I slid away from the wardrobe doors I was leaning on and turned to him. I looked him over with a pair of raised eyebrows and rebutted, "First comes, first serve."
He didn't seem convinced though.
He pulled open the door open fully and stepped into the room. His tall figure wasn't exactly a fit for this room, I noted. Although his head wasn't hitting the roof, he looked cramped in the room.
And, I made a mental note to use that as a point in my argument when staking claims in the room.
Jasper looked at me. He could see the unimpressed expression on my face and he seemed to revel in ruffling my feathers.
That was what my brother was like.
He liked to go against me. Whatever I did, he was always on the opposite side. Not to mention his daily habit of teasing.
But of course, he was always there whenever shit got real.
And it was on those rare moments I always saw him in full big brother mode. He was very protective. It had even taken a hell lot of effort before he accepted Chris back then. And, it wasn't without dropping a full threat about how he was going to swing by Chris's crib and break his third leg if he dared to break my heart.
Chris-
I shook my head to stop myself from zoning off again. No thinking about traitors.
Then, I returned my attention to my brother.
He had walked past me at some point and was now standing at the other end of the wall. He seemed to be talking and I only managed to capture the moment he said,
"-This would be nice to hang my shoe rack on."
I looked over to the part of the wall he was touching. It was indeed fitting for the shoe rack Jasper had. It was weirdly long and narrow so it would fit that place well.
But, I wasn't about to forgo the beautiful view.
No way in hell.
I shook my head and folded my arms, taking the chance to rest on one leg. "I'm not letting it go. I came first so I get the room."
This would have gotten other normal people to back off. But, my brother had never been a normal person. I suppose.
Jasper smirked at my words, his green eyes twinkling as he chuckled, "How about we do a bet? Whoever wins gets the room."
A bet?
It sounded nice. But-
I looked at Jasper. He still had that annoying smirk at the corner of his lips. I didn't trust him. He had always been the type that could cheat even when playing a board game. He was full of tricks.
But, I was curious about what the bet was.
I narrowed my gaze at him. "What is it about?"
" Whoever finishes drinking a jar of lemonade first wins."
No way.
Jasper was a pro at drinking contests and I could bet he would be a good buddy to go along with when pissing people off at a chug-the-beer contest. He would surely win.
Moreover, he deliberately chose lemonade because I wasn't exactly a fan of it. I could drink half a glass daily. But, I didn't usually dare to go over that because I was overly sensitive. A few more glasses and I would be on a trip to the dentist for tooth pain.
I immediately shook my head at him. "No. I'm not doing that. Sounds so lame."
I wouldn't admit I was scared of tooth pain. My brother could be a real jerk whenever he made fun of people. And, I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction.
As expected, he flashed me a grin and snorted, "Or you are scared?"
He didn't wait for me to make a comeback as he pursed his lips and compromised.
"Alright. Choose the details of the bet." He said.
A smile immediately came to my face. I was winning this room for myself.
I waved my hand and said, "No need to bet. How about I help you with the dishes for tomorrow?"
Doing the dishes was not a fixed chore for anyone in my family. There was hardly any job assigned to a single person.
Although my parents were rich, they weren't exactly humble with the home training. We had servants and maids. But, they didn't do any household chores.
Especially the dishes.
It was expected of my brother and me to clean up after meals. There was no gender distinction and you had to have a presence in the kitchen in my home. Mom made sure of that.
So, my brother and I did what was convenient for both of us. We split the time frames and each of us washed the dishes weekly.
It was his turn to wash that week. And, I saw it as a bargaining chip.
Although Jasper didn't mind doing it, he wasn't exactly a fan of doing the dishes when he could be in his room playing video games. So, it occasionally took a few yells from mom to get him to do his chore.
Me, I didn't have much impression of it. It was fairly easy and I didn't consider it a chore.
So, I could help him out and gain from it.
I grinned as I looked at Jasper. His lips were tightened slightly and his gaze was narrowed. He seemed to be considering his options.
After a moment, he looked at me.
He haggled, "One week."
"Two days." I retorted.
" Four days at least."
He was compromising. And, I pushed my luck. "Three days. I'm not going any higher than that."
He immediately nodded. "Deal."
And an agreement was therefore made.
He took one reluctant look at the room once more before turning for the door. The moment he opened the door though, a little figure was standing there.
It was John.
He peeked into the room and when his gaze landed on me, he looked back up at Jasper. Then, he asked half unsure, "Did you win?"
His words immediately intrigued me and I immediately looked up at Jasper. The latter scratched his head helplessly and patted John.
"Nope. We lost, man."
But, the little boy was unconvinced.
He simply looked at him indifferently and pointed out. " You were bribed."
Then, he turned around and walked toward the second room. Jasper stood at the door with his mouth hung open. He was speechless.
I immediately leaked a laugh at the sight as Jasper shut the door behind him. John was a cute little kid. Yet, his words were always like arrows.