Insomnia // Billie Eilish

Chapter 9

I walked home and was greeted by my brown Labrador named Neko as soon as I walked in. "Hey, Neko," I said, grabbing her behind the ears and kissing her nose. She wagged her tail and followed me up the stairs. "Dad, I'm home," I said loudly.

I stood at the top of the stairs and waited for him to reply, but he didn't. "Dad," I called again, walking back down the stairs to his room. "Dad, I'm coming i—" I stopped in my tracks when I saw one person that I did not expect to see here.

"Hey, Cameron, why don't you have a seat?" My mom patted the bed. "We need to talk."

"You look terrible as always," I replied dryly, sitting on the bed.

"Your mother and I, we... well, we're getting back together," my dad said excitedly, smiling and giving her a quick kiss. I could've sworn I was gonna throw up.

I closed my eyes and raised my eyebrows. "Uhm." My eyebrows knitted together as all of my thoughts jumbled together. "Are you moving in?" I asked, scared of the answer.

"Yeah. Your brother is too. Aren't you excited?" She grinned, mockingly.

I stood up and backed away from the bed. "Wait... no. Is he here?"

"Cameron, are you okay?" she asked, knowingly. She took a step towards me and I took a step back, furrowing my eyebrows at her. My head felt light as unwanted memories flew through my brain.

"Yeah, I just need to get some air." I walked away.

"We're not done talking, young lady," my mom said, following me. "Come back here!"

"Leave me alone!" I ran out the front door and down the sidewalk a little, pulling out my phone to text Billie.

mack.jones: i know we just hung out last weekend but i NEED to get out of my house. can i come over?

billieeilish: wdym, last week was way too long ago??

mack.jones: omw

billieeilish: no you're not. i don't want you to walk. i'll be there in 5

I laughed and put my phone in my pocket. The front door to my house flew open and out walked my mom. I didn't even like calling her that. Out walked my birth giver? I didn't like that either. My life-provider. Ew. I'd figure it out later.

"Where do you think you're going?" she asked.

I cleared my throat and tried to make myself sound more confident than I actually was while talking to her. "To Billie's house."

"I was wondering when you'd grow out of liking girls," she said.

All I did was smile as Billie pulled up. She hopped out of the car and pulled me into a hug. I wrapped my arms around her waist and breathed in the familiar vanilla scent. The look on my moms face was priceless. She leaned down and whispered in my ear. "Is everything okay?"

I nodded. "That's my mom." She mouthed an O and opened the door for me.

-

I stared at the red-tinted walls as I tried to process everything that was happening. "How ya' feeling?" Billie asked, putting a hand on my shoulder.

"How ya' feeling," my dad asked, handing me an ice pack. I simply shrugged and laid back.

"Cam, you have to tell us who did this," my dad stated. "Why did they do this?"

"I can't tell you who did it and as for why." I shrugged. "I really don't know. Just indirect anger, I guess." How was I supposed to tell him that his own son—my own brother—did that.

"I'm fine. I just... I don't understand why he would get back with her. After everything."

"Well, maybe your mom just realized that the tornado thing wasn't his fault," she offered.

"There's a whole lot more to my mom and my brother than you know, Bil," I replied softly.

"What happened, baby? You don't have to tell me, but I'd like to know. I want to know you. That means everything about you from your favorite color to your crazy past."