In 27 Days (Watty Award Winner 2012)

Chapter 9.

 "Hey, you two. What're you fighting about?"

Archer stomped his way back into the living room with no hesitation at all and promptly plucked the remote out of May's hands.

May and April thoroughly objected at that. 

 "You're going to watch Spongebob and I don't want to hear any more fighting. Understood?" Archer asked his little sisters after flicking through the channels.

 April and May ducked their heads, mumbling quiet, "Yes, Archer."

Clearly Archer had no problem discipling anybody. He probably had a great career ahead of him as a drill sargent. 

 "Kids! Come set the table, please!" 

All five of us jumped up from the living room and headed to the dining room at Victoria's orders. 

 Well, if there was one thing that could be said about dinner with the Morales family? It was downright hilarious. April and May clearly stole the show with their loud, cute voices and their tendancy to slap their hands on the table whenever they were saying something particularly interesting. But then there was June, who threw out random, quiet comments that were enough to have me gasping for air through my laughter. 

  April, May, and June Morales were freaking hysterical.

Victoria and Regina kept up a string of conversation about how old the building was and a little history about the different types of coffee they sold. I did my best to reply with comments that made me sound somewhat intelligent. 

  Archer remained quiet just about the entire dinner. His hand was clenched on the table beside his plate of pasta and it looked like his jaw was locked just as tight. 

 Of course, my being Hadley Jamison, I started internally freaking out just about the entire dinner. 

Had I said something to piss him off? Did he not like the fact that I helped out his Mom at Mama Rosa's? What if - ? 

 Of course Archer was mad or something. This was Archer Morales we were talking about.

I just had to figure out what was going on in that mind of his. He certainly was the living definition of the word enigma.

  When June's head started drooping dangerously low towards her half finished plate of pasta and April kept yawning after every other word, Victoria all but threw her fork on the table and shouted, "All right! Bed time!"

 I didn't really know how to describe the feeling that tugged at my heart when Archer scooped up June in his arms and carried his sister to the stairs. Her head drooped on Archer's shoulder and it seemed as if she was fast asleep within a few seconds. 

 At some point in time I always found myself wishing that I had a little brother or sister. I didn't like being alone by myself all of the time. It made me feel kind of unwanted, in all honesty. I always thought that having a sibling would be pretty fun. But yet here was Archer and he had his mother and grandmother and three little sisters with him? Didn't he know that for people now a day, he had it pretty freaking lucky?

 Don't judge him too harshly, a quiet voice in my head cut in. You don't know that much about him. 

 The voice was right, sadly. 

Victoria ushered April and May up the stairs while they tried to reason with her about the conditions of their bed time, but to no avail. 

 "Here, let me help you with those," I said quickly, jumping to my feet when Regina started gathering up the dishes on the table.