Chapter Four

Chapter Four 

Like god knew today was already a shit day, the heavens had opened, and the rain was coming down heavy… But I still didn’t move, and bless Cory, trying to be a good brother, he didn’t say a word to try to convince me to leave yet. 

‘I miss him so much’. I mumbled out loud, not sure if he actually heard me at first, but the reassuring squeeze he gave my shoulder told me he did. 

‘Me too, Pipes, Me too’. Sighing sadly and sniffing my now blocked-up nose, I pulled away and looked up at him. He looked back down at me with a soft, sad smile. His eyes were the deepest shade of blue... And so freaking beautiful. I wish I could just… tangle my fingers in his hair and pull him down and kiss him right now, but I couldn’t. 

Of course I fucking couldn’t! 

He was my fucking brother! 

I just shook my head and looked away before I did something absolutely stupid, but he put a finger under my chin and turned my face back to look at him. A quiet gasp caught in my throat, and for a tiny, split second, I was confused about what he was doing;

‘If you never need me, I’m here, little sister. I promise’. I knew he was trying to be comforting, but the added ‘’little sister’’ just made me feel… icky. Mainly because I wished more than anything he didn’t see me as that. I WASN’T his little sister… by blood anyway.. 

I forced a smile and moved my head away again. 

‘We should probably get back home, Mum will be wondering where we got to’. I mumbled again. Cory let out a long, drawn-out sigh. 

‘Yeah, I suppose. Sarah will be climbing the walls’. I just rolled my eyes, ‘Be nice’. 

‘I really don’t know what you see in her. She’s so.. So…’ I trailed off, not being able to choose just one word. Bitchy? Mean? Snobby? Undeserving of you? The list is endless. 

‘Hey!’ He snapped, ‘I know you don’t like her much, but she is my girlfriend, so how about you lay off her a little bit?’ His tone completely changed. ‘She’s really been there for me the past few months, you don’t see the side of her that I do’. 

‘Maybe because whenever we do see her, she acts stuck up like she’s better than us. We get it, she’s a trust fund brat’. 

‘Piper, I mean it. Quit it!’. I rolled my eyes and muttered a ‘’whatever’’ under my breath before standing up. I took his blazer off and passed it over to him. ‘Don’t pout, put it back on, you’ll freeze’. 

‘No, I’m fine’. My tone was stone. I gave him no emotion at all. He growled in frustration, and as I went to walk away, he grabbed me by the wrist and pulled me back. With the sudden force, I crashed right against his chest again and struggled against his hold, but admittedly, not too badly. ‘Cory, get off me!’. 

‘Can you just pretend to be nice, for me?’ 

‘I am nice’. I told him, sass filled my tone. His grip on me loosened, but he didn’t let go, and I didn’t try to get free. 

‘You’re not. You’re bratty and mean’. His voice dropped as he leaned close. My breathing stopped. What was he doing? 

‘Am I?’ I teased, and he smirked. I swear… was he flirting with me?! 

No. No, of course he fucking wasn’t. Get a grip, Piper. 

‘Yeah… you are’. There was silence between us for a few seconds too long, and I began to doubt myself. Was he flirting? Was I crazy?! What is going on?! 

‘Cory..’ His name came out breathy and almost like a sigh, but a smile broke out across his face, and he stepped away again. 

‘Come on, Little sister, let's go home’. He put emphasis on it this time and started walking without me. Leaving me standing there, confused, blinking, and looking after him. 

What the fuck was that?!

By the time I caught up with Cory again, he had his phone pressed to his ear, and he held his finger to his lips, telling me to ‘’shhh’’. 

‘Hey baby, I’m on my way to my mum's now, so it won’t be too long’. I could hear Sarah on the other end of the phone, but couldn't hear what she was saying. At least I assumed it was Sarah; it was a safe bet. ‘Yeah, I know, sorry, we were having a little moment. Piper was upset, I was just comforting her’. 

I looked at him and raised my eyebrow. He just shook his head, silently telling me not to start. He knew me so well. 

‘Why? What do you need?’ He stopped for a second, and so did I. ‘Oh? Can’t you wait until we get back tonight?’ I could tell by his facial expression that he wasn’t happy. ‘No, I understand, but-’ He stopped talking, she had clearly cut him off, before he sighed, said ‘’Ok’’ and hung up the phone. 

‘Everything alright?’ He started walking again, but didn’t say anything. ‘Cory?’ 

‘We have to stop by my hotel. Sarah wants me to pick her up a change of clothes’. My eyebrows scrunched together in confusion. 

‘What does she need a change of clothes for?’

‘She got wet in the rain, she just wants to look her best, since she’s around the family’. He sounded just as annoyed as I’m sure I looked. 

‘It's a wake, not a fucking fashion show’. 

‘Look, can you just stop! It will take two minutes’. Giving up, not wanting to clearly frustrate him more, I agreed, and the, admittedly, short walk into town, to their hotel, was in complete silence…