#kieran has every right to be mad but he shouldn't take it out on carmine

[comandersprings]

On Deaf Ears

Note: I want to thank a friend of mine for helping me come up with the title. They go by x_They_Who_Remain_x on AO3 (you can find this fic there too) and their writing is awesome, please go check them out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1,148

Summary: Kieran calls out Carmine for having bonded with Ogerpon behind his back. Carmine tries to reason with Kieran and make him see she meant no harm. Looks like neither is getting the other.

• • • • • • •

“You sure are lively for someone with an upset stomach!” Carmine complained as she strode behind her brother, trying to catch up with him.

Kieran had been acting off even before boarding the plane that would take them both back to Unova. He refused to come out and bid farewell to Juliana under a claim of dealing with an upset stomach. Carmine thought nothing of it because she knew her little brother would sometimes eat too many sweets, so it was only natural that his stomach hurt if he did. It wasn’t the first time it happened, either.

However, his behavior during the plane trip made Carmine think that wasn’t the actual reason why Kieran didn’t say goodbye to his new friend. To begin with, when his stomach hurt, Kieran would sort of curl into a ball, yet he was sitting perfectly fine in his seat. He also avoided eye contact with his sister, his eyes always fixated either on the floor or on the window next to him. 

Kieran was awfully silent too. Despite his shy nature, he always had something to talk about when it came to Carmine. After all, she is one of the people he trusts the most, along with their grandparents. Carmine tried to get a conversation going at several points during the flight, but her brother would only respond with monosyllables or—even worse—not respond at all.

So there she was now, trying to find out what was actually wrong with her brother before he entered his room. She had a feeling he wouldn’t leave it for the rest of the day and if they were to talk, it had to be now.

“You can’t keep giving me the silent treatment forever, you know?” Carmine was walking closer to Kieran now, but they were also getting closer to his room.

The boy only looked ahead of him and tried to pretend that his sister wasn’t there, but her constant nagging was making that harder with every passing second. She should know why he was acting that way. To Kieran, while Juliana committed the greatest offense, Carmine was to blame, too. He didn’t want anything to do with his sister at the moment, but it appeared to him that she didn’t get that.

A few seconds later, the siblings finally reached Kieran’s room. The boy took the key out of his pocket and opened the door. 

Seeing how her brother wasn’t going to say anything, Carmine got serious. She folded her arms across her chest. “Are you going to tell me what’s wrong or what?” the girl insisted. Kieran crossed the threshold and tried to close the door, but Carmine put her foot in the way. “I swear I’m not leaving until you tell me what’s up.”

Kieran clenched his jaw. He wanted to tell her to leave him alone, but he knew that’d be useless. Instead, he just stood aside so his sister could walk into the room. He didn’t bother restraining himself when closing the door, slamming it shut before standing in front of it in a not-so-subtle invitation for Carmine to leave as soon as possible.

“You know I don’t buy the ‘upset stomach’ thing, right?” Carmine rested her hands on her hips. “Although I’ll admit you almost fooled me.”

Kieran exhaled and shook his head. “I’m too tired for this. Just come see me later.”

“No, I won’t wait until later. I’m tired too, but I don’t think I’ll be able to rest until you tell me the truth about—”

“You’re talking about telling the truth?” the boy glared at his sister. “Maybe you should apply that to yourself first.”

“I knew it.” Carmine’s gaze flicked upward. “All this is because I didn’t tell you that Juliana and I met Ogerpon, isn’t it?”

“It’s not just because of that.” Kieran approached Carmine with an almost defying stance. “You knew Juliana wanted to keep Ogerpon to herself and you let it happen. I’d even say you made sure it happened,” Kieran accused while pointing a finger at his sister.

“Hey, stop right there!” Carmine raised her hands. “We were just helping Ogerpon retrieve all of her masks. It’s not my fault she and Juliana ended up bonding.”

“Don’t talk as if you didn’t bond with Ogerpon, too!” the boy turned around to hide the way his chin trembled. “You excluded me from that experience despite knowing full well how much I always wanted to befriend her.”

“I’m sorry, okay?” Carmine leaned back. “I didn’t know things would turn out like that, so don’t blame me for any of it.” 

Kieran faced his sister again. This time, his eyes were glossy. “But you could have done something to stop it.”

“Stop what?” the girl spread out her hands. “What did you want me to do, handcuff Juliana to a radiator so she didn’t catch Ogerpon?”

“Don’t try to be funny!” her brother clenched his hands. “You clearly have no idea how hurt I am by all this.”

“And you have no idea how hurt I am from seeing you act this way,” Carmine retorted. She crossed her arms once again. “Trust me, I do understand your frustration, but things don’t always go the way we want them to. You must accept that.”

Kieran’s whole body tensed up as he heard her words, but Carmine didn’t take notice of that until she was done talking. She also noticed the way he stared at her: it was a hard, cold glare. Carmine had never seen that look in her brother’s eyes and she took a step backward without realizing.

“So what you’re telling me is to just deal with it, right?” the boy questioned, his tone just as stony as the look in his eyes. “If that’s what you think I should do, then… Leave.”

Carmine couldn’t believe she was in such a situation. She was the one clenching her hands now. “Do you realize how irrational you’re being now? This is not like y—”

“Leave. Now.” Kieran cut her off as he pointed at the door with a sharp movement.

His sister raised her hands and went silent. She walked past him and shot him one last, worried glance before opening the door. Carmine intended to close it herself, but she suddenly felt Kieran yank on the doorknob from the other side and slam the door shut so harshly that the glass in a nearby window trembled. 

The girl still stood in front of the door as the bang of it being closed echoed on her mind. Kieran was already too deep into his anger and disappointment. It was clear he wasn’t open to listening to others, but she wasn’t going to abandon her brother. Getting through him would be difficult, but Carmine would find a way. Damn right she would find a way. She wasn’t the older sister for nothing.