Rea shifted on the couch, her eyes distant as she sifted through memories, picking the right one. Jnr lay beside her, sprawled out like he had no care in the world, waiting patiently—or as patiently as he could.
"Alright," Rea finally said, her voice soft. "I'll tell you about the time Aster nearly got himself killed over a stolen sandwich."
Jnr perked up instantly. "Oh, this sounds good already."
Rea smirked. "Yeah, well, it wasn't good when it happened."
She leaned back, closing her eyes for a moment, letting the memory take shape.
---
It had been one of those rare days when things were calm—well, as calm as they ever got. They had been hiding out at one of Eric's old safe houses, laying low after a mission went sideways. Aster, as always, had been hungry.
And that's where the trouble started.
Rea had just sat down, exhausted, when Aster stormed into the room, dramatically throwing himself onto the couch with a loud groan.
"Unbelievable!" he announced. "Betrayal of the highest order!"
Christy, who had been cleaning her weapons at the table, barely glanced up. "What now?"
Aster sat up, pointing an accusing finger toward the kitchen. "Jaxon ate my sandwich."
Rea had looked up at that, unimpressed. "Are you serious?"
"Dead serious," Aster huffed. "I had it labeled. My name was on it. In permanent marker."
Christy snorted. "Jaxon probably did it just to piss you off."
"Well, congrats to him, mission accomplished," Aster grumbled, rubbing his temples like this was the greatest injustice ever committed.
Rea rolled her eyes. "Just make another one."
"That's not the point, Rea," Aster said, standing dramatically. "The point is, if we let this slide, what's next? First, my sandwich, then my weapons, then my entire identity! This is about justice!"
Jnr burst out laughing. "No way. He actually said that?"
Rea smirked. "Oh, you have no idea. It gets worse."
---
Aster had stormed off, determined to reclaim what was rightfully his.
Which, in his mind, meant sneaking into Jaxon's room, swiping his food as revenge, and making a big show about it.
Unfortunately for Aster, Jaxon had been waiting for him.
So the next thing they knew, an all-out war broke out in the safe house. Aster came sprinting out of Jaxon's room, clutching an entire roast chicken like his life depended on it, while Jaxon chased after him, yelling death threats.
Tables were flipped. A chair somehow ended up lodged in the ceiling. Christy laughed so hard she nearly choked on her drink.
Eric had walked in, taken one look at the chaos, sighed, and walked right back out.
The chase ended when Aster, ever the daredevil, tried to jump over the railing to escape to the lower floor.
It did not go well.
He slipped mid-air, crashed straight into a pile of crates, and nearly broke his arm.
Jnr was wheezing with laughter. "He fell over a sandwich?"
Rea smirked. "Not just any sandwich. His sandwich."
Jnr wiped a tear from his eye. "Okay, okay, so what happened after?"
"Jaxon stood over him, arms crossed, and said, 'That's what you get, idiot.'"
Jnr snickered. "And Aster?"
Rea shook her head, smiling faintly. "He looked up at Jaxon, groaning in pain, and just said, 'Worth it.'"
Jnr was laughing so hard he had to clutch his stomach. "Man, I really would've liked him."
Rea exhaled, her smile fading just a little. "Yeah," she murmured. "You would have."
Jnr's laughter died down, and he glanced at her. "Hey… do you think about him a lot?"
Rea leaned back against the couch, staring up at the ceiling. "All the time."
Jnr was quiet for a moment before speaking again. "Do you think he'd be proud of you?"
Rea turned her head, looking at him.
Aster's face flashed in her mind—the cocky smirk, the endless sarcasm, but also the unwavering loyalty, the way he had always been there when it counted.
She swallowed hard and whispered, "I hope so."
Jnr nodded, like he understood something deeper than what she had said.
Then, after a moment, he grinned. "Well, I know he'd be proud of me. I'm awesome."
Rea rolled her eyes. "Alright, go to bed before I throw you off this couch."
Jnr laughed, standing up and stretching. "Fine, fine. But tomorrow, you're telling me another Aster story."
Rea smirked. "Yeah, yeah."
As Jnr walked off, Rea stayed on the couch a little longer, staring at the ceiling.
Thinking of a boy who had once made the world brighter, even in the darkest moments.
Thinking of her brother.
Thinking of Aster.