Robert was actually being….he was actually being civil and calm while talking about Tarin and merging. Lee was honestly and truly surprised.

”Except, this would have happened regardless, Bobby,” Lee said, her voice not as harsh as it had previously been. ”This happened when I went to the gym and sparred. The same gym Kevin and I have been going to for 6 years. I went on my own, decided to take the challenge of my own free will. Knew and agreed before we started that the hits were going to be real and hard.

“In case the video wasn’t enough proof, she was a mutant too,” Lee continued. ”I was actually able to use my powers and see what I was capable of doing. I could have tapped out at any time, Bobby. I didn’t have to spar at all, I could have tapped out after the first hit. But I chose to do it, just like you chose to play hockey, chose to get into those fights.

“Did you actually watch the video? She was better trained than me, she was faster than me, but guess what? I still won. And all of this would have happened whether Tarin was around or not right now.”

Lee paused, letting Robert think about all that as she looked around the corner into the living room to check where Kevin was. And saw that he appeared rather interested in the game. Lee couldn’t help the small smile from coming to her face before turning back to Robert.

”I can understand the worry, Bobby,” Lee finally continued in a whisper. ”I’ve probably worried about it more than you have over the years. But to be completely honest, I’m not worried about the merging with him. It’s only happened to him twice in his entire life, and he didn’t even know it was even possible to merge with someone else until I told him about that happening.”

”Only a half inning to go. Visitors bat first, so if we can get these three outs, we win.” Tarin said, leaning forward and adjusting his ball cap. It seemed to be working much better today.

A moment later, Kevin sat down on the couch, ”Only three outs…”

Robert sight, ”Of course I saw the video Em, Kevin showed it to me about 12 times today.” he said, ”It was…pretty impressive.”

His sister kept talking though, and Robert frowned, ”But it has happened.” he said, then sighed.

”This is an ultimatum, isn’t it?”

Despite everything that they were discussing, everything that had happened between them that day, Lee couldn’t help but laugh slightly. ”Of course he did…” she said, shaking her head. It had been a week (well, slightly more), and Kevin was still showing the video of her sparring match against Michael to anyone and everyone that would stand still long enough.

But when Robert asked, wanted to confirm, that the man sitting on the couch watching baseball with her son had had merges happen before, all signs of the smile and laughter were gone. ”It has…” Lee admitted even as she looked up at her brother. ”But I don’t think it will again. And that is something that I could never say truthfully before.”

Then Lee sighed as well, nodding slightly. ”It is. Because one way or another, what happened this morning will not happen again.”

”Mets win!” Tarin said as the last strike smacked into the catcher’s glove. ”It’s about time…” Tarin said, finally leaning back against the cushions of the couch.

”That…was pretty okay.” Kevin said thoughtfully before digging his phone out of his hoodie pocket and starting to type.

Tarin couldn’t help but smile a little at the high praise as he watched the post-game.

Yeah. Perfect day.

Lee spoke again and Robert’s eyes narrowed very slightly when she said she didn’t think it would happen again, ”How can you be so sure?” he said, then winced slightly and held up a hand, ”I guess it’s not my business.”

At the confirmation that this was, indeed, an ultimatum Robert shrugged his shoulders, ”I never should have done that with Kevin in the house.” he said.

”How can you be so sure? I guess it’s not my business.”

It really wasn’t his business, and Lee had no intention of telling him any more of what was going on between her and Tarin, but there was something she could say that might reassure him at least a bit.

Or make things worse. But either way, it was bound to help the situation with Robert, and how things would play out in the future, be decided.

”Bobby, you don’t live the kind of live I have, from the time I was 16, and not only survive but be doing as well as I am without learning to make quick, accurate decisions on who you can be around and who to get away from, who you can trust. I have very rarely been wrong. That is how I can be so sure.

“And no, you shouldn’t have. Even if Kevin knew about merging, you should have never done that with him around. You’re just lucky he didn’t see any of it.”

The post game was going on, the commentators were breaking down the game and showing highlights, and Robert hadn’t been thrown through a window or a wall. Tarin decided that was a good thing.

Kevin also noticed at about the same time and hopped up from the couch, moving back towards the door, ”You going to come in Uncle Robert?” he asked.

”Not tonight, Kev.” he said with a small smile, ”Just talking to your Mum for a minute.” .

”Okay, the Mets won! I’m gonna go hang out in my room now, Zack wants to play Fortnite. Later Uncle Robert. Later Mum.” and then he was off.

”Later Tarin.”.

”Later Kevin.”

At that sound, something in Robert’s face changed just slightly and he shook his head slowly as the door down the hallway shut.

”Are you sure you know because of that, and not because you two are sleeping together?”

Suddenly, Lee felt someone moving toward the door from inside the apartment. Knowing that it could be only one of two people, and that Tarin had said he’d stay away from the door, Lee tensed up, her mouth snapping closed.

Sure enough, it was Kevin, and he was asking if Robert was going to come in. And Robert answering before she got the chance to. At least he was being discreet about it with Kevin.

Lee turned her head toward Kevin, but kept her eye on Robert standing just outside the door. ”Have fun. Say hi to Zack for me,” Lee said, turning back to her brother the moment Kevin’s back was turned.

And the moment Kevin’s door closed, Robert spoke. Lee’s eyebrows shot up as she looked at her brother in shock and surprise. ”Excuse me?” she exclaimed, her voice louder than it had been during the entirety of the conversation. ”What in the world would make you think that?”

Robert still stayed in the hall, ”Kevin told me how much you two obviously like each other and how hard you’re trying to keep it a secret from him.” . He said, shaking his head again.

”This is exactly when I meant when I mentioned a blind spot Em. Why does it have to be him?.” Robert added.

The post game was over now, but Lee had told him to stay out of sight of the door, so Tarin stayed where he’d been told to stay. He heard Lee’s little exclamation though, and looked back over his shoulder, trying to see the door but failing all the while reminding himself that Lee could easily take care of herself.

Lee blinked at Robert in surprise. ”Kevin told you what?” she asked. They’d been careful, Lee knew they’d been careful to not let Kevin see anything. She had wanted to let Kevin get used to Tarin to start with before she brought the idea up with him.

”And first of all, I don’t, and didn’t, have a blind spot,” Lee retorted. ”I was well aware of his flaws and issues. I knew what could potentially happen, the potential risk, just as he did with my powers. I knew and worried and made plans to try and mitigate those risks. I loved him knowing all of that, not pretending it wasn’t there.

“And even if there was something going on, the Tarin sitting on my couch is nothing like Kevin’s father,” Lee continued, shaking her head. ”They may have the same name, and share similar powers, but they are as different from each other as Rachel and myself are different.”

”You heard me Em, it’s not hard to connect the dots.”

Lee tried to explain about herself and the previous Tarin, but Robert waved her off.

”You loved him and he hurt you, or let you be hurt over and over and over again….” Robert said, taking a small step closer to his sister, ”That’s. Not. Love.”

As for what she said about the other Tarin. The one sitting in her apartment. Talking to her son. Watching a god damn baseball game.

”How exactly did you two run into each other?” Robert asked, ”Funny that Rach took Kevin for an impromptu visit to see Mum and Dad and suddenly he’s here.”

Robert stared Lee down again, ”You can lie to yourself all you want about how different things are, but when it comes down to it, some things just are no matter what universe they came from.”

”What dots?” Lee asked. But then Robert continued and his previous statement was forgotten.

Her eyebrow raised as she saw him take a step toward her. ”You don’t think it’s love?” she asked, standing her ground as she glared up almost a foot at her brother. ”And what are you doing right now as you try to ‘protect’ me because you say you love me? Trying to intimidate me?

“But getting hurt seems to be an unfortunate but very common part of being a mutant. Because I’ve been hurt far worse, far more frequently by things that have nothing to do with either of our powers.”

That wasn’t the end of what Robert had to say. She was not about to get into this topic with Robert, especially not tonight. Lee took a deep breath as she tried to calm herself down. ”It’s time for you to leave,” Lee informed him.

”I’m just trying to get you to look things realistically.” Robert said, finally taking a step back, ”But fine. I’ll go. You know where I am, Em. Tell Kevin I’ll see him soon.”

That said, Robert turned and walked away, back towards the elevator.

By this point, Tarin had the sneaking suspicion that something was wrong. There was no way that Lee and Robert had been talking that long about anything casual when things this morning had been so rough.

Again though, Lee had asked him to stay out of it, so he did his best to wait, painfully oblivious of the conversation that had just ended.

He was trying to get her to look at things realistically? She damn well did that. Every day of her life. But maybe hers and Tarin’s worlds were closer than hers and Robert’s were, despite Tarin literally coming from a different earth.

Lee had been expecting Robert to fight more when she informed him that it was time for him to leave. She had expected him to argue, to try to hold the door open when she ended up trying to close it on him, to try to force his way into the apartment so they could keep ‘talking’. She had been expecting all of that.

What Lee hadn’t been expecting was for him to simply turn and walk away down the hall toward the elevator. Because she hadn’t been expecting it, Lee simply stood and watched her brother walking away for a few moments before she finally closed and locked the door.

Taking a deep breath, Lee closed her eyes and leaned her head against the door. That whole…encounter with her brother hadn’t resulted in a fight, whether physical or a truly verbal fight, but man had it still taken a lot out of her.

After what had seemed like an eternity, Tarin heard the front door shut and lock and he waited for Lee to return to the living room.

Only she didn’t.

Deciding he’d waited long enough, no matter what his instructions had been, Tarin pushed off of the couch and made his way around the corner to see Lee standing at the door, head leaning against it.

”I’m guessing that went about as well as expected?” he said softly from his vantage point by the kitchen, wanting to approach but trying to be mindful of the rules.

Honestly, Lee wasn’t entirely sure how long she had stood there before she felt someone making their way across the apartment to her. But stopping still a distance away.

Taking a deep breath and letting it out in a sigh as Tarin spoke, she nodded. ”Oh yeah…” Lee said as she finally turned around to see Tarin standing over by the kitchen. ”He started out seeming alright with things finally, and then it all went downhill.”

Lee shook her head as she slowly took a few steps away from the door, further into the apartment. ”And on top of all the other crap, he thinks the reason I’m so sure it’s alright for you to be in this apartment is because I’m sleeping with you. Because Kevin told him that we like each other.”