Beautifully Broken

A Step

Caleb POV

It's Friday and I finally hear that final bell go off. Today has been the most boring school day ever.  Nathaniel is on Vacation for the next three days, Violet just got her wisdom teeth removed so she didn't come to school, Alana's parents took her and her brothers on a day trip today so she didn't come to school, and Ryker is MIA. Ryker could just be super mad at me for yesterday. I know I shouldn't have pushed, I shouldn't have made him talk about it, but it just frustrates me that He refuses to talk about it. I quickly shake the thought of my best friend being mad at me out of my head, even though he has every right to be.
I grab my backpack and head out to my truck. It's a fifteen-minute drive to Paisleys school, then a thirty-minute drive home. I hear a loud Smack on the front of my truck and look up to see Michael there laughing. "Dude, what are you thinking! You gave me a heart attack!"
"Come on dude, just wanted to give my little brother a hard time." I see him throw his backpack through my open window and onto the floor of the passenger's side. "What are you doing?"
"I need a ride home."
"How did you get here this morning I thought you drove?"
"Na, Carter dropped me off, We needed to run a few errands this morning."
"We? As in you and Carter?"
"Yeah?"
"What errands could you two have possibly needed to run? You two have never gotten along." I see Michael roll his eyes at me. "What, I'm just saying. The last time you two actually got along was..."
"Was what?"
"Was when my Dad came back into town."
"Caleb, you know we only did that to protect you."
"Yeah, I know... He's not back in town is he?"
"No, not this time."
"Then what's going on?"
"It's nothing."
"Michael," I say putting the car back into park. "I promise it's nothing."
"If it's nothing then tell me."
"I can't, Carter will tell you when He wants you to know." I sit there and glare at my brother for a minute. "Carter will tell you, but I can't tell you yet." I let out a sigh and start driving across town to Paisleys school. Once we get there she immediately jumps in my arms. "Paisley! How was School Today?"
"IT WAS AMAZING!" That was the moment I tunned her out because she literally talked the entire thirty-minute drive home. I love my little sister, but I can only listen to what she had for lunch and what she played at recess for so long. We finally pull back into the driveway and my mind has been focused on what was going on with Carter. Carter and Michael don't spend much time together and when they do they are probably doing something that the rest of us don't agree with. I walk in the upstairs door and am greeted by a very unfamiliar sound, the sound of my Dad, I mean Isä yelling... at Carter? I slowly close the door and send Paisley up to her room. I start to walk towards the kitchen where the noise is coming from when I feel my shirt getting yanked back. I turn around to see Micheal standing right behind me "Go downstairs" He says in a whispered voice. "No, I want to know what's going on."
"I know you do and I will send Carter down when they are done fighting."
"We both know Carter won't be here when this fight is over."
"Dad's not gonna kick him out. Dad doesn't do that kinda stuff remember."
"I never said Dad was gonna kick him out, Carter will walk out long before Isä will kick him out."
"I'll make you a deal... You go downstairs right now and forget about what's going on up here. If Carter leaves before talking to you, I will drive you over to his apartment tonight so you can talk to him." I stare at him for a minute. "Can we stop at Alana's house on the way back?" He sends me a small glare "Yes, we can stop at your girlfriends' house on the way back." I give a small smile and nod before sneaking downstairs. It's hard to block out the yelling upstairs especially when Mom's voice joins in the mix. Shortly after I hear Mom's voice I see Micheal come downstairs. "Äiti told me to come downstairs." He jumps on the couch next to me and we continue doing homework with some tv in the background to help drown out some of the noise from upstairs. After about twenty minutes of yelling, I see a teary-eyed Paisley come downstairs. She runs over and climbs in between Micheal and me. "Hey, Paisley, why don't you and Caleb go play outside for a little bit, and I'll come get you when it's over okay?" She nods her head and leans closer into my chest. I pick her up and carry her outside to the swingset. We play outside for a long time when I hear a door slam and Micheal comes to the back door to wave us back inside. I carry Paisley back inside just in time to see Mom come downstairs with some Pizza that she had ordered for dinner. She set it down on the downstairs counter, It's Pizza night for you guys, Your Dad and I are going to go out do dinner with some friends tonight. "Do we need to watch Paisley?" Micheal asks "Actually Paisley is going to go hang out with Cass tonight and they are going to have a girls' night!" Mom replies with an excited Paisley in her arms "Yay! Girls night!"
"So... Caleb and I can go out tonight?"
"Yeah, as long as you are together, smart, and home before eleven."
"Thanks, Mom!" Micheal says giving her a hug. "no problem, stay safe and have fun."
"Yes, Mam" We both reply as Mom carries Paisley upstairs. "Mom?" I give Micheal a questioning look. "yeah, I accidentally called her mom when I was sick, but then I kinda realized that She is my mom now. I mean... My mom died when I was a year old so Addy is the only Mom I've ever really known." I nod my head. "I understand that you don't want to call my Dad, Dad, but She's my Mom."
"Would you be upset If I started to call Mark Dad?"
"No, They are our parents, She's my Mom, and He's your Dad. They love both of us the same way they love Paisley. This is our family." I nod my head knowing he's right. We quickly eat our Pizza and get into Micheal's truck. It's pretty silent on the way over to Carter's apartment. We get to the apartment and go knock on the door. When the door opens up I see an unexpected face.