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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑
the research
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( wolf moon; pt.iv )
A tired groan leaves her lips as she accidentally collides with the door frame, her hand moving to rest on her shoulder as she rubs the sore spot. Maddie carries on with her journey into the kitchen, turning her body to the side once her brother runs out the room, sparing a quick hello before he rushes up the stairs to get changed. She stops in place, watching him disappear onto the second floor as she tries to understand how someone can have so much energy at nearly seven in the morning.
Once in the kitchen, she sits down on the stool and places her arms on the island before resting her forehead atop. Harrison watches in amusement from beside her, bringing his hand to her side to poke her. She blindly swats his hand away with a dissatisfied whine, but he ignores it and pokes her again.
"Honey, stop it," a female voice instructs exhaustedly. Harrison rolls his eyes good—naturedly at his mom before he returns to finishing his breakfast. Maddie lifts her head up slightly to give her aunt a smile in thanks. Lillian smiles back, walking over to place a plate of toast in front of Maddie before she delicately runs a hand over her niece's hair. "Didn't sleep well, huh?"
Lillian tucks a strand of her long hair behind her ear to see clearer as she smiles down at her niece. If Maddie was being honest, out of all her family members, her aunt was her favourite. She had the perfect balance between parent and friend. She was the fun aunt but with a little less wine than most. Her entire being was built to care, maybe it's what drew Maddie in, she found her to be the perfect person to talk to when her anxiety started to get bad last year——plus, running an animal shelter gets her access to adorable animals and Maddie isn't one to refuse that type of therapy.
Maddie shakes her head as she sits up, quickly tying her hair in a low ponytail, tucking the loose strands behind her ear. She lets out a quiet breath from her nose before she takes a bite into her toast, and she doesn't notice the look that passes between her aunt and uncle. "What?" Her voice comes out as nothing less than a whisper from it being the first thing she's said since she woke up and she clears her throat, stating it louder. "What?"
Her uncle, already dressed in his navy—blue two—piece suit, places his coffee down on the counter by the sink before he walks over, bending down slightly as he rests his forearms on the island, fingers intertwined. "We're just thinking—"
She knows exactly what's coming next. Maddie shakes her head and Mark's words fall short before he closes his mouth. "I don't need it, okay?" she says collectedly, but they can all pick up on the sadness behind her voice. "I don't need to go again. I'm fine."
Her uncle was always the worrier, if she was related to him by blood then maybe she would say she got it from him, although it's still entirely possible considering the amount of time she spent around her cousin and his parents when she was younger. He's the older sibling, the one forced to grow up to take care of his younger sister——him and Maddie were alike in so many ways to the point where he spent a lot of her childhood worried that she would turn out like him.
None of the Greens speak about it again after Maddie looks back down at her breakfast and starts eating, her free hand drawing random shapes and lines on the marble countertop in her attempt to distract herself from their thoughts. Harry glances over to her as he finishes his drink, watching her draw a smiley face on the marble before he lets out a quiet sigh and looks over to his dad. "Hey, I can still go to the party today, right?"
YOU ARE READING
Empathy ⌯ Stiles Stilinski
Fanfiction❝ the way he looks at her, i don't think he's never looked at me that way ❞ ❝ maybe you just weren't looking ❞ High school is supposed to be hard. The homework, the socialisation, the worry of deciding your future. At least, that's what's supposed t...
