2029-A Dramatic Plot twist occurs! (Fixed Future)

Diana remained silent, and thoughtful.

____

Darius did as the older boy suggested and went outside his room. "What happened?" He called out from above the stairs.

Darien smiled at his son. His real son.

"Nothing...Zephir's mum just had to go. That's all." He paused. "You having fun?" He asked cautiously.

"Hmhmm," Darius nodded smiling. "We're colouring."

Darius turned to Zeph. "You're Mummy went somewhere." He reported.

Zeph scowled again. "Good."

Darien frowned slightly and glanced at Diana in confusion. "...Shouldn't he be...upset or something?"

Zeph pulled some paper towards him and began to draw...

Diana shrugged. "I think the boys might be hungry." She said more to herself than anything and headed to the kitchen.

"What are you drawing?" Darius asked peering over Zeph's shoulder.

Darien's shoulders slumped and he sank into a chair. What a mess.

Zeph glared at the paper, scribbling in a frenzy. Nothing ever came out the way he wanted it to look.

He tore the paper in half and scrunched them up, throwing them across the room.

"Nothing." He glowered. "I never do. It never looks right."

Darius was slightly afraid of Zeph's anger and figured he should go to his daddy. "Daaad, let's play!" Darius said running down the stairs.

Darien somehow summoned a smirk. "Come here you..." He scooped his son up and swung him around in a circle.

Zephir paused at the top of the stairs, and sat down to watch the events.

Darius laughed with delight. "Daddyyyyy!" He yelled with pleasure.

Darien joined in the laughter. "You're almost too tall for me to do this any more." he joked.

Zephir felt a pang of jealousy. In fact more of an ulsar of jealousy. His father never played with him. His father barely ever spoke to him, even when he was at home, which was barely ever.

Zeph felt a tear trickle out of the corner of his eye as he realised he could not recall even a single word his father ever said to him that was kind or fun or affectionate.

Darien heard the eight-year-old sniff, and noticed him rub something away from his eye. He paused and watched the boy carefully.

Zephir noticed Darien watching him, and immediately ran back up the stairs, hiding under Darius' bed.

No one ever saw him cry. Nobody. Ever.

His jealousy and anger at his own family had changed to sadness all in one single moment. And he couldn't deal with it anymore.

Darius saw Zeph cry and wondered if he wanted to be carried too. "Dad... I think it's Zeph's turn."

Darien considered for a moment.

"Will you go check on your mum for me? She might need a hand with the food, and she'll need her big boy to help her." He smiled, tweaking his son's nose playfully.

-----

Zephir allowed himself to cry, not expecting anyone to follow him or bother to find out was wrong.

"Daaad," Darius laughed. "I'm only four." But he ran up to where his mummy was at.

"Mummy!" Darius went and hugged her.

"Darius," Diana said taking a moment to compose herself. She wiped her eyes hasty and smiled for her son, hoping that he wouldn't detect that anything was wrong. "Have you come here to help?"

"Yep," he said still wrapped around Diana.

Diana ruffled his hair. "Alright, get the ham for me won't you?"

"Okay Mummy," and Darius went to do his task.

Darien slowly walked up the stairs and entered Darius' room. He detected a faint snuffling from under the bed, and peered under to see Zephir.

Zeph blinked as his dark brown eyes met another pair of dark eyes. Hastily he crawled backwards as far as he could go and wiped his eyes on the heels of his hands.

"Hey, come out here Zephir." Darien smiled.

Zeph didn't move.

"Watcha hiding for?"

"I'm not hiding." Zeph snarled, turning away. "I don't hide cos people don't look."

"That's funny, cos I can see you right now. Come on, come outta there." Darien grinned, although the boy's statement worried him. Didn't Celina care about her son...at all?

Zeph slowly edged out from under the bed, a defiant expression on his face.

"So...I guess I'm sorry I missed eight years of your life." Darien felt awkward.

Zephir almost laughed. The man actually believed he was his son. What a gullible fool. Outwardly though, he shrugged. "Didn't miss much."

"Yeah?" Darien sat down facing the boy. "When's your birthday? Sometime in..." He quickly did some sums in his head. "March or April?"

Zeph shook his head. "No. It's in December. The 31st."

Darien frowned. "But..."

"That's my birthday too!" Darius said coming in with Diana right behind him.

"I got sandwiches for everyone." Diana announced, she was carrying a tray and she set it down on Darius' bed, still avoiding to look at Darien.

Darius took a sandwich and started stuffing it in his mouth.

Zephir blinked. So that was what Mums were meant to do. Bring sandwiches...Make sandwiches!

This was so very different from his own family...It was confusing the poor eight-year old's mind.

Darien smiled reassuringly at Zephir. "Go on, take one."

Zeph paused, gingerly taking a sandwich and biting into it. It tasted...good. Really good. Not like whatever his mum left for him before leaving to go party. Something prompted him to voice his approval of the sandwiches. "These are good." He almost smiled, but not fully. Faint traces of a smile appeared around his mouth. "What's in them?"

Darien stood up, and headed to the doorway, whispering in Diana's ear. "Diana...Can I have a word with you? Please? It's important."

"Am," Darius answered with his mouth full. "an' eeze."

Instead of answering Darien, Diana turned to Darius. "Darius dear, don't talk with your mouth full," Diana said gently.

Darius smiled at his mother guilty.

Diana didn't want a word with Darien, but she decided to comply anyway. "Fine." And followed him outside.

Zeph frowned slightly and took another bite.

"Whats wrong wi' talkin' with 'our mouth full?" He asked Darius, largely unaware of table manners.

------

Darien shut the door behind them, and turned to Diana.

"Diana...Zeph was born in December, the same day as Darius! I can't be his father! Celina must've been lying!" He whispered, eyes shining with silent joy.

His mother having already told him off for speaking with his mouthful once, Darius shrugged instead.

=++++++++=

"Are you sure?" Diana asked. "You didn't sleep with her another time?" Diana said tersely, not bothering to hid her hurt.

Now even more bemused, Zephir turned his attention to taking three sandwiches from the plate and stuffing them into a pocket.

Best to save some of this good food for whenever he went home.

---------

"No!" Darien's eyes shone with desperate honesty. "I swear I didn't-Please Diana...I don't even remember if I slept with her or not! Please...You have to believe me..."

Darius made sure to sallow his food before he spoke. "Why are you putting sandwiches in your pocket?

+++++++++

Diana avoided his gaze just so she could compose herself again. "I wish you'd told me before..."

Zephir glanced at the floor. "Cos my mum never makes me sandwiches." he replied honestly.

Then he retreated behind his shell. "It isn't stealing!" He glared at Darius defiantly.

---------

Darien looked at the floor. "I...I didn't want to mess things up-I couldn't remember what had happened...I convinced myself nothing had happened."

He sighed. "I'm so sorry...You're right, I should have told you."

Then a thought occured to him. "But Celina must know Zephir is not my son...I don't know what she's doing."

"I can share my mummy with you too." Darius offered. "She can make sandwiches for the both of us!"

Then he looked thoughtful. "What's stealing?"

+++++++

Diana shrugged. "I don't know what she's doing either... but whatever it is, I don't like it one bit."

Zeph frowned. "Why...Why do you want to share stuff with me? You barely even know me."

This kid was strange, but for some reason his suggestions about sharing made Zeph feel happy...Which confused him even more.

Zephir shrugged. "Dunno. My da-I mean my...Mum's friend talks about it a lot."

----------

Darien frowned. "Me neither."

"And I don't like the way she treats him." He jabbed a thumb towards Darius' room. "...Will he sleep in the guest room?"

"But I thought you were my brother?" Darius asked confused. Why wouldn't he share? Isn't that what brothers were supposed to do?

++++++

"I don't like it either, did you see the way he ate that sandwich? The poor thing looks half-starved."

"I don't know," Diana started at Darius' bedroom door. "Darius seems rather taken with him, we could put the extra cot in Darius' room."