𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐔𝐬 𝐀𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝

32 | Agreeing to hell

"All that feeling is even more reason to talk it out, bottling things up is not good for them."

"Not necessarily, but it's something we all do and have been since we were children, so I'm sure they can handle it." Ian reminds, agreeing with his other brothers instead of Noel, knowing that if they pushed the twins too far then there would be absolutely no going back and then all of this trouble would have been for nothing.

"Us doing it too is how i know it's not good for them." Noel argues. "Trust me, I'm only trying to help them. Working this out sooner rather than later is what's best."

"Yeah, for you." Xander scoffs. "God, you're so pushy."

"And overbearing," Phoenix adds.

Jayden joins in putting points of his own out there. "and knows no boundaries, and a-"

"Control freak?" Xander finishes their list, recalling everything he and Tara had called Ian in that diner. It wasn't much of a surprise that Noel was the same way, considering from the little Ian had explained in their short time traveling back ⏤ the one time Ian couldn't avoid his questions ⏤ Xander had found that this was all Noel's plan in the first place, and so far it seemed he wasn't going to stop until everything worked out the way he wanted it to, which may be never.

"Exactly." Phoenix agrees, looking back to Noel who doesn't even acknowledge the insulting list and instead goes back to defending his actions, Ian helping him in hopes of keeping the peace.

"Noel means well." The eldest says simply, looking over his shoulder to Phoenix. "And so do you, but right now i don't think either of your strategies will work."

"Strategies?" Jayden repeats in a mumble, face scrunched up in judgement at the word he chose to use, as if this was some business deal gone wrong and that they needed to fix, and not like it was a family situation between estranged siblings.

He wasn't the only one thinking it either, as Xander scoffs and says the thought they seem to have shared. "Strategy? What, is this some kind of business thing to you now? I thought this was about family, 'the most important thing in the world'." He mocks, scoffing a laugh at his own words. He should've known better than to believe anything like that when it came to their family, especially when it was Ian, of all people, saying it. "That was just a bunch of bullshit, huh?"

"Sounds like it." Phoenix and Jayden agree, going against the oldest two on this matter, much like they had on many occasions when they were kids. There were always teams in any argument, no matter the topic, and somehow Noel and Ian were always on the same side, not caring if anyone else was or if it was just the two of them. "If that's the way you're thinking, you might as well just give up and leave now, again."

"That's not what i meant and you know it." Ian tells, tone becoming offended at the way they were making him out to be. He knew he still had to prove himself, prove that he was here to stay, and he knew that it wasn't going to be easy, earning back the trust and respect he lost all those years ago wouldn't be easy, but he was trying. Didn't that count for something? "I just meant that this isn't the way to go, both of your... ideas, alone, aren't the best way to handle this situation."

"Alright then, what's your idea?" Noel asks, tired of the back and forth. He didn't care how this was handled, as long as it was and they could get past it.

"Yeah, let's hear it." Phoenix insists.

Ian glances between the two, eyebrows raised at the amount of tension growing in the room, not that it had left after the events of the night before, but now it was growing worse. "As i said, your plans alone will only make things worse, but combine the two together and-"