I See You [REWRITING]

bonus three » right direction

RIKER

Today's been nothing short of exhausting, and by the time I finally get home and settle into my room it feels like my head might explode. I'm usually collected in everything I do, needing to keep a straight head and stay focused on the goals ahead of me but when Robyn and Isla came to find me during lunch, that all went out the window. My only concern being Stevie, and for the first time in my entire life, I skipped school because my little sister needed me.

It taking everything in me not to go find Felix and punch him for hurting her.

"Riker?" Stevie asks quietly from the crack in my door.

"Hey Vee," I smile softly, turning on the couch set in front of my bed after grabbing my TV remote and pausing the movie on the screen.

"Can I come in?" She asks.

"Sure," I nod, and settle back into my seat. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah," she nods and settles down next to me, bringing her feet up onto the edge of cushion as she rests her head on my shoulder. "What are you watching?"

"I'm not really sure," I tell her, ignoring the fact that she's clearly not okay as I start the movie again. "It's just something that came on. I wasn't really paying attention."

"Thinking about today?" She asks with a small smile on her lips. "I'm sorry I freaked out earlier."

"Considering your day, I don't blame you," I assure her before sighing, racking my fingers through my hair as I consider asking again. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"No," she shakes her head and lets out a long awaited breath. "I really wanted him to be better than the idiot guys you hear about. I wanted him to be the guy on the rooftop."

"The rooftop?" I ask.

She looks down at her fingers and lifts her head from my shoulder, "It's not important."

"It is," I argue. "Talk to me, Stevie. What's going on in that head of yours?"

"At his party on the weekend," she swallows. "He was really sweet to me and for the first time in my life, I felt like someone actually saw me for me and not some supporting character in the Luke Alexander show. Or Greyson show. Or...Riker show."

"What?" I frown, turning to get a better look at her as she talks. "What are you talking about?"

"I know it's so stupid, but everyone has always looked at me as someone's something. I'm the youngest and when I started at school, I was Greyson's sister, or yours, or Ike's. They looked at me and had all these premade labels for me. They tried to fit me into this box. Am athletic like Greyson? Or smart like you? Or creative like Isaac? They were always expecting something of me," she pours her heart out, struggling to find the right words without offending me. "And then there was Felix, and he looked at me as if all he saw was me. He just saw Stevie, or at least, I thought he did but maybe it was too good to be true."

"I didn't know you felt that way," I admit, seeing the broken look on her face as she pulls on her oversized hoodie sleeves. I never really thought about what it was like to be the youngest of four and the expectations that came with that. Sure, I had Greyson to be prejudged by but I had my own thing and Stevie does too, but I can only imagine what it's like to live up to three names. Four if you count our dad's.

"I've never really told anyone," she sighs. "It's dumb, I know."

"It's not," I shake my head. "Stevie, do you have any idea how brilliant you are? You're the most compassionate person I know, and you're sweet. Insanely smart, and creative and I have no doubt you could outrun me. You're nothing short of amazing."