reticent

28

• ARCHER •

Ally stands in the doorway of the front door of Amalia's house as I walk outside carefully, over to my car. I pull Alexandra's bag out, as well as mine. We slept in my car last night; my mother has gone back to how she used to be.

I frown at the thought. There was no way I was taking Ally back to my fathers house, so my car was the only choice. She's small enough to be able to lay in the back seats, and I started applying for jobs yesterday. I need to be able to pay to support my little sister somehow.

At least tonight, when it's especially cold, we'll be able to stay with Amalia. I don't have the money really to be keeping the heating on right now.

I lock my car and walk back into the house, sighing. It's five o'clock.

Amalia said Alexandra could stay in her room, so I'm sleeping in one of their many guest bedrooms. That's where I take my little sister, and I grab out a pair of pyjamas and her favourite unicorn stuffed animal and pass it all to her.

     "Can I go back to Amalia now? We were watching a movie!"

     I get the feeling Amalia is upset with me; she hasn't spoken to me much ever since we returned from the park. But I haven't heard her say a lot to anybody, so perhaps she's just shaken about everything that happened at the park.

I hope she isn't mad at me.

I could handle when she didn't like me. I even got through her being mad at me long enough before I came to confront her. But her being mad at me? Knowing that I did something wrong to upset her?

I think I'd fucking die.

That's why I follow Alexandra out of the room and into Amalia's. She's laying on top of her duvet, and Ally runs to join her, jumping onto the mattress, making Amalia smile.

"Hey." I say.

Amalia snaps her head over to me. "Hi."

"How are you feeling?" I ask her.

"You sound like my brothers." She mumbles.

I frown. "I like you in a different way than your brothers do."

As Ally settles under the covers beside her, Amalia's eyebrows rise in surprise. My little sister snuggles right into her, and the way she wraps an arm around Ally makes me love her even more, because she likes Alexandra, and she and I are a package deal.

Amalia glances at Alexandra before returning those green eyes to me. "You wanna watch the movie with us?"

     "Sure." I reply, a smile grazing my lips. I walk over to them, climbing over the duvet beside my little sister. I look at her over Ally's head, but she doesn't return my gaze, focusing hers on the laptop that's playing a movie.

• AMALIA •

I walk downstairs to get drinks. Archer offered to, but my legs hurt and I want to try stretch them.

It's six o'clock. My father is in the kitchen when I walk into it, making dinner. He smiles at me. "Hi, baby."

"Hey." I say quietly, grabbing a glass and filling it up with orange juice for Ally. I grab two Pepsi max's, one for me and one for Archer, even though he said he wasn't thirsty.

"Are Mason, Elijah and Xander still here?" I ask.

"Yeah, so's Louise and Jenna."