Kingdom of isolation - you can't hide

Thirty Six ~ Aurora

Aurora

"For the last time, I don't need a babysitter."

Caspian leans against the car door, sunglasses covering his eyes and an air of nonchalance around him as he surveys our surroundings like a bodyguard. Always the face of collective calmness when the truth is, he's working through a hangover and refusing to admit it like a big baby.

"You're not telling me where we're going, the least I can do is keep an eye on you." He blows a breath, clenching his teeth as if he's in pain. I'm not quite sure about the amount of alcohol he managed to inhale last night, nor his sudden disappearance after being an obnoxious a-hole to Mia. Speaking of Mia, I bounce my legs nervously against the car door, twisting my fingers in my lap as I stare at the little windows of the cafe. I'm rather unfamiliar with my surroundings, having not been in the states before and only recently arrived in New Hampshire. After wracking my brain to remember the address Mia had written down for me, the piece of paper that was sadly squashed beneath hundreds of feet last night, I am now waiting for Caspian to leave me alone so that I can step inside the quiet looking cafe. It's not that far from where we live and I managed to google the place just to make sure I was right. I was planning on sneaking out with our designated driver, Marcus, this morning, but my brother got wind of what I was up to and intercepted us. Before I knew it, he was driving us off onto the highway and into the busy streets of downtown like he knew exactly where we were going, courtesy of Marcus being a frikkin tattletale. After reaching an impasse, where he wouldn't budge out of my way and I refused to tag him along, we're both now just loitering around and awkwardly avoiding bringing any attention to us. Caspian can't really escape from the stares he's been getting the moment he stepped out and came around to stand in front of my door like a sentinel. At 6 '4, my brother is hard to miss even when he's dressed down in his sweats.

"I am meeting someone and it's none of your business. So, leave will ya!" I tell him, glancing at a group of young girls giggling among themselves while staring at him with hearts in their eyes. I resist the urge to roll my eyes and kick his shins.

"You don't even know anyone here." He counters, lips quirking up in amusement as he adds, "No offence."

"Offence taken!" I yell defensively, standing up. "I know a lot of people."

Pointing his high nose down at me, he says, "Name one."

"Mi—" I bite my tongue, regretting opening my mouth. I can feel his annoyance and disappointment rolling off him.

"Rory!" He groans, going to take his sunglasses off but stopping short. "What did I tell you last night?"

"You were drunk, I can't remember." I grin sheepishly, tugging at the sleeves of my hoodie. He doesn't seem amused, already heading over to the driver's side. Pinning me with a glare I can feel underneath the sunglasses, he tells me, "This isn't a joke. Get in the car, we're leaving. I need you to stay away from her."

Well, that's not happening. I narrow my eyes at him as he waits for me to make a move.

"We've already established that I don't listen to orders very well so why should I? As far as I know, she hasn't done anything to me. Maybe you're, I don't know, projecting?" I inquire. It's embarrassing to admit that it took me this long to figure out something was definitely going on between my brother and Mia. They both attended HRU and Mia was in a complicated relationship with someone. I specifically recall someone with an uncanny resemblance to Caspian leaving the cafe I used to work in, moments after she'd told me about their said complicated relationship. It had to have been him, I can't be wrong about this. Nevertheless, annoyance rolls through me when I start to entertain the many possibilities. Did she know who I was? Is my brother being unreasonable for no reason? What's the deal?