40.

oops. 00:03- i tried.

hooooooooly cow, here's a long one for you. I just really wanted to use the cow photo.

Also - Here's another cow photo for your viewing pleasures. OMG wait they might be donkeys.

P.s. :) definitely not error proofed because i gave myself a deadline which i failed but yolo!

~How to Get Away With Murder~

0830 on Monday

1st day of Trial

Vincent Merling v State of Florida

For the life of her, Hayes could not sit still.

Which is how Baker found himself outside once again, after already going through the mind-numbing process of waiting in line, going through the ancient metal detector, and getting cleared to enter the building.

But he didn't mind, for it beat sitting on a hard bench that hurt his ass and staring at the back of some random person's head, all the while picking his nose because he was bored to death.

Outside, he can people-watch to his heart's desire while not unnecessarily hurting his ass.

So in a round-about-way, he was thankful that Hayes was so fidgety.

Baker was leaning against the far left white pillar outside the courthouse. There were a total of six, decorating the front entrance of the building, providing a protective cover from nature's elements. Which usually meant the brutal sun beams, but today there was a slight breeze in addition to, ruffling his unruly blonde hair.

His black slacks-covered legs were crossed at the ankle, revealing a sliver of his funky banana skateboarding socks.

Don't ask, they were a birthday gift from Francis one year and that's all the explanation one needs. And since Baker doesn't have the opportunity to wear such fancy socks often, he made sure to pack them for the occasion... and send a picture to Francis so he could appreciate the style as well.

Made the kid's whole day.

Baker's arms were crossed against his chest, his muscles evident, with his phone securely held in his right hand. He been reading Lindsey's rant messages about how he'd been given temporary FTO duty since someone took some days off work. Baker made sure to rub the 'vacation' in his face, telling his partner that he hopes the trainee locks the keys in the car. After Lindsey told him to kindly fuck off, the guy stopped responding, indicating he probably went to sleep after working the night shift.

Baker gave off a vibe of intimidation as anyone who happened upon his being quickly drifted their attention elsewhere. His mouth was pressed into a thin line, unbothered as his gaze lazily tracked the various passerby's though he never took an eye off his little sister for longer than a split second.

For a random courthouse in Timbuktu, God-knows-where Florida, this place was quite busy with foot traffic. He was curious to know what kind of troubles these people were getting in to. His wife, Peyton, went through a Judge Judy phase and so he knew all about stupid little tiffs that people had with one another. He might just have to take a bathroom break at some point and check out the other courtrooms.

Baker yawned. A flick of the wrist revealed the time on his watch. They should probably go inside before Austin starts asking where they are. Always a stickler, Austin was, the perfect quality for being the eldest brother and keeper of all his siblings. Baker couldn't imagine being in Austin's shoes, even though they shared a lot of the responsibilities.

He tucked his phone back in his pocket and pushed off the wall. Time to retrieve his sister.

Hayes looked ironically peaceful, standing a few feet away from him. Her black skirt was blowing gently with the morning breeze.

It made his resting bitch face turn into a smile. Hayes hated wearing the skirt with a passion, but she looked absolutely positively adorable in it.

But God forbid if any of the brothers said that, they received a bruise in return.

No mercy from the little one.

Stubborn as she was, because Austin left no room for discussion regarding the skirt,  Austin ended up compromising with the little girl by allowing her to wear her nicest pair of sneakers instead of the originally planned black flats.

How Hayes then snuck the sweatshirt she was currently wearing, Baker didn't know. Also, how was she not sweating in that thing? Florida was much hotter than South Carolina, even with this generous wind.

Austin must be choosing his battles wisely, he supposed.

Smart man.

She'd been standing there in one spot for a hot minute now, having previously been striding up and down the steps that led up to the front of the building. And here Baker thought that pacing was one of Glen's quirks.

He figured Hayes must of gotten lost in her thoughts, the telltale sign being that she didn't make a move to brush the wisp of hairs out of her face.

Much like him, Hayes hated having the strands block her eyes which was peculiar since she always had fly-aways.

Also much like him and every single one of their siblings, thoughts could be dangerous when left to linger on them for too long.

Good thing he was here to intervene.

Big brother to the rescue!

Baker sauntered over to where Hayes stood at the tippy top of the grand staircase, facing out towards the street so she had the vantage point to watch all the other people milling about if she wanted to.

She didn't like crowds very much, hence why she was all the way in the corner.

His hand landed on her head before running down her ponytail, twirling it loosely around his index finger. His presence was a reminder that she wasn't alone. "You ready to go inside?"

Her spidey senses must have been working because she didn't even flinch.

Hayes shrugged.

Baker didn't accept that as an answer. His large hand plopped back down on top of her head, manipulating her head so she nodded 'yes' and then twisted side to side as 'no'.

Hayes ducked down, escaping his grasp with a whine. "Baker, stoooop."

"Would you like some cheese with that whine?" Baker chuckled amusingly, tugging on her ponytail again just for the heck of it.

She narrowly missed stomping on his foot, as Baker's own spidey SWAT reflexes kicked in.

That would of stung.

"How dare you try to hurt your big brother," he drawled, trapping her in his embrace so she was now stuck, her back to his chest. His arms looped around her front in the shape of a Y, reaching her belly button where he gave her stomach a quick pat.

Instead of using her words, Hayes then tried shoving her bony elbow backwards into his gut, while trying to wiggle her arm in between her body and his arm to loosen his grip.

She reached impact and that was surely going to leave a bruise on him but Baker wouldn't relent that easily.

Baker rested his chin on her head, unperturbed, continuing to torment her. "That's all you got, sunshine?"

"No," she huffed, continuing to squirm as she attempted to break free. It probably looked real funny to whoever was watching the siblings' scuffle. Or, considering they were standing outside an official government building, someone might call security on them.

As a last resort, Hayes blindly grabbed at his fingers, latching onto his middle finger and pulled it backwards.

Reaching the extension limits of his poor finger, Baker tapped out with another pat to her belly and a resounding groan. "Owie ow, okay you win."

A proud grin adorned her lips at finally beating her brother at his own game. Hayes whirled around, showing off her moment of glory with a quick upward flex of her own muscular but slim arms. Baker pursed his lips, trying hard to not laugh as he shook his hand out and flexed his fingers, making sure they all still were functioning.

Yep, he still has ten working fingers. All good.

For extra emphasis on her victory, Hayes stuck her tongue out at him.

"Sure, rub it in, Princess. That's the last time I go easy on you," Baker flicked her nose.

For some reason, unbeknownst to the brother, those words did the magic trick of immediately snuffing out the lively spirit that was beginning to rise once again inside her.

"Please don't call me that," Hayes stated in such a flat, unemotional tone that if Baker hadn't been looking directly at her, he would have sworn someone said it.

Her gaze dropped to the floor, staring at the scuffed flooring that was in desperate need of a buff, the previous brightly blue eyes instantly dulled. Her fingers fumbled with the sleeves of her sweatshirt as she felt the coldness within her bones.

Baker felt his heart drop to his stomach, for he didn't know his own wrongdoing until it was too late. Though he didn't know the associated implication, he guessed it went along the lines of the Bear and the last thing he wanted was to make this day any more difficult than it was already.

One thing was for sure, he'd never use that word again.

"Hayes, I'm so sorry," He instantly apologized, ducking down to try and catch her eye. When Hayes purposefully turned her head away from him, not wanting him to catch her hurting, he reached out and held her shoulders so she couldn't flee from him.

Hayes was a known runner when she was uncomfortable.

"It's okay," she muttered, though everything about her body posture screamed otherwise. The rigid stance and stiff shoulders, crossed arms, avoidant gaze... she was anything but okay.

But she knew Baker didn't know and she didn't have grievance against him. She just needed a second to shake off the nightmare that currently held her hostage.

Which, the rational side of her brain recognized that she needed Baker's help to do so. His persistent bugging would bring her back and save her.

"Baby, look at me," Baker caught a loose strand flying in her face and tucked her hair behind her ear, his hand remaining curled around the side of her head, slowly raising her head up. "Sunshine, please?"

Hayes' gaze settled somewhere over Baker's right ear. She blinked a couple times as her eyes inadvertently filled with tears. Dang it, she hadn't cried in a while, not including this morning when Glen accidently wacked her in the forehead with his cast. Or her birthday when she may or may not have shed a few tears. Or...

No.

Today was an exception. She was already worked up because she was about to see her grandfather after months a part and secrets uncovered. A lot has changed. He was being tried for murder of their own mother, for crying out loud.

That's why she was so bothered. It wasn't because she was as weak as a baby, upset over a stupid nickname.

She was allowed to cry.

Then why was she hastily rubbing her eyes with the palms of her hands as if they were a magic eraser and could make it all disappear.

"You're not weak," Baker murmured, taking hold of her wrists and gently pulling them away from her face. Before she could recover her face, he engulfed her in a warm hug.

She must have said that out loud.

Hayes kept mute, clenching onto Baker's wrinkle-free navy blue polo with one fist as her other hand snuck up and rubbed her eye some more.

"I'm sorry for making you feel this way," his voice was muffled by her hair as he pressed a kiss on the crown of her head. "That was not my intent whatsoever. You're not weak, Sunshine, not even close."

The only response he got was Hayes' little sniffles as she willed herself not to let any more tears escape. Her left cheek was smushed against the side of his chest, her right eye blinking but not really seeing as her free hand grabbed hold of his shirt as well. She was subconsciously trying to get as close to him as possible, leaving no space for intrusion to his comfort.

Baker sighed, holding her tight. One hand rested on her back, his right fingers threaded in her hair. He could only hope his presence was enough to counteract the damage he'd incidentally done.

Baker -2 : the Bear 38923

His phone vibrated in his pocket, reminding him that they were meant to be going inside right about now.

When it continued to vibrate several more times in a row, he got curious on who was texting him because it probably wasn't Austin. He didn't typically send serial messages like that, unlike himself, Francis or Emerson.

But Francis was in class and Emerson was probably sleeping since his classes didn't start until closer to noon, the lazy college student that he was.

Baker had his money on Dakota, the nosy bastard. His brother expected play-by-play updates all the time, but yet hated being questioned on what he was up to. He only ever gave real answers to Austin, usually Colton, and only Baker when he was in a nice mood.

Now he had two lovely hurdles on his hands and their names were Sunshine and Dickota, soon to be three if they stayed outside for much longer. He had a small inkling that Austin would be less than thrilled if the court session started and their seats were empty.

But, he also just figured out how to kill two birds with one stone because he was a fucking genius.

Baker deftly slid one hand into his pocket, retrieving his phone. Checking the screen, he did a mental pat on the back for being spot on with his assumption. Unlocking his phone, Baker didn't even bother reading the messages. He just went straight to contacts and clicked on Dakota's name from his recent call log.

He brought the phone up to his ear, hearing it ring, waiting for his brother to answer.

The phone clicked. "'Sup bitch ass, I'm working. What do you want?"

Baker could not restrain the eye roll. Working? This boy was unbelievable. He was just blowing up his phone not even two seconds ago.

But Baker did manage to withhold his own very mature greeting, instead going with a wiser response, because honestly, it was Dakota, so what else did he expect?

A respectful greeting to his older brother? Nah, he'd be fooling himself.

"Is that any way to talk to your favorite brother?" Baker questioned, smirking when he felt Hayes perk up a bit. Curious little bugger, she was.

He bet the wheels were turning as she tried to figure out who he was referring to.

"Favorite? What? The fuck you talking about, Willis?"

"Yeah, the hell I am your favorite." Baker retorted, squeezing Hayes' shoulder when she fully tilted her head back to look up at him. Her chin rested on his chest, her eyes no longer having that glossy appearance which was a good sign.

In fact, there might be a sparkle sighting.

Baker 0 : the Bear 38922

"I have Hayes with me, thought you'd want to say hello, but since I'm not the favorite..."

Dakota abruptly cut him off, "Of course I want to talk to her, put her on the fucking phone."

"What's the magic word?" Baker taunted, winking at Hayes.

"Fuck off," Dakota replied automatically, his breathing echoing loud into the speaker as he must of been doing some heavy lifting prior to taking the phone call. He cleared his throat. "Please," he added a whole lot more quieter, as if he didn't want his colleagues to know he had manners.

"Ah, now was that so hard?" Baker said condescendingly before offering the phone to their little sister. "You have a caller, Sunshine. Would you like me to hang up on him?"

Hayes shook her head no, giggling when Baker pulled the phone out of her reach when she went to take it.

"Baker," she groused as she stretched on her tippy toes. She even jumped once, a pathetic attempt that made her laugh again nonetheless.

Then Hayes got smart and was about to punch Baker in the gut but he read her mind right away and caught her fist. But as a reward for her attempts, Baker dropped his arm, this time allowing her to take it from him without teasing. He caught her chin before she could move away, and used his thumb to dry the wetness off her cheeks.

It took nothing but a second and then he dropped his hand, allowing Hayes to duck her head. She brought the phone up to her ear but didn't say anything first. She had her suspicion on who it could be but was still chary. She could have looked at the screen first, but it was too late for that now.

"You gonna talk Sunshine or are we just going to keep listening to each other breathe over the phone."

"Hi," Shy was her middle name, right there next to Trouble. Though her eyes crinkled at the sound of his voice.

"Hi," Dakota repeated, in a more mocking tone.

Hayes chewed on her bottom lip, "Hi."

"This is truly riveting conversation," Dakota snorted, "But I am glad to hear your voice. How's Florida? Are you sweating your balls off?"

"Umm, it's hot," came her simple response. She paused, before rushing out in a whisper mixed of exasperation and sass, "and I'm a girl, stupid. We don't have balls."

Baker's eyebrows rose in question. He only heard her half of the conversation and had to fill in the blanks.

While waiting for Dakota to respond, Hayes shook her other arm so her sweatshirt sleeve covered her fingers once again. She brought the sleeve to her mouth, hiding her lips as she readjusted her stance, leaning her weight against Baker.

After a second of delay, probably recovery from her quick wit, Dakota snickered "Our brothers may be guys but that doesn't mean they have balls either..." His laughter broke off into a cough, the environment he was in being a total dust field. "Sorry, its dusty as fuck out here. But anyways, hot, wow. So wait, are you outside? When does this thing start?"

"Now, I think," Hayes wrinkled her nose, corresponding with her unsure answer. She didn't know. She hadn't been paying attention and had no clue of the current time. "I'm not sure."

"Now? Then what the fuck are you doing on the phone?"

"I don't know," Hayes mumbled. Baker heard the slight tone of distress and ran his hand over her ponytail to relax her. He was about to take the phone back but she turned her head, blocking his angle.

There was rustling as Dakota transferred the phone from one ear to the other, "you okay?"

Hayes kept quiet, she didn't want to lie to him. But, she was starting to think she made a mistake in coming. Not only that, but she forced Glen into the hellish situation as well.

"I'm going to take an educated guess and say no," Dakota continued on when she didn't speak, "Are you psyching yourself out? 'Cause you're good at that... Hayes?"

"That's me," she glanced up at Baker who faintly smiled while briefly brushing his thumb over her cheek, erasing the stubborn tears.

Dang, he thought he fixed that. Austin wasn't going to be pleased.

"Nobody blames you if you're not okay, you know that right? Nobody blames you if you're fucking scared out of your mind right now. I don't know many people who have the balls to stand up to someone like this. Figuratively, yes, because I know you're a girl, whatever. You get the point. "

"I know," Hayes said, watching her sleeve flop in the wind. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"Me? Fuck no, I'm never okay, you should know that by now. I miss you, little girl."

Her heart picked up beats, "Miss you too, Dakota."

"Good, because if you didn't then we'd have some fucking problems. Now," Dakota cleared his throat, "I have to hang up before my boss gets on my fucking ass for talking on the phone with my sister instead of doing some shit task and you need to go inside and tell your grandfather that he can go fuck himself, alright? "

Hayes snorted at his blunt words and hid her head under Baker's arm. Without fail, she could feel her cheeks getting warm from Dakota's rousing speech. He always did have a way with words.

She could just feel Dakota smiling at her flustered reaction, "Okay but for real, I have to go. Tell Baker I say bye. Call me later and tell me all the juicy deets, yeah?"

"yeah," Hayes repeated, thinking about one juicy detail he would not be getting.

"Hey, if you tell anyone I'll deny it... but I love you."

Hayes closed her eyes tight, "Love you, Kota."

The phone went silent, indicating Dakota hung up. Hayes refused to leave her hiding spot, but she held the phone out for Baker to take, which he did, sliding it back into his pocket.

"Babe?" Baker rubbed her back, between the shoulder blades. "You ready to go inside now?"

Hayes rubbed her forehead against Baker's cooling shirt, "I guess."

"You guess?" Baker gasped dramatically. He forcefully pushed Hayes back by the shoulders, creating separation so she couldn't hide her face from him any more. He clicked his tongue in disappointment when there were visible tears still present.

Oh no, no, no. That simply wouldn't do.

If he was determined before, now he was tenacious.

Baker got another brilliant idea, one to surely get a response from her and get rid of any lingering tears. He gently but firmly cupped her cheek with his right hand before swooping in and planting a kiss on her opposite cheek.

And Bingo was his name-o.

"Baker," her cheeks flushed that rosy red, as she lifted her shoulder to rub against her cheek. Get rid of all his cooties.

"What?" he asked with a boyish smirk, making him look a lot like their younger brothers in that moment.

She couldn't resist her lips twitching upward, but instead of giving him the victory, she surged forward back into his embrace like a rocket. This time her skinny arms anchored around his waist so he couldn't pull her away.

"What did you say?" Baker chuckled after hearing a muffled sound come from his sister.

Hayes sighed dramatically, "I said, you're annoying!" she fibbed, pausing for extra effect before mumbling, "and I love you."

A grin formed on his lips as his sister said three of his favorite words, right above hullabaloo.

He reached behind him and effortlessly grabbed one of her hands. He lifted their conjoined hands up in the air, making her take a step back and twirl around like a ballerina.

Hayes giggled as Baker started walking at a generous pace towards the front doors of the courthouse, yanking her right along beside him. They were late, late, for a very important date.

He tilted his head down and sent her a wink. "I love you too, Sunshine."

————

"Where are they?"

"They'll be back." Austin rested his arm on the back of the pew, behind Glen's neck. The pair was sitting towards the back of the courtroom, Austin thought it'd be better in case they dipped out early, prepared for anything. He also wanted as much space as possible between his kids and their grandfather. "Baker gets distracted easily, but he'll find their way back sooner or later."

Baker had jumped at the opportunity to accompany Hayes to stretch her legs but Austin read beneath the lines. The last time the Powers siblings found themselves in a court room, it was not a pleasant time. Especially for Baker because for some reason or another, he got absolutely grilled by the Judge even though Austin was the one fighting for custody of their siblings.

Don't even get him started on the emotional trauma all the siblings shared. Two names were crossed off the guardianship request form that day.

Glen nodded his head once, making one big motion of dropping his chin to his chest then extending all the way back so it was against Austin's arm. Austin bent his elbow so he could scratch Glen's scalp, hoping the tender notion would calm him a bit. The kid had been acutely aware of every little thing since the moment they got out of the car in the adjacent parking garage.

"Austin, can I ask you a question?"

"Absolutely. What's on your mind?" Austin surveyed the courtroom as surprisingly, the place began to slowly fill up. He didn't recognize anyone, as the Rayon's hadn't made their appearance yet nor had their siblings returned.

Seemed like the case spread like wildfire throughout town, attracting the public whom were greedy for free entertainment.

If only it wasn't at the expense of his own family.

On that note, his attention dipped back to his youngest brother. When Glen started messing with the straying ends of his blue cast, Austin braced himself for what was to come.

"What did Stephen mean when he said Hayes was a wild card?" Glen eyes' flicked to Austin's before returning to his hands. "I heard him last night, I wasn't listening on purpose," he muttered on the defense before Austin got a word in.

"Wild card?" Austin hummed, thinking about how to answer. It was a caution that Stephen had managed to pass along, but Austin was already well aware. "It's nothing bad," Austin assured, knowing the curiosity in Glen's voice was barely a veil for his protective nature. The kid would snap to Hayes' defense in a millisecond no matter who it was against and vice versa as proven before.

"It's like... Well, here let's put it this way," Austin shifted in his seat so his body was turned towards Glen. It was a more intimate setting, to try to block out the rest of the courtroom. He talked in a hushed voice so they wouldn't call for unwanted attention. "You and Hayes were very young when everything happened, Hayes was practically a baby still. And even though you weren't that much older, you were already seven, old enough to be able to start understanding more difficult things. But Hayes, not so much."

"Okay," Glen said slowly. His brow furrowed, "wait, is this related to why we didn't remember you until I saw that picture?"

"Sort of," Austin twisted his hand in a so-so motion. "Let's talk big picture for a second. So everyone's brain is wired a bit differently, yes? Based on our life experiences and what not, shapes how we look at things."

"Yes," Glen acknowledged, poking his tongue in cheek as he listened attentively to Austin speak.

"So you have someone who may have a strict black and white response. They either see something as only good or only bad and that's it. Right or wrong. No in between. But then you have someone sort of like Hayes, where they also see a grey area. They can't pinpoint just one feeling and it gets confusing and complicated for them to understand."

"But a wild card?"

"He just meant that she keeps us on our toes with how she reacts to certain things."

Glen exhaled slowly, "certain things being like seeing the Bear."

"Exactly," Austin nodded, ruffling Glen's blonde hair. "From what Stephen has seen over the years and I've seen as well, he is definitely a grey area for her."

"So you're worried about what Hayes is going to do?" Glen raised his eyebrows, "Wait, what do you think she'll do? No wait, why aren't you worried about me?" He frowned, his thoughts jumping quicker than he can speak.

"I worry about both of you, all the time. But the difference is that you have your mind pretty much made up. You know where you stand in regards to him. Whereas Hayes...," Austin rubbed the back of his neck, "sometimes she struggles with it. And I'm not saying this is a black and white example, its not that easy," he trailed off, wanting to be careful with his words.

"I understand," Glen said.

"Yeah?"

Glen nodded, "Uh huh, don't worry, well, I mean maybe worry?" Glen took a deep breathe and tried again. "What I'm trying to say is that I've seen it, you know, what you're talking about, when we lived with the Bear. I thought, I mean we both did it, Austin. But, we did it to survive. "

Austin gave a thin lipped smile as he leaned forward and kissed Glen's head. "Don't overthink it. You're a good kid, Smiley."

"That's what you keep telling me," Glen replied with his signature cheesy smile.

Austin chuckled as he playfully pushed Glen's head away. "Smart ass."

Glen snickered as he ran a hand through his hair in a poor attempt to tame it. "Wait, Austin, is that why Dakota keeps saying Hayes has Stockholm syndrome or whatever?"

"Dakota says a lot of things," Austin answered, stopping short when the noise in the room increased. The two brothers watched as the prosecution team had just arrived, walking down the middle aisle like they owned the place. Their nice, very sleek, black suits definitely added to their intimidation factor. The team of three took their seats at the front table on the right side of the room, next to the jury stand.

"Who are they?" Glen was curious.

"The lawyers trying to put Vincent in jail." Austin explained.

"For killing our mom?" His tone was so matter-of-fact, that Austin knew that Glen had nothing but hatred for the woman. And he didn't blame him.

"Yes."

"Austin?" Glen was intently staring, watching their every move, "you said grey areas aren't bad?"

"I mean, I  wouldn't say bad. Not necessarily. It's more like complicated. Why?"

Because Glen didn't exactly think the Bear should be punished for that action.

Glen kept that comment to himself, shrugging instead. Then he had another question, one that probably should have come up a lot sooner than it had. But ignorance was bliss sometimes.

Glen sat up straight. "Umm," Glen stalled.

"What's up?" Austin squeezed Glen's shoulder as he crossed his right leg so his ankle rested on his left knee. He picked at the golden-red dog hair that some how got stuck to his pants, letting Glen take his time.

Unbelievable. Chubba was everywhere.

The courtroom was becoming distracting as a chair screeched, voices traveled, the door kept being pushed open and slamming shut.

"You okay, Bud?" Austin move his hand to the back of Glen's neck, tickling the baby hairs that were matted down. The kid was starting to sweat.

Glen stared up at Austin, allowing the eldest brother to see the burst of fear flirt across his face. "We're not," Glen gulped, "we're not part of this trial, right?"

"No," Austin asserted. He dropped his right leg back down as he leaned forward. "Your name should not be mentioned at all. You or Hayes. You have nothing to worry about. Stephen made sure of it."

Any response Glen may have had was swallowed when their two wandering siblings  finally returned from wherever they were exploring.

Glen rubbed his palms on his thighs, the sweat hidden by the pair of black slacks he had on.

Baker directed Hayes to enter the row before him, so the two kids were sandwiched between their big brothers. Made it not so easy for the two to escape in case something went down.

And with a wildcard in play, anything was possible.

Hayes plopped down in her seat with a huff, the redness on her cheeks mostly gone. One could hardly tell any crying occurred, unless their name was Austin, who picked up on it almost immediately.

He bit his tongue, choosing to tuck the conversation away for later.

"Where'd you go?" Glen asked, his eyes revealing his curiosity. His palms stilled, as all his nervous energy began to dissipate with his sister back by his side.

"Outside," Hayes replied with a small shrug. She glanced around before leaning over into Glen's personal bubble. She whispered, "Did you see him yet?"

Glen wordlessly shook his head no, his knee starting to bounce up a storm. And the anxiety was back.

The brother and sister stared at each other, able to communicate with a single look. Their shared tribulations creating such an unbreakable bond. It was like the kids entered into their own world, all the noises surrounding them became nothing but a background hum.

Everything was becoming too real.

Baker reached his arm back, making sure to mess up Glen's hair as he talked over their heads to Austin. But neither kid noticed nor comprehended the words being said.

Hayes linked her left pinky with Glen's.

Solidarity.

Her right hand braced against her stomach, all the nervous butterflies making her stomach ache.

Was it too late to go home?

Stephen and Deja Rayon scooted into the row behind them, greeting the eldest brothers with hand shakes. The kids didn't make any indication they heard them, flinching away when a hand landed on each of their shoulders.

Austin and Baker shared a glance of apprehension.

Both kids shivered at the same time as the door in the far left corner of the courtroom, the one leading into the secure hallway, opened. They suddenly found themselves unable to breathe as low and behold, escorted in was the Bear in all his glory. His aging white hair was tied back in a low ponytail, his beard combed. For the final touch, he pulled the look together with an average-joe sports coat and slacks that were a size too big, probably donated to the prison system. His hands were cuffed behind his back as the security guard held firm on his upper arm, leading him to the defendant's table. His attorney followed behind them.

The eldest brothers noticed right away when the kids' posture changed. Glen went rigid, straight back against the pew whereas Hayes shrunk down into Baker's side.

The Bear's authoritative presence still obviously rang strong in those two kids.

Baker felt Hayes shiver once more and tossed his arm around her shoulder to pull her even closer. She rubbed her calves together trying to get rid of the goosebumps.

They could finally take in the necessary breath of air when the Bear's attorney pulled the seat out from beneath the table and extended his hand, indicating for him to sit down. Four pairs of eyes were glued to their grandfather as he turned and sat sideways on the chair, allowing the guard access to remove his handcuffs.

Glen audibly gasped, his jaw parted, when the Bear turned his head 90 degrees to his shoulder and looked directly at the boy. Glen stared back, afraid to blink, afraid to make any movement.

When the Bear's gaze then settled to the right of him, Glen's eyes darted in the same direction.

Hayes.

The girl was laser-focused on their grandfather. So focused in fact, that she wasn't even aware of her lips whispering, "Hi grandpa," as she raised her right hand in a miniscule wave of greeting.

It was so silent, that her brothers barely heard her, so the Bear definitely did not. But he was able to read her lips if the small twitch of his lips were anything to go by.

Baker reacted instantly, sitting forward in his seat to provide a human barrier. He cut off his sister's view as he pulled her hand to his chest, giving a tiny squeeze of her fingers. The gesture shook Hayes from her mind as her bright blue eyes looked up to him, confusion evident.

"What?" she started to frown, her eyes daring to stray past his head.

"Look at me," Baker softly commanded, his other hand gripping her chin, hard enough to get her attention. "None of that, no more."

Glen watched Baker and Hayes for another beat before twisting to his left to address Austin. He needed to tell him that this was a stupid idea and he shouldn't have agreed to go just because Hayes asked him.

But Austin didn't look at his brother for his attention was still locked on their grandfather. Glen swung his head back to where the Bear sat, just in time to catch the gesture before he sat facing the front of the courtroom once again.

Glen's eyes went wide as he tried to make sense of what he just saw. He finally blinked before whipping his head back to Austin. "Did he just nod at you?"

Austin looked as though he was trying to figure it out too; What the angle was here. "I'm not sure," Austin said slowly.

There wasn't much time to ponder as the bailiff called, "All rise for the honorable, Judge Lincoln."

————

It didn't take long for the seating arrangement amongst the siblings to be mixed up.

Hayes was such hyperactive ball of energy that it was giving Glen even more anxiety as he continued to deeply analyze what the sign was suppose to mean to Austin. Thus how they ended up with Hayes fully sandwiched between her eldest brothers with Glen occupying the seat next to Baker.

And now she was plain bored, not understanding any of the legal talk that was happening right in front of her eyes. To be honest, the girl wasn't even trying to listen anyways, because turns out, listening to the details on how her evil mother was killed and then tossed like garbage was actually very disturbing.

It kind of felt like she was in a movie where instead of the actual law terminology, it's the character saying "legal legal legal," over and over again.

But that thought only kept her entertained for maybe five minutes.

At one point, Hayes completely abandoned the notion of sitting like a lady and brought her knees to her chest, her feet perched on the edge of the wooden pew. Thankfully she had on compression shorts underneath her skirt so nothing was scandalized before she could pull her sweatshirt over her knees.

Didn't matter though because Austin plopped his hand on her knee and gently pushed her leg so it slid back down to the floor, "Come on, babe, sit up properly."

Hayes listened to her brother, with a pout on her face, for another solid five minutes until she changed to sitting crisscross applesauce. Her knees bumped up against her eldest brothers' thighs but it didn't bother them, until she started bouncing them up and down like butterfly wings.

Austin's hand landed on her lap as a distraction. It worked as she busied herself by playing with his fingers. She was pushing his cuticles back when suddenly the air in the courtroom stilled.

Only took two hours for something interesting to finally happen.

She felt Austin shift uncomfortably in his seat as whatever was just said did not sit with him well.

Hayes's head snapped up to attention as she tried to replay the words she just heard because she's pretty sure she just heard her name.

"Objection your Honor! We agreed upon the terms that no minors were to be involved with this case." The defense attorney was on his feet, his palms slamming onto the table in a burst of outrage.

Her eyebrows rose upwards. She tilted her head upwards to catch Austin's eye. He glanced at her briefly, moving his hand to smoothly run it over her hair to calm her. But the knitted eyebrows on his face told her that he also had no clue what was happening.

Wait... she scrutinized the look he sent to Baker. Maybe he was following along.

The prosecutor kept talking, ignoring the interruption as he questioned the witness. Hayes didn't recognize them. "These minors are part of the reason that Jane Powers is dead! She was a single mother trying her best to provide for them! Wouldn't you agree?"

The Judge was not having it, "Objection sustained! Jury, strike the prosecution's statement regarding two minors under Mr. Merling's roof. Prosecution, control yourselves."

Whatever the prosecution had been saying though, struck a nerve with the defense, specifically, the Bear. As his attorney sat down, their grandfather rose to his feet. He pointed his finger angrily at the prosecutor. "Don't you dare, stand there and say that she," he spit out with such distaste for his estranged dead daughter, "was providing anything for those fucking kids except those drugs. She was going to kill them. I, "his finger shook with rage as he pointed at himself, "I took care of them, damn it. So you keep their fucking names out of your fucking mouth."

You could hear a pin drop.

The pure fury froze Glen and Hayes, the chills filled their bones. He sounded like he might have had the tiniest spot in his heart and actually loved them.

Oh frick.

Glen bent forward to look around Baker's solid body, trying to urgently catch Hayes' eye. All he could think was wild card. This was the moment Austin was on edge about.

Wild card. Wild card. Wild card.

"Defense, control your client immediately," Judge Lincoln demanded, lifting the the gavel to hit it on the desk. "This is not a circus. Do better, gentlemen."

The attorney put his hand on the Bear's arm, muttering something to get him to relent and sit back down. The two continued to whisper angrily back and forth, while the Prosecution continued his line of questioning.

The Judge gave a withering look to the defense party.

The attorney finally stood on his feet once again, not caring that he was interrupting. "The Defense has a request, your Honor."

That got everyone's attention. "Which is?" Judge Lincoln asked, his lips pursed as he was not thrilled with the chaos that was happening in his court room.

"My client would like to change his plea."

Whispers immediately broke out amongst the audience.

"Order! Order!" The Judge hit the gavel. "Go ahead, Defense."

"Vincent Merling pleads guilty to the murder of Tara Jane Powers."

Holy shit.

Time moved at warp speed. Glen's mouth opened and closed several times like a fish out of water. His hands started to sweat again as he watched the Judge accept the plea.

What felt like in seconds, their grandfather obediently stood to his feet, turning around so the court officer could put the handcuffs back on.

At the same time, Hayes' feet landed on the floor. She knew not what she was doing, acting out of instinct rather than thought.

Austin saw. "Hayes," he spoke quietly, a warning to please don't.

Hayes shook her head, her ponytail swinging back and forth. "No," she muttered, "No."

"Baby, it's okay," Austin perched on the edge of the bench, one hand on her knee in a calming manner.

Her gaze didn't waver from where the Bear stood in the front, getting re-arrested right in front of her eyes. "No," her bottom lip started to wobble.

Baker turned to her from her other side, his arm going around her shoulders. His head bent close to her ear. "Shh, Sunshine."

"They are hurting him," her voice shook, "they're hurting him," she repeated louder, starting to become distraught.

"Come on, let's go outside." Austin gripped her arm, gently but still firm so she knew it wasn't a suggestion.

Hayes shook her head no as Austin pulled her up.

"Stop," she finally cried out, catching attention now from the people around her. The audience had already begun filing out of the court room now that the verdict was set. "Let him go!"

Hayes tried to break free from Austin but he was unrelenting and completely out-muscled her. He guided her towards the end of the pew where Stephen and Deja were waiting to assist them out.

It would have been so much easier if the siblings were able to just walk out, bringing no more attention to their group.

But Hayes wasn't having it.

Her tiny fists began throwing punches at Austin, hitting anywhere she could reach. She was freaking out.

"Hayes." Austin managed to grab her fist, maneuvering so both her wrists were trapped in his one large hand.

"Nooooo," she threw her weight backwards in an attempt to catch him off guard. "He was helping us! Stop them, Austin, please," she started to beg as the tears steamrolled down her cheeks. Hayes turned her head to look back over her shoulder at the Bear.

He was watching with a blank face, putting up no resistance to his arrest.

That's it.

Austin grounded his molar teeth together at the pleading in her voice. He was not going to allow her to be in his manipulative presence anymore. Austin wrapped his fingers around her upper arm, tugging Hayes closer so he had more control over her chaotic, unpredictable movements.

He caught Stephen's eye, who nodded and took Deja's hand, the two paving the way for the siblings to escape the hell hole of the court room.

Not liking how Hayes kept trying to look back, Baker walked after them in the direct path of her view. His hand reached back and attached to Glen's wrist, making sure the kid was following right behind him.

Only, that left Glen vulnerable as no one was behind him to block his view of the Bear. Which is why he swore he saw the Bear mouth something to him.

Bye, kid.

————

"Sunshine, I need you to breathe..."

"Hayes..."

"Baby, just look at me."

All of Austin's words were falling on deaf ears as Hayes continued to act recklessly. She wasn't thinking, she was only reacting. Her fists had struck out to pummel his chest once more.

The problem was she didn't understand why she was reacting the way she was. Hayes' brain wasn't able to comprehend the past and present.

Just like Austin predicted, though he didn't think it would be this bad.

Austin led her to an empty bench that was a couple meters away from the dreaded court room. A quieter area, he pushed her shoulders down gently to have her sit, and squatted down in front of her. Her hands remained clasp tightly in his as he tried to get her attention.

Baker, Glen, and Stephen Rayon stood behind him, providing privacy from all the distant but curious onlookers. Baker hated every last one of those nosey fuckers.

Deja dug around in her mom-purse, pulling out a pack of squished tissues and an unopened water bottle. She hurriedly stuck the tissues in Austin's hand.

Glen shuffled from foot to foot before tapping Austin on the shoulder. "Can I try?"

Austin glanced up at his kid brother, taking in his fraught expression before it morphed into determination.

"Sure, bud," Austin stood to his full height, allowing Glen to step in front of him.

Glen sat back on his haunches. "HayHay, it's me, Glennard."

Her eyes flicked to him, their childish nicknames forever holding a spot in her heart.

"Just me and you, HayHay," He whispered calmly.

"Glen, we have to help him," Hayes whimpered.

Glen slowly shook his head, "No, Hayes."

"Why not? We have to, Glen! He, he took care of us." she stumbled over her words, not understanding why they weren't listening to the urgency in her voice.

"No, Hayes, you can't say that. You know it's not true," his voice cracked at the end like a pre-pubescent boy.

Hayes didn't want to hear it, her hands flying up to block her ears. She looked up, desperation on her face as her eyes darted between Austin and Baker. She needed them to help her help their grandfather.

"Hayes," Glen's voice hardened, needing to get his message across. He didn't know if she was going to hate him for it, but he had to do something. "He didn't take care of us. You know that. He hurt us, Hayes, remember? He killed mom and he could have killed us. That's the truth."

Hayes shook her head, refusing to look at him.

Glen reached up and harshly pulled her right hand down. He laced their fingers together before she could pull away.

"Your two front teeth were knocked out when you were seven because you didn't see the remote the Bear threw at you after he tripped over your shoes."

It was a vivid, bloody, memory of Hayes hysterically crying, not something Glen would forget.

He kept going.

"We have a bucket next to the toilet because its been leaking for the past five years and the Bear refused to fix it. The bucket overfilled one time, remember? And he dumped the water on our bed because he was pissed we asked for extra towels to clean the floor. Do you remember where we slept for a week?"

Hayes kicked her leg out, nailing Glen in the knee. "Stop."

Glen ricocheted back against Austin's legs who kept him from falling on his butt. "No, you stop! Listen to me, Hayes. He's no good!"

"He fed us. He gave us a home." Hayes argued.

"That was never our home," Glen snapped back.

Austin was ready to step in, resting his hand on Glen's head, "Easy, buddy."

Glen glared daggers into Hayes' head as she avoided his gaze. But his words were starting to reach her.

She knew her home was with Glen and Austin and Baker and all their crazy, loving brothers.

But how could she ignore that the Bear took care of them all these years. He protected them from their mother. He even said it!

Hayes shook her head, all the voices merging together.

Glen put his hands on his thighs, regaining his balance and standing up. He started unbuttoning the top of his shirt. "Look at this," He demanded Hayes.

"Glen, what are you doing?" Austin asked with a frown.

"Remember when you shared with them how the Bear broke my arm?" Glen hissed, "you know you forgot something."

Hayes didn't say anything but her gaze was trained on his shoulder. Glen pulled the collar of his shirt down just enough to reveal a long, nasty looking, but very faded scar. No one would notice it unless they were purposefully looking for it.

"Where did you get that?" Baker asked, getting a closer look.

Glen looked pointedly at Hayes, "Why don't you tell them?"

Hayes bit her bottom lip before pinching her eyes closed. She pulled her knees up to her chest, crossing her arms and resting her forehead on them.

It was becoming all too much for her.

"Come on, HayHay," Glen goaded her. "Don't be a chicken."

Austin put his hand out and pulled Glen back by his shirt, stopping the fight before it could escalate any further. He could not go through this again.

"I want to go home," Hayes mumbled.

"What?" Baker sat gingerly on the bench next to her, not wanting to startle her.

"I want to go home. I don't want to be here anymore." She lifted her head up, the beginnings of a red mark appearing on her forehead from where it was pressed harshly against her arm.

"Home?" Glen repeated, suddenly very unsure of what she meant.

"I wanna go home," Hayes' voice turned to whimpers. "I wanna go home. I miss our brothers. I wanna go home, now."

Glen let out a sigh of relief.

Austin stepped past Glen to sit on the other side of Hayes. "Alright baby, let's go home," Austin rubbed her back, glancing over her head at Baker.

Hayes suddenly broke, letting out a sob, "Austin."

"Sunshine, it's okay," his hand slipped over her shoulder, gently pushing her head to lean on his shoulder, his other hand rubbing her shoulder now. She was starting to attract the security guards who walked the halls.

"I'm not a tough cookie, Austin," Hayes' body wracked with her sobs, using the words he used to once describe her. "I'm not tough. I wanna go home."

"Okay, baby, I got you." Austin kissed her head. He wasted no time sneaking a hand beneath her knees. He stood, his baby sister safe in his arms.

Hayes hid her snot face in Austin's shirt, her sobs becoming muted by his shirt.

Baker followed his lead, standing up and putting a hand on Glen's shoulder. As they walked down the hallway to the front exit, he knocked his head against Glen's. He had the urge to lighten the thoughts in his little brother's head, because thoughts were dangerous. Especially after the secrets he spilled. "Let's blow this fucking popsicle stand. You with me, Smiley?"

Glen chuckled pathetically with whatever strength he had left, "I'm with you."

He was more than ready to get the hell out of Florida.

————

Three car doors opened, two slammed shut.

Hayes flinched, curling further into herself, partially hidden by her Comfy that hadn't been brought into the hotel. She laid on the seats in the back row of the car, her head facing the back of seat in front of her. She had zoned out, not even realizing the car stopped moving.

"Hayes, we're here," Glen ducked back into the car when she didn't climb out after him. His right hand grabbed the car frame, his fingers tapping as he waited for her.

"She's not here right now, leave a message." Hayes deadpanned. She just didn't care anymore about anything.

Her brain was finally silent, and it was beautiful.

Scary beautiful.

There were no screaming thoughts confusing the hell out of her and creating her impulsiveness to alleviate the chaos for only a brief moment.

Something that her brothers always managed to do, without even knowing. Their presence were like a smothering blanket, so warm and toasty and full of love.

Did she finally break for real?

Hayes startled, slamming back against the seat, landing painfully on the seatbelt metal, as Glen's smiling face appeared in her vision. Personal space, buddy.

"Boo."

Hayes blinked at him once, his smile momentarily faltering before returning full blast.

He flicked the middle of her forehead.

"Ow." Hayes gave him an annoyed look before breaking off into a cough. Her throat hurt from all the crying.

"Get up." Glen tugged on the Comfy, pulling it completely away when Hayes provided no resistance. "Uppity up up, let's go tiger. Time is wasting homie."

"No." She wanted the silence to last as long as possible.

Glen stared down at her, just as stubborn. "Get up."

"No."

"You don't get to do this."

"Do what? I'm not doing anything. You're doing something."

"Hayes, I swear," Glen exhaled hot air. He was not about to let her waste away.

She leveled him with a look of indifference.

"Fine, fine," Glen turned, his butt in her face as he did a weird hunched-over walk back to the middle row. She resisted the temptation to kick him in the rear. "But you'll going to miss out," he taunted before jumping out of the car.

Hayes twisted her lips to the side, having to admit that now she was curious. And there goes the silence, her thoughts shooting across her brain faster than she could process.

Stupid Glennard.

She stretched her legs out, hitting the cup holder on the opposite side of where her head lie. Hayes palmed her eyes, letting out a groan of frustration. Without looking, she swung her legs to the floor, creating an uncomfortable stitch in her side at the awkward position.

"Moooooo!"

Hayes dropped her hands so fast and sat up giving herself a headrush. That voice sounded a whole lot like Baker. Familiar, deep and hearty.

She for sure thought they were going back to the hotel after her mega super embarrassing melt down. She couldn't even look the Rayon's in the eye and say goodbye when they had gotten to the car. They deserved much better than that.

"Holy cows," Hayes breathed, gripping the aisle armrests in the middle row to crawl out.

Literally.

Unsurprisingly, there was a body standing in way of her exit because she should have known none of her brothers would actually leave her alone.

Even after all the trouble she caused.

Or was it because of all the trouble she caused?

Austin had his shoulder propped against the door frame with his solid body taking up most of the space. He was turned outward so he could watch Baker and Glen mess around by the fence, separating the guys from the pasture. He had much more casual vibes now, as his dress shirt had been rolled up his forearms, his hair in a bit of disarray from the strong winds. His sunglasses were perched on his nose, protecting his blue eyes from the Florida sun.

He heard his sister moving around, but waited until she wanted to actually be noticed.

Tiny fingers poked his back in several spots before arms wrapped his waist. He felt her head knead against the middle of his back before stilling. She must have gotten comfortable.

Austin still didn't speak, giving Hayes the time to herself. She expended a lot of energy the past hour which is why he and Baker decided that fresh air in the countryside would be good for them. He reached his arm back, resting his hand on her back.

He was right here, Sunshine, just like he promised.

"Moooooo!"

Glen's loud laughter filled the air as he smacked Baker on the shoulder. "Dude, you suck at this, Baker!"

"And you think you're all that and a bag of chips, huh Smiley?" Baker tossed back at him, throwing his hands up in the air before putting them on his hips.

Glen scoffed, stepping forward so he could rest his right foot on the bottom rail of the fence. "Well, duh." He inhaled in a good bit of air, "Mooooo!"

The tone of his voice changed to perfectly match the inflection of a cow. He was a professional.

"Fuck you, cows!" Baker barked out a laugh in disbelief as Glen's greeting was returned by not one, not two, but three of the fat beasts!

Glen rose his hands in victory, "Beat that! Hey, Hayes! Did you hear that? New record!"

The smile came so easily to her face as she peeked an eye out to see past Austin. Hayes didn't want to move too far, because Austin's magical brotherly powers were working.

She could only hear her brothers bantering about the cows, just the sound she loved to hear.

"Austin." Hayes slowly detached herself from her eldest brother's back so he could spin around and face her. He lightly brushed the hair back from her face, smoothing down her frizzy bedhead look thanks to the Comfy. Her face still lacked her normal blush color.

"Sunshine."

He took in the rest of her appearance, from her shoes with one lace untied and the mismatching socks, to her wrinkled black skirt and Emerson's college sweatshirt that she clung on to like her life depended on it. The brother was never going to get it returned to him.

It was one of the things Austin loved about Hayes, how she alternated between her matching obnoxious neon colored twinsie sweatshirt with Dakota and this faded grey sweatshirt Emerson happened upon from the local thrift store.

Her head tilted back, her eyes squinting from the sun shining right at her until Austin shifted just enough to block it. "Thank you."

"You're welcome?" Austin rose his eyebrows in confusion until realization washed over him. She didn't mean right now. He nudged her chin before tapping her nose. "What did I tell you?"

Hayes shrugged her shoulders to her ears.

The edge of Austin's lips twitched upwards as he wiggled his fingers under her armpits. Hayes reflexively giggled as she squirmed away, immediately squeezing her arms to her sides to prevent another attack.

Austin moved on, his warm fingers lacing behind her head now, his thumbs soft against her cheekbones. "What did I tell you, baby?" he repeated his question.

Hayes wrinkled her nose, "That you're my brother?"

"Yes, and?"

"Hayes! Look we're petting the cows!" Glen shouted. Baker wacked Glen on the back of the head, telling him off for scaring the animals.

Hayes sent Austin a mischievous grin, "and... my brothers are stupid?"

His facial expression let her know that her response didn't meet his expectation. She tried again. "That you're my brother," she gestured at Austin, "and, that we're not quitters, gosh darn-it."

Austin pursed his lips, hiding his amusement at her adlib. Her spunk was returning, another thing he loved about his little sister. Her resilience was unyielding.

"What are you doing?" Hayes asked when Austin turned back around, showing her his broad back.

"Hop on," he ordered. "Come on." Austin encouraged with a glance at her over his shoulder.

A wide smile morphed onto her face. "A piggy back ride?" The excitement in her voice was palpable.

"Only if you hurry." He sent her a dashing smile in return, his eyes twinkling behind his shades.

Hayes jumped to her feet, narrowly missing bumping her head against the roof of the car. She loosely wrapped her arms around Austin's neck, locking her hands on to her opposing elbows, the giggles making it seem like she was a little girl again.

She would always be Austin's little girl.

She leaned forward against his back, and when Austin reached his arm back to brace her as he took a step, Hayes bent her legs, squeezing them against his sides. His arm moved to support her under her butt.

"And Hayes," Austin continued on from where they left off with their previous conversation. "I told you that when you fall, I'll be there to help you back up. Remember? Always, always, always," he jostled her, making her bounce with each step he took.

Her head laid against his own, so he felt when she nodded. She whispered against his neck, "lean on me, when you're not strong."

I'll be your brother, I'll help you carry on.

She remembered.

Austin walked them to where Baker and Glen were hanging out on the metal railing. Baker was still trying to get the cows to talk back to him as Glen continued to rag on him.

Glen heard the fallen dead leaves crinkling under Austin's feet. He smirked, "Bet Austin can do it."

"Austin can do anything," Baker playfully rolled his eyes, "We don't need him showing us all up."

"Showing you up," Glen coughed loudly into his fist, "I already won."

Baker shoved him off the fence, causing the boy to stumble and ultimately fall on his butt. His laughter reassured everyone he was fine, though Baker still got a chiding from Austin. Didn't matter that they were only one year apart, no one was too old for a scolding.

"B, no bruises."

"Yeah, Baker," Glen added, leaning back with his palms flat on the ground. His legs stretched out in front of him, the black slacks becoming covered in dirt as he rolled his legs back and forth. "Rule 17: We don't hurt our siblings. Geez, what's wrong with you?"

Baker flung a broken twig at Glen. "It's called tough love, baby."

"Aye, hands off, Smiley," Austin warned when Glen popped back up to his feet. His words didn't reach his mark at all as Glen ran after Baker with a spartan yell.

"Tough love, Austin!" Glen jumped on Baker's back, holding on for dear life as Baker tried to shake him off. It was a funny sight, seeing the lanky teen wrestling around with his well-built, boss-ass man of a brother.

"Knuckleheads," Austin muttered, shaking his head. "Can't take them anywhere, can I?" he asked rhetorically to his little sister.

Hayes simply smiled against Austin's neck, appreciating her brothers' attempts at creating a lighthearted atmosphere.

"Are we doing this or what?" Austin called out, the good-natured guy that he was.

That got Baker's and Glen's attention, instantly stopping their haggling.

"Yeah!" Glen exclaimed, getting up from where he and Baker toppled to the floor. "It's your turn anyways. Baker sucked ass so."

Glen got wacked on the head again by Baker, a reprimand for his poor language choice.

"Austin," Glen complained, ducking away from Baker. He saddled up to Austin's side, swatting Hayes' leg when she tried to kick him. "Everyone's bullying me."

"Okay mini Franny," Austin joked. He pulled Glen to him, landing a kiss on his head before fending off a sneak attack to the gut by his little brother, all while making sure Hayes didn't fall off his back.

Talk about skill.

Laughing, Glen staggered back to give Austin some space, allowing the eldest brother to stroll up to the fence. He cleared his throat dramatically as his other hand snuck back and pinched Hayes' side making the girl laugh.

Baker and Glen had matching stances with crossed arms and legs shoulder-width apart as they waited in anticipation for this golden moment. The infamous mischievous twinkle appeared in Baker's eye as he suddenly slipped his hand into his pocket and retrieved his phone.

"Anytime now," Baker drawled, pressing record on his phone.

Austin sent Baker a glare, choosing to ignore the phone. What one does for family...

Here goes nothing.

"Moooo."

It was quick, plain, over in an anticlimactic second and having absolutely no affect on the cows. Austin bit his lip so he wouldn't smirk when he heard the jabs from his siblings.

Glen's face dropped in disappointment. "Say it with your chest, Austin!" He yelled, with a disapproving frown on his face.

Hayes patted Austin's shoulder in mock support, her snickers giving away how much she was loving it. "You can do it," were her words of encouragement.

Austin playfully shook his head, his hair flying in Hayes' face. She swatted at his head.

"Fine, fine." Austin took in a deep inhale, his shoulders moving with the motion.

For real this time.

"Moooooooo!"

Silence, as the siblings intently observed the pasture, watching the many cows turn their head and their ears flick with interest. "Come on, baby," Austin said under his breath.

Boom.

Jaws dropped all around as Austin just demolished the competition. Not one, not two, and certainly not three cows would give him the title of champion.

But five, now that was something special.

Austin's hands flew up in the air, copying Glen's victory stance. Hayes instantly squealed, her grip around Austin's neck tightening as she almost slipped right off.

"Oops, sorry babe." Austin reached his arms back and helped readjust his sister.

Then, to continue rubbing it in his brothers' faces, Austin took a mini victory lap around them in a figure 8 style, Hayes bouncing along on his back with him.

"Beginner's luck," Glen playfully grumbled, his twitching lips eventually forming a smile.

Enjoying the moment with his siblings as he acted like how someone his actual young age would for a change, Austin stopped directly in front of Baker and pointed at the phone before holding his hand to his mouth like a microphone.

🎵"We are the champions, my friends..."🎵

~~~~