Page 95 of Spark

Aurelio merely laughed, putting his hands up in surrender. The progress up the stairs was slow. Mia kept yawning and stopping, her body begging to collapse right there. But Aurelio said nothing, just walked behind her patiently. Finally, her door came into view, and with it, Melvin. His arms were crossed, his face stern. She stood taller despite her protesting legs.

“And where did you sneak off to?” Melvin asked, eyes going from Mia to Aurelio.

“Well, I told you I wouldn’t fuck him in the same room as my brothers.” Mia pushed past him and into the loft. Aurelio stopped before her brother, waiting with a smile.

Melvin rolled his eyes, moving to the side. “Go to bed,” he ordered, returning to the couch.

“Yes, Dad,” Mia said, almost immediately regretting it. As she held her breath, she heard Melvin let out a deep one.

“Melvin, I’m—”

She stared at the couch as his stern voice rang out, interrupting her. “Go to bed.”

Mia turned toward the bed where Aurelio already waited. She slid into his strong arms, his warmth calming her nerves. Together, they settled, sleep overtaking them.

Chapter Thirty

Melvin woke Mia up a few hours later by stomping around the loft. She opened her eyes and watched through the curtain as he stalked out of the bathroom to the fridge. The light illuminated his face; anger set his jaw in a hard line. Mia sighed, putting her head down. A gentle tap on her head made her lift it again.

Aurelio’s eyes met hers. “Go,” he mouthed quietly.

Mia frowned and nodded, rolling her eyes. He gave a light chuckle and lifted his arm to let her slide out. Melvin was still at the fridge, eyes unfocused and far away. Mia looked back at Aurelio, who waved a hand at her to get moving and rolled over, falling back asleep. Mia made her way quietly to Melvin, tiptoeing across the cold floor.

“BFG.” She placed a hand on his.

Melvin didn’t move; his shoulders were rigid. “Go back to sleep, Mia.”

“Can we talk?” she asked, her fingers on his.

Melvin’s shoulders fell slightly, his hand grabbing hers, allowing the fridge door to slowly close. “Yeah.” He gave her a small smile.

They walked to the door, slid it open, and stepped into the hall. Holding his hand, Mia led them to the stairs. On the next landing, they sat down.

“I love you, BFG. I am so happy to have you here, to be able to actually hug you guys, to do stuff together, to hang out.”

“Me, too, bug,” Melvin agreed, his fingers still in hers. “I love you with all my heart.”

“But...” she sighed, turning to look at him. “…you need to stop acting like my dad.”

His shoulders slumped, eyes downcast.

“When Dad died, I felt his weight descend onto my shoulders.” He slumped, his shoulders dropping with the invisible weight she knew he carried. “I needed to keep all of you safe. And for years, I have let you down.” He didn’t look at her, but Mia slid closer. She put on hand in his, the other coming to his chin.

“No, you haven’t.” She lifted his chin, his eyes meeting hers. “BFG, you kept me the most safe.”

“No.” he shook his head, her hand falling. “I should have found a way for you to come back sooner; instead, I left you in exile like a coward.”

“Melvin!” Her heart was breaking for him. “All of it is in the past. We need to move forward and figure out the rest of it. What happened, happened, and like it or not, it’s our story. But now, we need to figure out what the happy ending is.” She squeezed his hand, his eyes looking to her once more.

Melvin smiled, his eyes becoming softer.

“Bug, I have missed you so much.” He threw his arms around her, pulling his little sister into the biggest hug.

“I missed you too, BFG.” She squeezed him back. “Can you please get along with Aurelio now?” Her eyes turned pleading.

“You love him?”

“I do, very much.”

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