Racing and the Ruins

t w e n t y - o n e

"Shhhh, we got to be quiet" I whisper to Callum and Oliver as we sneak into Ryker's room where he is still passed out. Oliver giggles as I hand him a cup of water, Callum holds a raw egg in each hand with a smirk almost identical to Ryker's on his face.

The boys slowly walk over to their brother as I stand by the door holding my phone to record our sweet little prank. Oliver dumps the water onto his face right as Callum smashes the eggs into his hair. He jolts awake as I pick up Oliver and run out of the room behind Callum. 

"BRAYLON" He yells after us, Oliver is a giggling mess as we follow behind Callum. We run past their parents and into the backyard, he leads us to a small playhouse. Somehow we all cramp inside as we watch a drenched and egg covered Ryker walk into the backyard searching for us.

He makes eye contact with me through the small window and an evil smirk creeps up onto his face. I hold Oliver a little closer to me as Ryker rounds the pool I just now realized was there.

The door swings open, Oliver runs past us and to his parents that were watching the scene unfold from the back door. He grabs both me and Callum then walks towards the pool. We both struggle against his iron like grip.

He jumps into the water and lets me go, I swim to the surface and go to splash him, but he is holding Callum so I don't.

"Ryker Wesley Lewis, I know you aren't getting egg in my pool" Jenna yells at us, I burst out laughing and watch Callum get out of the pool. He mumbles a 'sorry mom' and swims to the side as well. I follow suit and look down at my drenched clothes.

"So you're middle name is Wesley?" I ask with a cocked eyebrow as I get out of the pool and take the towel Jenna held out for me. He shakes his now wet hair and shrugs.

"My dad really liked the name 'Wesley' and wanted to name me it but my mom wasn't a fan so they agreed on it being my middle name" He explains, I nod my head and follow him back into the house. 

Ryker's dad stares at us with a big smirk as we walk into the kitchen.

"You should have seen her convincing the boys to go along with that prank, Olly was practically jumping up and down at the idea of pouring water on you" He chuckles, I smile innocently up at Ryker and he just scoffs.

"I'm sure he was" Ryker says looking down at the 4 year old eating a muffin like he didn't just throw water onto his big brother. Josiah looks between us almost in awe, like he can't believe this is really happening.

"We should probably go shower, Bray" Ryker says, I nod and follow him to the stairs.

As soon as we make it to his room he lightly pushes me against the wall, my arms go around his neck and my hands find their way into his nasty wet hair.

"So how did you get my sweet little brothers to go along with your bullshit?" He asks, I lightly laugh and think about how easy it was to convince them.

"I woke up early, they were also up, and I saw the eggs and got an idea. Cal was on board instantly, saying something about how you stopped calling" I stop to glare at him, a frown forms on his face at my words making me wonder what had happened to make him stop calling his little brothers.

"And after I told Olly you have been a meanie head to me, he was on board" I finish, he laughs and looks down at me.

"I'm glad you had your fun, but now you have the honors of helping me get all of the egg out of my hair" He states with a serious expression, I just laugh and look at him. I still couldn't help but notice how gentle he was being me with, the old Ryker would have rocked my shit for doing this. 

"When are you going to stop treating me like a fragile piece of glass?" I ask bluntly, he looks down at the floor. I lightly grasp his chin, forcing him to look at him.

"I just don't know where you're at after all that happened after yesterday and I don't want to make it worse" He quietly admits, I sigh and rest my forehead on his.

"Right now I need to my normal Ryker, the one who doesn't put up with my shit. Not the sweet cautious one, because that is boring" I reply, he kisses my nose and mutters out a 'ok' then leads me to the bathroom connected to his room for us to shower. 

***

"There they are!" Jenna says with a big smile as Ryker and I enter the kitchen. We join them at the table, Oliver immediately starts showing me his toys and why they are fighting each other.

"So tonight we are having some people over, so me and Jenna are going to go the store and pick some stuff up. Can y'all watch the kids for a couple hours?" Josiah asks.

"I cool with it, Bray?" I smile up at Ryker and nod. Jude walks in with a couple friends trailing behind. The red head notices us firsts and smirks.

"Jude, you didn't tell us there was hot girl at your house. Hi, Parker Huntington" He reaches his hand across the table and smiles at me.

"Braylon Grey, and way too old for you, braces" I answer keeping my hands at my sides. He nods and takes a step back.

"Parker, she's mine" Jude says glaring at his friend, I arch an eyebrow at Ryker to which he just shrugs and continues to watch the scene unfold. 

The two boys bicker for a couple minutes as we all watch in shock. Do they want me to catch a case? 

After 10 minutes of them fighting Josiah pushes them out into the backyard and locks the door. 

"Ok, we're going to head out. Just leave the idiots outside, there is water and some snacks for them in the pool house. Cal and Olly are easy kids, just don't let them have any sweets they will get plenty tonight. As for you two, just no cussing or procreating in front of the children" Jenna explains as she grabs her purse. 

They say goodbye and leave. Callum walks into the living which is visible through the kitchen reading a book, as Oliver plays with his toys at the table.

"So what now big brother?" I ask Ryker with an amused smirk. He just sighs and watches Oliver entertain himself.

"Cal and Olly tend to entertain themselves, but I have a couple ideas for how I could entertain you" He smiles and leans in, I scoff and push his chest away from me.

"Didn't your mother say no procreating?" I laugh, he pulls away but throws an arm around my shoulders.

"What's procreating?" Oliver asks, both our eyes go wide as we stare at the 4 year old. 

"Uh it's when 2 people eat a lot of really spicy chicken wings together" Ryker answers, my hand slaps over my mouth to prevent the laughs from coming out.

"Can I procreate?" He asks looking between us.

"No, not yet bud. You got to be 18 years old to do it" Ryker says with completely confidence. Oliver looks between us with suspicion, but shrugs and returns to his toys.

I let out a breath and turn to look at Ryker, he smiles innocently at me then pulls out his phone. This is going to be an interesting couple of days.