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CHAPTER FIVE: SECRET KEEPER
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THERE WAS SOMETHING TO be said about the eyes of the Sullivan siblings. Over the years, the quartet had fashioned impassive masks to hide behind when the going got tough. But no matter how hard they tried, their eyes always managed to give them away. Only those closest to them would understand what that meant, would know how to read between the lines of 'I'm fine' and 'it's none of your business' to see the chaos unravelling underneath. So when Maggie looked at Zeke, she just knew he was keeping something secret, something that bothered her more than it should.
Maggie and Zeke were the type of siblings who told each other everything, no matter how embarrassing 'everything' might've been. There was simply no room for awkwardness between them. After all, her brother and sisters were Maggie's only friends before she was lucky enough to meet Carson and Hayden. But there was something about her relationship with Zeke that was different than the bond she shared with Vera and Dakota. Like each of the Sullivan siblings, Zeke was good at hiding, but his eyes were by far the easiest to read. When their mother died, Zeke's eyes were pretty much the only assurance Maggie had that she wasn't insane. Vera was too lost in her grief to acknowledge the world around her, Dakota was trying hard to pretend like nothing had changed, but Zeke. He recognised the pure fear in his sister's eyes and knew she'd seen something. Whether he believed that was a red-eyed blood-sucking monster, he wasn't sure, but his faith in her was enough for Maggie to not completely cave in on herself.
Fast forward several years and Maggie wasn't sure what she was supposed to feel. It wasn't like she told Zeke every single thought or feeling she had, but she told him enough that she thought he'd at least know he could do the same. But looking at him now, at the way he was hunched over his mobile with furrowed brows, she wasn't so sure.
"Zeke, no phones at the table," Wren scolded, voice light but firm.
The boy in question looked up with a sigh before tucking the device into his jacket pocket. He was strangely quiet that morning, and it had an effect on everyone else in the household. Without Zeke bouncing around with the energy of an overactive puppy, no one was quite sure how to act. It was like they fed off his presence, and when he was quiet and tired, so were they.
"Are you feeling okay, bub?" Wren frowned at her nephew, reaching across the table to press a hand to his forehead.
"Fine," he muttered, leaning away from her hand with a scowl. "Just tired. I didn't get much sleep last night."
Maggie didn't believe him, but she wasn't about to call him out. Instead, she sat there in silence like everyone else, scoffing down the last of her food in the hopes of finishing breakfast as soon as possible. When that moment came and it was time to leave for school, it was like some sort of weight fell from their shoulders. Rushing out of the house after exchanging goodbye's with their uncle, the siblings piled into Wren's car, silent but not as uncomfortable. Unfortunately, that only lasted until they reached the school's parking lot. Before anyone could vacate the vehicle, Wren pressed down on the lock and spun around in the driver's seat to look at Zeke, who had his forehead pinned to the window.
