Gracious

Chapter 6

A/N - we just hit 1k hehe❤️❤️

Missing Izzy tbh😐

Shorter chapter today :)

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Three weeks later

"Do you think it's possible for someone to not have a brain at all?", I paused mid-mouthful of my cereal and frowned at Caleb's question.

"Well yeah, Xav's under this roof", Alexander shrugged, earning himself a middle finger from his twin.

"Why do you ask Caleb?", I asked my brother who was sitting at the table in between Chase and Prescott with a sheet of paper in front of him, eyebrows etched in confusion.

"Because I can't do this stupid homework", he groaned, rubbing his eyes harshly, turning to Chase, "can you do it for me?".

"I have school", he smiled apologetically, "shouldn't have got yourself suspended". Yeah...that'd happened. Caleb, despite me dropping him to the school gates on Friday, had decided to ditch with his two best friends and earned himself a three-day suspension which ended tomorrow.

These kids and school did not mix.

"It was worth the suspension", he shrugged with a smile, "but I can't do this, why can't I just paint?".

"Because painting will get you nowhere", Alexander spoke up and I rolled my eyes, already being able to see what direction this was going in, "what? I'm just saying".

"And picking fights with everyone who breathes on you will?", Prescott surprised me by sticking up for Caleb, "he can do anything he wants with his life, all of you can- don't shit on something he likes because you're all over the place".

Well shit.

Silence filled the air and I sipped my coffee, my back to all of my brothers as I fought a chuckle; I may love them all equally but seeing them put in their places brought me a lovely amount of happiness.

"You're not gonna tell him off for speaking to me like that?", was I supposed to?, "whatever, I'm waiting in the car". I waited until his footsteps had trailed all the way to the front door and it slammed, before I burst out laughing.

"What's funny?", Xavier asked as I turned around, "I thought we weren't allowed to laugh when he's angry".

"We're not", I cleared my throat, "the car's locked, that's why I'm laughing". Prescott snorted, shaking his head as he shovelled some cereal into his mouth.

"You know he's not gonna come back in right?", he asked and I chuckled, knowing full well he was right; our brother hated being in the wrong.

"We're gonna be late", Chase jumped up, disposing of his bowl in the sink and rushing to put his shoes on.

"Okay, Zane", Caleb scoffed, "can I stay here while you drop them?".

He wants you to count your days, and apparently them too.

Those words had been circulating around my head for three weeks now, and I couldn't shake the anxiety, the fear that something was gonna happen to one of them.

"No, shoes on", I ordered and he groaned, dropping his pen on the table.

"Why? I'm a teenager now, I bet you'd let Scott stay", he crossed his arms and leaned back, proceeding to run a hand through his hair. We'd all become used to the brown hair now, and if I was being honest, it really suited him.

"Because I'm nearly fifteen, and I can defend myself", he muttered, putting his bowl in the sink too and grabbing his shoes, "Xav, shoes!". Our brother huffed, dropping his spoon into his bowl and standing, abandoning it at the table and leaving the room.