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I run inside of the Moore house and exclaim, "Justin? Justin! Are you here?!" My big brother stepped off of the last step and entered the living room, relief and worry flooding his facial expression. I quickly run over to him and hug him tightly as he wrapped his arms around me.
Justin looked at me and then hugged me again. "I thought something had happened to you... I'm glad nothing did. Where'd you go, Des?" I start to cry softly as his hold on me tightened. "It's okay. I'm here. Your big brother's got you, Des. I won't let anything hurt you. You're safe."
"I found my birth family. They live in another realm. I need to get back there, Justin. Will you help me? They're my home and I finally felt like I belonged somewhere." I softly comment, looking up at him.
"Des-" Justin started.
"Justin, please, I need to go back... I want to go back." I cut him pleadingly. "How am I supposed to stay here without Mom and Dad and the twins? We're just orphans... It's just too much being here now."
"Okay." Justin murmured quietly.
I look at my brother again and furrowed my eyebrows. "Why? You're not gonna tell me to stay and don't go back to that place?"
"Sacrifice- That's what we do for the people we love. You're my sister and if you want to do this, I'm with you. I want you to be happy, Des. For you, I want you to have a home and family and be happy." Justin started.
"I want that more than anything in this world. I mean, sure, I want you to fight like heck to stay with me, with your friends, in this world. But, I know it might not be what you want- to stay with us- It might be too hard for you to keep fighting... If you want to go, I want you to know it's okay." He continued.
"Thank you." I whisper, hugging him again, "You're the best big brother I could ever ask for. Thank you."
"But... You have to realize what you'll be leaving behind also, Des. You have a family and a home here. We're always going to be there for you no matter what. You fixed every one of us in a way. You always give us hope and you always find a way to accomplish anything and you know exactly how to make anyone smile or laugh." Justin began.
"Justin-"
"Listen to me because you need to right now, okay? You can't just stop fighting. You're supposed to always keep fighting... So, you think you're just gonna give up and take the easy way out of this world and go to another one?" Justin cut me off.
"There is no easy way! Don't you get that? No matter what choice I make in this situation, I'm gonna be hurting someone and I'll be leaving part of me behind. Okay? What am I supposed to do, Justin? Huh? What am I supposed to do?! I have done everything everyone has asked of me and when I... when I don't and try to make my own choice- I'm disappointing everyone that I care about." I comment through tears and sat down in the recliner. "What am I supposed to do?"
Justin knelt in front of me and held my hands in his, making me look him in the eye. "Choose the family who's always been there, comforted you, cared for you, loved you and still love you. Choose the people who has always had your back and will support you no matter what."
Another tear fell onto my cheek as I watch him, sniffling a bit. "You're right... My home... I'm just running away and I don't want to run away anymore. I'm through running." I murmur lightly, standing up and started to head over to the front door just as someone knocked at it.
I open it to reveal Leo standing on the porch. "Des, you're coming home, and I'm not-" Leo started as I hugged him tightly.
"I'm not going anywhere. I'm staying. Besides, my best friend needs me to clean up his messes." I interrupt the boy after pulling away from the hug, smiling which made Leo grin. "Come on, let's go. See you later, Justin, and thank you." I tell my brother the last part as he nodded with a small smile.
***
"Adam, stop!" Chase told his brother as Adam carried him on his shoulder into the room.
Adam let out a sigh and replied, "I told you, my weight set broke and I need you to be my barbell. And please, don't scream this time. It's distracting."
I laugh in amusement while I sat on one of the stools at the counter, watching the two brothers. Donald walked into the house as Douglas stepped over to us, too. "Adam, put him down. That's how people get hurt." Donald said.
"Hmm, good point. I should probably stretch first." Adam agreed, throwing Chase down and walked away. Chase grunted in pain as I walked over to the boy and helped him up. I look over at Douglas and back at Donald and Chase.
"Man, I'm so tired of him. So far this week I've been his weight set, his football, and his jump rope." Chase pointed out.
"On the bright side, you've never looked more fit." I remarked with a cheeky grin as Donald nodded in agreement with me, happy to see me back here.
"I'm serious. He's always using his strength to make my life miserable." Chase commented.
"Why don't you get even?" Douglas and I both asked in unison, glancing at one another and then at Chase.
"How? None of my abilities can compete with his strength." Chase answered. "And it's hard to torture him with brain teasers when he doesn't have a brain."
"Maybe I can unlock a new ability." Douglas and I suggested in unison, looking at one another again, "Okay, we need to stop that." We both held up our hands in the air and back down to our sides.
"Yes! Let's do it." Chase said.
"No, let's not. Absolutely finito. Forget it." Donald replied as the three of us stepped over to Douglas who was now standing between his brother and myself.
"Why not?" Douglas and I ask at the same time again, looking at one another unamused.
"Because I said so." Donald answered, "You live under my roof, you play by my rules. End of discussion."
"I don't live under your roof." I cheekily remark as Donald looked at me. I hold my hands up in slight surrender. He quickly walked up the stairs.
"You live under my roof, you play by my-" Douglas mimicked.
"I can hear you!" Donald said from upstairs. Chase and I grinned, laughing lightly, just as Adam walked back into the room.
"All right, Chase, my hammies are loose. I'm ready for round two." Adam commented.
"Uh, uh, uh. Mr. Davenport said you can't bench press me anymore." Chase pointed out.
"Yeah, but he didn't say anything about being my shot-put." Adam said.
"Yeah, he's got you there, Chase. Good luck." I reply.
"Come on, let's go for gold!" Adam said as Chase took off running, "Starting wth sprints. I like it." He took off running after Chase.
"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Douglas and I asked one another in unison as we nodded, "Okay, stop."
"We have got to stop doing that." I comment as Douglas nodded.
***
"Okay, we have to make this quick before Donnie gets back." Douglas told us as we walk into the lab.
"Yeah." Chase agreed.
I put a circular, small techno pad on Chase's neck, under his ear. "This will let us look through your list of hidden abilities and see which one to give you." I explain as Douglas and I skim through a list on tablets.
"Why don't you just give me 'em all?" Chase asked curiously.
"No way. The human body can only take so much." Douglas and I said as he explained more of why we can't give them all to him, "It's like a water balloon. You fill it up too much and- well, I don't want to spend the night, scraping Chase chunks off the ceiling."
"Hmm..." Douglas and I murmured, looking through the list. After several 'oohs', 'umms', and 'no's', we decided on the one ability to give Chase. The same one I have. "We got it." We go over to the cyberdesk and start typing.
"Awesome! Wait, this isn't gonna hurt, is it?" Chase commented.
"Uh... Well, it's not going to hurt us." I remark, gesturing to me and Douglas. Chase nervously chuckled while Douglas and I finish uploading the hidden ability to Chase's chip.
***
I was sitting at a desk with Adam in the lab when Chase walked in. "Oh, no. Adam's in here. I sure hope he doesn't bench press me or throw me across the room. Like right now. Tiny dough-like body just begging to get hurt." Chase said.
"Not now, Chase. We're busy." Adam replied.
"What're you doing?" Chase asked.
"He's trying to decide what's more scary. 100 duck-sized horses or one giant horse-sized duck." I answer, "I think one hundred duck-sized horses maybe would be more scary? I don't know."
"Well, I bet they could both take Adam in a fight." Chase said, "Ooh."
"Chase, that wasn't even an option. I need you to take this seriously, okay? I'm thinking it's the massive duck-"
"Just hit me." Chase tried again.
"If you keep interrupting me, I'm going to hit you." Adam replied.
"Then do it."
"That wasn't interrupting. In order to interrupt someone, you actually have-" Adam started.
"Just hit me." Chase interrupted again.
"There it is!" Adam said, starting to walk towards him when Chase made a blue energy staff come out of his hand. "What's that?" Adam asked.
"Laser bow." Chase and I answer. "It's my new ability." Chase added. "I have that ability also." I also add.
Chase spun it around and pointed it at Adam. "That's not a new ability. That's a giant glow stick, but you hang on to it. We'll need it on Halloween when we cross the street." Adam said.
They began fighting when Chase hit him in the stomach and sent him flying towards the wall and crashed into it. Adam groaned and sat up. "You okay, Adam?" I ask him, walking over to him and helping him up.
"Hey! None of this would've happened if you wouldn't have interrupted me!" Adam said to Chase who was walking out of the lab proudly. I finish helping him up and help him over to a chair.
Maybe we had made a mistake going behind Davenport's back and unlocking a new ability for Chase. But it was pretty funny.
"Hey, you know, I think the massive duck would be scarier," I remark as Adam cracked a grin and nodded in agreement.
***
I was watching TV with Chase, his arm wrapped around me and my head rested on his shoulder, when Adam walked in a clear ball. "Try and get me now, Chase!" Adam said.
"Adam, what're you doing?" I ask in amusement, containing my laughter at the sight of him in the clear, hamster-like ball sort of.
"Taunting Chase in the comfort of my battle bubble." Adam answered, "I can get him and he can't get me. Watch." He used his heat vision when it made the bubble pop. "Is the bubble still around me?"
"Yup, you're good. This won't hurt one bit." Chase said while standing up, using his laser bow again just as Donald walked in and saw with a shocked face.
"Chase, what is going on?" Davenport asked as Chase spun around to face Donald.
"Ooh, you're in trouble." Adam told Chase. "You want to borrow what's left of my battle bubble?"
I stood up and walk over to Davenport's side. "Big D, before you accuse anyone. It's not his or Douglas's fault. It's mine and mine only. Douglas had no part of it and Chase was about to let it go when I told him I would unlock an ability for him anyway. I'm sorry." I immediately explain, covering for them.
"Hold that thought." Donald went and retrieved Douglas and pulled him into the living room with the rest of us. "Des just admitted to giving Chase an ability and that it was all her. That true, Douglas? Chase?" He asked them.
I was nodding my head at them behind Donald's back but stop when Donald looked back at me. "Uh, yeah?" The two of them answered hesitantly.
Davenport faced me, disappointment clearly shown on his face. "I'm sorry I betrayed your trust, Big D. Want me to leave?" I begin.
"What? No." Douglas, Chase, and Adam said in shock or surprise.
"Des- That's not what I want. We want you to stay." Davenport started, upset. "This is your home, too. And is this really just your doing? Because you covering for them sounds exactly like you."
"I-" Douglas and Chase started as I briefly shook my head once and answered Donald myself, "Yeah, completely my doing."
"I'm disappointed in you, Des. You went behind my back and that's not like you." Donald said.
"Maybe after all these years, Leo's finally rubbing off on me." I lightly joke but add seriously, "Sorry."
"Yeah." Donald murmured, walking away and went downstairs to the lab.
Douglas stepped over to me. "D, why'd you take the blame?" He asked curiously.
"He would've kicked you out, and you two just started being brothers again." I answer softly, "Big D will forgive me, so don't worry about it."
"It's my fault, though. I was the one who talked you two into giving me another ability." Chase said.
"No, it's not. It's alright. Like I said, he'll forgive me and get over it." I shrug lightly as if it was no big deal.
I walk out of the living room and head downstairs. Davenport stopped me and started, "Des, you don't have to leave."
"Goodbye, Big D." I softly say, hugging him and letting go. I start to walk away when he called after me, "Des, why do you want to leave so badly? What's wrong?"
I stop walking, not turning around to face him. "I... I'm too unstable." I murmur.
"What does that mean?" He asked.
I face him finally, inhaled and exhale through my nose. "I'm just a lost little girl who didn't matter. I don't want you guys to see me like that. I thought I would wait until I got better... but I never got better."
"Des, you do matter and you will get better-" Donald started.
"I believed I would, but everyone is keep telling me, reminding me, I am responsible for everybody's happiness, and that is crap! I didn't ask for that." I admit, a single tear falling down onto my cheek as I look at him.
"Des, you're not responsible for that. It's just you- you're like sunshine in a dark room. You can brighten up anyone's day and somehow you manage to erase all of the bad thoughts and bad days and cheer everyone up. You really do give people hope." Donald replied.
"If there's one thing I know for sure... It's that I don't want to run away anymore. That's what I do. I run away when I am scared or when the walls I put up comes crashing down." I comment, wiping the tear off of my cheek, "So, I'm gonna fight it until I can't fight it anymore... And, um, I chose to stay instead going back to that other realm."
"Now, what did you mean by being unstable?" Donald asked.
***
"So, you two fixed everything with Adam and Chase?" Donald asked Douglas and me as we walked in the hallway of the lab.
"Yup, not to worry. Everything is back to normal." Douglas and I answered in unison as we narrowed our eyes at one another. Donald looked at the two of us amused just as we heard crashing noises from the lab.
"Adam! Chase! Stop it, now!" Donald exclaimed as the three of us ran inside of the lab to see Adam blow Chase away literally. "What was that?"
"Pressurized lung capacity." I start as Douglas finished, "Pretty cool, huh?"
Chase hit Adam with his laser staff as Adam blocked him and used his super breath. "Will you two stop?" Donald asked them and then faced his brother and me, "I thought you said everything was back to normal!"
"Duck!" I comment while pulling the two adults down as we missed a flying chair. The two adults began to argue as both of them grabbed the destabilizer. I grab a piece of metal quickly and touch the gadget, sending both of the adults flying through the air and crashed onto the floor.
"Yeah, arguing isn't fun, huh?" I cheekily comment as Chase and Adam high-fived me while also laughing.
After Donald lecturing the boys about fighting and putting a stop to it (and finding out Douglas and I gave Bree a hidden ability also- invisibility), it was all back to normal-ish.
"But, seriously, you did that to stop everyone fighting, right? Des? D?" Donald and Douglas said in unison.
I grin and lift an eyebrow at the two adults. "Yeah, let's go with that." I comment as the trio laughed.
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