Supposed To Be

f o u r.

Once Arielle puts the car in park, she turns it off and gets out. Chlöe and Bailey get out behind her, leaving the boys alone in the truck.

"What the hell?" Cameron asks once the house door shuts.

"It's not like what I said wasn't true," SJ defends himself. "It was time-"

"I'm really tempted to punch you in the jaw," Cameron cuts him off. "True or not, you don't snap on someone in your family like that!"

SJ sighs, running a hand down his face. "I know, man. I messed up."

Cameron nods. "Big time. You know she's gonna tell Unc, then you're really in for an ass whooping."

SJ rolls his eyes. "Man, Pops not gonna do nothing unless Bailey runs her mouth." He opens the middle console and pulls out cigarillos and a bag of marijuana; he takes a couple buds and breaks them down before emptying the cigarillo of tobacco, dumping the tobacco in the ashtray he keeps in his truck. "How long you think she's gonna be mad at me?"

Cameron shrugs as SJ rolls a blunt. "If she's anything like Mom with her attitude, a while."

"A while?" SJ asks, now searching himself for a lighter; he finds one then lights the cigarillo and puts it in his mouth.

"Yeah. Mom was so pissed off with Dad that she didn't say a word to him for like... three months or something," Cameron laughs.

"Three months? What'd he do?" SJ takes a long pull from his blunt, blowing out circles of smoke while Cameron shrugs. "See, that's dumb shit, no offense."

Cameron shrugs again. "They're women. They overreact about messed up makeup," he chuckles, rolling his eyes. "What's your beef with Bryce 'bout?"

SJ takes another hit and inhales, coughing a little as he exhales. "I don't like how he does Ari behind her back." He dumps the ashes and takes another pull, French inhaling the smoke. He offers the blunt to Cameron, and he takes it.

"How did you even find out about that?" Cameron questions, hitting the blunt and inhaling the smoke. The smoke that comes from his nose is translucent.

"Heard it through the grape vines," SJ shrugs. "Did a little digging, found out it was true."

Cameron takes another pull and inhales, blowing smoke as he talks. "You sure it's not because of the Angel thing?" SJ turns to face him, an angered scowl plastered on his face; Cameron holds one hand up in defense, the other holding the blunt as he takes another pull. He blows the smoke from his mouth. "You can't not talk about it, man." He holds the blunt out to SJ after he taps the ashes off.

"Watch me," SJ retorts, grabbing the blunt and taking a long pull from it.

"Lo, you can't shut everyone out because you don't want to talk about it," Cameron sighs. "I'm your brother, you can talk to me."

SJ coldly laughs, blowing the smoke from his nose. "What are we, some punks?" He takes another pull and releases the smoke from his nose.

"Have you at least told Keeleigh or Unc?" Cameron asks.

"I told Ma and B," SJ replies. "Swore both of them to secrecy. Don't feel like doing it again." He hits the blunt again and offers it to Cameron, who declines.

"I'm just saying, bruh," Cameron defends as SJ puts the blunt out. "You were the first person to know 'bout me and Chlöe."

"Other than Mama Aly?" SJ questions, his eyebrow arched.

"Before," Cameron emphasizes.

SJ shrugs his shoulders and shakes his head. "Nope, I still don't want to talk about it."