"I don't care if you believe me or not. The damage has been done." 

☆

Isaac presses on the doorbell for the third and in his mind, the final time. He knew he had the correct address. He knew his brother was inside and he knew the delay was to only aggravate him, and it was working. 

Finally he can hear the lock tuning as the door slowly opens. Isaac becomes face to face with Ian. "Thanks for seeing me at such short notice."  He forces a smile, with Ian responding with an expressionless stare. "Can I come in?"

Ian leaves the door ajar as he turns away, with Isaac taking the hint that he should step inside. "Is she ok?" Ian questions. His voice tried to portray that he didn't care about their mother. The lady who had turned her back on him, sent him away and disowned him. All because, in her mind, he was delusional and needed help.

Isaac lets out an awkward laugh. "About that…" he says as he looks down at his feet. 

Ian turns to look at Isaac. "What's going on? Are you lying to me again?" He balls a fist as he takes a step towards his younger brother. 

Isaac is quick to take a step back, holding his hands up in deference. "I'm sorry. She's fine, it's just I knew you wouldn't agree to see me if I told you the real reason."

"Get out." Ian looks at Isaac with such conviction that if it were any other time or for any other reason, Isaac would have obliged, but he knew he needed to stay where he was. Routed to the spot. He needed to know the full story from the only person who could give it.

"Not until I get answers." He begins. 

"Answers for what? Why the hell are you here Isaac?" Ian raises his voice, causing Isaac to recoil a fraction. 

"Back to that day. The cliff… I need to know what you saw." 

Ian turns his back to Isaac, his hands on his hips as he looks at the ceiling and emits a sarcastic laugh. "I can't believe I'm hearing this." He turns back around to face his brother. "You want to know what I saw? I told you. I told all of you and look where it got me. Branded a liar, an attention seeker." He walks up to Isaac, getting into his face. "If anyone knows what really happened up there, it's you." 

Isaac takes a step back, he places a hand on the back of the couch as if to steady himself from the weight pressing heavily on his mind. "Ian if I knew, I would say." He looks back up to his older brother. "I fell and then I woke up in hospital. I swear that's all I remember. 

"You couldn't have survived that fall." Ian interrupts. "That cliff top was steep. The water was wild. I…." Ian swallows hard. "I... I watched you fall. You went right over the edge. You should be dead, but I couldn't bring myself to look, so I ran straight to grandma's. I told her exactly what happened. That you were being stupid. You wouldn't listen to me. I told them you were dead." Ian takes a breath, seeing that Isaac was taking in the words, as his brother finds his body resting on the arm of the couch. "When we got back to the cliff, grandpa and I, there you were. Unconscious but alive, laying there at the spot before you fell." 

Isaac looks at Ian. "How is that possible?." 

"There you go again. You ask for the truth, I give you the truth and you still think I'm lying." Ian heads to the kitchen to get himself a drink. "I don't care if you believe me or not. The damage has been done." 

Isaac tries to process Ian's take on the situation. He stands up, watching the back of his brother. "Ian. I believe you." 

"It doesn't matter now…"

"I've been having these dreams. Dreams of me falling. Like, I don't know… I was there and it did happen. I did fall. I can feel the cold water. I can't breathe…" 

Ian turns to look at his brother. He grabs a hold of his shoulders, shaking him a little. "Isaac. How did you survive?"

He looks at Ian. His eyes were as petrified as his brother's. "I don't know…"