that adorable leather jacket

t w o

First Person POV

I lied in my bed after dad had sent me away to talk to Julie alone. Apparently, she hadn't gotten back into the music program and hadn't even bothered to tell any of us. I had to admit, it kind of bothered me that she didn't tell me. She tells me everything. I rolled my eyes, laying back against the soft pillows on my bed and scrolling through Instagram. Carrie had DMed me?

'Are you free for the spirit rally tomorrow? Kayla got sick.'

'Yeah sure! I already helped you rehearse so I think I have the choreo down.'

'Thanks Katie, you're a life saver!'

I groaned, rubbing my eyes tiredly. I didn't really want to dance in a blindingly glittery costume. Plus, those tights look stupidly itchy. But, Carrie is kinda my friend and if I didn't agree to helping her, I'd feel guilty for weeks. I swung my feet off my bed, picking out an over sized t-shirt to watch Netflix in and eventually sleep in. I let out a yawn, pulling the hair tie out of my hair and slipping into sweatpants and a huge "Black Keys" t-shirt. Out of my window, I saw Julie walking through the garden towards the studio and decided to join her. I skipped down the steps, Netflix completely forgotten, and waved to my dad, following her trail.

"Clearly your mom is into music!" I could hear Luke exclaim in a pleading voice.

I ran down the steps, stepping beside Julie who stared off to the side sadly. "Was..." She said softly. "She passed away."

I pulled my baby sister into my hip, kissing the top of her head comfortingly. 

"I am...so sorry." Luke whispered, his own eyes filled with despair.

"Y-Yeah, we didn't know." I turned to see Alex and Reggie looking up at us sadly.

"It's okay." I nodded to them with a sigh, rubbing Julie's back. 

"You guy's haven't seen her anywhere, have you?" Julie asked hopefully moving out of my arms and stepping towards Alex and Reggie.

"No, you're kinda like the first people we've seen." Alex gestured to the two of us.

"Yeah but she's not dead so that doesn't really answer her question-" Reggie spoke up, shifting his weight from one leg to the other.

"Yeah Reg, I think she knows what we mean." Alex rolled his eyes.

I let out a small giggle, making eye contact with Reggie. He gaze me a large grin, his eyes brightening. 

"Sorry I got mad...you guys are kinda good." Julie nodded to Luke who stared at her in disbelief.

"Kinda? You know that's like 25 years of rust being dusted off right?" He made a dusting motion with his hand.

"Yeah!" Reggie agreed. "Do you guys play piano too?" He asked Julie and I.

"I play guitar, piano, and I sing and dance." I nodded to him while Julie shook her head.

"No, that's my mom and Kat's stuff in there." She pointed towards me.

I raised an eyebrow at her lie before deciding to keep quiet. I knew how hard it was to play again for her. After our mom died, Julie hadn't touched an instrument or muttered a single note for a year. While I, on the other hand wrote music based on the pain that came from her death and even wrote my mom a few songs.

"Alright angel, my feet are cold and I gotta tuck Carlos in." I jumped a bit, my bare feet freezing from contact with the cold stone path.

"Alright, goodnight Kat." Julie jumped into my arms, hugging me close.

"Night Jules." I kissed her head again, before turning and waving to the guys. "Night y'all!"

Luke, Reggie, and Alex all waved to me, Reggie especially. He was waving at me like Forrest Gump which I thought was funny. I laughed, shaking my head as I ran up the steps and into the house. I clapped my heads together loudly, startling my dad.

"Let's go Carlos, bed time!" I yelled.

My dad laughed as Carlos threw himself off the couch, sliding across the hardwood floor towards me already in his pajamas. 

"Sweetie you don't have to-" My dad began before I shook my head with a grin.

"I don't mind dad. I'm doing what I can! Besides, Carlos needs to be tucked in by a lady." I emphasized the word lady, flipping my hair over my shoulder.

He held his hands up in surrender, nodding to me gratefully. I squatted down and my baby brother leaped onto my back, wrapping his legs around my waist and holding onto my shoulders. I boosted him up and climbed the stairs towards his room, entering and dumping him onto his bed. 

"Kitty?" He spoke nervously as he crawled under his blankets.

"Yeah bud?"

"Can you sit with me until I fall asleep like mom used to? I know you couldn't last night but it took me a while to fall asleep..." He mumbled, his eyes pleading.

 I sighed tiredly, sitting on the bed beside him and flickering off he light. He curled into me, closing his eyes and a smile crossing his lips. I yawned sleepily, running my fingers through his messy dark hair in attempt to make him fall asleep faster. When I heard his breath steady a bit, I knew he had fallen asleep and I carefully got up. I walked back into the hallway, the floor creaking slightly as I walked towards my room. I turned on my light, surprised to see Reggie seated on my bed as if he was waiting for me. 

"Can I help you...?" I whispered, closing the door behind me.

He looked up at me, a smile appearing on his face. "I-I just wanted to complement you. You're a really good sister to Julie and Carlos." 

I blinked at him gratefully, sitting beside him. "When my mom first died, my dad kinda shut down. I was a mess and it wasn't necessarily my job but I stepped up to the plate and took care of Carlos and Julie like I was their mom until my dad was okay again. Turns out I was hella good at it and it stuck, even after my dad recovered." I sniffled a bit, holding back tears as I smiled sadly at the ground. "I never really got my own recovery time I guess...all that mattered was that my family was okay." 

By now warm tears were streaming slowly down my cheeks and I inhaled sharply, trying to catch my breath. I looked over at Reggie, his cheeks flushed as he stared at me sadly. I saw his eyes flicker down to my lips momentarily and my face heated up.

"I wish I could hug you right now." He whispered, not breaking eye contact. 

I smiled at him, nodding in agreement. "I'm a very good hugger." I joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Noted." He chuckled, standing up. "I'll let you get to sleep now."

"Reggie."

He turned back to me, raising an eyebrow curiously.

"Thank you."

"Of course." He grinned, walking towards the door before turning around again. "Night Kitty Cat."

I laughed, wiping my eyes. "Night Reg." 

The boy poofed out of my room, leaving me grinning to myself like an idiot. He was so sweet. And pretty adorable too. Katherine what? I shook my head, kicking off my pants and turning off my light and laying against my pillows. My eyes fell closed and I sighed contently, letting sleep pull me away to a dream land filled with a boy that always wore a leather jacket.

Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed that chapter, lmk if there's any suggestions you have in the comments. ;)