"They're crazy... fucking crazy..." Max said aloud when his parent were out of earshot.
"Don't talk about mom and dad like that!" Kenneth argued. "Would you rather have been just a head for the rest of your life/"
"They made us into a science experiment!" Max said, looking hard at his brother. Even though they did not get along, Kenneth volunteered to become a lab rat, sacrifice half of himself. He clenched his hand, their right; it reminded Max that he only had commanded over the right half of his brother's body. He realized that his brother gave up more than just half. According to their parents, he and his brother were now literally inseparable, and he could not imagine living two separate lives, not as they were. "Why did you even agree to this?" He asked.
Kenneth looked downward, seemingly at their feet; their toes were just sticking out from the covers. "Did I really have a choice?"
"You can't answer my question with another question." Max pressed. "Why did you agree to the surgery? We hate each other."
"Hate is a strong word..." Kenneth started. "I don't hate you... I envy you."
"What?" Max was taken aback. He had not expected that response from his brother.
"You do your own thing; beat to the sound of your own drum. I've always wanted to do that, but I was just never courageous enough to rebel. So... I became the good boy... the loyal follower... the A student."
Max sensed that what his brother was saying was true. He could not hear his brother's thoughts, but he felt the emotion behind the words. He remembered back to when he was just waking up; his parents had mentioned that their hormones had not synced up yet. He imagined that his and his brother's the little chemical messengers were moving between them now, more feely. It was hard for Max to put to words. He felt faint wave of envy that his brother expressed.
"You became a star athlete, maybe because school was a little harder for you, but also because you like to play. Despite mom and dad hardly attending your games, you kept at it. I... I just stay inside to keep studying." Kenneth looked at Max in the eyes. "I volunteered, in part, because there was no one else who could. Our family, like you know, has a blood anomaly on dad's side. Realistically, only someone from the family could be a donor, and this may surprise you, but dad was going to be your donor."
That bit of new did surprise Max. If he could not feel his brother telling the truth, he probably would not have believed him.
"He was going to call one of his surgeon buddies to perform the surgery, since he obviously cannot perform it on himself." Kenneth smiled at his next statement, "Since dad is... well old; I volunteered in his place. I... insisted that I should be the donor since we were so close in age, and they agreed. Though, I did not know they were going to give you half of my balls."
Max and Kenneth both laughed at his last statement. He then looked more closely at his younger brother. Max was not sure how he felt about his brother's revelation. Surprising himself though, he did feel more upbeat. "A 'thank you' is kind of a small gesture given what you did." Max stated. "Obviously, I am still not happy about sharing a body period, or being their lab rat. But... thank you. You saved me from having to spend every moment with dad." Max smiled, "Maybe I can help you with your homework as repayment."
"Ha Ha." Kenneth returned the smile.