Twenty-Two ➳ l.p.

Chapter Twelve: Cards

“Cards is a dumb game.”

“Well all you want to do is go outside, you’re such a stupid boy.”

Liam jutted out his chin. “That’s because I am a boy.”

“No wonder you’re so stupid.”

Chapter Twelve: Cards

I had once come to this particular phase in my life that started when I was about fourteen or fifteen that involved me running away.

From everything.

When things got too hard—not stupid, silly things like when I didn’t want to wash the dishes or do my homework—I would run away. And it wasn’t that I would really leave, I would just more so take a long walk and not return until the stars were first starting to peek out from behind the clouds. And these ‘walks’ became so often that my mum and dad didn’t even take notice to it, hollering out that I needed to remember my phone and oh be safe I love you.

And really, I ran away when times got tough. I guess it was almost to the equivalent of Liam’s stress runs, except that he ran to sort through his problems and I ran to leave them all behind.

The last time that I had gone on one of these—before Liam came back, considering that I had done this at Rachel’s—was years ago when I first found out that my grandmother was sick.

And the time before that had been because I had found out that Liam was leaving again, to try one more time for his shot at the X-Factor. I had tried convincing him to stay, saying, “But Simon didn’t actually want to see you in two years Liam, he was kidding,” but he only brushed me off.

We weren’t exactly the closest in those days.

                  I had tried begging more and even bribing him, but each time he’d give me another cold look and a, “I’m going, Ali, so just stop, alright?”, and eventually I just turned away and walked out of his house, past my own and down the street.

                  I didn’t get home until the middle of dinner, red-faced and puffy-eyed, and Mum didn’t really seem to pick up on that.

                  “Did you hear the good news?” She squealed as soon as I trotted into the kitchen, my eyes looking over at the half-eaten plates of what looked like baked potato and fish. “Liam—”

                  “Do you know what we’re having for dinner tomorrow?” Matt interjected, and though we’ve never had the rumored ‘twin telepathy’, or even a close bond, he seemed to have seen the emotions written all over my face, and I was so grateful for that.

                  “Matt, I’m talking,” Mum scolded, shooting him an angry glare before giving her potato a stab and turning back to me. “Liam is going—”

                  “Mum, I saw the sexiest girl today,” my brother cut off once more, and my mother’s head snapped to him, fork clattering against her ill-colored cyan plate. (Mum had a thing for brightly colored objects, because they express the happiness that everybody lacks nowadays; smile Alice!)

                  “Are you really using that language with me, Matthew?” She gawked, pointing her index finger out like it was a deadly dagger. Her bottom lip, still smeared with her—bright—red lipstick, curled over and she shook her head. “Girls are not things, Matthew Alexander Engstrom, and I do not want to hear you calling a girl sexy without having called her beautiful first, do you hear me?”