Fan Fiction |
by Jenny Tran
Erin and Doug returned home after getting the call from Ted that they caught the kidnappers but Jessie was nowhere in sight. Closing the door, Erin sighed while watching Doug’s slumped shoulder lower “I’m sure she’s in a safe place.”
“What do they want with her?” Doug turned to her confused “They killed the Commissioner and probably took whatever it is that they wanted.”
“Maybe they didn’t get what they were looking for?” Erin assumed.
Sighing as Doug slumped further into the couch, suddenly his brows wrinkled and he began sniffing the air “Do you smell that?” Erin wrinkled her nose as she nodded “Beef stew! Jenna’s making dinner.” Popping from his seat, he rushed down the hall to the kitchen in time to see Jenna squeezing out of the door.
“Hi guys! You’re home early.” She greeted.
“Awww…that’s so cute, you’re trying to surprise me. But I could smell the stew all the way out here.” Doug ruffled her hair adoringly.
Erin smelled something else as she turned her head “Something’s burning in there.”
“No! Nothing… nothing’s burning.” Jenna stuttered as she crossed her arms, still refusing to move.
Doug narrowed his eyes suspiciously “It’s a candle smell!” he accused while pulling her to the side so he can go into the kitchen. He found Ryan holding onto two white candles ready to throw it out into the backyard “Freeze!” Doug ordered. He circled around Ryan like a criminal “Candles. Dinner for two…” he glanced briefly at the decorated table “Just as I thought. You’re dating!!” he pointed at them.
Erin laughed, “It’s nothing to be ashamed of.” She looked at Jenna’s blushing face while Ryan smiled weakly “How long has this been going on?”
“Yes and how come I wasn’t told?!” Doug asked hurtfully “I…I thought we were… family?” his lips shivered as he moved to the table and covered his face.
Jenna rushed over as she apologized “I’m sorry…we didn’t want anyone to judge us or make fun of us. I swear, you would be the first one we tell when it settles down.” She reached for his shoulder the same time he whipped his head over at her.
“I can forgive you. But…I …I don’t think I can right now. Please…just go away.” He turned to the steaming soup and picked up the spoon as he scooped it into his mouth.
“Hey! That is Ryan’s soup!” Jenna pointed to Doug while looking at Erin “Stop eating!”
Erin sighed with a shaking head “Doug…” she turned her head when the front door closed and she could hear laughing, “You guys handle this, I’m going outside.” She nodded to Ryan and pointed to Jenna, who was trying hard to yank Doug out of his chair.
“Hi Erin.” Carmen greeted with a wide grin.
Luke on the other hand let go of their clasped hands the minute Erin glanced down “Hey, we…we just eh…came back from the movies. Excuse me, I have to use the bathroom. You two can talk…but not about me!” he quickly added with a nervous laugh when Erin flicked a brow upwards.
The minute he was gone Carmen turned to Erin with a girlish giggle “I don’t want to sound high school but do you know if he likes me?”
“I think so.” Erin tilted her head “He doesn’t hold hands with all the girls he takes home.”
Carmen nodded “I don’t know why I’m so anxious about this. He told me he likes me but I just want to hear it from another person.” Erin smiled without responding “Are you sure it’s okay with you? I mean, this has to be weird no matter how comfortable you might say you are.”
Erin sighed internally but continued to keep a straight face “I promise you Carmen, I’m fine with it. I wish you two the best of luck. He’s a great guy, treat him well.”
Without warning, she reached out and hugged Erin catching her off guard “You don’t know how happy I am to hear you say that.”
“Hey, hey don’t get too comfortable.” Luke’s teasing voice interrupted Carmen’s emotional moment “Erin’s not really big on affection, she might accidentally punch you or something.”
Carmen laughed as she moved closer to hug him “She’s okay.” She winked knowingly “Anyways, Erin’s not violent unless you provoke her. Not that you ever can.” She joked, “You can’t even give a decent kick.”
Erin snickered “The last time he tried to do a kick, he knocked over that lamp that I made him replace the next day.” She pointed.
“I can too kick!” Luke challenged as he took a few steps back and kicked his foot in the air. His knees bent while he leaned onto the sofa for help “See…nothing to it.” He groaned in pain while falling to the ground laughing, “How do you guys do it?”
Shaking her head as she chuckled “You are so lame, how you got Carmen to like you is beside me Luke.” Erin gave the frozen girl a double take “Carmen? Is something wrong?”
Her face pale like a ghost as she pointed to Luke “You…you’re not Brad.” Head twitching as she denied it “It can’t be…”
Just then Doug, Jenna and Ryan emerged from the kitchen arms linked together “We’re okay now!” Jenna announced. They paused when they noticed Luke on the ground and Carmen’s hand shivering as she pointed to him.
Erin turned to Luke with widened eyes “Carmen, what are you talking about? Of course he’s Brad.” She motioned for Luke to get up.
Spinning her head at Erin, she looked horrified “He fooled you too?! He’s not Brad. I can prove it. During college, Brad and Ah Gam joined a track and field team doing the 100 meter race. There was this race that they were in together, maybe it was rigged or something but there were a few nails on the ground and Brad stepped on one that pushed into his heel. He had to have surgery leaving a big scar at the bottom of his right foot. This guy doesn’t have a scar!” she pointed her finger at Luke threateningly.
“Damn it, I owe Mia a hundred bucks!” Doug cursed to himself “Just another week…”
“Carmen, I can explain…” Luke began but was quickly denied when Carmen pushed his hand away “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to lie—”
“But you led me on to believe that you were Brad!” She reminded him.
“Carmen, calm down.” Erin coaxed “This is Luke, Brad’s twin brother. We ran into each other last year. He was kidnapped and adopted by this family in China when he was first born. I did a little research and found out the truth about his identity.”
Carmen backed away in total shock. She grabbed the back of the couch for support “Oh my God…I can’t believe this…So you knew about this?” she asked, Erin nodded guiltily.
“We didn’t!” Jenna exclaimed “Luke, shame on you!” she scolded.
“Where’s Brad? Does he know about his twin brother?” Carmen asked.
“Spiritually, he knows.” Jenna replied while making a sign of the cross.
Ryan nudged her as he shook his eyes “Stop.”
Luke sighed as he lowered his head in shame “He passed away over four years ago.”
“What?!” Carmen shook her head “I…I don’t believe it. He can’t be dead…no, it’s not true! You guys are lying again aren’t you?”
Erin was sympathetic “Carmen, I watched him being shot to death in front of me. He’s gone, I was in denial too but the truth of the matter is, he’s gone. I’m sorry that we lied to you but…”
“It was my idea, really. Don’t be mad at anyone else.” Luke said honestly.
Carmen snarled with disgust “You used your dead brother’s identity to pick up girls. Well, why in the world would I be mad at that? Actually, it’s quite romantic!!” Carmen snapped as she turned her heels and ran for the door.
“Carmen!” Luke was prepared to chase her when Erin stopped him.
“No…let her cool off.” She instructed.
“I warned you.” Jenna shook her head with a sigh.
Doug nodded in agreement “Yeah.” His eyes turned from Ryan to Jenna “I’m still hungry!” he got loose from their linked arms as he charged for the kitchen.
“Doug!!” Jenna groaned while Ryan laughed.
“I really screwed this up.” Luke buried his face into his hands “I should have told her from the beginning.”
Sighing, Erin smiled “Look on the bright side, at least you don’t have to worry about the sky falling on you.” Nodding to the stairs, she linked her arm around his “Come on kid, I want to show you something.”
Halfway up the stairs, Luke thought of something “You’re not going to make me hold my ears and kneel in front of my brother’s shrine again are you?”
“No!” Erin laughed, “That was just a joke, I thought you knew? It was Jenna’s idea.”
“Of course it was.” Luke said with suspicious eyes.
Taking him into her room, she crawled under the bed to pull out a plastic container “Brad use to write these inspirational sayings whenever he ran into a problem. Whether it dealt with the team, missions or just daily life with me. I kept them all for moments when I felt like strangling someone.”
“It’s usually the same person right?” he hinted.
“Look kid, I’ll chop your tongue out if you do that again.” She warned while digging out the notecards.
“Do what?” he asked innocently.
“Yes, that’s it, act dumb. Like I’ll know the difference.” Erin rolled her eyes. She pulled out the stack and showed it to him “Read them.”
Luke sighed tiredly and read out loud the first card “Life has many faces, when it shows you something you don’t want to see, punch it.” He tilted his head at Erin “How deep.”
“Keep reading.” She said impatiently.
“When a lie comes out, its like a long knife being pulled out of your heart. The truth is like a papercut. Quick and painless.” Luke raised his brows intrigued “Apparently, Dai Lou never had a papercut.” Erin sighed and he quickly laughed “Okay, here’s the next… Failing in love is like taking off a band-aid. With each yank, it is less painful.” Nodding briefly, he moved on to the next “It is emotionally draining to hate a person but to love a person is the most unconditional thing in the world.”
Erin smiled at the last saying “He never had a problem putting feelings into words, but he could never say what was on his mind when it came to me. Once in a while, he would show me these cards.”
“Such a shame.” Luke said sadly.
“Why?” Erin asked.
“Because if you would have showed me this sooner, I would have confessed to Carmen that very minute.” Luke shook his head.
Erin laughed “I’m sure she’ll laugh about it once she cools off.”
“Maybe ten years from now.” He exaggerated while rambling through her box “Hey, what’s this?”
Smiling with a distant look, she answered “His diary.”
“He had a diary?!” Luke was in shock “Wow, if I didn’t know better, I’d say he’s gay.” He turned to see Erin give him a look that could burn through walls “But you would know.” He laughed weakly “Let’s read it.” Trying to change the subject.
“No. That’s invading someone’s privacy.” Erin shook her head.
Luke placed a hand on her shoulder “Erin, I hate to break the news to you but he’s dead.” She lowered her head and he quickly felt bad for cracking the joke “I’m sorry…I keep doing that.”
“It’s okay.” Erin assured him “I guess, I always felt that if I read it, the memories would come rushing back to me and it would be harder to let go.”
“It’s dated 1995-1997.” Luke pointed out “Isn’t that the year when he was in college?” Erin nodded slowly “So read it. Think of it this way, those were the years that you didn’t know him. I hear it’s the most important time in a person’s life. It’s when you’re discovering who you really are.” He pressed.
“I think YOU want to read it more than I do.” Erin pointed out.
“Yeah! Read it!” Luke thrust it into her hands “Maybe it’ll say something about Carmen.”
“You are so sick.” Erin grumbled as she opened the black leather cover and read a few lines “December 15, 1995. I was shopping at the mall for Christmas presents for my two close friends when I saw Ah Gam shopping too. Nosy, I decided to follow him to see what he was buying me for Christmas. I followed him for a few blocks outside the mall and when I was about to scare him, a girl appeared. She gave him a piece of paper and he walked across the street. I continued to follow him, I didn’t expect him to…”
“What?” Luke asked when she faded away. She flipped through the pages and began reading it quietly to herself. Her eyes widening with each page “Erin…what does it say?”
“I have to go.” Erin left the open box as she took with her the diary. She felt a cold feeling wash over her as she raced out the door, not giving Jenna or Ryan a second look.