Trigger

three • fires

Finn Allen is nothing like I expected.

Well, to be fair, I'm not too sure what I expected of Finn Allen. All I do know, though, is that I'm slightly surprised the first three things I notice about Finn are completely different than what I noticed about Levi. For one, Finn is tall. He's almost half a head taller than Levi, which means he's almost a head taller than me. The next thing I notice is his walk- his chin is up, there's almost a constant crooked grin on his face and his posture is perfect- he walks with a confidence. An obvious one, one that's almost overbearing and definitely intimidating. Finally- his eyes. But not for the same reason's that I noticed Levi's.

Levi's eyes were a warm brown, a welcoming sight that matched the kindness of his face. Finn's are... amused. His cold blue eyes, which contrast almost beautifully with his black hair, have a look of mirth to them. Something tells me that that small emotion never really goes away.

Finn crooked grin turns into a full out beam when he sees us approaching. He clasps Levi's shoulder, "Hey, man."

"Hey, Finn. How was your drive?"

Finn sighs heavily, closing his jeep door with a loud slam before rolling back his shoulders. "Tried to leave extra early to avoid the morning rush, but somehow got stuck right in the smack middle of it. Once I got out of the busy highways, though, it wasn't awful." He turns to me, "Who's this?"

"This is Kinsley, she's seventeen too. She's staying at the cottage beside us."

Finn's smile increases, "Nice. You staying for the summer?"

I nod, "Yeah. We've had this cottage since I was little."

Nodding, Finn's blue eyes flicker to his own cottage. "My parents have wanted a cottage forever but claimed they couldn't find the 'perfect' one. Then Levi came to live with us and my dad decided we all needed a place that we could just get away to if needed. That's when we found this beauty."

I laugh at the word he used to describe the cottage. It isn't far off from the truth- the cottage is beautiful. Levi doesn't seem to like Finn's word choice, though, for whatever reason. His right hand clasps onto his left forearm with a painful grip, muttering, "Where're your bags? I'll bring them in."

Finn, who had still been staring at the cottage, snaps out of it and looks at his cousin. "Hmm? Oh, they're in the back. Leave the red one in the car, mom asked me to bring some firewood. There's no point of bringing it into the house just to get the place messy."

Levi nods, walking around Finn and to his jeep, opening the back seat. Finn directs the grin on his face back at me, cocking an eyebrow at me. "How come you staying from the summer?" he asks.

I shrug, "My mom's a teacher so she has summers off and my dad claims he needs a break from his business job. I, personally, need a break from my own life. Just for two months to relax, without dragging my drunk friends home or dealing with petty drama over the phone."

Finn's grin turns crooked, more amusement shining in his eyes. "Sounds like you need new friends."

I huff out a laugh, "Tell me about it. What about you?"

Finn's eyes flicker to the cottage, where Levi is disappearing back inside with a suitcase. "Yeah, I could use a break too. It's nice out here."

I nod, agreeing with him. As nice as Finn seems, I find myself glancing towards the door and waiting for Levi to come back out. Something about his reaction earlier filled me with worry, and I feel an intense urge to make sure he's okay.

Thankfully, Levi comes out just then, his fingers and posture relaxed. I can see the red marks his harsh grip on himself had left on the skin of his forearm, but at least the haunted look that had momentarily entered his eyes is gone.