Page 188 of Rules of Association

I couldn’t help but smile slightly as I moved a curtain of hair off the side of her face, tucking it behind her ear. “What, you just want to cry then?”

She nodded, her face crumpling even more. I swallowed the pain twisting on my heart. “You can cry all you want, just tell me what’s going on.”

“What do you mean what’s going on!” she asked, hiccupping and hitching breaths. “You disappeared and were mean to me and then she was mean to me and everyone wants something from me and all I want is for this to be over and for you to be done being mad at me.”

“Is that it?” I asked softly, rubbing a thumb along her jumping temple.

Her lip poked out again as it trembled. Tears ran down her face so fast they slid right off her chin, landing on hands that were smashed together in her lap. She sniffled. “What do you mean is that it?”

“I mean I’ve seen you sunburned to your toes, scratched in the eye by Lila, sick with the fluandfood poisoning twice, and hiding in a cellar. If you weren’t crying then, you aren’t crying because someone was‘mean to you’.” I said, and I meant it. I didn’t know what the fuck happened here, but I was suddenly murderous with the thought that someone had done something to her. I lowered my voice. “You know I’ll fight for you, sweetheart. Just tell me what’s up.”

Her tears were slowing and she sniffled. “Lissy was mean to me. She hurt my feelings.”

“Your sister?” I asked, and she nodded. “What did she do?”

She shook her head absently. “You too, Con.”

“I hurt your feelings?”

She nodded.

“I’m sorry.”

She shook her head, those tears threatening to work their way up again.

“Will you talk to me?”

“About what?”

“About the beach.”

“I…” she started but stopped. Flicking her gaze up to me she looked for a second before sniffling away. “I dunno.”

“We need to talk about it, Cee. Ignoring it is not really an option for us.”

“Us?” she asked, looking up at me, her eyes searching. Hopeful.

“Us,” I said firmly.

She stayed quiet for a little while, staring at the floor as her breath hitched and her nose sniffled. Then she floated soft worn eyes up to me again and I wondered if I had really done this or had something else happened. Nodding, she said, “Okay, but get rid of the peanut gallery first.”

I followed her cutting gaze to the door. It was ajar and all around it were the nosey-ass shapes of our siblings leaning their heads in. Even Clint and Ox could be spotted leaning against the wall as they looked on shamelessly.

“For fucks sake,” I grumbled, pushing off the bed and crossing the room. Grasping the door in my hand I moved to shut it, but not before I got the commentary of our audience.

“Did she say she had feelings?” Mattí asked.

“Did she call me Lissy?” Melissa asked in a wobbly voice.

Clay was staring at me with wide concerned eyes, “Dude. Since when are you two a thing?”

“I told you,” Clint said from his perch on the wall. “Girlfriend.”

“Girlfriend!” Tine squeaked along with Alta. “Ceci?”

“What happened in a cellar?” someone asked.

“Who’s Lila?” asked someone else.

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