It had been ages since he'd seen Elliot cry. Elliot was the strong one. Brave; able to face things David couldn't imagine, seemingly without any sort of panic. The reaction he was having to this reunion did two things. For one, David was humbled. Elliot felt so relieved about seeing him again that he was willing to let go and not care who saw. For two, David was concerned. It wasn't until this moment that it struck him that Elliot was alone. Did that mean…
…he'd ask later. Better not to know for now than to have their reunion ruined. They'd both waited four years for this moment, and ruining good, warm moments with "the logical thing to ask" wasn't something that David ever did. He was glad to find that even in times of chaos, that hadn't changed.
When Elliot mentioned never giving up on him, he had to wonder if they'd been going through the same thing. Had people tried to tell him that David was dead? Had he had someone helping him? David hoped so. Yes, Elliot was tough, but his spirit was just slightly easier to break than David's was. A flare of unwarranted defensiveness sprouted up, and he silently warned anyone who dared try to squash his brother's hope.
"Guess it's true what they say about the brotherly bond," David half-smiled, raising one hand to wipe his eyes. "Logic can tell you yes, but you just keep saying no. It's like I said, I knew that if anyone could get through this, it was you. You're the strongest person I know…" he chuckled softly. He'd always had a serious case of hero worship for his big brother. How smart, strong and just plain cool he was.
And there Elliot went, complimenting him. He laughed awkwardly, sniffling immediately afterward. "Ah, heh. Clever, not really. More like lucky," he mused. "A group of Immune sent me here like two years ago. And most everyone here's so helpful, which is nice."
He paused. Curiosity was sort of gnawing at him, though he was sure that as soon as he asked the question, he'd regret it. It was one of those things that you had to know, but would regret asking as soon as you did, but David was nothing if not a sucker for punishment. "Are… are mom and dad…" he trailed off, deciding to rephrase. "Are you alone?"