[edited]
Once the Dolan twins were out of the car, both of my brothers began staring at me.
"What?" I asked, a little bit annoyed.
"We're three houses down. Isn't that exciting?!" Evan says, making his voice very high pitched and flailing his arms around. Was he supposed to be imitating me?
"What's your point?" I grunt as I pull up into our driveway. I turn off the car, and all three of us climb out, grabbing our bags.
"Someone has a crush on Grayson!" Elliot squeals like a little girl as he unlocks the door to our house.
"Shut up! I don't like Grayson! I barely even know the guy, we're just partners in world history," I protest loudly.
"Emmy, honey, what's wrong?" I hear my mom call from the kitchen.
"Elliot and Evan are just being dickheads."
"Emerson Henry Samuels! You better watch your mouth, young lady!" she scolds me. I hear my brothers snicker behind me.
"Boys! Stop annoying your sister. She's right, you know, you are sometimes dickheads." I burst out laughing at my brothers' faces when my mom says this. They both have the same idiotic expression of disbelief.
"All three of you go upstairs and do your homework! Dinner will be ready in an hour!" she orders, and my brothers obey.
I go to the kitchen, and grab a pack of cookies.
"Emerson!" my mum scolds, "We're about to have dinner once Dad gets home."
"Mum, I'm low, and very hungry," I whine.
"I forgot to ask you, honey, how have you been doing? Have you been keeping track of your insulin?"
"Mum, I've had diabetes all my life, I can handle it."
"I know, sweetie. I just want to make sure. Remember last time, you gave us quite a scare. Is the new monitor okay?" she rambles worriedly.
"Mum, it's okay. I change it every few days, don't worry," I assure her, lifting up my shirt to show her the glucose sensor, which is placed on my abdomen.
"And is everything going well in track. How did you feel today?"
"A little dizzy, but nothing too terrible," I admit.
"Oh honey," she says, giving me a hug, "You're so strong and brave. I love you."
I roll my eyes, but wrap my arms around her, "I love you too, mum."
* * * *
I wake up early the next morning and take a shower. I usually hated taking showers in the morning since my hair took forever to dry, but I didn't really have a choice. I had been too tired last night and had fallen asleep while watching a movie with my brothers.
After the painfully cold shower, clothes were next. I mostly owned jeans and shirts, but I had a few skirts and dresses in there for special occasions. Since a normal school was by no definition a worthy occasion, I grabbed black jean shorts and a purple shirt.
I brushed my tangled hair until it was smooth. I frown as I look at my blue streak, which was slowly turning green with every shower I took. Huh, that was disappointing. It took months of begging and pleading to get that. I pulled it into a high ponytail, and grabbed my backpack from my desk chair.
I looked in the mirror one more time. Okay, Emerson, stick to the plan. Stay low, don't talk to people, and overall just keep your head down. Especially around the Dolan twins. This project with Grayson would soon be over, and we could both get on with our lives. I hit myself lightly on the forehead a few times, telling myself to focus and not blow this.
I head downstairs, where both my brothers were at the kitchen counter, eating.
"Morning, darling," my mother called from her place at the stove. She set down a plate of pancakes, and I quickly devoured them. My mom smiled at me, and I weakly smiled back.
I followed Elliot and Evan out the door, and sat in the backseat. Ugh. This was going to be a long day, and I so did not get enough sleep yesterday.
We arrived at school quickly, and I went to my locker, not bothering to say anything to my brothers. It didn't really matter, since they were too busy whispering to each other again. I was jealous of their relationship, I admit it, okay?
I grabbed my stuff and settled into homeroom. I sat in the very back of the class. A moment later, Ethan came in and waved at me.
I sighed. He seemed nice enough and all, but I really didn't want to wave because he might take it the wrong way and think we were becoming friends, which I was so not ready for. On the other hand, it would be rude not to wave back, considering he was the only one in this class - not to mention the entire school – who had acknowledged my existence.
After a second of mental debate, I finally waved back and gave him a small smile, which he returned. He sat in the desk right in front of me, but thankfully, we didn't speak after that.
Homeroom went by smoothly, and so did my other morning classes. It was finally lunch. I bought a large plate of pasta and went to an empty table, waiting for my brothers to join me just like they did every day.
But they never did. I looked around the crowded lunchroom, and saw two familiar brown-haired heads. Those jerks, they were sitting with a bunch of jocks from the football team. I expected them to go off and get their own friends, just not this soon.
It made me wonder: why shouldn't I make friends? Why were Elliot and Evan going to be the popular ones? Why not me?
I quickly shook my head, brushing away those thoughts. Some girl down the table was looking at me funny, but I ignored her. I knew exactly why I couldn't have friends. The same thing would happen as last time, and it would hurt no one but me. Easier to avoid a problem altogether then to cause one and then struggle to solve it, right?
I assured myself I was right, and went back to eating my lunch, which I finished and then threw away, heading to the art classroom in the west wing of the school building.
After 45 minutes of painting a portrait of a random woman, I was dissatisfied. The eyes were too big for the face, and I had completely messed up her eyebrows and chin/neck area. Maybe I could pass it off as abstract if I added a little more color.
As I was thinking this, I didn't hear a girl sneak up and sit in the empty stool next to mine. "That's pretty cool," she said, making me jump. I almost dropped the red paint I was holding, and thankfully, my shorts were spared. That would have been a total bitch to clean.
"Uh, thanks," I replied, not sure what else to say.
"I'm Mia," she extended a hand splattered with dried paint. She had blond hair and deep green eyes. She looked like an artist. She was wearing a baggy blue shirt and black pants. Her black and white Converse were splattered with paint just like her hands.
I hesitantly took it, "Emerson Samuels."
"Hey, are your brothers Elliot and Evan Samuels?" she suddenly asked.
I looked at her in confusion, my brothers were famous now? "Yes, they're my twin brothers."
"Oh my God, you are so lucky."
This was getting weirder by the second, "Why am I lucky?" I spoke up.
"You get to live with two hot guys! Obviously!" she exclaims.
I finally get it. I knew that Elliot and Evan were good-looking, I had known that my entire life. They looked like miniature versions of our father. They had the same spiky brown hair that was combed to one side, and the same piercing blue eyes. They were both muscular and extremely strong from all the sports they'd played. But hot? It wasn't exactly the word I would use to describe them. More like annoying, self-centered, little bitches.
I shrugged, "As they say, you can't choose your family."
She nods, "But did you see, your brother Evan might be dating Alice."
My ears perked up at this, "Who's Alice?"
"The head of the drama club. She's an eccentric type, if ya ask me," Mia rambled on about this Alice character, but I didn't really listen.
Evan? Dating? Ha, let's see how long this lasts. Evan was a player, of sorts. He would never have a one-night stand with a girl and then kick her to the curb, he just wasn't that type of person. Instead, he would date them, and when they broke up, it didn't matter who decided it, he would probably have another girl the next day, and the cycle would continue.
Elliot, on the other hand, was more responsible. He didn't date girls as much as Evan, but he certainly had had his fair share. But he usually took about a month to recover from each breakup; he was the more sentimental one, I guess.
The bell rang, and I said goodbye to Mia. Dammit. She had distracted me from painting and my lady still looked like crap. Oh well.
Last class of the day. Cue applause. And it was world history, which is a total bonus.
I sat in my normal seat, and Grayson came in about five minutes later. "Hey, Emerson."
"Hey, Grayson," I replied, getting my supplies out of my bag.
"Can you still come over today? To work on the project, of course," he said, quickly adding the last part.
I laughed as he gave me a nervous smile, "Yes, I'm coming."
We brainstormed ideas, and finally decided to do Egypt as our country to study. I couldn't wait. My family had gone to Egypt on vacation a few years ago, and it was amazing. Except for the weather, the culture and history was very rich and prominent, and the pyramids were just awe-inspiring.
The final bell rang, signaling freedom not just for today but for the whole weekend, since it was Friday.
"I'll meet you at the front door in ten minutes. I have to put my stuff away and make sure Ethan isn't coming."
I nod, "Alright."
I also go to put my stuff away in my locker. When I'm there, I see Elliot waiting for me.
"Hey, Elliot, what do you want?" I ask, using my hand to cover the lock as I put in my combination.
"You're going with Grayson, right?"
"Yes," I say slowly.
"Be careful, Emmy. Don't do anything stupid. Work on your project and then come home right away," he said in a warning tone.
I rolled my eyes, "Alright, Dad. You want to give me the safe sex talk here too?"
He sighs, "Emmy, I just want you to be safe. Grayson seems like a good guy, but you've only known him for a day. You never know. Remember last time, you-"
I cut him off, "I know what happened last time, El. Don't worry, big bro. I'll be careful. Thanks for caring," I give him and quick hug and run back to the school's entrance. Where Grayson is waiting.
We begin walking home together. I keep staring at my shoes.
"So, what do you like to do for fun?" he asks, looking at me.
"I like to read books, run, draw, and listen to music," I reply, "What about you?"
"Well, Ethan and I like to make funny videos and post them on Vine and YouTube. We've been getting pretty popular lately, and we went on tour a couple times."
I gasp, "That's why you guys sounded and looked so familiar."
"You watch us?" he asked, looking slightly embarrassed.
I shook my head, "I'm not really into things like that, but a few of my friends back in London are fans of yours and they showed me a couple videos. You guys are hilarious!"
He smiles, "Thanks."
We walk in silence for a couple minutes until I see that we've reached his house. He unlocks the door. "Mom, I'm home!"
"In the kitchen, sweetie!" a woman's voice calls. Grayson gestures for me to follow him.
We head into the kitchen, which funnily enough, is in the exact same spot as it is in my house. The whole house has pretty much the same design.
"Mom, this is Emerson. Emerson, this is my mom."
"Nice to meet you, honey," she says, giving me a surprising hug. I smile at her. "You too, Mrs. Dolan."
"We'll be upstairs, Mom," Grayson tells her, and she nods.
Grayson leads me up the stairs, and into a room with his name on a sign on the door. He throws his backpack on his bed, telling me to sit down wherever. I take a seat at the desk chair.
"I'm just gonna change really quick, I'll be right back," he says, and I nod.
He walks into the walk-in closet in the corner. I busy myself by taking out the materials we'll need to start working. I look back to the closet, and see the door open just a tiny crack. I can see Grayson changing! He's put on sweatpants and is trying to get his head through the neck hole of a shirt. It's kind of funny since he keeps tripping over a pair of Vans strewn on the floor.
I stare at his muscles. Damn, boy. His back muscles are defined, and when he turned around, I could see his nice abs. The door flew open, and I quickly made myself look busy with anyway. He's grinning. Oh my God, did he see? Now he'll think I'm a creep. When I said I wasn't looking to make any friends, I didn't mean I wanted to be viewed as a perverted stalker.
"Ok, where do you want to start?" he asks, taking a seat next to me.
"Uh, I'll start with the history, you wanna do culture?" I suggest, handing him a piece of paper to take down notes on.
"Sure," he agrees, opening the textbook to the right chapter.
"Make sure you also do the differences between ancient and modern-day culture," I remind him pointedly.
He nods, and we both begin working. Every so often, I find myself staring at Grayson, and every single time, he's staring at me. I begin to get self-conscious. Do I have something on my face? Did I have an ugly pimple? Ugh. Stupid facial acne and its bad timing.
After about an hour of quiet note-taking with some small conversations, we decide to take a break. Grayson suggests we watch a movie, and I agree.
I sat next to Grayson on the couch as he scrolled through movies. We finally decided on The Wolf of Wall Street.
Halfway through the movie, I heard Mrs. Dolan call us from the kitchen, "Kids, there's pizza on the table!"
Grayson paused and grabbed my hand, sending tingles through my body. He pulled me to the kitchen, where a girl was grabbing a slice of pepperoni.
"Hey, Gray, who's this?" she said, looking at me.
"Cameron, this is Emerson, my partner in world history. Emerson, this is my older sister, Cameron," Grayson said, introducing us.
I smiled, "Nice to meet you."
"Same," she smiled back at me.
Cameron went upstairs, and Grayson and I each grabbed a plate and two slices each. We resumed the movie.
About ten minutes later, another voice came, "Gray, did you get –" Ethan stops talking when he sees me.
"Hey, Emerson."
"Hi, Ethan!"
He turns to the TV screen. "You guys are watching a funny movie and eating pizza, without me?" he says, mocking hurt.
We laugh, and I say, "Do you want to watch with us?" I ask. I look to Grayson to see if he's okay with that.
He nods, "Yeah, grab some pizza and come sit down, Eth. We're at a really funny part."
He beams at the both of us, then runs off, only to come back a minute later and sit on the other side of me. I'm squished between the Dolan twins. I laugh at the thought.
When the movie is almost finished, I feel my phone buzz from in my pocket. I pull it out.
EVAN: Come home, mum and dad say they want to talk to us about something important.
Emmy: What is it?
EVAN: Idk. Just get here. They seemed upset.
Emmy: I'll be there in ten minutes.
I put my phone back in my pocket, and turn to Grayson, "Hey, sorry, I have to go," I begin.
"Is everything okay?" he asks, looking a little worried.
"Yeah, my mum just wants to talk about something to my brothers and me, so I have to go home."
He nods in understanding, "Alright. Cool."
I run upstairs to his room and gather my things, throwing my books and papers as well as my binder into my backpack.
Back downstairs, I see Grayson waiting, "Bye, Emmy, maybe I'll see you tomorrow. If not, I'll see you on Monday at school."
I give him a hug, "This was really fun, Grayson. Thanks," I say, beginning to walk out the door. I give one final goodbye to both of the twins, and begin walking home.
I unlock the door to my house a minute later. I find my whole family sitting in the living room. I immediately begin to worry, and try to calm myself down. Panicking before I knew the whole situation was something I did quite often, and it never ended well.
"What's up? Is something wrong?"
My mother and father exchange a glance. My brothers and I do the same. What the hell was so important?
"Kids," my father begins by clearing his throat, "Your mother and I have some bad news."
Oh my God! Dad, we know that you have bad news. Can you fucking tell us already? It took all my strength not to yell. My parents could be so annoying sometimes.
"Your grandparents' house in Sussex burned down - don't worry it was just some sort of gas leak accident - but we're going to go help them with everything," my mother says, tears in her eyes.
All three of us look at each other. "Are they okay?" I ask quickly. Nan and Pops were amazing, I would be devastated if anything happened to them. I was close to tears myself.
"Thankfully, yes. But their house is total rubble at the moment, so they'll be staying at our old house in London. They're also having problems with the insurance claims and everything, so we'll be helping with that too," my father answered.
All three of us nod. "What time are you leaving?" Elliot asks.
"One o'clock, so in about four hours," my mother replies.
"And before we forget," my dad begins to add, "Elliot is in charge. No parties, no crazy stunts, no sexual activity with either the same or opposite sex. And finally, though I feel I should not have to say this: NO SETTING THE NEIGHBORS' FENCE ON FIRE!" he bellows the last part, looking pointedly at Evan and me.
We smirked at each other. It was an accident, I promise.
"Yes, Dad," I say, giving him a hug. I am such a daddy's girl it's ridiculous. I saw Evan roll his eyes, but I just stuck my tongue out at him. He was just jealous. He was the middle child, and probably the most forgotten.
"Give me hugs, my darlings," my mother exclaimed loudly, pulling all three of us in for a group hug. She gave us each a kiss on the forehead.
We did the same with our father. "Look after Emerson, you two," he said to my older brothers. They nodded their heads, and I just rolled my eyes. No offense to Elliot and Evan, but it would probably be the other way around.
We all had one final hug before the three of us headed up to bed.
~ ~ ~ ~
SONG OF THE CHAPTER: We Didn't Start the Fire
ARTIST: Billy Joel
ALBUM: Storm Front, 1989