What!?

16

In the end they walked along the beach until they came to a couple of restaurants, but one of them wasn't dress casual like they were so they decided to go with the other one and to come back possibly another time to try out the restaurant they aren't going to.

Just as they were finishing eating, some of the other brothers decided to show up. "Hey, how come you didn't wait for us?" Phoenix asks a little upset that they already ate without them.

"You left without telling Iliana where you were going or when you would be back. We had no idea how long you would be gone." Blake answers when Phoenix continues to look at him and ignores Ili.

"I'm done, Blake. You can stay if you want." Iliana feels like crying again.

Some of the other brothers come laughing over to their table as Iliana gets up and leaves, none of them say anything to stop her. Blake watches and none of them even look as she leaves.

Once Iliana is far enough away from the group, Blake stands up. "This is her birthday trip. Have any of you even told her happy birthday? Have you even fucking talked to her today? She bet me last night that none of you would talk to her or ask her to join you as you left the house. I told her that she was wrong, now I owe her a thousand dollars. How could I have such selfish brothers? I know it wasn't because of mother or father because they taught us all better than that. 

"But you don't have to worry much longer. The day after tomorrow I'll be taking Ili back to the States and she should be packed and gone by the time you get back from this vacation. I have to say, I have never been so disappointed in any one as I have been in all of you."

By now all the brothers have congregated around the table and Blake looks directly at Preston. "You told me yourself just how much Iliana feels isolated and unwanted. Yet, you nor any of you have made any kind of effort to speak or even acknowledge her in any way. That includes everyone.

"I'm sure that when she turns eighteen that she'll sell me her interest in the house. Hell, she's likely to sell her shares of the company that she holds. Once she does that we'll never see her again.

"I just want to thank you all for pushing my special one away so she won't want to have anything to do with me. I don't give a shit if you don't want her, I did." With those words Blake leaves his stunned brothers behind.

The scene must have changed view points once more since it didn't follow her to the house it stayed there at the restaurant.

"She's leaving?" Dimitri says shocked as he drops into the now empty seat.

"I guess there really is a limit to how far she'll let us push her before she has enough." Casper says joking, but sick as he realizes his part in her leaving. He hadn't been very nice to her lately. Neither had Flynn.

"We fucked up royally." Kai says and walks away. Phoenix races after him neither one speaks as they walk on the darkened sand.

"I knew she was down, but I didn't think she would actually leave." Preston says to the now quiet table.

"We have to get her to stay. We have to get her to give us another chance." Gregor is almost hyperventilating at the thought of her leaving.

Isaac gives out a bitter and disbelieving laugh. "Give us another chance? Why the fuck should she? She gave us another chance at six. I believe her mother gave us a very similar tongue lashing, only she warned us that she wouldn't let Iliana be around us if we hurt her again. At fifteen she gave us another chance. Three strikes we're out."

"What if we do something for her that she really wants to do, like diving with the sharks?" Dimitri asks brightly and holds his breath as the others think about it.

"No good, Blake is taking her to do that tomorrow. We're invited by the way, at least we were before this. It might be a good idea if we start spending time with her again, but I'm still not sure it will be enough." Isaac says defeated. How had he allowed things to get so bad with Ili? He loves her so much. But Blake is right, he hadn't spoken to her at all today, hadn't wished her happy birthday or given her the gift that's sitting in his bag for her.

"She's always wanted to go to a luau. We could arrange one of those." Dimitri perks up at the thought.

"Laua's are Hawaiian. We aren't in Hawaii." Preston tells him gently. It was a good thought, if they had been in the right location it would be perfect.

"Surely there is something similar that they do here? We can look at the website for the island and see what they offer. Good idea, Dimitri." Preston encourages the discouraged teen.

"Then that's what we'll do." The triplets perk up and take off for the house. 

"What are we going to do, Isaac? We fucked up just as much as the others. I know that she was more lenient with us than with the younger ones because we'd been working so much, but we are just as guilty."

"I have no idea, Preston. Do you? It never should have come to this." Isaac gets up and leaves the restaurant as he's lost his appetite.

Preston follows him shortly afterwards no longer hungry. Sickness roils around his stomach and he has no desire to find a companion for the night either.

He stares at the ocean when an idea strikes him. He takes out his phone, "How about we take her snorkeling? The sea life around here is rather bountiful."

"If she'll come with us, it would be a great idea." Isaac responds hesitantly. It would work rather well with his gift for her too, he got her a snorkeling kit.

Hoping that all isn't lost just yet Isaac makes his way back to the house. He goes to his bags and takes out the gift he has for Ili and taking a deep breath goes to her room.

He waits after knocking but there is no response. He knocks once more slightly harder. "She's not in there. Blake took her for a walk along the beach." One of the triplets tells him. Isaac still can't tell them apart even after eighteen years around them, yet Ili has always been able to tell all of them apart.

"Thanks, guess I'll just leave this here for her then." Isaac sets the gift down.

The triplet shrugs, "You can if you want, but she's not accepting any of our gifts. She said that she won't be taking them with her so it won't matter if she even opens them at this time."

"Fuck." Isaac says as he thinks to himself. What's it matter on the timing? Everything. Had he given his gift to her earlier then she would accept it and she might not leave.

He walks away defeated.

Iliana hadn't known any of that and is more than a little interested.  It is long over and done with, but it's still nice to know that they had really been upset at the idea of her leaving.