06/08/2025
MY AUTISTIC BROTHER NEVER SPOKEāBUT THEN HE DID SOMETHING THAT LEFT ME IN TEARS
Iād only been in the shower for ten minutes.
The baby had just gone down, and I figured I had enough time to wash my hair before the next meltdown. My husband was out grabbing groceries, and my brother, Keane, was in the living roomāsame spot as always, headphones on, silently playing his matching puzzle app like he does every afternoon.
Keane doesnāt talk much. Hasnāt since we were kids. Heās gentle, predictable, sweet in his own quiet way. He lives with us now. When we offered, he just nodded. I wasnāt sure how itād work out, honestlyābut weāve made it work.
Anyway, mid-shampoo, I heard the baby cry.
That sharp, fussy wailāthe one that means Iām not okay. My stomach dropped. I rushed to rinse, heart pounding, soap still in my ears. But then⦠silence.
Total silence.
I threw on a towel and raced into the hallway, half-expecting chaos.
Instead, I froze.
Keane was sitting in the armchairāmy armchairāwith the baby curled on his chest like a sleepy little loaf of bread. One arm held the baby close, the other gently stroking his back in a soft rhythm, just like I do. And sprawled across Keaneās lap, purring like she owned the place, was our cat, Mango.
The three of them looked like theyād done this a hundred times.
The baby was out cold. Not a single tear left.
Keane didnāt look at me. He didnāt need to.
And I swear, I forgot how to breathe. Then Keane whispered something, for the first time in a while āš
(continue reading in the first cį“mment)