Sullivan Siblings

V

"Hey, loser." Simon grins at me as he flops on the couch. I look up at him from my lazy position on the floor. I hadn't won a wrestling match with Hollis so he got the couch but he is in the bathroom, meaning his spot is up for grabs.

"Hi, Manny," I mumble with a yawn. The fight at school was in the morning so Odin had the whole day of thinking up creative game like punishments.

First, it was Crack the Whip. Poor Hollis got the worst of it as the tail end. At one point, he went flying into the fire pit when Emmett couldn't hold on to him from the force of Odin jerking us around.

Then, it was Blind Man's Bluff with Emmett being the tagger. Odin made sure the ground was littered with tripping hazards and Emmett fell, a lot. The more he fell, the angrier he became until he attacked the next person he tagged which sadly, was me. I'll have a few bruises tomorrow but so will Emmett, courtesy of Odin and then I had a break from the torturous games when Odin decided that Emmett should kneel on pebbles with books on outstretched hands.

Even I felt pity on Emmett when he had to endure that for the amount of times he hit me, ten minutes in total. Odin is sadistic that way. I wonder where he learned it. How would someone come up with something as cruel as that. Especially for his younger siblings?

"Have fun today, gremlin?" Silas asks with a cheeky smile that can't stay hidden.

"You both owe me!" I grind out, careful to keep my voice low so Odin doesn't hear us. I'm so tired. I don't think my body could handle anymore roughhousing games.

"Why is that?" Simon asks with a roll of his eyes. Silas seem curious as he sits on the couch beside Simon.

"'Cause Odin thinks you guys were watching me flirt with boys rather than fighting at school!" I smile to show I had their backs. Instead, both of them groan as they cower into the back of the couch.

"Oh my gosh, loser!" Manny moans as he covers his face with his elbow.

"Why would you do that?" Silas casts a fearful look to the archway between the kitchen and living room.

"I was helping you!" I deadpan, squinting at both boys.

"Helping us into trouble!" Simon hisses, now rubbing his palms over his face. Silas sighs in defeat.

"How?" I cry in exasperation, once again pulling on my hair. I blame my brothers for my thick hair going thinner each year.

"You think Odin would let us get away with watching you flirt with boys?" Manny chuckles hopelessly.

"Naïve little gremlin." Silas wearily shakes his head.

"That's an easy fix." I shrug at my brothers not being able to think out of the box. "Tell him you were trying to stop me."

"There's a reason I love you." Simon smiles cheekily. All signs of the stress he was showing are now traded in for fun and games. He rubs his palms together in anticipation, knowing that Lukas, Emmett, Hollis and I are most likely banned from the Xbox.

"You owe me!" I hiss, resting my head back on the floor. My body aches with the movement.

"Uh-huh," Silas hums. After Crack the Whip and Blind Man's Bluff, Odin turned to Indigenous games. Man, those people are tough! My brothers did okay but I failed right off the bat. I'm smaller than them and had to face off to them for arm wrestling and leg wrestling and musk ox fight. The ones I really despised though, were the knuckle hop and ear pull. Those really hurt! My ear is still burning and red!

And when we were finally all played out from a few more pulls and wrestles Inuit games, he made us play the three legged race in three pairs so we could work on bonding with each other instead of fighting. It totally didn't make sense because the boys fought bullies at school, not fought each other! Sometimes, I really hate Odin.