By Chance (Accidentally In Luck #1)

31. Just a Slight Difference of Opinions - Cora

*Cora*

I didn't really know if I could move or not. I was pretty much frozen with E's hand encasing mine and staring into the eyes of my dead brother.

He really hadn't changed in the past four years as near as I could tell. For as long as I can remember, neither of us had ever looked like the other physically and still today, we appeared as opposite as siblings could be. It was one other reason people assumed we weren't actually related. Daniel was tall and thin, almost gangling, and had dark blonde hair and blueish-greenish eyes while I was... none of those things. Dark brown hair, unsettlingly bright green eyes, tiny beyond belief, compact as heck, that was me.

It didn't matter how different we were and are though, he was still as familiar to me as my most favorite Dr. Pepper t-shirt. I know that when he's frustrated, he huffs out a puff of air into the bangs that usually drifted over his forehead and that when he plays the piano (if he still does), two lines of concentration creased between his eyes and his tongue pokes just the tiniest bit out of the corner of his mouth. I know that when he's nervous, he fists his hands up and pushes them down as far as possible in his pockets and that when he's sitting, his legs bounce so much they shake everything around him. (Heck, once he got Dad's entire car shaking so bad Dad thought he was going to have to take it to the mechanic.) I know that when Daniel thinks a girl is pretty, he shifts his weight between his feet and pink patches show up low on his jaw and fade into his neck. I know that he hates hot coffee and tea, but will drink his own body weight in sweet iced tea and that there's really nothing he despises more than ink on his skin, be it tattoo, pen, marker or even a stinking county fair stamp.

I know all of his quirks and facial expressions and because of that, I know Daniel was recognizing me at this moment. I could see the panic, fear, and shame in his eyes.

Somehow, that made it all worse.

Turns out, I could still read my brother better than an open book too because I knew he wasn't planning on sticking around for the little family reunion I had planned.

Fear of losing him again broke my limbs from their frozen state and I took off, this time dragging a poor Theo Archer behind me. My eyes never left Daniel's face, but as I watched, he turned to the people he was with and started talking to them. I presumed he was trying to get their butts moving so they could leave.

That wasn't going to happen if I had anything to say about it. I shoved through people and knocked a bunch over, but I wasn't about to stop and apologize. My only thought was getting to Daniel. I felt like if he walked out those doors, I wasn't going to see him again for a very long time—if ever again.

I was only a little distance away when he finally got his group moving, but he was so not fast enough. I took a final step and closed my hand around his wrist, my grip painfully tight.

His head whipped towards me, his expression nothing but relief and fear. Why, I wasn't sure, but the plan was to find out. He blinked once, all emotions cleared, and he was back to being passive. He turned back to the people he was with, presumable to tell them to get lost or something, but they were already out the door.

"Daniel," I whispered, staring at him.

Out of nowhere, a voice behind me also spoke. "Damon? Damon Strebor?"

Now it was my head that whipped around. Theo, still standing behind me and holding my hand, was staring straight at Daniel.

For the second time tonight, I found my head swiveling between two important boys in my life.

Both Daniel and E were looking at each other and, to my utter surprise, Daniel narrowed his eyes. "Sebastian." He looked pointedly down at our entwined hands and the look on his face went from dislike to disgust. Surprisingly, E didn't let go of my hand and actually gripped it a smidge tighter.