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The loud noises of the forge always grated on Kai’s nerves, especially when it wasn’t his he was working at, something that happened far too often these days. No one wanted to buy from a couple of kids who couldn’t even get their parents to stick around. He felt his thoughts take a sour turn, but even he deserved a bit of indulgence every now and again. His hammer came down on the… sword? He was trying to make, and he scowled at the noise.
Kai had to refrain himself from quitting right then and there, he was still a 13 year old kid, no one wanted to hire him just like no one wanted to buy from him, and he had to find a way to pay for supporting him and Nya. This shift ended at six, and his next, at a different place he really didn’t feel proud of working at, started at eight. But it was for Nya.
Because that’s what it boiled down to, really. Taking care of Nya, and all Kai had to do to get a second wind was remember her… and how much raising her cost. Hell, it wasn’t uncommon for him to go a day or two without eating just so he could make sure she got a few good meals. He tried to make sure she never did the same though, jus’ wasn’t healthy, and Kai would rather die than raise his sister up to be one of those self-sacrificing idiots.
So he always drilled into her that she needed to look out for number 1. Always.
Which meant, he never expected to come home to her with a broken nose, and a few knocked out teeth. Kai pointedly ignored the injuries, said hello to her, and walked to their room to take a moment to breathe. He wasn’t going to get mad at her, he wasn’t . This was going to be a mistake, it was going to never happen again. And then. He was going to hunt down and kill whoever hurt his baby sister.
When he made his way back out, Nya was poking at her nose, and Kai stode over to her, pulling her hands off and setting them in her lap. He got to work feeling it over, and winced when a light crunching noise made its way into his ears. “You gonna tell me what happened while I set this?”
“Well- Just there was this girl-” She was cut off by Kai straightening out her nose with a loud crack . “Hey! A little warning next time?!”
Kai shrugged, “Your fault for breakin’ it, sis,” Nya sighed, but didn’t have a point to refute. Kai got up to open their freezer, they had to have a pack of peas somewhere or something, “Anyway, there was this girl?” Aha ! There they were.
“Oh… yeah. Ok! So there was this girl, and she’s the person next to me in my science class, and today I left my book in there, so I was like ‘Oh no! I need to get it back!’ but turns out she was getting bullied in there!” Nya’s voice was indigent, and angry, “So I was like ‘No way! There’s no way she’s gonna be made fun of next to my book!’” Nya took a breath, “Which is my Great Things Ahead book, and that’s all about standing up for people and stuff so- so I just had to! … Please don’t be mad at me?”
Kai blew out a low breath, trying to sort through his thoughts, he handed her the peas, and leaned back in his chair, “Keep that on your nose and eye,” Ok, so this wasn’t something he could yell at her for. And it wasn’t something he could or wanted, really - to punish her for. So he settled on saying, “Don’t do it again?”
Which apparently, was the wrong thing to say, because if the immediate bristling to go by, Nya was pissed off. “What do you mean? That I’m supposed to sit back if she’s actually bullied again!? What the hell Kai!?”
His anger flared up too, that was something they always had in common, “Uh yes? That’s exactly what I just said,”
Nya stood up, eyes fiery, “You would’ve done the same thing! Don-Don’t-” She broke off, angry tears making their way out of her eyes, “Don’t be a dick!”
“No! No I wouldn’t’ve! I would’ve fucking left the room , just like you should have,” Nya threw down the peas, “You need to keep yourself safe Nya. I’m doing the best I can, but you keep fuckin’ up,” She stormed off to her room, hands trembling. A frustrated shout came from Kai’s throat, as he threw the chair he was sitting on across the kitchen.
When a loud beeping made its way through the house, signaling the start of his next job, Kai had to refrain from breaking down right then and there. He needed to- He’d talk to her later. Let her cool off. Kai just wanted to keep her safe , keep his promise to their parents. He ignored the rolling nausea in his stomach while he walked to the restaurant that took pity on his sob story.
AUGH! It wasn’t even fair that her brother got mad at her- Nya didn’t do anything wrong. She actually did everything right, thank you very much. As soon as she heard Kai shut the front door, she let out a scream. How DARE he! How fucking DARE he?!
Nya knows her brother. She knows she did the same exact thing he would've done in her situation, and it's not- well it's just not ok is it? Not ok that he’s leaving her alone. Not ok that he doesn’t even care about her anymore. Her shoulders shake, and she wipes away the tear that falls out of her eye. But after a few seconds of trying to keep a straight face, thick, wet sobs start pouring out of her.
She misses her brother, and she hates her parents with such a passion. It’s not fair that she’s all alone while she’s hurt, and her brother can’t sit with her, so he knows she’s keeping the peas on her face, rubbing her back while she was crying.
The worst part of it all? Nya knew he was only working his ass off for her. Kai’s jobs were only barely keeping them afloat, but she couldn’t work, and he took it on. He took on everything and more just to keep her safe, and full.
Nya hoped it wasn’t too cliche that she fell asleep crying, everything she had drained out of her. She was upset, however, that she didn’t get to greet Kai when he got home, two seconds away from dropping like a fly. But it was probably for the best that she didn’t see her brother kiss her forehead, apologizing with the softest voice she’ll never hear.