Landon:Who are you and what have you done with our silent Creighton?
Brandon:Is it really you, Creigh?
Eli:Emergency state. He must’ve been kidnapped.
Remington:You guys are just jealous. Go die.
Then he sends a series of evil laughing GIFs.
I throw my phone aside, use my hand as a pillow, and stare at the ceiling.
A dark ball jumps onto my chest and I sigh as Tiger decorates my T-shirt with his hair.
This cat is another reminder of Annika. Of her sweet smiles when she sees him and the baby voice she uses to talk to him.
“Listen here, you little twat.” I hold him up so I’m staring at him. “No more climbing onto her shoulder or head or I’ll throw you out on the streets.”
He merely glares at me with those hooded eyes the way snobbish cats do and attempts to scratch me.
Christ.
I can’t believe I’m both talking to a cat and jealous of it.
My door slams against the wall as my brother strolls inside with the nonchalance of a jaded warrior.
Tiger jumps, then runs out, probably to find Brandon. He’s his favorite after Annika.
Eli stops by the side of my bed, stares down at me with a critical gaze, and crosses his arms. “You’re not kidnapped. Wait, have you lost your phone…” he trails off, a frown etching between his brows when he sees it on the side table.
Instead of buggering off and leaving me alone, Eli sits on the edge of the mattress and runs his fingers beneath my chin. “What’s going on, baby bro? Is someone bothering you? Who should I maim to pieces, then dump their remains in the sea?”
“Forget it.”
“Bullshit. If it’s affecting you to the point that you’re not only texting, but also defending Remi instead of drowning in sleep, I need to know about it.”
I let out a long breath. Eli is no different than a dog with a bone, and he absolutely won’t leave me alone until he gets what he wants.
And at the moment, maybe I can use his ‘wisdom’ to find a solution.
“Jeremy caught me with Annika in a grocery store and she went back with him.”
Eli’s movements halt beneath my chin, but he doesn’t remove his hand. “And? Did you beat him to a pulp?”
“I wanted to. I still do, but Annika intervened.”
“I see.”
My eyes meet his muted ones, and it reminds me of those times we got in trouble—because of his anarchist plans—and he tried everything under the sun to come out unscathed.
Without implicating either of us.
Dad usually caught on to his schemes and punished him, though. But Eli didn’t mind as long as I wasn’t blamed for his actions.
The world might consider him abnormal, but he’s been my role model ever since I figured out what a role model means.
I sit up in bed and he leans against the headboard beside me, stretching his legs out on the mattress.
“How can I get her back without antagonizing her brother?”