A/N - clearly I'm going insane but I can't help myself
~~~
"We gotta stop doing this darlin'", I climbed into the passenger seat of Ezra's car and shut the door, upon looking at his outfit I realised we were matching. Again.
I was in a fitted red dress that stopped a little below my knees and red trainers, Ezra was in a red basketball jersey with black cargos- god.
"You look handsome though", I complimented him, he tried to hide the grin on his face as we drove down the street; tried and failed.
"And you look amazing", my cheeks heated up and I gazed out of my window, "I wanna take you out again".
"Yeah?", I turned back to him and he hummed, "where were you thinking?". He scratched the back of his neck and eyed me briefly.
"Surprise", was all he said and I chuckled, "let me know when you're free".
"Will do", I agreed, "everyone okay at home?".
"Oh shit that reminds me", his eyes widened, "please ignore Eli today, we don't know what's got into him".
"Worse than when I first met him?", I asked and he snorted.
"That was nothin' compared to this", he scratched his head, "we don't really know what's up with him, he has problems with keeping everything in check y'know?".
"Yeah", I nodded, "let's hope I don't get on his bad side again".
~
That was easier said than done.
I'd walked through the door, greeted everyone including Eli, only to receive the silent treatment and a middle finger in return. Well, I tried.
Dinner was even worse though, he made Aleja cry and threw some of his food at Maceo which resulted in him picking a fight with the boy - now Ezra was annoyed and rushed me out of the house as quickly as he could before anything else went wrong.
"I'm sorry darlin'", we were still parked outside mine, neither of us showing any signs of wanting to leave the other yet, "that coulda gone better huh?".
"It's fine Ezra, I had a good time", I smiled, "y'know, despite all that".
"Yeah", he flashed a grin, turning to me for the first time since he'd pulled up here; he just stared for a moment before reaching out and letting his fingers trace my jawline. I shivered, leaning into his touch as if it was natural; I dared any of my brothers to look out of a window right now.
"I wanna kiss you again", he announced, eyes still fixed on mine.
"And what's stopping you?", I cocked my head, earning myself a breathy chuckle as he closed the gap between us and pressed his lips against mine; this kiss was even better than the first. Sparks travelled through my entire body as my fingers found their way into his hair, I tugged on it slightly and he let out a soft groan- jesus christ.
I refrained from gasping when his tongue slipped into my mouth, searching every inch of it while his hand held my chin with some force; kissing Ezra was officially my new favourite thing and I- fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.
"Shit!", I jumped back, holding a hand to my chest as I made eye contact with the tall figure dressed in head to toe in black outside the car, "fuck, fuck, fuck".
"You're dead darlin'", Ezra had the audacity to look amused, he licked his lips and wound down his window, giving a small salute to the figure, "Xander".
My brother, on the other hand, did not look amused. At all. I'd never been on the receiving end of one of Xander's blank stares until now and it wasn't fun, I didn't even know how to get outta this one.
"Isabella", god even his voice sounded blank, "I think it's time you came inside, don't you?".
"Took the words right out of my mouth", I unbuckled my belt and cleared my throat, swatting Ezra when I saw the grin on his face, "shut it you- I'll see you Monday".
"Yeah you will", he chuckled, "Xander". My brother's gaze followed me as I climbed out of the car and approached him, he couldn't be that mad at me, right?
"Good day?", I asked perkily, he raised an eyebrow and rolled his eyes; Ezra gave one last beep as he headed off down the street and disappeared.
"You're gonna be the death of us", he commented and I shrugged, "because I'm your favourite brother, I'm not gonna rat you out- I prefer to have dirt on my siblings".
"You little-", I jerked a finger at him but he caught it , dropping my arm back to my side.
"Uh uh", he wagged a finger at me like I was a baby, "the consequences of your own actions Bella, let this be a lesson".
"A lesson?", I repeated with my arms folded, this hadn't taught me shit.
"Someone's always watching", he smirked, "come on, you can make me a hot chocolate- or do I have to go to Zane and-".
"Shut up Xander", I groaned, stomping off ahead of him, not missing the laugh that came from behind me. Prick.
~~
He was actually gonna be the death of me.
It had been a whole six days and Xander was still giving me those knowing looks across any room we were in - I was surprised Zane hadn't caught on at this point and to be honest, I was tempted to come clean myself at this point.
Squashed in between Xav and Caleb on the sofa, I gave Xander the middle finger discreetly and he scowled; we'd all been summoned to the living room by Scott who was yet to show, so I was staring down my youngest older brother until he appeared.
"What if it's bad news?", Xav intertwined his fingers and clasped his hands together tightly, "I hate bad news".
"It won't be", Cay eyed him, his demeanour calm and collected. That was one of the first times I'd heard him speak today; he'd been quiet recently and I made a mental note to check up on him soon. Zane trailed into the room with Scott close behind, the pair of them in black suit trousers and white shirts with the sleeves rolled up.
"What is it then?", Xav asked instantly, "the suspense is killing me". To be honest with you, I had no idea what was about to come out of my brother's mouth, I hoped it was something good too.
"It's not that big of a deal, chill", Scott perched on the edge of the sofa near Cay and inhaled, "I haven't made your lives easy these past few months-".
"Are you moving out?", Xav asked and Scott's eyebrows furrowed, "it sounds like you're moving out".
"If you let him fucking finish-", Xander snapped.
"Alexander", came Zane's warning and I snorted which only earned me a death stare.
"Let the guy fucking speak", Caleb groaned and we all turned back to Scott quickly, he looked amused as he cleared his throat and scratched his head.
"It's unfair putting you all through my shit like this, I know all you wanna do is help me but that's not your job-", he continued.
"It's not your fault either though, we-", Xav tried - and emphasis on tried - to reassure our brother, he was shut down within seconds yet again.
"Just shut the fuck up and let him speak!", Xander cracked and Xav flinched, "just stop talking for one second of your life man!".
"Xander", Scott closed his eyes with a sigh as I cast my gaze to Xav who was just fiddling with the drawstrings of his joggers with shaky fingers, "not fair - anyway, I've decided to go back to therapy".
A smile spread across my face; I'd remembered Xander saying something about how Zane should send him back but he'd refused - the fact he'd made the decision and accepted the fact that he needed a little extra help on his own accord only made me look up to him more.
I stood first, wrapping my arms around his neck and burying my face in his shoulder. He shook with a small chuckle and rubbed a hand up and down my back gently.
"I'm proud of you", I told him honestly and he pulled us apart, a wide smile spreading across his face.
"Thank you bebita", he grunted when Cay tackled him into a hug before laughing, "easy, god you'd think I'd won money or something".
"We don't even need more money", Xander grumbled, "good on you though man".
"Thank you", I caught Caleb whisper to Scott and his expression faltered- why was he thanking him?
"What for Cub?", he frowned.
"Asking for help", he replied, Scott made eye contact with Zane almost on instinct and I narrowed my eyes: secrets, secrets, secrets.
"Thank god it wasn't bad news", Xav sighed, ruffling Scott's hair and smiling, "I'm proud of you too".
"We all are", Zane spoke up for the first time, "I say this calls for a celebratory meal, does it not?". Couldn't say no to that.
Xavier
For the majority of my life, I'd been aware I was a little different from my brothers.
From that time we watched Toy Story and they were all glued to the screen like it was the only thing in the room while I was more focused on the creases on my shirt, how many pillows were on each sofa and the mountain of homework that I was yet to start upstairs, I knew something was up.
I never did complete that mountain of homework, by the way.
Zane told me that what I had was a blessing, and while I couldn't focus and was more impulsive than other people, I could still excel in things that interested me. Like hockey.
I fucking loved hockey.
The sound of the ice, the adrenaline rush you get while skating, even the burning in your muscles afterwards - fucking amazing. So whenever I was pissed off, particularly at Xander, who never missed a beat to tell me I spoke too much (no shit), I skated.
"Xavier, it's dark outside", he had functioning eyes- what did he want? A prize?
"I'm not blind Zane", I twirled my Jeep keys around my index finger and eyed everyone around the dinner table; I don't know how they could all sit there for that long without wanting to gouge their eyes out, "a couple hours tops, I need to skate".
"You've got three hours", he gave in and I grinned, I think I was his favourite. After Izzy of course, there was no coming close to her.
"You're pissed at me", my twin commented and I eyed him for a few seconds; he was getting better at realising the world revolved around more than him.
"No fucking shit", I scoffed, turning on my heel and going to leave. Then I heard a chair screech back- fuck I hated that sound.
"You don't get to speak to me like that", he grabbed my shirt and pulled me back, I could only laugh as I spun and stared him in the eyes.
"Alexander", Zane's warning tone made me grin, it only riled him up more and I was in the mood to see him pissed off now.
"So you can?", I scoffed, "you get to talk to us like shit but we can't put you in your fucking place?".
"Xavier", oh Zane could shut up.
"You telling me to shut up for once is like me telling you to not get fucking angry- impossible", I shoved him back and he stumbled slightly, "I'm sick of you treating me like shit for something I can't control when I've been nothing but patient with you for years!".
"He's got a point!", Caleb yelled from the kitchen and Xander huffed; he had nothing to say to that.
"Point taken", he muttered, taking a step back before stepping past me and going upstairs - the day I got an apology from him, god I could've laughed saying that, Xander doesn't apologise. Never does and probably never will.
"So three hours yeah?", I called out to Zane, hearing a snort from Izzy after; at least she appreciated my humour.
"Just get out", he sighed and I chuckled, I was gonna be the death of him one day...
Isabella
"You all make me question my sanity every day", the disappointment on Zane's face was almost amusing; he'd been trying to get us to shut up for a good five minutes now claiming he had an announcement to make.
"Out with it", Xander clapped and Zane cleared his throat.
"You're all a mess", was all he said and we fell silent, "with the exception of Prescott who is seeking help and Isabella who hasn't done anything wrong-".
"Objection", Xander muttered and my heart stopped, he wouldn't dare.
"What was that?", oh I was gonna fucking kill him.
"Oh, I said objection", he said it even louder with that stupid smirk on his face and I bit my lip.
"Care to elaborate?", his gaze travelled between the two of us, I wasn't revealing shit.
"She kissed Ezra", wow - no fucking hesistation. Well I didn't hesitate to pounce on him either.
"You piece of shit", I slapped his head repeatedly, "I hate you".
"You did what?", Caleb asked.
"That's enough", two arms lifted me off of that idiot- remind me to never share anything with the guy again. Scott dropped me onto another sofa and I crossed my arms, not looking at any of them; not that it was their business anyway.
"I say good on you", Xav shrugged, "young love and stuff right?".
"No", Cay frowned.
"Alexander, your car keys please", Zane held out a palm and I leaned forwards, a grin forming on my face, "don't make me repeat myself".
"What the fuck? No! Why?", the baffled look on his face was beautiful to see, "why am I getting punished?".
"What did you gain from doing that?", he answered his question with a question, "unnecessary provocation - hand them over".
Muttering a handful of profanities, he slapped them into Zane's palm and threw himself back into the sofa.
"Just tell us the announcement already", Xav groaned, "can't take the anticipation".
"As I was saying, you're all a mess", he pointed to Cay first, "I haven't heard you say more than six sentences in a week - you are provoking everyone in the vicinity of you - and I can tell you're itching to do something that isn't sit at home or skate". He was like a fucking analyser.
"So?", Xander waved a hand and I rolled my eyes.
"We're going away for the weekend", he revealed, "to the cabin - you all need a change of scenery".
"Fuck yes!", Xav celebrated, "wait no, shit, Jake's 18th is on Saturday".
"Drive your Jeep there and head back early", his solution came without a second thought, "come back again on Sunday if you wish".
"Oh yeah", he mumbled, "god Izzy, you're gonna love the cabin". Judging by the smiles on the others' faces as well, I knew it had to be good.
"What's the cabin?", I moved to the edge of my seat, all previous anger at Xander vanishing for now.
"Basically a huge wooden house that our parents bought, Zane's been taking us as much as possible for the past 8 years", Caleb answered, "pool, games room, no other people-".
"So antisocial", Xav sighed and I chuckled, "we haven't been for like a year though".
"Awesome", I grinned, excited to spend time with my brothers someplace other than home - what could possibly go wrong?...
~~~
A/N - Next chapter is the longest one yet, who knows when you're getting it...