How to escape reality

Unspoken tensions

As I sat in class, I couldn’t shake the awkwardness of having Liam, my half-brother, in the same college as me. Every time I caught him smirking at me across the room, it made my blood boil. I couldn't tell if he was trying to tease me or if he was just enjoying this bizarre situation. Either way, I wasn’t about to let him get to me.

After class, I packed my things quickly, eager to get out before he could say anything, but of course, Liam was already waiting for me at the door.

"Hey, half-sis, where are you going? Let’s grab lunch together," he said casually.

I rolled my eyes. "No thanks, I have things to do."

He chuckled. "What things? You don’t know anyone here."

He was right, and that annoyed me even more. I had barely made any friends yet, and it seemed like the only person I had to talk to was him. As much as I wanted to avoid him, the thought of eating alone didn’t sound too great either.

"Fine," I said, sighing in defeat. "But you’re paying."

We walked to the campus cafeteria, where he bought us both sandwiches. As we sat down, I could feel the curious stares of other students, probably wondering if we were dating. Little did they know we were siblings. I wanted to set the record straight, but something in me kept holding back. Maybe it was the strange tension between us. I didn’t even know how to describe it—it wasn’t like we were close, but it also wasn’t pure animosity.

As we ate, I couldn’t help but notice how much attention Liam got from the girls walking by. Every time one passed, she would glance over at him and giggle with her friends. Liam didn’t seem to notice—or if he did, he didn’t care.

"Does that ever get old?" I asked, pointing to a group of girls who were whispering and staring at him from across the room.

What? The attention?" he said, shrugging. "I guess I’m just used to it."

I rolled my eyes again. "Of course, you are. Mr. Popular."

"Don’t be jealous, sis," he said, flashing me a teasing grin. "You’ll get used to it too. After all, you’re with me now."

I glared at him. "I’m not jealous."

"Sure," he replied, taking a bite of his sandwich. "By the way, I noticed you didn't tell anyone we’re siblings. Any particular reason?"

I froze for a moment. Why hadn’t I told anyone? Maybe I was embarrassed, or maybe it was the way people would look at us differently. I didn’t want to be known as "Liam’s sister"—I wanted to make my own way here.

"I just didn’t think it was necessary," I said, shrugging it off.

Liam leaned back in his chair, studying me. "You’re hiding something. You know, we’re going to be in each other's lives whether you like it or not."

"I know," I muttered, finishing my sandwich. "I just need time to adjust, okay?"

"Fair enough," he said, smiling. "But don’t get too comfortable. I might start telling everyone."

I shot him a warning look. "Don’t you dare."

He laughed, and for a moment, it felt... almost normal. Like we were just two people getting to know each other. But then, out of nowhere, a girl with long brown hair and bright green eyes approached our table. She had a confident air about her, the type that screamed she was used to getting what she wanted.

"Liam," she purred, ignoring me completely. "I’ve been looking for you. I thought maybe we could grab coffee later?"

Liam looked at me and then back at her. "Sorry, I’ve got plans with my sister."

The girl blinked, clearly taken aback. "Sister?" She glanced at me, her expression a mix of surprise and confusion.

"Yeah," Liam said, grinning. "This is my stepsister. We just found out about each other recently."

The girl’s face fell, and she quickly recovered, but I could tell she wasn’t happy about the news. "Oh. Well, maybe another time then." With that, she turned on her heel and walked away.

I raised an eyebrow at Liam. "Stepsister, huh? I thought we were just half-siblings."

Liam smirked. "Well, half-sister sounds too cold. I think stepsister has a nicer ring to it, don’t you?"

I shook my head, laughing despite myself. "You’re ridiculous."

"Maybe," he said, standing up and grabbing his tray. "But you’ll get used to me."

As we walked out of the cafeteria together, I couldn’t help but wonder what life was going to be like with Liam around. Sure, he was a jerk sometimes, but he was also the only family I had in this new chapter of my life. Maybe, just maybe, having him by my side wouldn’t be so bad after all.

                         *********
As the days passed, I found myself spending more time with Liam than I expected. It wasn’t like I had a choice—he was always around, popping up in random places on campus, teasing me between classes, and insisting we grab lunch together. Despite my initial resistance, I started getting used to him being there. The strange tension between us didn’t disappear, though. If anything, it grew stronger. There was something unspoken, something neither of us wanted to acknowledge.

One evening, after a long day of classes, I was walking back to my dad’s house when I heard footsteps behind me. I didn’t even have to look back to know it was Liam.

“Stalking me now?” I teased, glancing over my shoulder.

He smirked. “I live here too, remember?”

I shook my head, chuckling as we walked in silence for a moment. There was a cool breeze in the air, and I pulled my jacket tighter around me. Liam, ever the gentleman when he wanted to be, draped his jacket over my shoulders without a word. I felt a strange flutter in my chest, but I quickly brushed it off.

“You don’t have to be so nice, you know,” I muttered.

“Who says I’m being nice? Maybe I just don’t want to hear you complain about being cold later,” he teased.

I rolled my eyes, but I couldn’t hide the small smile tugging at my lips. When we finally reached the house, I hesitated at the door.

“You want to go in, or should we stay out here for a bit?” Liam asked, his tone more serious now.

“Stay out here,” I replied, sitting down on the porch steps. Liam sat down next to me, and for a while, we just sat in comfortable silence, watching the stars slowly appear in the sky.

“You ever think about how weird this all is?” I asked, finally breaking the silence.

Liam tilted his head. “What do you mean?

“This—us. We’re half-siblings, but we didn’t even know about each other until recently. Now, it feels like we’re stuck together all the time.”

He was quiet for a moment, then nodded. “Yeah, it’s weird. But it’s not bad.”

I glanced at him. “No, it’s not bad,” I admitted. “Just... complicated.”

Liam turned to face me, his expression softer than I’d ever seen it before. “You know, I didn’t expect to like having a sister. I always thought I’d hate it—sharing my dad, sharing my space. But then you showed up, and now... I don’t know. It doesn’t feel like a bad thing.”

There was something in the way he looked at me, something intense that made my heart race. I couldn’t explain it, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to. It was dangerous, this feeling—this strange attraction I couldn’t ignore. But it was wrong, wasn’t it?

I swallowed hard, forcing myself to look away. “We should go inside,” I whispered, standing up quickly.

But before I could move, Liam grabbed my wrist, gently pulling me back down beside him. “Wait,” he said softly. “I... I need to tell you something.”