heal | luke hemmings

15

Fifteen

Luke

"Did you have a good birthday?" I asked Kenzie as we sat around downstairs. The guys were off doing their own thing and Alex was already in bed, which left me and Kenzie up.

"Yeah, it was good," she confirmed.

"And Saturday is your party,"

"I can't wait,"

"So I was thinking of taking a trip this summer," I said, which gained her attention. "Myrtle beach,"

"Who would come?"

"The guys, you, Alex, Crystal, and Sierra," I listed, which made her slouch at the mention of Sierra.

"Pass,"

"Kenz, why don't you like her?"

"I just don't, do I need a reason?" she shrugged.

"Kind of, yeah,"

"I just don't," she repeated, which made me sigh.

"Can you give her a chance?"

"I did," she let out a frustrated groan. "I let her stay at my birthday party, isn't that enough?"

"You didn't even talk to her,"

"Yes I did," she snapped, both of us now angry with each other. "I'm going to bed, this is the worst birthday ever," Without another word from either of us, she stormed upstairs as I leaned on the couch and ran my hands over my face. That night, both of us went to bed angry with each other, and that lasted till the morning.

The morning already started awful. Alex woke me up at five, refusing to go back to sleep, I was already getting calls from work, the guys overslept, and Kenzie refused to speak to me that morning. Instead, she got ready silently, then got some coffee and left for work. Her friends had hooked her up with a job at some country club in the morning, and they all worked their. According to her, it paid nicely, so I let her apply and she got the job.

"Someone's moody," Michael sang.

"I know, I don't know what to do with her," I sighed.

"I meant you,"

"Me?" my head snapped up.

"Dude, you're bringing a stranger into her life, and the last mother figure she had was abusive towards her," Michael reminded me. "Obviously she isn't going to be jumping with joy for you dating Sierra,"

"Sierra's not like that,"

"Crystal's not either, it took time for her to adjust. The more you force her to like her, the less she will," he said as he picked Alex up, making him giggle. "She adores Crystal now, because I didn't push that relationship,"

"I love Sierra," Alex grinned. "She plays legos with me,"

"She does," I nodded with a smile.

"And you didn't force him to," Michael added, giving me a look. "Stop trying to control her feelings. She's sixteen, she's moody, she's emotional, and she's already been through enough,"

"You're right,"

"Of course I am, now let's get going Ali, you got daycare," Michael tickled Ali, who squealed and tried to get out of his grip, but failed.