The Insanity of Mates

Chapter 7

Despite the little sleep, the next morning I woke up in a great mood. It was quite early and Jake's bedroom door was still closed by the time I made my way to the kitchen to start the coffee. Caffeine was the one thing that Jake and I had always agreed on keeping in our apartment. It helped up through the long hours of studying at college. As soon as it stopped brewing, I grabbed a cup and leaned against the counter.

A few minutes later, I heard "Fuck" come from Jake's room. I knew that he would wake up with a massive hangover so I was prepared to talk loudly and annoy him. However all plans of tormenting him disappeared when he emerged from his room. His blonde hair was sticking straight up from his head and his sallow pale face was a couple shades lighter. Looking at him, I shake my head and turn to grab a to-go coffee mug with lid.

"Bo?" Jake whispers tentatively. I ignore him and pour the rest of my coffee into the mug before filling it back up. "Look, Bo, I'm sorry."

"Save it." I say. Snapping the lid on, I go to grab my purse from the counter and the keys for my jeep. I knew that I had to take him to get his car but at that moment I didn't care. I just did not want to be around him today. Thank God I did not have any classes today.

"Talk to me," he quietly says.

"I will be back later," I shrug and turn to walk towards the door. A few hours away would benefit us both. Before I reach it, Jake stops me with his words.

"I need you Bo." He whispers as I grab the door handle. Without looking back, I shrug again and walk out. Jake has always needed me for everything. Maybe it was time for me not to constantly hold his hand.

Twenty minutes later, I was pulling into my brothers' gravel drive-way. They had bought an old shack in the woods years ago and turned into something amazing. The original house was two bedrooms, but they had took that shell of a home and expanded it. The now two-story, 5 bedroom home was surrounded with shrubbery and had a green-house in the back yard. Of course, running a successful construction business helped in the process.

I got out of the jeep and walked straight around the back. On Sunday mornings, I knew exactly where to find my brothers. On the back patio, drinking coffee and talking about going fishing in the lake not far from their house. Of course, I rarely seen them fishing but they talked about it like it was going to happen. Then they would find a project around their house and work on it instead. Procrastinating was never a trait of theirs.

"Hey guys," I yell at them as soon as I turn the corner to the backyard. They both stand up and look toward me.

"Bo?" Rafe asks.

"Are you okay?" Mark says as he rushes towards me.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just thought I would come and see what you guys are doing today." I say as I get to Mark and go to hug him. He awkwardly puts his arms around me and pats my back. When I go to turn around, I see Rafe give Mark a curious look.

"Are you sure?" Rafe asks as he looks to me with concern.

"Yeah," I laugh out nervously. "What makes you think that I am not okay?"

"Well, we will talk about it. Come sit with us and have some coffee." Mark says as he grabs my arm and starts to pull me toward the steps of the patio.

"I'll go grab another cup." Rafe says before going inside. After I climb the steps, I go and sit down at one of the four cushy chairs placed around the table.

"So, what's wrong?" Mark asks while taking the seat next to me.

"Nothing," I shrug. "I just wanted to come see you today. Why do you think something is wrong with me?" Rafe catches the end of my sentence as he walks out of the door holding a steaming cup.