Vacation Sucks!...Wait, a Hot Lifeguard?

Joey slammed his fist against the door but it wouldn't open on his command. He needed the card to open up.

"Alexa! Come back!" I made it all the way to the top without stopping. I didn't stop to catch my breath, I just ran to the room door. I swiped the condo card and slammed the door shut. With my back against the wall I tried to catch my breath.

"Sweetie, what are you doing back so early?" I was startled by my dad's voice. When I didn't answer dad stepped closer to me. "Are you crying?" His forehead had worry lines and he reached out for me.

"No, I'm not crying!" I rushed past him into my room. I hope dad would take the hint. I slammed the door, indicating, I wanted to me alone. Sadly, Jordan was watching TV in our room. "Ugh, what are you doing?" I groaned.

"What do you mean what am I doing here? I'm watching boxing." Jordan didn't look up from the television screen but when I didn't answer he looked up. He stared at me and then inched closer to get a better look. He noticed my red puffy eyes and the fresh new tears strolling down my face.

"What happened?" He got up faster than Adrian on his hyper days. I moved closer and let him hug me. He held me tight and told me to tell him what happened. "Was it Ethan? Did he hurt you?" I nodded my head no on his shoulder. He said nice things that I would never hear from him on a regular day.

I cried on his shoulder but I didn't answer him. "Are you going to cry your eyes out sis?" He pushed away so he could look at me. He pushed the hair on my forehead. "Why are you crying sis? I don't like it when you cry." I smiled halfheartedly. He would be a good father one day.

"I-I don't-t want t-to talk...about...i-it." I mumbled. It was hard to talk clearly. My head started to hurt and Jordan told me it was from all the crying. I couldn't help but cry. I was touched in a way that I didn't like and Ethan saw and thought I liked it...Becca said some cruel things to me and now here I am in this stupid room with my sometimes sweet brother. Vacation really does suck!

"You're going to tell me but first go take a shower. You look like you need it." He was starting to sound like dad. That's something dad would tell us when we were little after we cried for a long time.

That would be a great idea if I didn't take a long shower before I left. "But...I took a shower before I left."

"Well, take another one." He had an answer for everything.

Usually when conversations between us got to serious we'd make a joke or something to lighten it up. "Are you trying to tell me I smell?" My attempt at joking around didn't really work. I had no energy and when the words left my mouth it came out in a serious tone, like I was some business lady trying to have a conversation with someone important.

"Or course not. I'm just telling you so you can relax a little." He smiled gently and pushed me toward the door. At that moment someone knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" Jordan yelled out.

"Who else would it be? It's me."

"Who's me? I don't know any me!

"Jordan, stop playing around and open this door before I have your mother huff and puff and blow the door down." When I was little my father would tell the story about The Three Little Pigs. I used to love the cleverness of the third piggy.

"Jordan, don't tell him I was crying! Please." I whispered to him, panicked. I didn't want to tell anyone just yet about what happened.

"Fine as long as you tell me what happened than I won't tell him anything. Pretend like you're sleeping." She didn't have to be told twice. I jumped in bed, flung the covers over my body and put my head in my pillow.

I listened to the door open and dad walk inside. "Where's Alexa?" He must have been at the door frame if he couldn't see I was in bed.

"Asleep." Jordan is good at avoiding topics and answering everything with one word responses.

"Let me in." Dad said. "Why?" Jordan asked in monotone.

Dad pushed past Jordan. "I need to see what's wrong with my baby girl!"

"She's fine. It was probably just something that got in here eye." Jordan tried explaining why I came in crying but the idea of something in my eye wouldn't work. It would never work. My face wouldn't be red if I had something in my eye. My eye would be but not my cheeks.

"No, she was crying and I know the difference between crying when you're hurt and when you have something irritating in your eye." The open space on my bed beside me sunk in and I felt dad's presence right next to me. He didn't say much at first he just patted my hair like I was a dog.