The Quiet

Chapter 28

Chapter 28

*Nathan's Point of View*

Today's weather was decent which allowed the guys to sit outside for once instead of the cafeteria. I glanced around the school's perimeter looking for Athena like I always do. She hasn't spoken to me much nor to her brothers. Recently, she has become friends with the other burnouts who hang out under the bleachers to the football field. I assume that Damon or Dean was friends with them then dragged her over. From the looks of it, she was speaking to them, laughing with them.

Everyone around her besides Dean was smoking a cigarette or a blunt. My mind questioned her, knowing damn well that she smokes like a chimney. For once, it seemed that she was happy with her life, without all of us around her. "Stop looking at her," Roman ordered as he took a bite from his lunch. I took my eyes off Athena when he mentioned by constant stares. "It only makes the feeling of wanting to talk to her worse."

"How do you guys go on normally without speaking to your own sister? Especially you, you guys are twins, closer than anyone else," I observed. Athena was close with her other brothers but not like with Roman. They seem to hate each other, tease each other but that's their way of showing their love for one another. When she left the country, Roman was the most hurt since she didn't say anything about it to him.

"I keep telling myself that she is happy with him. Now that she stopped smoking because of him. I don't care for him since he took her away, but he is trying to fix her. That's something none of us tried to do, we all ignored the pain that she felt." I looked up from the table and stared at Roman, wondering how he knew that she quit. "Don't give me that look, Nathan. I talk to Dean sometimes during study hall. I at least want to know what's going on with her even if I need to talk to the devil himself. She is family whether my brothers want to admit it, we care about her more than we do ourselves."

"I miss her voice, her laugh and her thoughts every day. I have to sit here watching her fall in love with him." I picked at my food as I spoke. "It's not fair."

Roman sighs loudly, "you love my sister in ways that I don't, I want her to be happy and you want to spend your life with her. Dean loves her the same way you do. Someone is going to need to change the game to keep her." He takes a bite of his food before mumbling, "why don't you go tell her that?" He motions his head over in her direction.

"She would tell me to fuck off or something, Athena hates me."

Roman stopped eating his food to make the conversation more serious. "My sister respects people when they voice their opinions to her because many people are scared to do that with her. That's how you earn her respect and trust." My friend chuckled under his breath, "you're her sunshine, remember?" His statement reminds me of the nickname that Athena gave me when I first met her. I miss her calling me that.

"Are you ever going to speak to her again?" I questioned him. He nodded his head.

"I am ready to talk to her right now, but my brothers are more stubborn about their feelings than me. She's our sister and their pride ruins them sometimes. There is a reason why pride is one of the 7 deadliest sins, Nathan." Roman picked up his tray and went back inside to throw it out. My view of Athena was now clear and the only thing that was in front of me was her while her boyfriend had his arm around her waist. She was laughing and smiling until her eyes landed on me.

Athena moved her eyes away from me to whisper something to Dean. His face turned sour and the grip he had on her waist tightened. He said something before shaking his head. Athena's face turned sour as well before pulling away from him completely. It seemed to me that they were arguing but Athena ended it by holding her hand up, saying something to him. She grabbed her backpack and began walking in my direction, making my heart beat irregularly. Dean stared at her as she walked away from, angry about whatever she said.

Her legs stopped as she arrived at the table I was sitting at, "can I talk to you?" She asked. I nodded my head which gave her permission to sit down across from me. "Dean told me about how you went after me when I missed school. I wanted to thank you for finding me in the graveyard. I know it's not your job to watch over, but I am glad you did it that day. I am sorry you had to see that, it wasn't one of my best days." Her eyes stared into mine, the sparkle was back in her mismatched eyes. "I wanted you to know that I appreciate what you do to try and take care of me. Since most people would care less about the person who keeps pushing them away."

"I will always care about you, Athena even if you hate it. This past month not talking to you have been killing me. I sit here watching you live your life with him, not giving a shit about the people who care for you like your brothers or even me. I miss hanging out with you at the library like we used to. I understand that those little things don't matter to you, but they were the only things getting me through the day," I confessed my true thoughts. My heart was breaking more and more every day, not knowing what she was up to. Having her in the same class as me, in my reach but I didn't know what she was doing anymore.

Her face dropped, causing Athena to stare down at the table with guilt. "I do miss talking to you, but you always ruin it. The things you say when I do something you don't like, they stick in my brain. You have 2 personalities and I am never sure which one I am going to see that day. As for my family, I miss my brothers, but I can't be around people who don't accept me." She stared down the table, where her brothers sat. Ivan looked over at us but turned away as if she was no one. The look in her eye made the situation worse, seeing her flesh and blood forget about her. "I want to live how I want not how others tell me to live."

"Roman asks about you all the time, he misses you just as much as I do. He is willing to look passed Dean to still be able to speak to you, he's your brother. He loves you and wants to speak to his only sister. You should at least give him that." I looked past Athena to look at Dean who intently staring at us. "Give us all one more chance to make things right. I know I shouldn't be asking since it's my millionth chance, but I am not letting you slip through my fingers again." I had a little more hope in my heart when she looked up at me then nodded, allowing her curls to bounce as she did so.

"Library after school?" She offered, I didn't hesitate to say yes. "I will see you later then." She smiled, stood up and walked away from my table back to the school. I smiled to myself, knowing she was willing to let me in again. My happiness was cut short when I heard a big bang at my table, it was Dean slapping the table's surface.

"You can't stay away from her, can you? What gives you the nerve to go after her again? She doesn't want you, man. Get over it, there is no chance in hell that she is going to choose you over me." Dean's eyes were filled with fiery anger, but my heart was still light and happy, she is already mine, but he doesn't know it yet. "I'm not letting you take my girl away from me. What makes you think you are better than me, huh?"

"I am willing to put her well-being in front of my own." Dean stood back and just glared at me, not knowing how to respond. He was going to hurt Athena because he was running from something. Maybe it was something in his past, but he is always looking over his shoulder to see if someone is following him. Something isn't right about him and I know he hasn't told Athena everything or she would have been long gone by now. I have sat back in misery while she was off with Dean. The few minutes she was here alone with me, Dean had to come and interfere with it. He wanted to calm his own anxiety of losing Athena than letting her do what she wants.

Before she came over here, Dean knew she was going to come talk to me. Yet, Dean didn't want her to for his own selfish feelings. "If she wanted to leave you because she wasn't happy, would you let her go? Or would you make her stay even though she would be miserable?" I asked the one question that defined their whole relationship. He glanced down at the floor, thinking of his answer. "That's why I am more considerate of her, you had to think of your answer. If someone asked me that, I wouldn't have hesitated to say 'let her go' because her happiness is more important than my own." I grabbed my empty tray and stood up from the table. Dean was speechless once again, I had him where I wanted him. "That's what you do for someone when you love them."

I stalked back to the cafeteria to return my tray. My next destination was my locker where my books were located. I felt a smile appear on my face, I get to see her later. Nothing was going to get in my way of getting closer to her again. My anger is going to stay away from the surface, she is going to see the guy she first met.

The old Nathan that she liked and called "her sunshine."