My brothers best friend

"Calum stop!" I managed to say through my giggles.

I sat with my brother on the sofa in the living room. Friends was on on the TV but neither of us were paying attention to it.

He was tickling me, And I hated it.

"Please calum." I begged, squirming through his wriggling fingers on my hips.

"Fine fine." he sighed but then laughed.

"God your so annoying." I joked, rolling my eyes away from him, while running a hand through my straight, long brown hair, in an attempt to fix it after Calum's tickling attack.

"God your so annoying." he replied, mocking me in a girly high pitch voice.

"And I so don't speak like that!" I said, my voice raising a little at the end and playfully hitting him on the leg.

"Whatever you say, Taylor-grace."

Urgh, I hate it when he calls me by my full name, everyone else just calls me Lauren or loz for short. I shot him a deathly glare and he raised his hands up in the air, surrendering to me. I couldn't help but laugh.

"Why are you the one with dimples, it's so unfair!" Calum complained, eyeing my dimpled smile, pouting at then end of his statement.

"Because, calum inda hood, I was born the pretty one." I joked, flicking my hair and placing a hand on my chest like a spoilt brat.

"Urm..yeah." he trailed off.

"Well you sure know how to flatter a girl.. Geez." I teased.

"Your my little sister, you don't count!" he said.

"God calum I'm not that little, I'm 16!"

"Still littler then me."

"Oh whatever." I rolled my eyes again. "What times mum meant to be back?" I asked. It was our last day of the school half term, and since all my friends were returning from holidays of some kind and were to jetlagged to hang out, I was stuck home alone with my brother for the day. It's alright I guess, we're pretty close and he's good company.

"I dunno," he shrugged, "About 5 or something, she had some extra work to do."

"Great well, I'm off to make a sandwich, want one?" It was around half 1 and I was starting to get hungry.

"No I'm good thanks, I had spaghetti."

"Well thanks for offering me some!" I said, lifting my self up off the sofa and going into the kitchen.

"Anytime," he said. I smiled.

-

Mum arrived home at half 5, close enough.

"Heya mum." i looked up from my position on the end of the sofa, my legs draped over Calum's legs on the opposite end and smiled.

"Hiya darling, hi calum." she said nodding at calum as she walked into the sitting room placing her bag, and jacket and the adjacent sofa in the room.

"Heya." he gruffly replied, he was to focused on the TV to really acknowledge her presence.

"So what have you kids done today." she asked chirply.

"Practically nothing, just watching TV and stuff. How's about you and your boring nurses life." I joked.

"Very funny Taylor," she flashed a smile, "But it's good, getting a lot more patients in with heat rashes and things."

The Australian heat was outrages in this time of year, summer. It reached astonishing temperatures and people normally suffered sun burn and stuff. Even if there used to the warm weather.

"Ew, gross." I smiled and she laughed.

"Well what would you guys like for dinner, there's a pizza in the fridge if you wa-"

"PIZZA" calum shouted pulling some crazy face and darting his tounge all around his mouth. Me and mum both laughed.

"That seems to of got your attention." mum grinned.

"Yes mum, pizza always has my full attention. When will it be ready?"

"Around half 6 ish?" She said.

"Great yeah"

"Good, is all your homework done kids?"

Me and calum groaned in unison. I still had some history to do for tommorow that I had completely forgotten about. And I know for a fact that calum still had English to do.

"Take that as a no then, go do it now! It's school tommorow so I want you in bed early"

"Mum we're not 7" I added. Me and calum got up off the sofa and went upstairs.

We both shared a room. It was an absolute pain in the ass. Mum had always wanted a study to do work from home in when she was ill and things, apparently she couldn't afford to miss a day of work and money. So, me and cal being the nice children we are, said we'd sacrifice one of our rooms for a study. So we ended up having to share.

Things were a bit tight financially at the moment.

Ever since my dad left 3 years ago, it had been a slight struggle. He had been the main family income, but when we woke up one morning, all we had left was an envelope containing a note and his wedding ring.

Mum burnt the note as soon as she read it and didn't even let me or calum see it. As for the ring, I don't even know. I think she has it in a special place but I don't know where that is.

"Tay..?" Calum broke my thoughts. He hadn't called me that in ages. Not since dad left.

"Yeah cal?" I asked taking my seat at my desk and calum laying on his single bed with his English book infront of him.

"Do you think mum is ever going to find another man?"

Where did that come from?! Was he thinking exactly the same as me? Weird.

"I don't know cal, it's hard to say. She seems pretty happy without one."

"You remind me of dad" he said quietly, his head down.

"Really? What makes you say that?" I can remember what my dad looked like, I was only 13 when he left and calum was only 15. But neither of us had had any contact with him since he left so the memory of his personality has gone down the drain and replaced with the image of a pathetic man, who dumps his family to go to do some random shit and never comes back.

"Well.. You have his eyes. You know those like big bright green ones"

I giggled, "yes Calum, I am aware of my eye colour" i joked, trying to make light of the dense mood in the room.

He looked up and smirked at me. "just saying. Now get back to work Taylor grace hood."

"I'm warning you calum, stop calling me that before I make you regret it"

He replied with a simple 'pfft' sound and then we both carried on with our homework until mum called us down for tea.