I Hate My Brother (editing!)

5. edited ✔️

edited A/N: this book made it to #1 on newadult and #5 on romance!!!
I've been putting off editing this book since I've been focusing on others for a long time now, but the sudden surge in reads has me thinking I ought to make changes to the cringey stuff before more of you see it 😂

Thank you for reviving this book & I hope you'll enjoy your stay. X

———

I feel like I'm being dragged by a ghost since all I can make out is a hand gripped so tightly onto mine—a watch on its owner's wrist—while I get shoved and pushed by the swarm of human bodies standing in my way.

For a split second, I glance over my shoulders only to see that I've lost Justin in the crowd.

My abductor so kindly hauls me to the backyard where I can finally breathe, since there aren't many people out there with only a few couples too busy swapping spits that they probably wouldn't notice if a tornado's coming right at them.

"Carson!" I yell when he finally eases his firm hold of my hand. The red imprint on my wrist proves how he nearly cut off my blood supply. "What the hell was that?"

Whether or not he's listening to me, I wouldn't know. Carson leans against the sliding glass door with one palm, his forehead resting on the back of his hand. I hear my own loud exhale of breaths through my mouth as if we just ran a marathon of sorts.

"Why did you do that?" I question him again, stupefied.

All I did was dance and briefly make out with a hot guy in a college party where everybody else's more or less doing the same thing. It wasn't even as if I was ready to get naked right there!

Carson turns around to regard me, stunning me with the narrowed eyes he's throwing my way. "I just saved your life, Kelsey."

I stare back at him in disbelief. "From what? Being stampede to death or a serial killer on the loose?"

"From the person whose tongue was shoved down your throat." He says that in a raised voice, a vast difference to his usual chirpy tone. Then as if he's revolted by that, he proceeds to lift up the hem of his black t-shirt and uses the fabric to wipe at my lips roughly.

I manage to swerve before he can mess up my make-up more than he already did. They weren't fucking kidding when they said they were going to train their eyes on me.

"How creepy is that that you think it's okay to do this?" I ask, my hands beating the air. Does he think I'm an innocent young thing who doesn't know what she's getting into?

"What's going on?" A third voice appears out of nowhere. Zac glances between his brother and I.

"Hell if I know!"

"It truly would be hell if I hadn't got you out!" Carson responds. "Trust me, this is not the way you want to begin your college life."

"What I don't want is a bunch of busybodies trying to assume control of my life!" I practically shout. "I don't need you to 'rescue' me from anything. I'm not a freaking child and I can make my own damn decisions!"

Carson looks away for a brief moment before returning his gaze on me. "I wasn't trying to do that." He claims in a softer voice. "It's not so much what you were doing, but who you were doing it to."

Zac heaves a sigh. "Can the two of you quit speaking in riddles?"

"Can all of you quit spying on me?"