You're Already Mine

Chapter Six

I wake up to sunlight streaming through the window with a heavy feeling on my chest. Ava has gone home already- her parents came to pick her up early this morning. Last night was quite eventful, since after the theme park, my siblings and I had dinner at the new sushi steakhouse with Dad's side of the family. The Williamses came back with us last night and are taking over a couple of the lodge's bedrooms, but Seth took Ava's bed after she left.

When I open my eyes, Seth is laying on her bed, her pixie-cut dark red hair streaked with black spread out across the pillow. Felix Hart is next to her, long wavy black-and-blue hair cascading down her back. They both look so peaceful.

My alarm goes off, and I hurriedly swipe the screen so it goes away. Seth and Felix start rubbing their eyes at the same time, sitting up in sync.

"Morning," I say with a yawn.

All I get in reply from either of them is a tired smile and a groan.

After we're all fully awake, I get ready with Felix and Seth and we go downstairs. Dad is sitting at the buffet with a cup of coffee and his phone, and Lucas is making breakfast.

"Are you stopping for breakfast, or are you in a hurry?" he asks, taking a sip.

But we're already at the door. "Bye!" I shout, giggling with my cousins as Felix shuts the door behind us.

The lodge is in a summer resort not far from town, in the coastal area. There are about ten other rentable houses, but ours is the biggest. It's situated on a large precipice, with the north end of the house facing the ocean, and the south end facing the forest, with a large basketball court in front of the garage and a long driveway leading to the main road.

We take our bikes and ride into town, which takes about three minutes. Although the house may seem remote, it's actually not that far away from the town. Soon, the trees slowly fade into buildings as we get closer to the more civilized area, and a sign that says BAR HARBOR greets us to the town.

"So what's the plan?" Seth asks as we ride our bikes in the bike lane along the bumpy road.

"I was gonna go check out the bookstore," I say, stopping for a red light. My cousins halt beside me.

"That sounds fun," Felix replies. "I might go with you, if that's okay?"

"Nah, I can navigate on my own. You could go to the art shop?"

Felix loves all things artsy and loves making jewelry. Her room is filled with half- complete canvases and cups of paintbrushes, along with drawers of sketchbooks and pencils. She paints the walls of her room to match the flowers she adores.

"Yeah, okay. I might go there with Seth."

Seth, on the other hand, is an adrenaline junkie who loves anything exciting, like arcades and theme parks. She's got a cyberpunk-themed bedroom with a bed that looks like a high-tech

spaceship pod. She loves all things tech, and I can't seem to fathom her addiction to video games.

So, predictably, she says, "I was gonna check out the arcade."

I think for a minute and look between my two favorite cousins. "We could make a group chat with just the three of us, and text if we get lost or need help or something?"

"That could work," Seth says.

So we perform our secret trio handshake and split into different directions. I navigate to the bookstore, parking my bike on the racks when I arrive. Taking off my helmet, I let out a breath. I can't imagine how joyful I would be if I miraculously met someone new literally the day after I broke up with Ava.