A.N: This is a transition chapter. It's going to be a little boring but I need this chapter to kind of unite things and to balance some elements before I start writing a big chapter. You'll understand what I'm saying when you get to the next chapter. But for now, Enjoy!!!!
Stacy's POV
I can't believe it. I never thought I would ever feel his warm embrace again. Yet he's here, hugging me like he's been wanting to hug me for a long time, too.
"I've missed you so much you can't imagine." He said.
"Oh trust me, I can." I answered as I pulled away from his hug. I noticed the look on his face when he realized that I wasn't alone.
"Constance what's wro--" Zayn said as he entered the door and then stopped as soon as he sees Liam.
"What's going on?" Liam asked as he looked at Zayn and then back at me.
"Li, this is--"
"Of course I know who the fuck he is, Stace. I hope he still knows who I am, too." He interrupts.
"I'm sorry, now's not the right time, you should probably go." I said as I turned around and asked him to leave. We went out the door and I closed it behind me.
"Zayn, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought you here, I didn't know he was gonna be here and--" and then he kissed me, not letting me finish my sentence.
"He's your brother, I get it. You haven't seen him in a long time. I just followed you so I can do this." He said right before kissing me again.
"Please tell me you'd still pick up when I call." He said.
"I will." I answered and then he kissed me on the cheek one last time before going back to his car. I watched him drive away from my house and then went back inside to reunite with my brother again. As soon as I entered the door, he shouted at me.
"What the hell was that? You dating that guy?!" He asked.
"I wouldn't call it 'dating', but literally 'getting to know each other'". I replied. I mean, that's what we're doing, right?
"Stace, I know you're a brave and intelligent young lady, and I hope you know what you're doing, and I know that you know that he's not good for you. You're too old for lectures and I know you're capable of making your own decisions but I just want what's good and what's best for you, alright?" He said as he hugged me again.
I wanted to argue with him, but he doesn't know how much Zayn has changed since the last time he saw him, which was when Zayn was punching him in the face. He's a better person now, I just want Liam to see that. If he would stay for a long time, that is.
"Since when did you sound so fatherly?" I asked.
"It's called maturity, Stace."
"Until when will you be staying?" I asked. I didn't want to hear his answer to that question. I shouldn't have asked that. I know he was going to say that he wasn't gonna stay long.
"I haven't even sat on a chair and you're already asking me about my departure! Stacy!" He answered while playing with my hair.
"Why do you keep saying my name?" I said while I was struggling to be released from his grip.
"It's because I haven't said your name out loud for so long. But don't worry, I won't leave you here again." As soon as he said that, I shouted and jumped into his arms and hugged him again.
"Well, isn't it nice to see my children reunited?" My mom said while coming down the stairs. My stepdad followed shortly after and I felt the awkward air around us.
"Uh, I have to go up and unpack." Liam said, breaking the awkwardness.
"Lemme help you." Paul (my stepdad) said, bringing back he awkward and making it worse than it already was.
"No! I mean... I've missed him so much, I should...probablygoandhelphimseeyoulaterbye" I said while pulling Liam up the stairs and into his room. I know how Liam can be when he's jealous, and I know that she doesn't like it that mom already has another man in her life. I know he feels replaced.
I sat on his bed while I was watching him open his boxes. I can't help but notice how much he has changed since the last time I saw him. It feels like he was a different person. His hair's different now, he now has facial hair, and he's more muscular than he was before.
"Are you really my brother?" I asked him. I know it's a weird question, but I had to ask it. I mean, I've been inside another person's body! What if he is, too?
"If I wasn't, will I do this?" He said as he lifted my foot up into the air and tickled my sole. Only Liam knows where I was ticklish, so I know why he did that to prove that he really was my brother.
"Alright, alright! I believe you!" I said while giggling. I sat up beside him and poked his muscles.
"You're different now." I told him.
"I wouldn't say 'different', but better. I'm still your brother, you know? I love you just the same as when I left."
"But you're a man now."
"A year and a half could change a person' life."
"Where have you been, anyway?" I asked him. I wanted to know where he went, I wanted to know what he did, I wanted to know what made that place much better than home."
"I've been all over Europe to see different cultures and stuff. When I left home and checked my bank account, I noticed that I had way too much money. Only to find out that dad has placed in lots of cash so what I did was spend it, you know, just to piss him off."
"And you came back because you ran out of money?" I said.
"No, I came back because I missed you and mom."
I smiled at his reply, thinking about how he told me before that he was a self-proclaimed Mom's boy. We've always been close, and I'm just glad that he's home with me now.
"And do you have a girlfriend? Lemme guess, Latina?" I said. I hope he says yes, I hope he has someone who loves him as much as we can.
"Actually, I do. And you'll get to meet her soon. And no, not Latina." He answered as he stood up to continue unpacking. He brought out his old soccer jersey from one of the boxes and held it up.
"Hey, I'm so excited to wear this again." He said with a big smile on his face.
"Huh?"
"On Wednesday. For the game."
"What game?"
"It's homecoming. And I talked to coach if I could play on one of the games and he said I could, for as many games as I want." He replied. I was happy he could play again, I'm just scared of what might happen if Zayn finds out about this.
We talked about his travels and how school's been treating me so far. Sometimes he would ask me about Zayn but I would always change the subject. I do that a lot whenever we're talking about touchy subjects, so he knows, he understands.
During dinner, I could sense the awkwardness around the dining room. I can feel that my stepdad's actually trying to break through my brother's barriers but Liam's usually so tightly and strongly closed off from people who he thinks do not deserve his trust. I can feel that he's trying to be polite, but most of the time, he would answer their questions with one word sentences.
He couldn't even look at any of them. He's usually very talkative, but right now, he's just too silent. I know it isn't because of maturity, it was because he still haven't accepted that everyone has moved on but him.
He was the one who went far away, but he's also the one who was stuck in the same spot, like he was buried in quicksand.
After finishing his food, he left the table and kissed me goodnight before going up the stairs. My mom gave me a look that says "Can you please do something about it?".
"Don't look at me like that, I'm not a saint. You know him well enough to know that it's gonna take more than a year and a half. Let's just be thankful that he's back, okay? Let him cool down a bit, slowly let him see that you're both happy and that you want him to be a part of that happiness, but don't force him into it. It takes time, you know?" I explained. It's funny how for that one moment, I sounded like a parent to both of them.
After lecturing my parents about Liam, I thought about whether I should go inside Liam's room and sleep beside him. Whenever he was sad, he would always ask me to sleep in his room just so he knows he won't be alone.
I thought about how I think he's mature enough to not need me anymore. When he left, I had no one to sleep beside with. I had to face everything alone. And now that my brother's back, he's a new and better person.
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The next day, I woke up to the sound of my brother singing to Justin Timberlake's newest album.
Some things never change.
"Liam! Turn it down! I'm trying to sleep!" As soon as I said that, Liam was inside my room, shirtless.
"Get up, sleepyhead. You have school today." He said as he pulled my blanked away from me and opened my windows.
"Ughhhh do I have to?" I said while covering my eyes from the sunlight. If there was one thing I hate, it was being forced to wake up. I never even get to to my morning 'before waking up' routine anymore.
"Yes, you do. Now get up, I'm gonna drive you to school." He said while shutting the door and I went back to sleep.
After a few minutes, I heard my door open again.
"Liam, what do you want? Can't you just give me 5 more minutes?!" I shouted.
"I'm sorry, Miss Stacy, I just went up to give you this. I'll just place it on the table." Maria said.
"I'm sorry, Maria, I didn't know it was you. What do you have anyway?"
"It's a box. It has a message. It was delivered by your friend, Louis." She answered as she handed me an envelope.
I opened it and read the note inside.
First day of homecoming week. Pajama day. Wear this :) -L
At first, I didn't want to wear it because I thought it was one of Louis's pranks, but when I checked the schedule, it really was pajama day so I decided to just go with it. I inspected it first and realized that there was nothing wrong with it. It was a giraffe who's also wearing a pajama and was eating from a tree. It was cute, so I just put it on after taking a bath. What could possibly go wrong?
I went down the stairs and Liam was laughing at me.
"Let me guess, pajama day?" I nodded.
"Oooh, you got a great day ahead of you. Wait here." He said while laughing and going up the stairs. After a while, he went down and handed me a teddy bear and a pillow.
"You do know that this looks stupid, right?" I said while handing the teddy bear back to him. It was his teddy bear, the one he used to play with when he was young. He brought it with him when he left, but now that he's back, his toy was, too.
"Come on, it looks cute." He said while placing the bear back in my hand.
"And the pillow?"
"That, you're gonna need. Trust me." He said. I figured I can just bring those things and stuff them inside my locker once I got there just so he won't feel bad.
He drove me to school using his car. We saw people wearing different types of pajamas outside. The thing was, no one carried books but they all had pillows.
Liam wished me luck and then drove away. I thought about why I needed good luck, but when I entered and walked through the school halls, there was a massive pillow fight going on. Feathers were flying everywhere and some people were already lying on the floor. I realized why I needed it.
Yes. It's going to be a great day.
BIG UPDATE COMING TOMORROW!!!!
THERE'S GOING TO BE PLOT TWISTS IN THE NEXT THREE OR FOUR CHAPTERS, THE BIGGEST ONES YET SO PLEASE STAY TUNED!!!
Sorry for a boring chapter, I'm just too excited for the next chapter and I just needed a transition chapter for what's gonna happen next because trust me, it's gonna be BIG!!!!!! one of the biggest chapters in this book!!!
AHHHH I CAN'T WAIT!!!
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-K