Chapter 12 – Brother’s Day

Not much had happened on Friday since Mordecai locked himself up in his secret room, and I was ok with that. I was still trying to figure out where my head was at. My emotions and thoughts were all at a crossroad.

I was officially homeless since Shawna called me, panicking, to tell me that people were moving into my apartment. I had to reassure her that I was fine and that I’d moved out. Just like Manny, she made me promise to visit them, and she even promised that she wouldn’t tell Alex that I’d moved out.

How she knew that I didn’t want him to know was beyond me.

Saturday, the boys, being my brothers, were taking me out for some quality sibling bonding time. We’d all been so busy lately, that this was the first weekend that we were all free. They wouldn’t tell me where we were headed, but they told me to dress casually, and to bring a coat.

It was still a little chilly out anyway, so I settled on a pair of white jeans, a light blue blouse with purple and pink flowers, cream boots and a purple coat, with matching accessories and handbag. I curled my hair and made it bouncy, giggling to myself when it came out perfectly.

“What are we so happy about this morning?” Geronimo asked from my door. It was already open since I was done getting dressed.

“I’m spending the day with my brothers today,” I smiled.

“Oh that’s cool! Where are they taking you?” he asked.

“No clue! They wouldn’t tell me, but I really don’t care. I just can’t wait to spend time with them,” I replied.

“Because I totally couldn’t tell,” he teased.

I stuck my tongue out at him. “Oh whatever.”

“Is Kai aware of your plans for the day?” he asked.

I shrugged. “I haven’t seen him since Thursday night. Ever since he’s been confident enough to walk on his own, he’s been disappearing.”

“Yeah, and he locks himself in. What’s he so busy with?” he asked.

“A story idea last I checked,” I responded.

“He actually told you?” he asked wide-eyed.

“Uh, yeah! He even showed it to me,” I replied.

“Bev, you mean more to him than you’re aware of. He never lets any of us near his laptop or his creative ideas. Most of the time, we don’t even know that he’s been working on something, until they start filming,” he pointed out.

“I didn’t know that,” I admitted.

“I know you didn’t. Please just... Never mind,” he sighed.

“No, tell me,” I requested.

“It’s just that I’ve never seen him like this before, and well I was kind of hoping you would give him a chance, but I know you’ve got your boyfriend and all,” he rambled.

“I’m single!” I blurted.

“What?” he asked.

“When I went to the hospital on Thursday; I was going to break up with Alex,” I informed.

“Does Kai know?” he asked.

“No, and I intend to keep it that way,” I smiled.

“Ah, make him work twice as hard to prove himself – nice!” he smirked.

“How did you know?” I giggled.

“It’s a classic move,” he chuckled.

“Well, at least you’re in on it. You’re very weak by the way,” I commented.

He scowled. “How come?”

“You let him coax you into getting my stuff,” I replied.

“He’s got something on me. Trust me, I wouldn’t just invade your space like that. I hope you can forgive me,” he apologized.

“Don’t worry Ger! All is forgiven. I actually like living here,” I smiled.

“Are we looking at long term here?” he asked in hope.

“Who knows Ger, who knows,” I replied.

Since breakfast wasn’t included in my trip with the boys, I had the breakfast Geronimo prepared. I was going to leave without saying bye to Mordecai, but something just didn’t feel right about that, so of course I found myself headed towards the library. When I found him looking at his tablet again, worry settled in me.

“You’re going to drive yourself insane with these articles,” I said as I wrapped my arms around his shoulders from behind the chair.

“I know. I just, I want to know what’s going on. Not being able to fight back is driving me insane,” he sighed.

“Then fight back,” I told him. He turned the chair to face me.

“I can’t. Judith advised against it, and she knows what she’s doing,” he replied. I could only roll my eyes at that.

He scowled. “You don’t believe me?”

“It’s not you I don’t believe. I just don’t believe that her approach is the best approach. I mean, the longer you stay quiet about this, the guiltier you seem, especially since you haven’t made a public appearance since before the accident. All that this silence is doing is making you seem like a coward who is hiding,” I explained.

“Yeah, but how would I begin to prove my innocence?” he asked.

I shrugged. “By showing your medical records.”

“My medical records?” he asked confusedly.

“You don’t know...” I trailed off in realization.

He’s been believing it this entire time.

“I don’t know what?” he asked.

“Who gave you the supposed drugs you had at the party? And think very carefully about that question,” I asked. He was silent for a while, before confusion crossed his face.

“Charlie,” he retorted.

“You are such an addict, that you truly believed that you took drugs. Your blood tests showed no signs of drugs in your system. There haven’t been any drugs in your system for a while since your blood is completely clean. Has Charlie been to every party with you?” I asked.

He nodded. “Pretty much.”

“Then he’s helped you with your drug addiction without you even knowing it,” I informed.

“I’m such a dick,” he groaned.

“Luckily for you, he knows it. Anyway, I need to get going,” I told.

He cocked his head to the side, the jealousy clear as day on his face. “Where are you going looking so beautiful anyway?”

“Out with my brothers! Don’t ask me where to because I don’t know,” I replied.

“Are they fetching you from here?” he asked.

“Yeah! They’ll be here in about ten minutes. What are your plans for the day?” I asked.

“Probably just going to sit here the whole day,” he said.

“That’s unhealthy,” I pointed out.

“It’s also the only thing I feel like doing when you’re not around,” he defended.

“Apparently even when I’m around,” I commented.

“Why do you say that?” he questioned.

“You never came out yesterday,” I reminded.

“Because you weren’t here,” he replied in confusion.

“I was here the whole day,” I replied in confusion as well.

“Judith said she saw you leave, and that you told her to tell me that you’d be out the whole day. That’s why I locked myself in here,” he replied.

Judith...

“She must’ve misheard me when I went to the car,” I lied.

I don’t even know why I’m protecting her.

“Well, I guess she’s been so busy with this situation that she mixed up the messages,” he stated.

“Yeah, I guess,” I replied. I squeaked when he pulled me onto his lap.

“Promise me you’ll be safe wherever you’re going,” he said, moving a strand of my hair behind my ear.

“I promise, but only if you promise you won’t be in here the whole day,” I replied.

“I can’t promise that, but I can promise to leave as soon as you get back,” he offered.

“I guess that works too. Just don’t overwork yourself. I already feel like I’m doing a terrible job with nursing you back to health,” I admitted.

“Trust me! You’re achieving way more than you know,” he smiled. My phone vibrated in my pocket.

“Let me get going,” I said. He leaned in and placed a sweet kiss on my lips.

“Enjoy yourself gorgeous,” he remarked.

“I will,” I blushed before getting up and leaving.

Geronimo, being the dork he is, was already waiting for me with my stuff, which he handed to me on my way out of the library. He surprised me by kissing my forehead. I love Geronimo like a brother, and he already told me that he loves me like a sister, so I guess that’s just one more brother to add to the list.

“Your lipstick is smudged. You seriously made out with him before coming to us?” Jacob asked as soon as I got into the car.

“Hello Jake. How are you Jake? I’m good thanks,” I said sarcastically.

“Oh, I know you’re good. Your lips are evidence of this,” he replied as Jackson drove off.

“Piss off,” I muttered, making him laugh.

Jackson chuckled. “Hello Bev.”

“Hey Jack,” I giggled.

“Seriously though! Why did we have to hear from mom and dad that you broke up with Alex?” he asked.

“Because I turned to them first,” I replied.

“That is so mean to us Bev. What about the sibling code?” Jacob complained.

“I skipped it this one time. Sue me,” I scoffed.

Jacob pouted. “Mordecai is bad for you! Where is this attitude coming from?”

“You’re just being a big baby!” I taunted. Jackson looked amused, but then again, it’s always like this.

Jacob glared at me. “I am anything but a baby!”

“So whining adolescent can count?” I smirked.

Jacob pouted to his twin. “You’re going to let her bully me like this?”

“My name is not Fernando. I don’t have to fight your battles for you in the name of kissing ass,” Jackson retorted. I burst out laughing at both the statement and the horrified look on Jacob’s face.

“BURN!” I shouted.

“The two of you are no siblings of mine! I’m telling on you when we get back,” Jacob moped.

Jackson rolled his eyes. “See if we care, you four year old.”

“Man, I love you guys,” I giggled. They both flashed me smiles.

The rest of the trip was spent with Jacob and I teaming up against Jackson as we sang all the songs that get onto Jackson’s nerves. Jacob has always been the goofy twin, while Jackson is the serious twin.

Sometimes I wonder how the hell the army managed to tame Jake.

We reached our destination, and I was thrilled to discover that they’d brought me to watch a Broadway show on ice. It was also mentioned that there would be a figure skating competition. In fact, the competition was first, and then the Broadway show was later.

We grabbed our seats in the filled arena and I was actually excited. I’m a big fan of dancing, skating and Broadway, so this place just combines my favourites. My love for these things though, is only known to my brothers and Nellie.

The competition kicked off to a great start, and I found myself rooting for this one team that had found a way to incorporate Latin dance with their routine. That takes some serious talent, and they just stole the show. The loud applause showed me that I wasn’t alone in my trail of thought.

In the end, they won, which made a whole lot of us spectators happy. They both looked gorgeous as they were given their medals and trophies. Together with the atmosphere, it was an incredible experience.

“That was amazing!” I beamed as we walked out. They were having a two hour break to prepare for the Broadway show.

“We figured you’d like it. When we heard about it a month ago, we both cleared our schedules for it. At the time, we thought we’d just get dad to give you leave, and Alex space, but apparently none of that had to happen,” Jackson laughed as we headed over to the restaurant strip across the road from the arena.

“Yeah well, clearly a lot can change in a month,” I blushed.

“Which you have to tell us all about as soon as we’re seated,” Jacob said before we reached the maitre d’.

The restaurant had a cool vibe to it since the theme is vintage like. The colours seemed to blend in very well with each other, and the restaurant was moderately full. According to the twins, it’s a four star restaurant, not that that bit of information swayed me much.

“So, tell us what happened with Alex,” Jacob said once the waitress had taken our orders.

“Uhm, I broke up with him,” I replied.

“We know that genius. What finally pushed you over the edge?” Jackson asked.

“Ok, so when I left the house on Saturday, I went back to Mordecai and we talked things out. He wanted to eat out, so we went out and got some Burger King before heading over to my apartment. They were playing a marathon of his movies on TV, so we watched them. We ended up cuddled together and fell asleep like that. We were woken up by Alex banging on the door the next day like a mad man. Long story short, Mordecai pissed Alex off, who went on to tell me how much he doesn’t like the idea of me nursing Mordecai. He asked me to move in with him to prove that nothing happened between Mordecai and I,” I started off.

“He wanted to put you on a leash?” Jackson asked. I nodded.

“He would’ve probably had a curfew for you and shit,” Jacob chuckled.

“Kai said the same thing,” I smiled at the memory.

“Now that we know that you said no to that absurd offer, what happened?” Jackson asked.

I went on to tell them about what happened from then on, including the phone call with Alex. “Mordecai, being the guy he is, took Alex’s words as a challenge and basically told him that since he already didn’t trust me so much, he may as well give him a reason not to trust me. Alex was about to ask what that meant, but Mordecai hung up before turning to kiss me,” I said before the waitress brought our food over.

“Sounds like my kind of guy,” Jacob chuckled once the waitress had left.

“It sounds to me like sparks are flying with you and Mordecai,” Jackson commented.

“I guess you could say they are. Anyway, so we sort of spent the next three days without talking to each other because he wanted space, so I gave him his space, except I misinterpreted since he only wanted space for a few hours. We spoke some more and he admitted that he wants to make me happy. I realized then that while I feel like Mordecai is lost, in the moments I’ve spent with him, I’ve been happier than I’ve ever been with Alex, so my mind was made up then. That’s when I went to the hospital,” I continued.

“You went alone?” they asked simultaneously.

I nodded. “Yes, I did.”

“Why would you do that Bev?” Jacob groaned.

“I’m a grown woman. I think I can handle it,” I replied. Jacob was about to say something, but Jackson interrupted him.

“Then what happened?” he asked.

“I tracked him down after talking to my friends and told him that I wanted to break things off. He threw a fit and dad came in to check on the situation. When he left, Alex admitted to me that he was in love with me. I asked him how long he’d been in love with me, and he said since our fifth date,” I informed.

“That’s bullshit! Your fifth date was like six months ago. There’s no way he could’ve kept in his declaration that long. He was just trapping you into staying. I hope you didn’t fall for it,” Jackson sighed.

I shot him a look. “Who do you take me for?”

“That’s my baby sister!” Jacob smirked.

“You know this! Anyway, I had dinner with mom and dad, and from there, I thought I’d stop by my apartment. I arrived only to find that my stuff had been taken. Manny informed me that some guy with a cast paid him three month’s rent and told him to put the place on the market since I was moving out. The twerp found my bills and he not only paid for my rent, but basically all my debts,” I sighed.

“And you didn’t kill him?”Jacob asked wide-eyed.

“I, I kissed him instead,” I said before biting my lip. The twins were quiet for a while.

“Marry him!” they suddenly said simultaneously.

“What?” I giggled.

“I paid for your car debt, and you almost sliced my arm off. He pays for all your debts and you kiss him? He’s the more invincible man to us!” Jacob replied.

I rolled my eyes. “You’re being dramatic.”

I only almost sliced his fingers.

“We’re being dead serious Bev. Whatever this is, give it a shot. Obviously we still have to grill him and shit, but we’re definitely on board with this,” Jackson said.

“You’re not kidding?” I asked.

“Nope!” they replied.

“I’ll take things slow with him,” I decided.

“Good! Now, what about you and Nellie?” Jackson just had to ask.

“That’s something I’m just not ready to deal with,” I replied.

“Bev, you know yourself. You could hold onto this forever. Talk to her and let everything out,” Jacob told me.

“I’m not ready. She’s already moved out of the house,” I informed.

“You made her move out of her brother’s place?” Jackson asked disbelievingly.

“I did nothing of a sort! It was her personal choice to move out!” I snapped.

“Alright chill! We get it, but you still need to fix things with her. She means more to you than this fight,” Jackson pointed out.

“Yeah, but I apparently don’t mean as much to her,” I argued.

“Two wrongs don’t make a right Bev. You’re not going to get anywhere with this,” Jacob countered.

“Look guys, can I just handle this my way?” I begged.

“Alright,” they said after a while.

“Thank you,” I said.

We finished up at the restaurant and toured around a little before going back to the arena for the Broadway show. I was in love with the whole production. I wished there was more when it ended, but there wasn’t any more.

What I was able to do, was get pictures with the cast. I got their autographs, as well as the soundtrack to the show. I was like a giddy little girl as my brothers bought me candy floss and candy. I was super hyper by the time we made it to the car.

“Oh my God you guys! That was so amazing! Everything was so amazing! Don’t you guys think it was all amazing?” I asked them.

“We’ve already agreed that it was amazing Bev,” Jacob chuckled.

“Speaking of amazing, how’s Fernie?” I asked.

“He’s great! We’re doing great,” Jacob smiled.

“And you Jackie? When are you getting a girlfriend? You’ve been single for so long,” I said in a baby voice.

“That’s because I’m waiting for the right woman,” Jackson replied.

“There’s no such thing,” I scoffed.

“For me there is. She doesn’t need to be perfect. She just needs to be perfect for me,” he smiled.

“Oh, you’re so cheesy,” I teased.

“Whatever!” he blushed.

Jacob and I ended up being the idiots that we truly are by singing the song ‘Jackson and the right woman, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!’ Jackson just shut us out like he usually does, even though the amusement was clear as day on his face.

They dropped me off back at Mordecai’s house and Geronimo was outside. Since his back was turned to me, I ran up and jumped on him before hanging on like a koala.

“Do I even want to know?” he questioned, holding me like the leaf I am.

“I’m so happy!” I squealed.

“Why?” he chuckled.

“Candy!” I giggled.

“Well, go and greet your man candy,” he said as he set me down.

I blushed. “He’s not my man candy.”

He wiggled his eyebrows. “Whatever you say.”

“You suck Ger!” I shouted before heading into the house.

“You’re out of the room?” I beamed when I found Mordecai in the kitchen.

“I came out for a snack. Someone looks happy,” he said amusedly.

“They took me to the ice arena. We watched a figure skating competition and a Broadway production on ice,” I squealed.

“Your two favourite things,” he noted.

Apparently Mordecai also knows.

“Yep! How’s the story coming along?” I asked.

“It doesn’t matter now. You’re back,” he smiled, making me blush.

“What do you want to do?” I asked.

“Just sit and talk,” he replied.

This is the one thing I could say I was falling in love with about Mordecai. He was satisfied with just talking to me. We chilled in his room and spent the rest of our night there, just talking about anything and everything.

And I wouldn’t trade a moment like that for anything.