It all started with a game

Chapter 19

I nodded. "Yep."

Sonny completely understood. "Smart move."

Alexia stared between the two of us, clearly confused. "What? Does he look different now? I know you said it was an old one but how much can one person change?" She laughed.

You would be surprised. Klaus wasn't even recognizable as the boy from all of our family photos anymore. It was like he was a whole different person, on the outside. On the inside he's still the geeky little kid who's favorite color is purple because when he was in first grade everyone in his class hated the color purple and he worried that purple felt left out so he adopted it as his favorite.

"You wouldn't believe us if we told you," Sonny laughed before walking over to me. "I'm heading out with Maxon for a bit. I left you an outfit on your bed in case you finally decide to get out of the house." He pulled me into a hug, whispering in my ear, "Please get out of the house, and talk to Ryder, Beatrice." He kissed my cheek. "Te quiero mucho."

I grumbled in response, not a fan that my little brother was telling me what to do. "Te quiero."

Sonny was sure to give Alexia a hug before heading out. The interaction brought a smile to my face.

Alexia grabbed my hand, dragging me up the stairs. "Come on, let's get ready."

I barely managed to catch up, giggling the whole way as we nearly crashed into the banisters. Alexia made it up to my room, immediately picking up the outfit Sonny had selected. "This is going to look amazing on you!"

Alexia's eyes trailed down to my hand, following the movement of my finger. Her lips curved. "I've been meaning to ask for like a month, and don't get me wrong, I love it, you definitely pull it off, it looks great on you, but is there a reason behind the plastic ring?"

My gaze shot down to the ring placed around my finger that I had yet to take off. I hadn't realized I'd been fiddling with it, a new habit I seemed to have picked up. I stuttered over my words. "It's, um, it—" I took a breath, nearly mumbling. "Ryder gave it to me."

"Aw, that's kind of cute." She picked up my hand, inspecting the ring. "I like it."

Alexia's attention was stolen away by the second outfit that had been laid out on the bed, a sticky note labeled 'for Alexia' on top of it. I was thankful for the change in topic, needing to get Ryder off my mind, if that was even possible.

Alexia's mouth fell agape ever so slightly as she held the simple, hand sewn dress up to her body, examining it in the mirror. The room fell into a comforting silence as she took in every seam of the dress. Sonny had never made anything for anyone other than Klaus and me. He'd never felt comfortable enough with anyone else to make them something. To him, it was the equivalent of baring his soul, every hidden thought weaved into the seams of his clothing. "It'll look great on you." I assured her.

She changed into the dress, giving the world a small twirl. "I love it." She straightened out the dress, slipping her hands into the pockets. She kept her eyes on the dress as she spoke, her voice as light as air. "You know, I've always wanted to start my own business, makeup. I read all these articles about how ancient tribes believed that the use of fruits, plants, and all of nature could bring eternal youth and beauty to a person. I've always wanted to do that, to start a line of natural makeup, with symbolic meaning. I think it would be beautiful." And as quickly as she brought on the topic, she changed it, like the information she'd told me had been the same as telling me weather. "I'll step out so you can change and find a good place for us to eat." She excused herself from the room, knowing I wouldn't change in front of her.

I always wondered if she was offended that I never would. She never had a problem changing in front of me, and maybe if I'd looked as flawless as her I wouldn't mind either, but I didn't look like her. I looked like a freak, hideous and deformed.

I clutched my book tighter to my chest. Why did he have to see it? Why did he have to see? I turned the mirror away from me as I dressed, allowing Alexia to step back in once I was finished. She squealed, twirling me around to get a better look. "You look amazing."

I watched as she set up her phone on the doorknob, turning the camera towards us. "Come on, we have to get a pic." She pulled me into the frame wrapping her arms around my neck and kicking her heel up to pose.

With shaky hands, I looped my arms around her back, causing her smile to widen just as the picture was taken. She squealed. "Perfect. I'll send it to Ryder so he can see how cute you look. I bet he'll be so jealous that I'm the one who gets to spend today with you."

She sent the photo before I could stop her, not that I would have even if given the chance. I had yet to tell her that we weren't speaking. I didn't want to ruin this. I figured if I told her, she'd have no reason to speak to me and drop me all together.

Alexia took my hand once more. "Come on, I'm thinking we eat at some really run down restaurant and pretend we're all fancy. We can eat our burgers with a knife and fork just to mess with people."

I laughed at her idea. "I'm in."

Alexia's phone pinged in her hand. My breath hitched as I waited for her to inform me on its contents as she always did, even when the text had nothing to do with me. "Ew, he's being all sappy." She handed the phone back to me. "I'm all for you two dating—I think you make a cute couple—but it may take me a minute to get over the fact that you're dating my brother. But, on the bright side, now whenever you come over you can see your boyfriend and your best friend. Two birds, one stone. It's actually kind of smart."

I didn't breathe as I read Ryder's text, three tiny words and yet it felt like my heart was ready to jump out of my chest.

The Guy I'm Unfortunately Related To: she looks beautiful.

And though the message may not have been directly addressed to me, it felt amazing just to hear from him, to know that, even if just for a second, he was thinking about me. Maybe then it could make up for the amount of time I spent thinking of him.

Alexia continued as we stepped into the car. "And don't think just because you're dating my brother it gets you out of boy talk. I can get over it. I'll just pretend you're dating like, Chris Hemsworth or something. Yeah! That'll work. Ryder is now Chris Hemsworth. Perfect."

I smiled, releasing my grip on my book. "Chris Hemsworth it is."

A/N
Hi lovies!
What did you all think of that chapter?

I think you all will enjoy the next one so hopefully you do.

How do we feel about Alexia?

Random question of the day: favorite movie/tv show/book?

Lots of love,
Rachelle <3