Smiley and Sunshine

38.

~ back in action, baby ~ Merry almost Christmas and happy all the holidays ~

Sunday morning, 14 October

"Last chance for the bathroom," Austin announced as he smoothly pulled the car into the driveway of Baker's cute two-story home before turning his attention to the two kids.

Sorry, teens. Geez he was getting old.

When no one responded, he addressed them directly. "Smiley?"

"I'm good," Glen declined, not even bothering to turn his gaze away from his phone. He was in the middle of a very important, very intense game of clan battles on FunRun. His right pointer finger was somehow nimbly pressing on the screen as his player dodged the bomb that Francis placed only to run into the electric trap set by Dakota.

Welp, you win some, you lose some.

One may ask, it's only 10 in the morning, on a Sunday no less, so who would Glen possibly be playing with?

Surprisingly, all the occupants of Austin's home were awake and functioning before the trio had left the house for the start of their so called 'road trip'. So Glen was currently battling against Francis, Emerson, and Dakota. The youngest brother refused to go down without a fight.

Which, wasn't really hard to achieve because Francis seemed to be losing every other round thus far.

Truth be told, everyone was awake because none of the brothers felt particularly good about letting Glen and Hayes go on this special field trip. They most certainly weren't about to let them walk out the door without many hugs and kisses.

The kisses were basically all reserved for Hayes, though Colton did catch Glen after a short chase around the dinner table. It was all in the name of love.

Nonetheless, Austin was the boss and a man of his word, so off they went. The car was packed in no time and they hit the road to go swing by Baker's. It was to be a stress-free Sunday drive, giving them plenty of time to get settled at the hotel before the dreaded trial started Monday morning.

"Sunshine?" Austin asked, glancing over his shoulder at the girl as he unbuckled his seatbelt, reaching into his pocket to pull out his phone. "Need to use the bathroom?"

"I'm okay," Hayes chirped from the back seat. Her leg bounced up and down a million times a minute, giving away the slight anxiety she was already starting to feel. Her hands fumbled with the blanket that rested in her lap, still folded up.

"Hayes," Austin narrowed his eyes, not buying her answer. Even Glen didn't believe her, turning around in the passenger seat to give her a look of disbelief.

"I don't have to go."

"Hayes."

"What?" Hayes whined, crossing her arms. "I peed before we left the house."

"Dude, you always have to pee when we get in the car," laughed Glen, calling her bluff. "You got the tiniest bladder known to women."

Hayes huffed, stubbornly averting her gaze from her annoying brothers to stare at the front door of Baker's home. Her forehead leaned against the clean window as she watched for any signs of life from the residence.

"Do not," mumbled Hayes.

But really, maybe she did have to pee just a teensy bit. Stupid nervous bladder. But that meant going inside by herself and possibly running into Peyton and Hayes didn't particularly want that to happen.

It was nothing against Peyton. The young girl was working really hard to not fear her sister-in-law, truly she was, but unfortunately women just frightened her, especially in situations where it was close quarters.