

"Ike, can I ask you a hypocritical question?"

Isaac frowned. "You mean a hypothetical question?"

"I don't know. When it hasn't really happened, but you're just wondering what to do if it did."

"That's hypothetical," Isaac told him.

"Okay. Well, hypothetically speaking…what are you smiling at?" he demanded, annoyed at the smirk on his older brother's face.

"Nothing. It's just that in my experience, when people start with 'hypothetically speaking', it's usually about themselves."

"This isn't," replied Zac dismissively. "What if you knew something about someone that you really care about cares about? And you know that if the person you care about found out, it'd really hurt them, because they care about the other person, but the other person doesn't seem to care about them so much. And you really, really don't want to hurt the person you care about but you think that they'll find out, and then be mad at you cos you knew and didn't say anything and- "

Isaac laughed. "Slow down, Zac! Gotta breathe, little brother."

"Ike, I'm serious. What would you do?"

Isaac took a deep breath. "If I really cared about the person, and thought that they'd find out anyway, I guess I'd tell them. It's better that they know sooner rather than later."

"Okay."

"Does that help?"

Zac swallowed. "Yeah. Mind if I take your advice?"

"I'd be glad if you did."

"Okay…um…well, then, in that case…Ike, I have to tell you something."

Isaac's eyes narrowed. "What?"

"You're not gonna like it. And I'm really sorry to have to tell you…"

"Zac…"

Zac closed his eyes. "It's Honey. She's cheating on you, Ike."

Isaac sighed.

"I'm really sorry, Ike, but I had to tell you. It was eating at me…"

"How do you know?" asked Isaac, quietly.

"Me and Tay saw her at Josh's party. And we didn't tell you because we thought it would hurt you, and maybe it was a one-off thing. But then she started blowing you off, and then me and Libby saw them again tonight. I'm so sorry, Ike. I know how much you liked her." Zac pushed his hair out of his face. As he had predicted, he felt terrible.

"Who is he?" Isaac picked at a loose thread on the sofa cushion.

"Scott Allcorn." Zac smiled apologetically.

"Oh." Isaac had a look on his face that seemed to say that he'd known all along.

"Ike, are you okay? Are you mad at me?"

Isaac looked surprised. "Why would I be mad at you, Zac? Of course I'm not. Thanks for telling me."

"Really?"

"It’s better that I know. You did right, little guy."

"I wish you guys would stop calling me that," complained Zac. "I'm not so little anymore. I'm like nearly as tall as you guys!"

"You'll always be little to me, Zac, even if you end up at like nine feet tall. You're my kid brother." Isaac smiled.

"Are you okay?" Zac looked worried.

Isaac sighed. "I'm fine. As you said, she's been blowing me off. I figured something was going on."

Zac squeezed his hand. "As long as you're okay."

"I'm fine, Zac. Go get some sleep. It's almost two."

"Are you coming?"

Isaac shook his head. "Nah. I'm just gonna sit here. Think about things."

Zac smiled uncertainly. "Okay. Whatever's good for you."

"Night, Zac."

"Night, Ike." Zac climbed upstairs to bed. He was surprised at how well Isaac had taken the news. And he was surprised at how much better he felt. Maybe Ike's advice didn't suck so bad after all.

Chapter Twelve
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