Page 10 of Aching for His Discretion

“He’s my kitty, Bevs, nothing more, nothing less.”

Soon, I bid her goodbye as she walked to her car, and I began making my way home. On my way, however, I flinched when I heard a voice behind me.

“Teegan... I hear you’re coming to my party,” Alec said, looking down at me with a smile.

I shrugged. “I-I’m still thinking about it.” Truth be told, I had no intentions of going, but Beverly was being so persistent that it was hard to say no.

“Well, I definitely hope to see you there,” he replied, giving me a slight wink as he walked away. I bit my lip as I held my bag a bit tighter and speed-walked my way home.

Alec was sometimes harmless, but he sent shivers down my spine for all the wrong reasons at times. I didn’t favor being alone with him for any reason whatsoever.

Upon arriving home, I placed my keys in the lock, and looked up to see Mitchel walking into his apartment, looking battered and shaken up. He unlocked his door but paused as I spoke.

“Mitchel, are you okay?” I asked him softly.

He didn’t say anything as he entered his apartment and slammed the door shut. Levi was helping him pack the other day, and I knew he was a bit late on rent.I hope he’s holding up okay.

I opened my door, and Grayson immediately made his way through my ankles happily as he purred. I picked him up slowly and petted his fur as he snuggled closer to me. Walking over to the couch, I sat with him and brought out a few of my flashcards. Soon, he had gotten comfortable in my lap and dozed off.

I received a phone call from my mother as I’d just finished detangling my hair tie from my bun, letting my messy curls fall down my back.

“Hi, Mama,” I said after I answered, and I could tell she was delighted as she replied.

“Oh Teegan, sweetheart, how are you, my baby? I just wanted to call and say hi,”she said happily, and I automatically knew something was up. She only gets this happy when—

“Your brothers are here to visit, and oh, do they miss you. They were looking forward to seeing you, but they became upset hearing that you were still out of town,”she said sadly.

I unconsciously played with Grayson’s hair. I found peace and freedom being in school, and even if we were just a few hours away, I never felt the urge to go back to visit them. I enjoyed visiting my parents… but not my brothers.

Dakota was the oldest at twenty-nine years old and the most reasonable of the two. He was my best friend for the majority of my life before he suddenly found a disinterest in me when I wanted to go to medical school. I remember him always telling me to chase my dreams and ignore my bullies… before he turned to the dark side himself.

And Declan, only two years younger…scares me. He was never all that nice to me to begin with, taking the spotlight, being the youngest, I presume, and I believe he put the evil idea into Dakota’s mind that women shouldn’t be in medicine. He was truly awful and never approved of anything I did, which makes me question why I still seek their validation at times.

“Oh, that’s… great, Mama.”

My hands began getting a bit clammy and shaking slightly, and she gasped softly.

“I forgot the apple pie in the oven! Boys, why don’t you have a chat with your sister? I’m sure it’s been a while since you three spoke to one another,”she said in a hurry, and soon, there was silence over the phone.

“Well, hello, little sister,”I heard Declan start.

I gulped softly as I responded. “Hi.”

Dakota continued,“Why haven’t you visited home recently? Mama was talking about you not wanting to be home a bit earlier.”

“I’ve been very busy… b-but I talk to Mom every day,” I said, trying to make up for the fact that I hadn’t seen them in more than five months.

“That doesn’t answer the fucking question,”Declan growled, and I bit my lip as tears filled my eyes. They were always so meanto me.“Mama misses you… and here you are, putting a career over your family. Do you understand how selfish you’re being?”he asked me, and I took a deep breath, trying to control the tears threatening to spill.

“I-I’m not trying to, but it’s something I really want to d-do,” I whimpered as I wiped my eyes quickly.

“If this is how you’re going to act now, imagine when you have children, your own family. You won’t be fit to be a doctor and a mother at the same time. You can barely take care of yourself,”Dakota bellowed through the phone.

I couldn’t help but sob silently as I felt the weight of the world on my shoulders once again. They made me cry like this before, and it took me days before I could stop.

I didn’t hear anything for a moment, then Declan spoke with irritation.

“Here she goes with the fucking tears,”he muttered, and I couldn’t help but sob even more.

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