Aspen Falls

Aspen (flashback)

December 20th--two years ago.

       As soon as his headstone came into sight...my brain automatically sent me back to the last day I'd seen my twin. Just like the last two years...I started crying immediately. God I missed the other half of my soul.

I rounded the back of the house and saw Hunter standing there. He was the brother I noticed first. Ughh damnit Archer, where the hell are you? Trenton I was guessing was with Kodie and Beau wasn't there either. But I was only looking for my twin.

"Hey there Little Ell? Where's the fire?" Weston caught me by the waist before I went head over heals off my parents' back deck.

If Weston was here that meant Chris was here too. I saw the back of Casey's and Cameron's heads talking to Hunter. Where the hell was my twin?

"Little Ell? Hey?" Weston was waving his hand in front of my face. "You good?"

"Huh?" I finally let my eyes settle back on him. "Oh. Yeah. I'm good. Mom and Dad cooking tonight I'm guessing, since all you bottomless pits are here."

He grinned and threw his arm around my shoulders. "We can't help it if your dad overbought and needs somebody to finish it off." I rolled my eyes. Dad only overbuys when more than Archer and I are in attendance for dinner.

We made our way over to Hunter, who I hit with my hip. "Little Ell!" He wrapped me in a hug and kissed my head. I was trying to keep everything under wraps but deep down my gut was on fire with dread. I couldn't place it. "What's wrong?"

I shook my head. "Archer. He's been ignoring me. Where's Mom and Dad?"

"I think they went to the store? Beau and Momma Rose are gonna come too. Just let Archer be. He's 20 sis...had his test for Teams the other day...he can't be attached to your hip all the time anymore."

I clenched my fists resisting the urge to deck my oldest brother. Hunter was stating the obvious. I knew Archer had his team trials or whatever they called it. He really wanted to be on with Hunt. Live up to the Ellington name...become a SEAL. The last two years since we'd turned 18, it had just been me and the girls. As soon as he was old enough, Archer was sworn in. Another one of my guys taken from me. Another piece of my heart slowly broken and sent overseas.

What Hunter wasn't willing to believe in was that I knew something was wrong. We always knew. Me with Archer...Archer with me. We shared a womb for nine months for fucks sake. We knew. And right now? He wasn't ignoring me because he was 20 and a guy and didn't want to be attached to his sister's hip all the time anymore.

"Fuck you Hunt...you know that's not what this is. Where is he?" I'd had a shittastic day as it was and the one person that could never fail to make everything better, beside Beau, wasn't answering my texts or calls.

"Aspen...chill. He's probably inside somewhere. Good lord. You and your so called twin powers." He rolled his eyes and took another swig of his beer. He was in rare form today and that made me want to punch him.

"Easy Little Sis." Chris picked up on my frustrated stance. "H is just being a pain in your ass."

I breathed out hard. "Well it's not appreciated. Better fix it asshole before Mom and Dad come home and I come back out here with a bat."