A Bad Boy's Brother (Book #2)

7. Christmas Eve

Ryder's P.O.V.

Tomorrow was Christmas Eve. For two months, I talked to Cain, and we discussed everything. The painful things, the happy things, the sad things, the exciting and terrifying things. We even shared insane conspiracy theories that we didn't believe in, just because it was something that we hadn't talked about. No matter how much I learned about him, it was never enough for me. I just kept wanting to know more about the strange boy that had been so kind to me since the day we first met in the first week of September.

He often asked how I felt about Corey, and my answer was always the same. I didn't know. I wanted to hate him, and sometimes I had myself convinced that I really did, but other times I was pretty sure that the only reason I hated him so much was that I really had been in love with him over a year ago. But it didn't matter. He wasn't there.

I looked on my dresser at the picture we had taken on Halloween. Cain and I had taken Emily trick-or-treating, then gone to the Halloween party that Kelsey threw that night. Emily had been dressed like a ladybug, while I was dressed as a zombie biker, and Cain was dressed up as some television character he liked. Something about a squirrel or a moose, but he was dressed like a normal person with a weird flaming star looking thing drawn on his neck and a bottle of 'holy water' in a spray gun he carried. Weirdo. It had become my favorite picture, and I looked at it all the time before I went to bed or when I woke up.

"Hey, Ryder?" a voice called up the stairs.

"Yeah, Cain?" I yelled back, not having realized he was there.

"Come here, please."

I walked down the stairs quickly and found him standing there, Sky wagging her tail lightly as she laid on the couch, watching him. "Yeah? You should have texted me or something, I would have gotten dressed if I had known you were coming over."

"You look fine."

"Always so kind," I teased.

He smiled. "Alright. Come here."

I walked toward him cautiously. "What is it?" I asked uncertainly, noticing that both of his hands were behind his back. "You aren't going to throw water on me or something, right? Because if you do that, I might have to kill you for it."

Cain rolled his eyes. "Just come here and turn around, Ryder."

Still cautious, I did as he said.

"Close your eyes."

"If this is a prank, I really am going to hurt you for it."

"Ryder."

"Fine, fine." I closed my eyes. Then, something cold and thin pressed against my neck before falling loose. It was a necklace; I could feel it.

"Alright, you can open your eyes."

When I looked down at it, I was surprised. It was beautiful. It was a silver swan, but instead of a wing, it had some sort of red stained jewel. It was simple, but it was still incredibly beautiful. I touched it lightly. "It's beautiful, Cain. Thank you. You didn't have to get me anything, really." I turned around and looked at him, not realizing exactly how close to him I was.

"I felt bad. So this is kind of your birthday present and Christmas present in one."

I wrapped my arms around his waist, hugging him against me. "I love it, thank you."

His arms went around me as well and I felt him tuck my head under his chin gently like Corey used to.

When I pulled away, I smiled at him. "I got you something too." I ran upstairs, retrieved the little present from under my bed, and came back to him. "It's stupid, and it's not nearly as good as the present you gave me, but it's something I guess. If I had known what you were going to get me, I would have gotten you something nicer."