My Step-Brothers

Chapter 18: A New Friend

E V A N N A

Summer and I got to know each other very well. We soon became friends. She was so nice, but she was shy.

"How's your school?" I asked.

She hesitated, "It's okay."

I noticed the look on her face, "Is something wrong?"

"N-no..."

I didn't want to force her. She didn't have to tell me if she didn't feel comfortable.

I gave her a small smile, "If there's anything wrong, you can talk to me."

We were sitting on the playground set, where we could see the sunset perfectly. Right now, it was 3 AM.

"Evanna... if you were bullied at school, what would you do?" Summer asked.

She was being bullied. I could tell. "I don't know, honestly. Most people say to tell teachers but that makes it worse. Telling parents won't help either."

"Have you ever been bullied before?"

"Yeah..."

"I don't like school. People just hate me. They  call me names and... I don't know what to do. They sometimes get physical, especially the girls. They're all so mean and heartless." She brought her knees to her chest and hugged them. "My mom's an alcoholic. Dad's probably cheating. I fought with my mom. She threw a bottle at me. I was scared and ran away."

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, even though I knew it wouldn't help much, "I left because I had a fight with someone. It's not a big deal."

She nodded, catching on the fact that I didn't want to talk. We started talking about other things, and before we knew it, it was already 6.

"I have to go," Summer said.

"Me too, let's go."

We went down the slide and said goodbye. I really wasn't looking forward to going home. Should I go through the door? Back door? Window? Ugh. Fear went down my spine as my house came into the view. What would everyone else say? Maybe they're still sleeping.

I heard a car behind me and when I moved, it was Dad's car. I let out a sigh of relief as Rose and he got out.

"Evanna? What are you doing here?" Dad asked.

"I just went for a run. That's all."

He nodded, "Be careful."

We went inside, and I was staying as close to Dad as I could. Rose smiled at me, "What do you want for breakfast?"

"I'll just make cereal, thank you." I replied, and went to get cereal. After I started eating, Ethan came down, and did a double take at me.

"Glad you can join us," Ethan smirked.

I didn't cast him a glance as I continued eating. Ethan came to me and whispered in my ear, "Brandon's pissed." That is either true, or he's trying to scare me. I'm pretty sure it's both.