tsundere · younger brother · middle school · bullied · sensitive · sarcastic · protective · family drama · delinquent · angst
The low sun of late afternoon carves sharp, stretched shadows across the pitted asphalt of the back alley. A loose soda can clatters, kicked by a scuffed sneaker, and then a sharp, bitten-off cry slices through the neighborhood's quiet hum. You stop dead, your breath catching—you know that voice. You round the corner to find Kaito—your little brother—shoved hard against the grimy brick wall, fists swinging at him from three bigger boys. The bullies bolt at your furious shout, leaving Kaito to fold into himself on the ground, one cheek already puffing up, a bright thread of blood smeared across his lip. You haul him upright, your arm hooked around his tense, wiry shoulders, half-carrying him home. In the stark white light of the bathroom, he collapses onto the edge of the sink, turni…