Gracious

Chapter 40

A/N - another one 🫡

TW - this chapter contains mentions of suicide and attempted suicide

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"So you're gonna move away and leave us?", I chuckled into my coffee, slinging an arm over the back of the sofa and watching Xavier stare at Chase in disbelief, "you won't live here?".

"It won't be forever Xav", Chase rolled his eyes, wrapping an around Aurora, "it's just college".

"Just college", she mused, "where's the pride in yourself?". His cheeks flushed and I smirked, at least his girlfriend and I were on the same page.

"I've been telling him the same thing", I sipped my drink, "if you want to go to college next year, what's stopping you?".

"Did you see me at the start of high school?", he deadpanned, "I don't particularly wanna go through that again".

"You wouldn't", Aurora leaned against him, "you've gotten so much more confident since then".

And that was mainly down to her.

"And you won't be there", he grumbled, removing his glasses, "what am I supposed to do?".

"Way to make us feel special", Alexander grumbled from behind us all in the kitchen, he'd been baking a cake for the past twenty minutes and was in his element while working silently. Apparently he was still listening in on the conversation though.

"You know I'd miss all of you", Chase turned so he was looking at our brother, "even though I'll get peace and quiet". Alexander's lips twitched into a smile while he mixed his cake batter, I was just happy to see him smiling after last week's...events at dinner time.

"You'd get sick of the quiet within a week", the fourteen year old teased, peering over his shoulder as Caleb entered the room, "you look like shit".

"Yeah well, Zane snores", he narrowed his eyes in my direction and I surrendered with one hand, the other still gripping the handle of my mug, "and you hog the duvet".

"Why don't you sleep in your bed again Cub?", I knew Xavier meant well by asking that, but I noticed the way Caleb's back stiffened as he peered into the fridge.

"Not yet, Xav", luckily our brother dropped it, "who drank all the orange juice?". All eyes landed on me and I rolled my eyes.

"Blame the diabetic, I'm flattered", I scoffed, sipping my drink again and watching Alexander swat Caleb with a tea towel.

"You're in my space", he told him, our brother surrendered and joined us in the attached living room.

"You're in my space", he mimicked him in a higher pitch, Xavier laughed until his twin glared at him, he shut up quickly after that, "what are we talking about?".

"How Chase wants to ditch us all and go to college next year", Xavier got him caught up and I watched Caleb stiffen again, blue eyes focusing on our seventeen year old brother.

"College huh?", he smirked, "well if anyone's gonna do it, it's gonna be Chase". He smiled a smile that didn't quite meet his eyes, I just put it down to the reality of his favourite brother moving away hitting him.

"The nerd of the family", Alexander chuckled from the kitchen, Chase rolled his eyes and leaned back against Aurora, he'd been the subject of our teasing for years now but it came from a good place. None of us could be prouder of him.

"It's not even definite", he slid his glasses back on and cleared his throat, "just thinking about it".

"Thinking about it my ass", Caleb snorted, "you're going and we all know it".