Being the Little Sister ♡ New Beginnings Spin-Off

20. Manipulations of the Heart

"How do people get first jobs if they need experience to get hired?" Caleb groans, staring at the blank space in his Starbucks application. He had filled out everything else, pausing only for a moment before putting my home address as his and listing my parents as his emergency contacts but the work experience section had stumped him.

"Babe, they have to put a work experience section on every application. It doesn't necessarily mean that you need experience to get hired."

It was Sunday afternoon and Hunter and Addison would be over soon to hang out, work on homework and unbeknownst to them, help set my plan in place. But in the meantime Caleb and I were sitting in my room, me on a chair beside him at my desk while he worked on his job application. It was all completely innocent to the point that we even kept the door open.

"I hope you're right" he mutters as he clicks submit. He sighs, leaning back in his chair and threading his fingers through his hair. He was obviously worried about getting this job but he had no reason to be, any establishment would be lucky to hire him as a worker and if he didn't get the job, well, it wasn't like my parents were going to kick him out onto the street.

"It'll be fine" I assure him as I offer him a supportive smile, about to reach out and place a comforting hand on his arm but before I can even lift a finger, there's a knock on the doorframe.

"Hey." We both look up and find my brother in the doorway, looking between us confusedly. He had no reason to be suspicious though, we were sitting in separate chairs with the damn Starbucks website open in front of us. There was no funny business to be noticed. "What the hell are you guys doing? Caleb, you said we were gonna play some one on one today."

"Yea man, sorry." Caleb stands up, pushing in my chair before walking over to my brother. "Your sis was just helping me with a job application." My brother's eyebrows knit in confusion.

"A job? Seriously?" He scoffs and I refrain from rolling my eyes. My brother would happily mooch off my family until the day they finally cut him off...which, knowing my mother, would never happen. She felt too bad for him. They were the same in a lot of ways not that Jackson would ever take advantage of the love and support she had to offer. Both of them had been left, both of them hurt in incomprehensible ways but unlike my mother who leaned on people that loved her, my brother isolated himself and found comfort in the arms of strangers.

Caleb was his only friend and if he couldn't come around to the idea of us dating...he'd be alone.

And you wonder why I can't bite the bullet and tell him.

"Jax, I can't live here forever" he points out. "Besides, I'm sure that you'd like to be able to bring girls home without having to worry about evacuating your room first. Am I right?" Of course my brother couldn't argue. He shrugs his shoulders.

"I mean." Caleb laughs, slapping his chest in that playful, bro way that makes zero sense.

"Exactly. Come on, let's go play some ball." And just like that the boys are gone, heading back down the stairs while I'm left alone in my room. I sigh, standing up and walking aimlessly around my room. The room felt so empty without him, like he was somehow being a fixture in here. It made me almost giddy to think about when we go public, when we don't have to hide anymore. When he'll have his own place.

"Hey, S." I turn around, exiting dreamland and returning to reality to find my two best friends walking in with their backpacks on their shoulders. Hunter was dressed casually in a pair of jeans and an old, gray sweatshirt while Addy was the stark opposite, wearing a skin-tight pair of leggings and a dark red v-neck top. On her feet were pumps. Actual fucking heels. And her hair was falling in gorgeous trellises around her shoulders.