Sullivan Family: BOOK 2

XXIII

"Ughhhhhh!" I screech, basically screaming when the warm water falling from the shower head turns ice cold.

"Stop your banshee noises!" Hollis hollers back. "Seven am is too early for them!"

"Tell them to stop using all the hot water!" I retort, quickly turning the water off, even with soap still stuck in my hair. "Why would you do that?!"

"Guess what?" Hollis chortles. I throw my pair of socks at the door in retaliation, then dry off my body while he goads me on. "I don't care. We don't care. Get used to your cold showers, big baby!"

"Get a life!" I yell at him, exasperated.

"Huxley." Odin knocks on the door. "Hurry up. We're gonna take you guys to school to bring all your stuff home."

"Wait, really?" I ask, beaming as I brush my teeth. As sad as I am about how final this is, at least I'll get out of the house. At least, I'll see my friends. Unfortunately, Hollis is still in their group chat and he enjoys giving me lavish updates about what all they talk about and the embarrassing stories he tells them about me, from 'my horrifying experience'.

"Yeah, now hurry up." Odin responds, kicking at the door. I hang my towel up and stuff my socks on, not bothering to brush my hair.

"You guys need to give a girl some peace!" I grumble, tossing my dirty clothes on my bedroom floor. The twins' bedroom door is open, and I peek in, my face falling when I see Silas laying in his bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. It looks like he hasn't showered in weeks, not just the days Hollis hinted at.

I softly knock on the door before tip-toeing in. He doesn't even look at me. When I get close to him, he rolls over, so his back is facing me and he continues to stare blankly at the wall in front of his face. It looks like his thoughts are a whirlwind turning into a hurricane, and he will never enter the eye of the storm.

"Leave him alone!" Hollis hisses, charging at me from their bathroom. I squeal and duck out of the way, a move he was expecting as he catches me around my waist and literally hauls me into the hallway. "Go eat breakfast!"

"I haven't seen him in forever!" I cry, slamming my fists on the door he slams in my face. I wipe at tears pooling in my eyes. "He's my brother, too!"

"He's okay." Ivan says. I spin to look at him, stuffing my hands in my pockets. Ivan leans on his bedroom door frame, casually studying me. "Hopefully, we keep giving him his medication regularly and he'll come back. It's just a bad spell, wee one."

"Well, it's at a really bad time!" I snap, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Please, Huxley. Watch your attitude." Ivan says, his voice polite. It's hard looking directly at him with what he said he went through. It's even harder because it looks like he is still loosing weight. Suddenly, reflecting on the few weekends he's been here, I don't recall seeing him eating with us. "Consider yourself warned."

"Okay." I say, walking ahead of him downstairs. There is a negligible tension between us, an awkwardness that we can't escape in the way we interact. We look an each other, but we don't, at the same time. "It's not fair you guys are easier on him just 'cause he's bipolar. Or Luke, 'cause of the car crash."

"You don't think we haven't been taking it easy on you, Huxley?" Ivan frowns. I hate the self doubt that creeps onto his face as he evaluates his actions with me and compares it to how he treats our brothers. His eyes look sunken into his face and his jawline is sharply pronounced.

"I need a girl!" I moan, pulling at my hair. "I get you guys don't trust Ivy, for some dumb reason, but couldn't Erik have sent a girl?"

"You might be able to talk to your friends today, but I can't promise that." Ivan says. He pulls a kitchen stool out for me and I climb on it. Manny and Luke are chowing down on leftover burnt nachos that we didn't really eat last night. None of us had an appetite.