The bond between brothers is something indescribable. It’s not something you understand unless you have it. No matter what happens between them, it is supposed to be unbreakable. Family forever, right?
It was one of the best gifts the little boy had ever received, a Matchbox 1967 Ford Mustang, practically all he and his older brother could talk about. That was the foundation of their whole relationship, toy cars was their thing. Charlie took care of his little brother, not because he had to but because he wanted to. After their father left, Charlie felt like Ben was all he had, they two on their own. The day Charlie found the car, it was obvious to him that he had to do whatever he could to get that car. Being able to give that to his little brother made the car just as much as a present for Charlie as it was for Ben. It was like a scene in a Hallmark movie; he had never seen a bigger smile on anyone’s face. From that moment on Ben carried that car everywhere becoming his favorite car to play with, and the only person who could play with him was Charlie. He bragged about it to anyone that would listen, it was almost annoying, but not to Charlie. That little toy car, just a tiny piece of metal put together with some plastic, made in a factory with hundreds of others was nothing big, but to Ben it was the world, it was the one thing he had always wanted, it was given to him by his brother, it made him happy. Ben even cleared a whole shelf for his prized possession, even made a little prop up by himself. Charlie had never been so thrilled about a decision, seeing his little brother like this beat any other happiness. One day, when Ben had missed the bus to school, Charlie jumped at the opportunity to take him. He dropped him off in front of the building, said their goodbyes, and watched his little brother walk into school… for the last time.
“Ben can you come into the hallway with me?” Ben was a good student so it was rare for him to get called out into the hallway by Mrs. Yates. What happened? What did he do wrong? A bunch of things were running through his head, but he never thought he would hear what he was about to. “You know Ben, you are going to get through this. I know you loved your brother very much, and he knew that, you made him happy. This must be very scary and confusing for you, I am sorry Ben, so sorry. Your mom is on her way, why don’t you just sit out here with me until then.” She was right, he didn’t understand. He now knew why he was in the hallway, but he for some reason had even more questions. Why was this happening to him? What did he do to deserve this? Ben was more confused now than ever, he was angry, upset, he didn’t know what to do. A car accident they said, wasn’t anything anyone could do they said, the guy just ran a red light they said. A car, something Ben and Charlie had loved since before he could remember, a car did this to his brother. Ben now understood one thing, the things you love can hurt you the most.
