Too Close for Comfort

Summer: Day 31

But hey, I'm not complaining in any way. I think I have horrible attachment issues now. Going to LA proved that.

I seriously couldn't believe I was dying without her being around. Without knowing if she was okay, without holding her for a whole day, kissing her—I don't even know how I was able to resist her for so long. Her lips, her smile, her laugh, her voice, those beautiful green eyes that light up when I say her name.

And that's when I realized what I was feeling.

I love Mackenzie.

With all my heart and mind and soul. Completely head over heels for her with every bone in my body, and every breath that I take. No one will ever make me feel like she does. No one. And that's when I realized I've found my forever. The girl I'd do anything for.

I finally let myself feel it, a heavy weight from my shoulder lifting. The very thought of admitting it made me feel like the king of the world.

I love Mackenzie.

I'll never get tired of that thought.

My brother comes walking down the hall as I sit slack against the couch, his hair messy and eyes droopy with bags under them. "Well you look like shit," I remark, giving him a once over. His shirt is wrinkled, and his stubble is fresh as if he didn't shave.

"Way to point out the obvious," he grumbles, walking into the kitchen. He makes himself a cup of coffee and chooses to sit down next to me on the couch.

"What's got you in such a mess?" I ask, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Nothing," he deadpans. "I've just been crunched on time recently."

Oh yeah, he's working on that case for dad. "I know about the report you're working on, I met with dad a couple days ago."

"Oh really?" he asks, surprised. "I thought you've been hanging out with Mackenzie too much to realize there are other things in life."

"Other than Mackenzie?" I say, laughing a bit. "You're one to talk, claiming she's your world and shit. Like god help me please, you're the world's biggest simp." I come in a close second, perhaps first. But Kylar, he takes his 'loving' Mackenzie to a different level.

"At least I see her worth," he explains, shrugging his shoulders.

"You don't, that's the thing," I tell him, gesturing at his current state. "You've done a lot of shit over the last month. You fought with Mackenzie for a week, started dating her enemy, got in touch with dad again and hid it from her, and above everything else, you're planning to put her dad in jail without even letting her know. That's one hell of a friend you are." I sarcastically clap my hands and stand up from my spot on the couch.

He stands up to follow me. "Well you've done a lot of crap over the last few years—"

"You walk right over her and then claim you love her," I say, trying to keep my calm. "I know I hurt her, but at least I didn't say something while I was doing another. When I cut her out back then, I cut her out completely and didn't lead her on."

"But she forgave you so easily," he adds, glaring at me. "Who says she won't forgive me too?"

"Stop acting like you know us, we're as complicated as it gets. You're just mad I call you out on all your bullshit when I'm around. I show her who you really are," I say, the blood in my veins growing hotter.

"That's fucking insane," he seethes. "You two are the most readable people in the books. The bad boy turns good for the good girl, and she loses her innocence to him while the guy she should be going after is left as an afterthought. You guys aren't complicated at all, it's all so simple." My brother is such a nerd.