Big Brothers

A Walk Down Memory Lane

It's only 1:00pm. We weren't at their house for awhile. It was such a waste of time. I should've just begged to go to school. It would've been better than this. Now, my brothers are talking about how horrible the talk went. And how they think they're hiding something. I think so too. It was so uncomfortable and weird. They're probably used to this weird lifestyle...

"He didn't even care." Alex says. "He wasn't even fazed."

"And that stupid lie. It's like he didn't even try." Jason says.

"This is all so... creepy." Chris shakes his head.

I don't even want to begin to think about who raised them. All I know is that I'm not going back to that place. And neither are my brothers. Anything could happen from this point on. I'm not worried about that monster anymore. Now, Brittany is next.

"How are you feeling, Lea?" Jason asks.

I lift my head. Instead of Dylan just staring at me, it's all of them. How do I respond? What's the right answer? The first day I'm out the house and I already feel so drained. I wish we were back home. I hate to say this, I wish I was with Tyler. Anything would've been better than moving to this hell.

"I'm fine. Can we please stop talking about it?" I say. "I just want to have a nice day. Without talking about him."

"I agree. Mom doesn't even know we skipped school. Might as well do something fun." Jason agrees.

Chris sits and thinks for a while. He probably wants to do more than have a free day. He wants to hear the story. I don't understand why he's so invested all of a sudden. It's always been about Jessica. Why me? It doesn't matter to me anymore, actually. I need to get used to the fact that the only brother that actually cares is Jason. It'll always be Jason.

"Let's go." Chris nods.
~~~~~~
"Okay, come on. Chocolate ice cream is way better than strawberry. You can't fight me on this." Alex laughs.

"First of all, vanilla is the best." I argue. "Chocolate gets too tiring after a while."

"Don't ever speak to me about flavors again." Alex shoves a spoonful of chocolate ice cream.

We've been at this ice cream place for 30 minutes. We've been talking about everything but reality. This is what we needed. I'm actually smiling.

"Strawberry ice cream is where it's at. Chocolate and vanilla is completely out." Dylan smiles.

Wow. Dylan smiling. Never thought I'd see that.

"Oh god, remember when Dylan was eating ice cream? I'm pretty sure Alex said something smart and he threw the whole bowl at his face." Jason laughs.

I remember that! I can't help but let a few laughs out. We were at our old kitchen. Dylan was always so serious. Alex didn't like vibes like that so he said something along the lines of how his eyebrows were. At that moment, the randomness of it all made it funny. Dylan grabbed his bowl of strawberry ice cream and smeared it all over his face.

"That was a night I'll never forget." Chris chuckles and he eats his mango flavored ice cream.

"Aw! We all have the same flavors from that night. Vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, mango, and cookies & cream. How cute." I notice.

"Wow, this is such a flash back." Chris says.

It makes me remember more memories at our old house. I wish mom hadn't taken that job here. She was fine where he was. I mean... yeah, working at an amusement park and only scraping up $10 an hour isn't much for a whole family. Having my brothers working as well, bending over backwards just to give me a plate to eat couldn't have been fun but those moment we're good. It's what made me who I am now. I'd rather go back to that.

"I miss our old life." I sigh.

"Life wasn't good. This is a big upgrade." Alex says.

"I don't see it that way." I shake my head. "We had a good life. Not the most flexible schedules but it was home." I close my eyes and remember.

I try to remember the scent, the windows, the floors. The laughs echoing throughout the halls. The epic birthday parties. When the family had movie night when the family was free. Mom made sure we didn't drift apart because of work or school. She made sure we stayed together.

"Definitely miss that." Chris agrees.

There's silence. I hope I didn't mess up the mood. It's just how I feel. Chris is the only one who agrees, though. Everyone else sees this as an upgrade.

Suddenly, someone's phone rings.

"Hey, babe." Chris answers the phone as he walks away.

I scoff. She's probably asking where we are so she can come over. Why can't her flight be rescheduled for tomorrow? Today even? No one likes her here. I don't know how mom just willingly let her stay. I'm waiting on the next few days. She'll be gone soon.

My brothers and I continue talking about life. Nothing too negative, though. More of the positives. As we speak, the door from the ice cream shop opens. My heart drops. Shouldn't she be at school? I clench my spoon tightly. She needs to leave before I jump over this table and pull a "Dylan" on her. I will really sacrifice my ice cream.

"Lea, what's wrong?" Jason takes my hand.

"It's Brittany." I manage to say through my clenched jaw.

Right when I say her filthy name, she turns her gaze to me. She gives that smirk. That annoying smirk. God, I swear, I will punch that smirk off her face. I'm surprised her stupid group of friends isn't with her. According to James, they're inseparable.

"Brittany?" Alex asks.

All I do is nod. I've lost my appetite. She orders her ice cream. That better be to-go.

"Stay calm, Lea. She won't be stupid enough to sit here with us." Jason says.

All Dylan does is stare at her the way he stares at me. I'm sure she feels the staring because her eyes keep falling on us. Or maybe she's just looking at me. I'm to angry to figure it out. She grabs her Snickers flavored ice cream and walks over to our table.

This bitch.

"Take a picture. It'll last longer than your pretend relationship with James." She takes a bite of her ice cream.

"Are you mad that he's completely over you? You know, when he's with me, he doesn't even mention you. You're poison to his lips." I say.

"That's funny. I went to his house the day he was supposed to have detention with... you." She looks at me up and down.

"Yeah, he told me. Your nasty lips touched his. Sucks he pulled away." I smile.

My brothers are ready to say anything if she slips up. They always let me fight my own battles. They say it teaches me for the real world where I can't depend on anyone to fight for me. I thank them for that.

She laughs. I don't remember saying anything funny?

"Pulled away? Is that what he told you?" She pulls herself together. "Honey, we made out for a solid 30 minutes. Then he invited me inside."

"You're lying." I sit back. "He wouldn't do that. You're too much of a bitch for his taste."

"And that's where you're wrong. He's told me all kinds of things about you. If I'm too much of a bitch for his taste, I guess you're too much of a whore. I'll make sure to let Cristian know you want another round with him." She winks.

What the fuck is her problem?! She can't be serious. I slam my hands on the table, not caring about the little stinging sensation on my wrist. That's it. She's done.

"Lea, she isn't worth it." Alex grabs me.

"Wrong. It's Lea who isn't worth it. She isn't even worth it for James." Brittany spits. "Cristian is the only guy she can live up to."

"Get the hell out of here." Dylan stands up. "I will make it so your face looks like you've been in an accident."

Brittany stands tall, then leaves. Just wait. Her time isn't here yet. I'll get her soon.

"What the hell happened?" Chris comes back.

Wonderful timing.