Act XIV

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Grian sat squished between Lizzie and Jimmy on the sofa, a bowl of popcorn in each of their laps, as they watched the TV intently. They'd finished The Hunger Games yesterday when Lizzie got home with Jimmy, and now they've moved on to The A List. It wasn't a show any of them would have watched normally, but the trailer seemed interesting enough that they decided to at least see the first episode. After that, they were hooked.

"Oh, for the love of- I thought I hated Mia, but Amber-" Grian groaned. "God, I hate shows like these," he grumbled.

Lizzie snickered. "If you hate it, why are you watching it?" she laughed. Her hair was wet from being re-dyed just half an hour ago.

"Because-" Grian paused a moment before shrugging, earning another laugh from Lizzie. "To be honest, I have no idea."

They all went quiet for a moment, then Lizzie gasped.

"Who is that?" she asked, more to herself than anyone else. She stuffed some popcorn in her mouth as one of the male characters, Dev, walked across the screen. "Oh, he's hot."

Both Grian and Jimmy began to whine.

"This is going to be Gale all over again, isn't it?" Grian said almost solemnly.

Jimmy sighed. "Unfortunately," he answered, shooting a glance at Lizzie, who couldn't hear them over her new obsession over this character. Chuckling, Jimmy grabbed a small handful of popcorn and chucked it at her.

She gasped and reciprocated the action, tossing popcorn in her brother's direction. Jimmy opened his mouth and caught a piece mid-air, which made Lizzie groan. "You little-" She took the pillow from under her bowl of popcorn and tossed it at Jimmy, accidentally hitting Grian in the process.

The only sound left in the room as Grian set his bowl aside and stood was the TV. Neither of the other two could see his face, and they exchanged nervous glances while Grian knelt down to grab the pillow off the floor.

Inhaling sharply into the silence, Lizzie slumped down into the sofa a bit. "Sorry, Grian," she said quietly. "I didn't mean to- Oh!" She gasped when the pillow collided with her face, followed by Grian saying, "Think fast!" and laughing.

Inevitably, a pillow fight started.

Jimmy had ended up backing Grian into a corner at some point. "Ha!" Jimmy lifted the pillow above his head. "I got you-"

"I'm sorry!" Grian shouted, the pillow falling from his hands as he shoved himself against the wall and slid down to curl up onto the floor. He covered the top of his head with his hands and shook while he tried to make himself as small as possible.

Jimmy's stomach dropped as he lowered his own pillow and set it onto the couch. He turned to Lizzie, who quickly rushed over just a moment later. "Hey," she whispered, hands on Grian's shoulders. "Grian."

Grian shook his head in response, whining in place of speaking. He hadn't quite been crying, but his voice quivered and he sounded on the verge of tears.

"Grian," Lizzie repeated, much softer this time. "Look at me, please." Smiling when he lifted his head slightly, she gently pried his hands from his hair. "You can relax, honey. You're safe. I promise."

Eyes still frantic and breathing still staggered, Grian didn't respond.

Lizzie let out a soft sigh before turning to her brother. "Jim, can you get my phone?" she asked, and Jimmy nodded. Lizzie looked back at Grian. "I'm going to call Joel, okay? You think you can try to talk to him?" This time Grian nodded, and Lizzie's shoulders felt a little bit lighter. "Okay."

Jimmy came around the corner. "It's only at, like, forty-three," he said as he handed Lizzie her phone.

"That's fine," she said. She didn't bother unlocking it, instead going for the emergency call button and dialing Joel's number.

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