Step By Step

the power trip

Thursday
July 27th, 2023

          "I wanna watch tv." Cicada told her big brother, standing in front of him. Mars rolled his eyes, leaning to the side to try and get a better view. "No way." He scoffed. The seven year old stepped to the side, blocking his vision again. "Dude, just wait. I've only got, like, thirty minutes left." The older boy sighed. Ever since the family meeting on Saturday, his baby sister had been extremely annoying. She was constantly messing with him, taking the remote, and threatening to tell Chrysalis that he hit her whenever he didn't give in. It was growing old fast. "But I want a turn now." Cade said, crossing her arms over her chest. Mars sat up straight, clenching his teeth. "Move. Now." He demanded, his voice low. "No." His little sister spat, grabbing the remote in his hand. "I want a turn!" She tried to pull it out of his hand, but he held on tight. "Cade... Do not mess with me right now." Mars threatened. She used both hands to try and yank the remote from him. "It's my turn!" She shouted. "No, it's not!" He yelled back, standing up. While he was only 5'2, he towered over the younger girl. He hoped the height difference alone would intimidate her into letting go of the controller.

          "Well, I say it is!" Cade argued. Mars groaned, and the two pulled back and forth on the remote with neither showing signs of giving in. He pulled the remote towards him, causing his little sister to bump into him. Why was she so stubborn? The fourteen year old brought his index finger to his lips, giving her a look. "You want a wet willy?" He asked, although it was a rhetorical question. It was a classic, and she hated wet willies. They always made her squirm. However, instead of her eyes growing wide like he had expected, she glared at him. "If you even try, I'll tell Chris, and you won't get to go to Florida." Cade threatened, sticking her tongue out at her older brother. "She didn't say no wet willies." Mars shot back, trying to gain some leverage. "I just have to tell her you were bullying me." The seven year old smirked. Mars groaned. That was it. She had him in a box. He shoved the remote into her chest, causing her to stumble back. "Fine! Take the remote! But, this-" He exclaimed, gesturing towards all of her. "This is why no one fucking likes you!" The upcoming freshman stormed off, heading up the stairs. Cade frowned for a moment before shrugging her shoulders and taking her spot on the couch, changing the channel to her show.

          Mars mumbled under his breath, going into the room he shared with his three older sisters and slamming the door. "Dude. What'd the door do to you?" Andie questioned, raising an eyebrow at her little brother. The fourteen year old leaning against the door, his arms over his chest. "It's not the door; it's Cade." He huffed. Andie raised her hand knowingly, stopping him. "Say no more." She mentioned. "Yeah, she's really been pissing me off with this whole 'do what I say or I'll tell Chris' thing. Like, it's already annoying that she's a narc, but now she's got ammunition." Vanessa piped in, agreeing. "Yeah, and we can't even do anything about it!" Mars exclaimed. "Trust me, I know. I'm on my third strike 'cause of that little lying asshole." Andie scoffed, laying back on the bed she shared with her twin. "It makes me miss when she couldn't lie to save her life." "You know, if we had just gone with my plan, we wouldn't have gotten in trouble." The girly girl reminded the two. "We're not just going to let our little sister get bullied." The fourteen year old rolled his eyes. "Plus she'd find a way to make it seem like we beat her up, so we'd get punished." The tomboy piped in, agreeing with her little brother for once. He pointed at her, as if to tell Vanessa that too.

          "So, she just gets her way?" Van asked. "Yeah, pretty much." Mars answered, flopping on the bed beside Andie. "Okay, fuck that. Are we seriously going to let a seven year old tell us what to do?" Nessa scoffed, standing up and facing her brother and sister. "Actually, my plan was to just avoid her until Tuesday." Mars mentioned, his voice muffled as he was laying face down. "No way! I'm not letting her boss me around!" Vanessa exclaimed. "Dude, I appreciate your passion or whatever, but let's face it. Kid's a genius, and she'll weasel us into trouble no matter what we do." Andie sighed. Her twin frowned. It was rare to see her sister just give up on something. "I'm gonna tell Chris when she gets home then." The primadonna thought up. "She doesn't believe us. I had to eat in a chair wedgie for lying to her the other night." The jock explained, putting air quotes around the word lying.