Where It Ends

08 | introductions, part one

THE REST OF MY SUNDAY WAS FAIRLY UNEVENTFUL, AND BEFORE I KNEW IT, MY ALARM CLOCK WAS GOING OFF FOR SCHOOL THE NEXT MORNING. "Fuck my life," I groaned to myself, turning it off. The only thing motivating me to get out of bed was so that I could look somewhat decent for the first day at Redmond. I stumbled over to the bathroom in a very Muna-like fashion and turned on the light.

I look like came straight out of the Walking Dead.

I took a shower, still not daring to take a bath after the nightmare from a few days before. Thankfully I hadn't had any recurrences of it, but the memories had stayed with me. Afterwards I got ready, just the usual stuff. I then remembered that I had picked up my tiny makeup bag when I collected stuff from my apartment, so I used the concealer to cover the bruise on my jaw. I didn't do anything else besides some sharp eyeliner and pink lip gloss. The stuff was near expired, but it got the job done.

I congratulated myself for not looking as zombie-like as when I woke up before picking an outfit. It was difficult because most of my clothes were still at Nik's house, so I'd have to remember to pick some up this afternoon. In the depths of my backpack I found converse, a lacy pink top, and a black skirt just long enough to not get me dress coded. Something was missing, but I couldn't tell what.

I glanced over to TJ's jacket, which was still laying in the corner of my room. I tried it on, and smiled when I recognized that it still had his scent of pinewood and spearmint. I kept it clutched around me like a security blanket.

By the time I got everything not school-related out of my backpack, Eli was calling us downstairs. He had made strawberry muffins, and I grinned at the sight of them.

"Better grab one before the boys come down. Somehow they're even hungrier in the mornings than usual," Eli said with a grin. I picked one out, and oh my fuck it was one of the best muffins I'd had in my life.

Eli was right about grabbing one first, because Dax came out looking ready for work while Mason, Axel, and Sam came down for school. Every one of them grabbed two, and I could have sworn I saw Mason sneak another one into his hoodie pocket.

"Let's roll," Eli said, holding up his car keys.

"Shotgun," Sam said casually. I should have thought of that.

"Damnit," Mason, Axel, and I muttered in unison. When we got in the car, Axel and Mason stuck me in the middle since I was the smallest. I was fine with it in all honesty; after getting to know them a little more the past few days the two of them seemed like genuinely good people with no ill intent towards me.

Despite getting closer with most of the rest of my brothers, I really hadn't talked with Sam at all. He'd kind of been ignoring my existence all weekend, even when we'd walk past each other in the house. I tried giving him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he was just as uncomfortable as I was at first. I don't typically enjoy sharing my space with other people either, so I was trying to keep an open mind and let him feel more adjusted.

"So Evie, you know anyone from Redmond?" Mason asked. I nodded in response.

"Theo McCallister? He's on the football team too," I said, grateful that I get to see him again. He'd sent me some texts over the weekend still apologizing for not being able to see me before I left, even though he literally couldn't help it. His dad called him home for a reason Theo didn't want to discuss, but I couldn't imagine it was anything good. Whitney dated Theo's dad for a while, and let's just say he's a complete fucking asshole. But Theo still takes care of him, and I guess the two of us were similar in that way. Even though neither parent of ours showed us much love or affection, we were still desperate for it. Theo still pays all the bills to makes sure the lights stay on for his dad too, even though he usually stays at Nik's place with us. He'd been forced to grow up so quickly, which is why Nik, TJ, and I all tease how he's so much younger than us. In all honestly, he's only like nine months younger than me, but the point of it is to remind him he's only just turned sixteen. He's my little brother, and I love him absolutely to death.