Camiga -> Magica High [Book 1]

Chapter 10

-Lavanya's P.O.V- 

"So what's your favorite animal? I told you what mine was," Bradly asks, sitting back and resting his back on the wall.

"Dolphins," I tell him honestly.

"Why?" he wonders, looking genuinely interested to hear my answer. 

"When I turned 8, the woman at the orphanage, Carol, decided to bring me to the aquarium. They had dolphins there and I got to swim with them. It was the most fun I've ever had since after my parents passed. After that day, dolphins have always had a calming effect on me. My parents also had matching dolphin tattoos, so yeah..." I shrug. I look over to him just sitting against the wall, looking over to me. This is literally the first actual conversation we've ever had. "Why did you leave?"

"Hm?"

"Why did you leave before everyone else earlier?" I ask him more clearly. The moment the words leave my mouth, I feel somewhat bad because the guilt crashes back into his expression.

"I didn't have anything to tell," he mumbles just loud enough for me to hear. What even does that mean?

"Wha-"

"Everyone had some sad story to tell but I've never had a hard life. I grew up with my older sister Trina and my parents until I was 12, then I got a little brother, Rob. My parents have always been rather wealthy, so we never had problems with money. I went to some private school and I was always popular. Everyone liked me for some reason, both guys and girls," he blurts out and stares down at his hands in his lap. "I couldn't stay. I felt like some criminal there, the bad guy. I've got everything I want, I got everything I asked for, I'm more spoiled than Paris Hilton's chihuahua." Bradley shakes his head as if he's disappointed about having such a good life. He even hides his face in his hands moments laters.

"Even Laila had something, the most dense girl in school. I couldn't lie, that would just be wrong. I couldn't tell the truth either because people would probably hate me for it, so I left. I really tried to go unnoticed. I've literally never felt so out of place before, so misplaced I just wanted to go back home and hug my parents," he explains. 

"How is Rob?" I ask randomly, making him look at me in confusion.

"He's... Good. Rob is 5 now, he absolutely loves soccer and mom's cookies even though they're kind of making him chubby. I'll bring you some after my next visit. Besides that, I think he's a lot like me," he says with a small, cute smile at the simple thought of his little brother.

"What about Trina?" I ask.

"Well, she's 23 and she's getting married on the 22nd of December. Not only that but she's pregnant with twin girls. We look exactly alike according to mom. We'll clones of my dad, by the way. Anyways, she's finishing her studies to become a surgeon. Her fiancé, Patrick, is Irish, he's 25, and a lawyer. Trina has always been my all-in-all best friend," he tells me with a slight blush at the last sentence. I can't help but smile a little at how happy he looks talking about his siblings.

"So you approve of Patrick then?" He nods right away.

"Yeah, they've been dating since Trina was 15, so it's already been 8 years. He's pretty cool, kind of like the big brother I never had," he says with a slight shrug. Moments later, he frowns slightly, looking at me in guilt again. "Why are you asking me all this?"

"I wanted to know what it feels like to have siblings and a family. I've only got a few memories of mine and they're quite hazy," I admit. Bradley lifts up his duvet, patting the spot beside him on his bed. I hesitantly crawl over to him and slip under his duvet beside him. Bradley puts his left arm around me and pulls me closer to him.

"What did your mom look like? What do you remember about her?" he asks me.

"Well... She had blue eyes like one of mine. I have my mother's hair, only hers was always an unruly mess of curls," I start, smiling faintly at the memory. "She had a slight accent because of her background and she sometimes talked in Latin, that's why I know that what I sometimes say is in Latin. She had a long neck and a prominent jaw. You'd think she was some kind of sophisticated lawyer, but mom never even had a job. I remember she always sang me to sleep, she'd kiss my nose and call me her angel, then she's stand in the door of my room and watch as dad tucked me in and kissed my forehead first then gave me a small kiss on the lips, wishing me a goodnights sleep. Mom would always smile and then they'd stand side-by-side and I could feel the love they held for me as they waited for me to fall asleep. The last thing I saw every night was mom closing the door and whispering one last silent goodnight in Latin," I rant on. I'm not sure when my head and hand landed on his chest, my fingers drawing random patterns.

I look up at him when I fall silent only to see him smile down at me. 

"Your dad then? What about him?" he asks and puts his left hand to the back of my head, his palm flat against my scalp. Bradley slowly slides the digits of his fingers together, rubbing my scalp. He keeps doing this in an awfully soothing manner.

"Dad looked like a younger version of Marcus Brown. He had slightly shorter hair as well and no facial hair. Dad loved to make a mess, though it annoyed mom. He played with me all the time, no matter how late or early it was. He'd tell me he loved me every single along with mom. He tucked me in and kissed me goodnight. Dad always had a strange obsession over red sports cars and I remember he was always the one who found me first whenever I was hiding away and crying," I tell him as I really think about my parents. These are basically the only memories I really have of them.

"They sound like good parents."

"The best," I confirm, smiling. Bradley tilts his head to the left, resting his head on top of mine. "Are you even allowed to sit like this seeing as you're with Laila?" I wonder, making his vibrate with his chuckles.

"Yeah, it was just a small fling between the two of us. To be completely honest, I was lonely and she offered me company," he admits, giving me a slight shrug. "Do you have a boyfriend?" I raise my eyebrows in surprise at his question. "Or girlfriend," he adds quickly. "It's okay if you... Er... Like girls, whatever- you know," he stumbles over his words nervously. "I never really asked even... You like guys, right?"

I can't help but laugh at how awkward he is right now. Bradley blushes, looking at me in wonder still.

"Yes, I like guys, Bradley. Not girls," I say. He actually cringes when I say his name, which makes me give him a questioning look.

"You can call me Brad. Only my nan calls me Bradley," he admits.

"Will do, Brad," I chirp. Brad smiles and then pushes me down on his bed, following shortly after. 

"You're sleeping here because you're insanely warm and I've never been good at keeping warm," he mumbles and yawns afterwards. I shift around, making him sigh after a moment. "Do you want to sleep facing me or do you want me to hug you like you're laying now? Either way, I'm going to hug you to keep warm."

I turn around and come face-to-face with him. He leans to turn off the lights, then his cold arms snake around me, hugging me to his front. I freeze up at first when Brad puts his face in my neck and his arms wrap around me, hugging me comfortably. 

Eventually, I relax as well and move my hands up, placing one arm under his head and the other lands on his chest. Brad mumbles some words against my neck, then pulls his head back only yo give my forehead a kiss and then the tip of my nose. He flashes me a sleepy smile and returns back to his position with his face in my neck.

"Goodnight, Anya," he whispers drowsily.

"Goodnight, Brad."