"Good Different"

My little brother is…different.

Joshie wasn’t always the way he is. His baby pictures are just as chubby and smiley as any of us. It wasn’t until his fourth birthday that he started to wither. His muscles just stopped growing. He just kept getting skinnier and skinnier.

By the time he was five, Mom and Dad were sad all the time, but Joshie kept smiling. Even when they got home from one of his doctor appointments and Mom’s eyes were all red and puffy, Joshie was ready to play. He couldn’t run anymore, but he always won Checkers and Go Fish.

That summer, Mom and Dad sent me to camp and our baby brother, Sam, went to Grandma’s house.

“Give Joshie a big hug because when you get back, he’ll be different.” Dad put a hand on Joshie’s shoulder and waved me over.

I was confused, but Joshie gave one of his silly smiles. “It’s going to be all right,” he said.

I was so excited to be home from camp that I almost forgot about Mom’s warning. She met me at the front door, and after thanking our neighbor for picking me up, she guided me into the living room.

“Hi, Donovan. How was camp?” A pale, thin child with a strange voice spoke to me from the couch. His face was familiar. “It’s me, Josh.”

I looked to Mom whose eyes weren’t puffy anymore. She smiled and nodded. I stepped closer to my brother. “You’re…new.”

 

He stood up and lifted the coffee table with him. “Look how strong I am. I’m fast too.” He lifted the table over his head, his arm making a whirring sound as it moved.

I stepped closer. He was taller. Or maybe it was just that he wasn’t lying in bed anymore. I touched his arm--strangely hard and cold. “Are you still sick?”

“They took it all away. I’m not going to be sick ever again.”

I thought about camp and swimming in the lake. “Can you get wet?”

“I have to be careful, but I’m basically waterproof.”

I studied him and wondered what it felt like. Then, my stomach grumbled. “Can you still eat pizza?”

“I don’t need to eat anymore.” He chuckled and so did Dad. “But they made it so I can taste some things. I do need to recharge every night.”

I threw my arms around my new brother and hugged him tight. He felt different, but I loved him still the same.

As we’ve grown older, I’ve gotten used to Joshie’s new body. He thinks it’s funny when they upgrade his legs and he’s taller than me, but I usually get a growth spurt soon enough. Despite looking different than everyone else in school, he’s the smartest kid in his class. He’s also the strongest and fastest, though I guess you could say he has an unfair advantage.

We still get strange looks from people when we go out, but Joshie just smiles like he always did. He’s different now, but I think he’s a good different.

This was written in response to a picture prompt for my writing group. The original prompt image can be seen here: http://gizmodo.com/5147929/robot-memories-from-tomorrow-scare-the-beegeezus-out-of-my-underpants