Luke & Liam: Fire Drill

“You should come over now that the day’s over and we’ll play” the voices faded as their owners left the locker room, leaving Luke alone in the locker room. He stopped pretending to text and began to undress, glancing over his shoulder every now and again. He would not have to go through all this if his mom would just buy him boxers! He grimaced as he saw the familiar sight of white cotton briefs, the only thing he ever wore. It sucked that this was keeping him from going home. After all, gym was the last period of the day, but he did not dare expose his tighty whities to his classmates.

“Why didn’t I open my locker first?” He muttered, struggling as he always did to remember the combination. Was fifteen before or after twenty-two? “Damn it.” He muttered.

“You’re still here?” He barely bit back a yelp as the gruff voice cut through the silence of the locker room.

“Uh, yeah. Had to wait for the showers to open.” He knew it was an obvious lie. His hair was dry as a bone. Coach Collins opened his mouth, but a sudden screech cut through the silence even more than his voice had.

“Fire alarm!” He declared. Luke tried to grab his gym shorts, but the coach had snapped into protect the student mode. “No time. Here.” He tossed Luke a towel. “Let’s go!” Luke tried to wrap it around his waist as the coach practically pushed him out of the locker room and into the hall, his bare feet slapping on the floor.

“I can’t go outside like this!” He said, but Coach Collins would not listen.

“Even if it’s just a drill, we need to evacuate. You’ve got a towel, don’t you?”

“But it’s February” he shivered the second that they emerged from the school, wishing the towel was a beach towel so he could wrap it around his shoulders and still cover his embarrassing underwear.

“I’m sure it’ll only be a few minutes.” Coach Collins said as Luke could almost feel his feet freezing to the sidewalk. He pouted, but knew that there was nothing he could do. He pulled the towel up as high as he dared. Girls wore them wrapped around their chest. Did they use the same towels as the boys did?

“What’s this?” Luke spun around, but immediately regretted showing panic as he saw his brother Liam strolling toward him, a big grin on his face. “Where are your clothes, squirt?” Although they were brothers, there were very few similarities between them. Liam took after their dad and was the tallest seventh grader, towering over even most of the ninth graders, to say nothing of Luke, who still occasionally got confused for a seventh grader, if not younger. Liam had begged for permission to use the weight training room at school and used it as often as he could. He smirked and tousled Luke’s hair. “Well?”

“I was changing and the”

“Don’t try to deepen your voice.” Liam teased. “I know how you really sound.” Luke cleared his throat. He had not been, but saying that would only convince Liam that he had been.

“I was changing” Luke pressed on. “And the fire alarm went off.”

“Did it scare little Lukey lambikins?” Liam said. “Look, you’re shivering!”

“Only because it’s cold out here.” Luke said irritably.

“You could hop on my back so your feet are off the sidewalk. That’s gotta be making you cold.”

“What? No way!” Liam shrugged.

“Fine, get hyperdermia or whatever.”

“Hypothermia.” Eager to get away from his brother, Luke wondered if the grass would be any gentler on his feet than the cold sidewalk. He walked over, but Liam followed.

“Let’s get your feetie weeties off of the cold ground, Luke.” He said in a sugary sweet voice, scooping Luke up and cradling him as if he was only a child.

“Let me go!” Luke yelled, trying to get out of his brother’s arms.

“You’ll be warmer this way, itty bitty Lukey loo!” Liam said, chuckling as he struggled.

“What’s going on here?” One of the teachers asked, watching the unorthodox scene.

“My baby brother was changing when the fire alarm went off, so he’s a little chilly.” Liam explained.

“I’m your big brother!” Luke protested.

“How’s that make it any better?” Liam said, rocking him slightly in his muscular arms.

“How about I find something for him to keep him warm? That towel’s pretty thin.” She hurried off.

“Put me down now.”

“No way. Once she comes back with something, maybe, but not until then. Your tiny little tootsies feel like ten little popsicles!”

“I’m so telling mom and dad.” Luke snarled.

“And they’ll thank me for doing what I could to keep you from freezing to death.” Liam replied calmly, rocking Luke gently, almost without even realizing that he was doing it. “Bet you wish you’d agree to the piggyback now.”

Luke did not answer, but he did wish he had agreed when the teacher returned with a fluffy baby blue blanket. She smiled at him, still sitting there in his brother’s arms, seemingly unaware that Liam was holding him against his will.

“You hold him and I’ll cover him up.” She said, smiling at Luke. “Here you are, little guy. All toasty warm!”

“This’ll be so much better than being out here in just your little undies, hmm?” Liam said, grinning down at Luke, playing the part of a paternalistic big brother, at least for the moment. The teacher smiled, tucking the blanket around Luke so that all that showed was his head.

“He’s lucky to have such a nice big brother.” She remarked, completely oblivious to Luke rolling his eyes. “It’s a good thing I keep this in my trunk for emergencies. This is an emergency, isn’t it, little guy?” To his shock, she actually reached out and pinched his cheek.

“How can we thank you?” Liam asked, barely able to contain his delight at this whole experience.

“Oh, it’s fine. Just bring the blanket back when you can.” She smiled and strolled away, turning to wave goodbye to Luke.

“I am going to fucking kill you.”

“Watch the language. You actually passed as a sweet little boy, no point ruining it now.” Liam said. “After all, imagine if everyone knew I was holding my older brother in just his boys size 12 tighty whities like this!”

“I will murder you.” Luke growled. “Let me go.”

“This is a nice blanket. I don’t want it touching the dirty ground.” Liam said, squeezing Luke so he knew he had no way out.

The all clear was given and Luke tried to get out of Liam’s arms, but he held him firm. Rather than go inside, he turned away from the school.

“What are you doing?”

“School day’s over and I don’t got anything in there I need.” Liam said. Luke felt him shrug. “Do you?”

“My clothes!?!” Liam tried to hide a smile, but failed miserably.

“You’ve got clothes at home.”

“You’re joking”

“Nope, you really do.” Liam chuckled at his own joke. “It’s only a few blocks.”

“But my keys, my wallet.”

“I’ve got keys, Lukey pooky.” Liam said, bouncing Luke slightly in his arms as he walked.

“What about my shoes?”

“You can wear your old ones or I can carry you to school or something.” Liam said nonchalantly.

“Un fucking believable” Liam stopped abruptly.

“Swear one more time and you’ll regret it.”

“How?”

“I’ll either spank you right here or I’ll make you walk the rest of the way home in just your baby boy undies. Your choice.” Luke wanted to call his bluff, but he knew that Liam was capable of either of those things. He fell silent. At least they were nearly home.

“Can you put me down now?” Luke asked as Liam carried him up the porch.

“Not yet. It’s still so chilly for little baby Lukies.”

“What is wrong with you?” Liam chuckled.

“Dude, c’mon. If the roles were reversed, you’d be doing the same thing.”

“Would not!”

“Well, we’ll never know, will we?” Liam shrugged again, rocking Luke as they walked inside.

After Liam closed the front door, he chuckled playfully and tossed Luke onto the couch. Luke yelped as he bounced slightly.

“Boys? Is that you?” Their mom walked into the room, her eyebrows rising as she saw Luke on the couch in just his underwear. “What’s going on?” Luke smirked. Liam would have to explain and then he would surely get in trouble for not allowing Luke to go inside and retrieve his clothes. “I see.” Their mom said pensively. “You did the right thing, Liam.”

“What?” Luke exclaimed as his brother looked smug. “He didn’t let me go back in to get my clothes!”

“Your younger brother doesn’t make your decisions for you.” She said wearily. “Did he ask to go back inside?”

“Well, he whined about it.”

“See? If you asked nicely, I’m sure” Luke growled and stormed off to his room, painfully aware that he was still in just his tighty whities. He locked his door and the entire ordeal washed over him. He sniffled and rubbed at his eyes as he got dressed again. It was over. Liam could not do anything more to him. All that remained was to plan his revenge.