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Vincent hadn't always been second in line to Alexis. In another life, before the accident, he had actually been the eldest, he and his younger brother only a few years a part in age. They were close in his old life, inseparable even, until the former Vincent met his untimely end.
One of the most difficult adjustments in his early years as a vampire was the sudden separation from his family and younger brother. Vincent resented William's insistence that, for the sake of both covert and his own well being, Vincent couldn't continue to keep tabs on his old family, even if from the shadows. He seethed each time William, with great patience whenever the subject was broached, explained how much more painful it would be for him to watch their lives ultimately move on in Vincent's absence. Despite this, Vincent couldn't help but attempt small check-ins on his brother over the years, the act made all the easier as social media took off. Vincent learned when he graduated high school, a year later than planned as he grappled with his grief over Vincent, was delighted to find that he'd managed to be accepted to the same College Vincent himself was attending before his accident. Had shared in his brother's grief when their mother became ill shortly after and eventually passed before his brother finished his first year.
Over time, Vincent began to understand the ache that William had tried to shield him from, and finally acquiesced to put his old life to end. To fully separate himself from the "old Vincent" his brother still remembered. The last thing he chose to know about his little brother was that he had settled down his sophomore year with his college sweetheart and that they seemed rather happy together.
So it was to Vincent's immeasurable surprise when one day, many years after he had last allowed himself to last think of him, that his Lovely returned home to tell Vincent about the oddest encounter. They told him that after finishing their last class for the day, they had made a quick stop at the 7/11 by campus for snacks where they ran into a boy who so closely resembled their lover it stopped them dead in their tracks. As they stood near him in line to check out, they couldn't help but say hello and make small talk together. The boy shared that he was passing through Dahlia on his first solo road trip before leaving for college later in the Fall. Lovely had recommended a place to him to eat while in town before parting ways. Vincent sat utterly still, in a daze as they spoke and laughed about how much alike they looked.
Later that evening, with his heart still racing in his chest, Vincent did what he had not dared to do in nearly 2 decades, and looked up his younger brother. He found that in the years since he'd last, his brother had lived a full life spent traveling and making a name for himself in his career. He had even started a family of his own, his most recent post mentioning that his eldest son would soon be attending college at his own Alma Mater. Vincent felt his Lovely rush to his side and wrap their arms tightly around him before he even registered the feeling of tears roll down his cheeks. He heard rather than felt the sob that broke from his chest as he began to cry in their safe embrace.
Vincent didn't know how long they sat with his face pressed against their neck, their hands soothingly running through his hair. Eventually he was calm enough to explain what he had found out. That after all these years there would soon (finally) be a Vincent Reyes counted among his university's Alumni.