Yours // 5sos

Chapter 35

Dinner started awkwardly.

So my dad talks a little, but of course I hardly listen. Michael is all polite and I want to puke. Olivia is giving everyone the silent treatment. And Taylor?

Well she talks everyone's ear off.

I interrupt her. "Hey Greg. Did you, uh, did you make this?"

I gesture to my plate of chicken and corn. Greg nods. "Yeah. I've actually gained a thing for cooking. I find it to be fun."

"Oh."

"Yeah last week he made this casserole that just was super good he should make it again," Taylor starts blabbing again.

Michael slips a hand to my thigh under the table and I unravel under his touch.

'Just make it through dinner and he's all yours.' I remind myself.

"Soo..." I start. "Olivia...how has the start of eight grade been?"

Olivia shrugs, shoving a forkful of corn into her mouth. I sigh rubbing my face. Michael shakes his head gently at me and I give him a 'well what do you want me to say?!' look.

"Liv?"

She continues eating as if I hadn't spoken. Greg clears his throat. "Livie please listen to your sister when she speaks to you."

Olivia looks up, a sour look on her face. "What?"

I swallow and Michael rubs my thigh gently. "Honey, I really want to apologize. For leaving...I uh wasn't thinking. Or well maybe I was thinking. But only for myself. Not for you guys."

Her eyes soften for a moment before she huffs. "Well you should have thought of that before you left us. You think you're better than dad or even mom because you've been here for us for five years? Well you're just as bad for leaving."

I gasp. "Olivia! I never said that! How could you say something like that?!"

Olivia slams her fork against her plate and stands up, her hair as red as my father's flicking dramatically as she excuses herself from the table.

The table is quiet. Michael shoves his fork into his mouth with a huge scoop of food to have an excuse to not talk. Even Taylor seems to not know what to say.

I stare at my uneaten food long enough to lose my appetite. "Food was great, Greg, thanks."

And I push away from the table and head to my room. As I head up the stairs, I hear another muttered apology and the scrape of leg chairs. I sigh loudly and wait on the stairs.

"You didn't even touch your food," Michael mutters as he walks to me.

I shrug. "I'm not really hungry..."

"Bullshit, you're always hungry," Michael snaps. "It's because of Olivia. She's just mad, baby. You can't starve yourself over it."

"It was one meal, I'm not starving myself. I lost my appetite," I mutter.

He sighs, rubbing my back. "Come back down. Eat. And then...well you know what comes after."

I can't hold in a nervous giggle. "Oh hell do I."

"Come on. Taylor probably has lots more to tell you."

*

"-and then she was insulting my new shirt so I just punched her in the face," Taylor says nonchalantly. "She can't insult anyone else's shirt now because hers had blood on it."

I laugh out loud, thinking of my petite sister punching someone in the face, and surprisingly, I can picture it perfectly.

"Michael have you ever punched anyone? You look like you have," Taylor blabs.