My Future Stepbrother

Chapter 150

Josh agreed to come with me to Milos party, if I actually went. I was so grateful for the back up, especially since he was starting his big new job Monday so it would be the last free day he had for a while. Three helpings of enchilada lunch later I'm finally pulling into Granny's driveway, between finals and me completely avoiding Westbrooke at all costs I haven't been back here in a few months. I've barely got a foot out the door before a barrelling mess of curls has me pinned to the side of my own car.


"How have you got so much taller already? You're getting more beautiful every time I see you I swear." I squeeze her gorgeous little face into me, she's looking more and more like her sister everyday.


"Brie just got back, she's all pissy about work so she told me to wait for you and not to touch her stuff."


May has mastered Brie's eye roll so well she is practically her mirror image. I was so happy to see her I didn't even shout at her about her language, she'd also picked Brie's ability to snoop out bad boys and wasn't exactly in the best crowd at school at the moment. I hoped it was just a little rebellious phase. She was pretty much the most feisty nearly eight year old I've ever met, considering I grew up with Brie that was really saying something.


Granny greeted me with the usual, a hug and a speech about how I needed to eat and sleep more. Just being in this house reminded me of all the things I actually missed about this town, although it never lasted.


My new job was in a clinic on the very edge of Westbrooke, me and Josh planned to get a place in the next town over. We'd be close enough to get to work and see everyone but far enough to stay away from the people I'd rather not run into.


Josh came back much more regularly than I did anyway. He still had food once a fortnight with Harley's mum, she was a kind woman that had encouraged Josh to move on but he just wasn't ready and honestly, I'm not sure he ever would be. He'd come out because of Harley, he didn't even know how to talk to guys that weren't him. It was hard.


Brie was still in the shower so I threw myself down on the bed she'd had freshly made for when I got here and stared up at the ceiling, the familiar scent of Granny's brownies filling my nose with every deep inhale.


I scanned through my phone, checking out my socials and desperately trying to ignore the voice in my head that wanted to talk about going back to the Manor. Was I ready? It had been three years, surely we'd be okay to see each other now? He'd been just as sure as I was that day, we came to the decision together and both of us stuck with it. We never even tried to contact each other once.


He'd been off at college, probably leaving a string of broken hearts in his wake. He was the damn captain of the most successful college team in America, he was probably dripping in different women every night. I bet after all this time he barely remembered I existed.

I couldn't just avoid him forever, and I didn't want to let Milo down. Just because I freaked that time I saw the back of his head didn't mean it would always be like that, maybe I'd see him now and be absolutely fine. Maybe this was what I needed to finally move on with this part of my life.


"Bitch!" I hadn't even heard the shower stop, her semi-naked body landing on top of me in nothing but a towel. "Babe I've missed you! Drinks tonight? We'll rope Josh in too. Want to go to that bar with the rodeo bull? You know the bouncer there loves me so we won't even need your fake id."


The water runs off her skin onto me as I'm crushed under her weight but all I can do is giggle. "Babe, you're kind of suffocating me with those things."


She laughs loudly, sliding into the space next to me and poorly attempting to wrap the towel back around her. "Sorry chickalickin, so drinks? Tonight?"


I really wasn't feeling drinks, all I really wanted right now was sleep despite it barely being noon. "Babe can we do it Sunday? Josh can't do tonight anyway and there's no way I'm going to a bar in Westbrooke, we can go over the bridge somewhere."


Brie rolls her eyes at me but she didn't understand the way this place made me feel, she didn't get the knowing stares as she walked around this town. Some looks of pity when they realised I was the girl covered in blood on the front page of the newspaper after the shooting - some dick had taken the photo as I was leaving without me knowing and it had become the poster image for that night.


Other looks were more personal, people remembered who died and why, the sleeping with my step-brother thing had seemed to die out quickly and people weren't actually as freaked out as I thought they'd be but it was still a seedy rumour that seemed to follow me whenever I visited.


"Besides... Dad has asked if I'd stay at the Manor this weekend."


She bolted upright and stared down at me as I started to chew on my lip nervously. I really had to stop doing that. "Shit. Are you gonna go? I can get Granny to cover for you again if you want out of it?"


I shake my head. "I have to go sometime babe, I can't spend the next thirty years avoiding the place. Dad said Jayce isn't even really there anyway. I'd probably only have to see him at the party they're having for Milo, Josh said he'd come to that with me, are you going?"


She nods. "Yeah Tara popped into work earlier to see the boss and asked me then, May wants to stay for the weekend there to be with Milo anyway so I said I’d go. Are you sure you're going to be okay sleeping there? I mean I know you might not see him, but you'll still know he's there sweetheart."


"We split for a reason babe. He's probably with someone else by now anyway and I'm just focusing on work, it's not like anything would happen anyway. I can control myself. I just don't want it to be awkward for everyone, the last time we spoke I couldn’t tell who he hated most - me or himself."


I sink further into the pillow, I hated thinking about that day. I had arrived at that hospital so sure of what I needed to do, so relieved when he felt the same way but in the years since the feeling of hurt from the way he looked at me had never left me.


"Maybe you should just go see him on your own first? Get the awkwardness out of the way before you see people. You guys should be okay to talk by now? Just be civil."


She might be right, maybe it would be easier to just get on a civil page with him before we're in a room full of people looking at us awkwardly. I didn't need to think about it right now, I just needed to get to the Manor before I bottle it.


"You got anything for these nerves? I'm not sure I can just walk in there like everything's good with what feels like a flock of seagulls in my stomach."


She laughs, reaching down the side of the bed and pulling out a small bottle of vodka.


We chat for a bit, she tells me all about what's happening at work. Her boss sounds like an absolute handful but she's really thriving there. I was so proud that she had decided to enrol in night classes too, she would be starting in a few months and I knew she'd do amazing. There's not a doubt in my mind that girl could do anything she set her mind too.


Eventually she let's me get back in my car, Granny giving me a tray full of cakes to take with me to the Manor. I dumped the stuff I wouldn't be needing for the weekend in the garage, I could sort it out later, then got in and steadied myself for the drive - grateful I didn't take Brie up on the offer of cheap vodka with the headache that was already forming.

Fuck... here we go.

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