Split Branches From the Same Tree
Title: Split Branches From the Same Tree
Fandom: Jonas Brothers
Pairing; Joe/Nick
Rating: PG
Summary: Joe wonders sometimes, what it would be like if Nick were normal.
A/N: Written for dancinginastorm, who requested Joe/Nick and MPD. Unbetad, so any mistakes are my own.
Word Count: 1,458
When Joe wakes up, the bed beside him is empty. He frowns, drags his hand across sheets that should be warm with body heat but are cool against his heated skin. Nick’s been gone for a while, then.
Joe sits up, pulls a pair of boxers on, and goes to find his brother.
He finds him in the kitchen, scrambling eggs. Joe cocks his head to the side, studying him closely. He’s fully dressed -pressed gray slacks and a dark blue and black Argyle sweater- despite it being barely six in the morning. He stands tall, his back straight and his posture perfect.
Joe nods to himself, dropping down into a seat at the table, “Morning, Nicholas.”
Nicholas turns, nods at him, “Good morning. Did you sleep well?”
Joe grins, “Like a baby.”
“I’m glad. Breakfast will be done soon and then you should call your mother.”
Joe nods, “She’ll wanna talk to you, too.”
“Of course.”
Joe wonders what it would be like, sometimes, if Nick was normal. He isn’t, though, and Joe loves his brother, would never change anything about him. Still, sometimes he wonders.
Nicholas stiffens, goes completely, rigidly still. Joe keeps an eye on him, ready to move if he slumps forward towards the hot stove. The tension bleeds out of him, though, leaves Nick standing loose. His shoulders slump, his knees bend slightly, and his back bows as he slouches down. He blinks his eyes, looks around curiously.
“Joey?” He asks, voice small and tiny, childlike.
“We were just making breakfast, Nicky,” Joe gently pushes Nicky aside and takes over the eggs himself. Nicky nods and hops up on the counter, runs his hands through his hair and makes a face. He prefers it long.
“What’s today?” Nicky asks curiously.
Joe tells him and Nicky frowns. Joe understands why; it’s been two weeks since Nicky came out.
“Can we go to the park after breakfast?”
“Sure, Nicky. We can take Elvis, too, if you want.”
Nicky’s eyes lit up happily and he nods. “Really? Awesome!”
Joe smiles and reaches out to ruffle Nicky’s hair.
Nick was thirteen when he first Split. Thirteen and sick, scared to death and having panic attacks every other day. Joe had been there, standing helplessly by as half the nursing staff held him down and strapped his limbs to the bed, watched as Nick thrashed and screamed and cried, completely out of his mind with fear.
And then Nick had gone still. Perfectly, frighteningly still. He opened his eyes, looked right at Joe and whispered, “Joey? Joey, what’s going on?”
Joe calls him Nicky, the personality of Nick that is stuck at twelve years old. Nicky, who is sweet and young, healthy and carefree, without a worry in the world.
Nick has three personalities: his base and host personality, childish Nicky, and Nicholas, the middle-aged man stuck in Nick’s teenage body.
Nicholas came about suddenly, when Nick was falling apart from the pressure of his sickness and fame, too young to deal with it all and desperate to grow up fast. Joe hadn’t been there that time, hadn’t witnessed the Split. He thinks maybe he would have tried to stop it, tried to keep Nick’s fragile mind from breaking again.
Later, Joe watched the tape of it, of Nick in the conference room with twelve Disney Executives and their dad, watched him shake and sweat and try and deal, until he went rim-rod straight and still. And then there was Nicholas, calm and strong.
Their parents didn’t believe Joe when he said Nick wasn’t Nick sometimes. They didn’t believe Nick, either, and scolded him for seeking attention through lies. Joe stayed with Nick, because Nicky didn’t realize he was sick, didn’t know to check his blood sugar or watch what he ate and someone needed to keep Nicky safe, but he didn’t keep his displeasure at their parents quiet.
It caused more fights than Joe could keep track of and Nick refused to talk to anyone. Kevin was all too eager to move out when he married Danny, to escape the tension. Frankie visited friends whenever possible and Nick withdrew into himself.
He kept writing music, but the only stuff the band sang were the songs Nicholas wrote, until he stopped sharing them as well. Less than a year after Kevin’s marriage, the Jonas Brothers broke up. Joe figures it was a good thing, that Kevin was free to start the family he wanted and Nick escaped some of the pressures that brought Nicholas Out.
Sometimes, Nick would be Nick for days on end. He ignored everyone but Joe, furious that they didn’t believe him. They grew closer than ever, with Joe caring for Nicky whenever he came Out and helping Nick fill in the blanks he had while he was In.
Joe will admit that perhaps they grew too close. They shared their darkest secrets, their dreams, and their thoughts with one another, shared touches and hugs and cuddles, shared a bed, and eventually shared kisses and pleasure. Joe made love to Nick and it may condemn them both to hell, but Joe will never regret it.
When Nick turned eighteen, Joe moved them out. Back to Jersey, where incest isn’t illegal as long as it’s consensual, where they wouldn’t go to jail if they were ever found out. Their parents let them go, had never sought them out since.
Nick is twenty-two now, a young man. With the way Nicholas has been talking, Joe thinks they may be close to merging. He isn’t sure if that saddens him or not; losing Nicholas would be strange, weird. Joe loves Nicholas as much as he loves Nick, albeit differently. Nicholas is almost like a parental figure, someone older he can go to with questions, someone he can trust and confide in, but he knows that Nicholas wouldn’t really be gone. He’d be Nick, solid and healthy and whole.
Joe thinks he’d like to see Nick whole again.
Sitting on the counter, swinging his legs and waiting for his eggs, Nicky gets impatient. He pokes Joe’s bare stomach in the side and makes a face. Joe rolls his eyes at him fondly.
“Go change for the park and I’ll fry some bacon real quick.”
Nicky nods and jumps down. Joe can hear him as he runs down up the stairs to their bedroom and wonders briefly what bizarre outfit Nicky’ll manage to come up with. He has all the memories of being Out over the past years, but Nicky will forever be stuck with the maturity of a twelve-year-old.
Joe loves and adores Nicky, but Nick doesn’t. Nick doesn’t like that he can’t remember the first twelve years of his life, that he can’t remember growing up with Joe or when Frankie was born or the first time he played the piano. Those are all Nicky’s, until they merge.
If they merge.
Joe doesn’t want to think about that, though. About what it’d be like to really lose Nicky into Nick. He’s always had Nicky, always had his little brother as young and innocent, untouched by the world. Joe loves it, relishes in caring for Nicky and the easy smiles he gives, his carefree laughter. He doesn’t want that to go away.
He gets the bacon going, has it about done by the time Nicky comes bounding back into the kitchen. Joe laughs at Nicky’s outfit: a bright colored t-shirt, jeans with holes in the knees and fraying hems, bright colored shoes that in no way match his shirt, and a hat smashed down onto his curls. Nicky grins, wraps his arms around Joe’s waist, and kisses him quickly on the cheek.
They go to the park and they spend a few hours playing, until Nick comes Out halfway across the monkey bars and drops to the ground. Joe runs over, but all that’s been hurt is Nick’s dignity, so Joe grins and teases him like any brother would, helps him up and brushes the dirt from his clothes.
They walk home, Nick wondering aloud about what could have triggered Nicholas, and later Nicky, to come out. Joe shrugs, because most of Nick’s triggers are stress related and he’s been pretty relaxed lately. He thinks maybe they were just antsy, stuck quietly in Nick’s head.
They make supper together, hips bumping and hands brushing. Nick frowns a little, his usual singing absent, and Joe waits for him to say what’s on his mind.
“Does it bother you? When I go away?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
Joe beams, “Because you don’t go away. They’re part of you and I love all of you.”
“Even Nicholas?” Nick makes a face, because Nick finds Nicholas painfully boring.
Joe kisses him, “All of you.”
Fandom: Jonas Brothers
Pairing; Joe/Nick
Rating: PG
Summary: Joe wonders sometimes, what it would be like if Nick were normal.
A/N: Written for dancinginastorm, who requested Joe/Nick and MPD. Unbetad, so any mistakes are my own.
Word Count: 1,458
When Joe wakes up, the bed beside him is empty. He frowns, drags his hand across sheets that should be warm with body heat but are cool against his heated skin. Nick’s been gone for a while, then.
Joe sits up, pulls a pair of boxers on, and goes to find his brother.
He finds him in the kitchen, scrambling eggs. Joe cocks his head to the side, studying him closely. He’s fully dressed -pressed gray slacks and a dark blue and black Argyle sweater- despite it being barely six in the morning. He stands tall, his back straight and his posture perfect.
Joe nods to himself, dropping down into a seat at the table, “Morning, Nicholas.”
Nicholas turns, nods at him, “Good morning. Did you sleep well?”
Joe grins, “Like a baby.”
“I’m glad. Breakfast will be done soon and then you should call your mother.”
Joe nods, “She’ll wanna talk to you, too.”
“Of course.”
Joe wonders what it would be like, sometimes, if Nick was normal. He isn’t, though, and Joe loves his brother, would never change anything about him. Still, sometimes he wonders.
Nicholas stiffens, goes completely, rigidly still. Joe keeps an eye on him, ready to move if he slumps forward towards the hot stove. The tension bleeds out of him, though, leaves Nick standing loose. His shoulders slump, his knees bend slightly, and his back bows as he slouches down. He blinks his eyes, looks around curiously.
“Joey?” He asks, voice small and tiny, childlike.
“We were just making breakfast, Nicky,” Joe gently pushes Nicky aside and takes over the eggs himself. Nicky nods and hops up on the counter, runs his hands through his hair and makes a face. He prefers it long.
“What’s today?” Nicky asks curiously.
Joe tells him and Nicky frowns. Joe understands why; it’s been two weeks since Nicky came out.
“Can we go to the park after breakfast?”
“Sure, Nicky. We can take Elvis, too, if you want.”
Nicky’s eyes lit up happily and he nods. “Really? Awesome!”
Joe smiles and reaches out to ruffle Nicky’s hair.
Nick was thirteen when he first Split. Thirteen and sick, scared to death and having panic attacks every other day. Joe had been there, standing helplessly by as half the nursing staff held him down and strapped his limbs to the bed, watched as Nick thrashed and screamed and cried, completely out of his mind with fear.
And then Nick had gone still. Perfectly, frighteningly still. He opened his eyes, looked right at Joe and whispered, “Joey? Joey, what’s going on?”
Joe calls him Nicky, the personality of Nick that is stuck at twelve years old. Nicky, who is sweet and young, healthy and carefree, without a worry in the world.
Nick has three personalities: his base and host personality, childish Nicky, and Nicholas, the middle-aged man stuck in Nick’s teenage body.
Nicholas came about suddenly, when Nick was falling apart from the pressure of his sickness and fame, too young to deal with it all and desperate to grow up fast. Joe hadn’t been there that time, hadn’t witnessed the Split. He thinks maybe he would have tried to stop it, tried to keep Nick’s fragile mind from breaking again.
Later, Joe watched the tape of it, of Nick in the conference room with twelve Disney Executives and their dad, watched him shake and sweat and try and deal, until he went rim-rod straight and still. And then there was Nicholas, calm and strong.
Their parents didn’t believe Joe when he said Nick wasn’t Nick sometimes. They didn’t believe Nick, either, and scolded him for seeking attention through lies. Joe stayed with Nick, because Nicky didn’t realize he was sick, didn’t know to check his blood sugar or watch what he ate and someone needed to keep Nicky safe, but he didn’t keep his displeasure at their parents quiet.
It caused more fights than Joe could keep track of and Nick refused to talk to anyone. Kevin was all too eager to move out when he married Danny, to escape the tension. Frankie visited friends whenever possible and Nick withdrew into himself.
He kept writing music, but the only stuff the band sang were the songs Nicholas wrote, until he stopped sharing them as well. Less than a year after Kevin’s marriage, the Jonas Brothers broke up. Joe figures it was a good thing, that Kevin was free to start the family he wanted and Nick escaped some of the pressures that brought Nicholas Out.
Sometimes, Nick would be Nick for days on end. He ignored everyone but Joe, furious that they didn’t believe him. They grew closer than ever, with Joe caring for Nicky whenever he came Out and helping Nick fill in the blanks he had while he was In.
Joe will admit that perhaps they grew too close. They shared their darkest secrets, their dreams, and their thoughts with one another, shared touches and hugs and cuddles, shared a bed, and eventually shared kisses and pleasure. Joe made love to Nick and it may condemn them both to hell, but Joe will never regret it.
When Nick turned eighteen, Joe moved them out. Back to Jersey, where incest isn’t illegal as long as it’s consensual, where they wouldn’t go to jail if they were ever found out. Their parents let them go, had never sought them out since.
Nick is twenty-two now, a young man. With the way Nicholas has been talking, Joe thinks they may be close to merging. He isn’t sure if that saddens him or not; losing Nicholas would be strange, weird. Joe loves Nicholas as much as he loves Nick, albeit differently. Nicholas is almost like a parental figure, someone older he can go to with questions, someone he can trust and confide in, but he knows that Nicholas wouldn’t really be gone. He’d be Nick, solid and healthy and whole.
Joe thinks he’d like to see Nick whole again.
Sitting on the counter, swinging his legs and waiting for his eggs, Nicky gets impatient. He pokes Joe’s bare stomach in the side and makes a face. Joe rolls his eyes at him fondly.
“Go change for the park and I’ll fry some bacon real quick.”
Nicky nods and jumps down. Joe can hear him as he runs down up the stairs to their bedroom and wonders briefly what bizarre outfit Nicky’ll manage to come up with. He has all the memories of being Out over the past years, but Nicky will forever be stuck with the maturity of a twelve-year-old.
Joe loves and adores Nicky, but Nick doesn’t. Nick doesn’t like that he can’t remember the first twelve years of his life, that he can’t remember growing up with Joe or when Frankie was born or the first time he played the piano. Those are all Nicky’s, until they merge.
If they merge.
Joe doesn’t want to think about that, though. About what it’d be like to really lose Nicky into Nick. He’s always had Nicky, always had his little brother as young and innocent, untouched by the world. Joe loves it, relishes in caring for Nicky and the easy smiles he gives, his carefree laughter. He doesn’t want that to go away.
He gets the bacon going, has it about done by the time Nicky comes bounding back into the kitchen. Joe laughs at Nicky’s outfit: a bright colored t-shirt, jeans with holes in the knees and fraying hems, bright colored shoes that in no way match his shirt, and a hat smashed down onto his curls. Nicky grins, wraps his arms around Joe’s waist, and kisses him quickly on the cheek.
They go to the park and they spend a few hours playing, until Nick comes Out halfway across the monkey bars and drops to the ground. Joe runs over, but all that’s been hurt is Nick’s dignity, so Joe grins and teases him like any brother would, helps him up and brushes the dirt from his clothes.
They walk home, Nick wondering aloud about what could have triggered Nicholas, and later Nicky, to come out. Joe shrugs, because most of Nick’s triggers are stress related and he’s been pretty relaxed lately. He thinks maybe they were just antsy, stuck quietly in Nick’s head.
They make supper together, hips bumping and hands brushing. Nick frowns a little, his usual singing absent, and Joe waits for him to say what’s on his mind.
“Does it bother you? When I go away?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
Joe beams, “Because you don’t go away. They’re part of you and I love all of you.”
“Even Nicholas?” Nick makes a face, because Nick finds Nicholas painfully boring.
Joe kisses him, “All of you.”