48.

Best thing to do when already stressed? ~ procrastinate even more!!! Played myself so now I'm actually logging off for these next two weeks of hell.

~~~

☹️

~~~~~~~~~~

Every time Hayes wiped a tear droplet away with the pads of her fingers, another steamrolled its way down her cheek. The endless cycle kept going and going until finally she just got to the point of letting the tears freely run.

Hayes accepted the tears silently while refusing to accept any kind of comfort from her eldest brother. She remained rigid in the rocking chair, her legs hidden underneath the sweatshirt as the chair swayed in the blowing wind. The strings of the hoodie long forgotten as now her fingers were clenched into fists. Her fingernails dug harshly into her skin, hidden by the long sleeves.

She felt numb.

Are you leaving us too?

A simple yes or no bombshell thrown at her eldest brother.

Austin hadn't responded initially to her question, frozen at the words that dare came from her lips. He had been caught way off guard, with no clue where Hayes could have gotten that idea from.

Too.

As in, someone else was already going.

But the problem was, as far as the eldest brother was aware, none of the siblings were leaving. Unless she meant Francis who was going to college next year. But that wasn't new, and certainly not worth the panic she was feeling now.

Or was it the Bear she was referring too? Her Stockholm syndrome flaring up as he technically had left them as well, given that he was now 6 feet under. But like Austin has been thinking this whole time, that reaction just didn't vibe with her behavior thus far. Though it didn't mean it wasn't possible.

His little sister looked absolutely frightened right now with the belief that he could walk away this exact second and never return.

Hayes had to have been referring about one of the boys. Just had to be.

Wishful thinking made Austin believe that this was just a misunderstanding that he could clear up once and for all. He thought he could take a full breath of air again, fill his lungs up with no worry on his mind.

Sure, no problem. Piece of cake. Austin could fix this.

But, Houston there was a problem.

He may not have said anything aloud, but inadvertently his body language told Hayes everything she needed to know. The relief that had flitted across his face, whether he realized it or not, was what set her off. It was why now she sat withdrawn, despondent about life.

Because she now had this gut feeling that Austin was keeping something else from her.

Secrets.

Those gosh darn pesky little secrets.

The siblings should know by now that secrets come back to bite you in the ass sooner or later. Glen would soon enough receive that lesson.

Hayes somehow got lost in her thoughts, traveling too far down the rabbit hole to turn around. Now she wouldn't stop until she got her answers, even if she wasn't going to like what she found. In her mind, she didn't have a choice.

"Baby, I'm not going anywhere," the eldest brother said with complete sincerity in regards to her question.

Hayes raised her shoulder, blocking Austin from being able to wipe her face. Instead, she roughly rubbed her cheek against her fabric-covered knees making her fair skin turn red.

Austin retreated his hand, ignoring the sting. "Sunshine, I'm never leaving you. I told you a thousand times before that you're stuck with me for life. Why would you ask that? What did you hear?"

"I wanna go home," she mumbled, stone-walling him. The girl wanted the comfort and security of her bedroom and Chubba and her bed. Then, she'd continue the hunt once she regrouped.

A couple beats passed before Austin exhaled in acceptance, "Okay. I hear you. We'll go home soon." Pulling out his phone, he shot Baker a quick text message. He didn't tell his brother to hurry up or anything of the sort; instead Austin just let him know of the change of plans. Their little family meeting with the kids should probably involve everyone now.

Cover all their bases on what the hell was happening in their family because evidently they were not on the same page. Not one little bit.

Austin was getting tired, worn down with putting out the little fires when the whole forest was burning right in front of his very eyes.

Something needed to change before the flames overtook them.

His fingers twitched as his gaze fell back upon his little firecracker of sister, wanting to just hug her tight.

Another bump in the road. No one said it'd be easy, bringing home two kids with years worth of unimaginable trauma engrained in them. But they'd work their way through this, as he knew they could.

They always did.

————

"Nice zit," Francis said, grinning when Emerson flipped him off in response.

The two were on Facetime, as it was Francis' job to get Emerson on the phone so he could be part of the conversation even though he was away at college. Since the television in the family room was a smart box, Francis was currently working on getting Emerson's image displayed up on the TV.

"Hey, you got a pimple on your forehead," Glen said in greeting, though less jovial than his brother.

Whereas Francis relied upon his defensive mannerism of humor when overly worried, Glen couldn't shake his thoughts from Hayes long enough to fully appreciate any jokes. But still he tried, he joined Francis and even managed a tiny smirk at the phone. Glen poked himself on the forehead, illustrating for Emerson exactly where his blemish was, in case the brother wasn't aware.

"Thanks, can always count on you guys to point out my beauty marks," Emerson replied drily.

"Don't mention it, Sonny," Francis' laughter ruining any attempt of perceived sincerity.

He wouldn't be laughing for much longer.

The low voices of Dakota and Colton announced their presences, the conversation between the two men cutting off as soon as they crossed into the family room next, separating to find their seats.

Dakota had a red heart-shaped stress ball in his hand that he took from Baker's truck and was actively squashing and releasing it. It was a waste of effort though, because the true stress relief would only come from hurling the ball at one of his brothers, most likely Francis to be honest. Just depended on how fucking annoying the teen was during all of this.

Sitting down in his seat that no one would ever dare to sit in, besides maybe Hayes if she was being an instigator, all the way at the farthest end of the couch, Dakota happened to glance up at the television.

"What the fuck is that on your face?" Dakota asked point blank.

"I hate you all," Emerson stated, disappearing from their view. He left his phone on his bed so all they saw now was his bedroom ceiling fan that was going round and round and round and round. Could make a person dizzy if they stared at it long enough.

Francis would probably be stupid enough to do so if one of the brothers bet him.

"Well, then," Dakota blinked, shifting in his seat and slouching down with his legs sprawled in front of him. He rested his head back on the cushion and closed his eyes, focusing on the simple motion of squeezing the stress ball. It somewhat provided a distraction from the current irritation he felt.

He and Colton had taken a well-educated guess on what was to happen at this family meeting. His money was on Hayes having a full-blown tantrum, but Colton picked hugs and tears.

Cole would choose hugs all day long. He embodied the saying 'hugger not a fighter' to a tee.

Austin was next to stroll into the family room, demanding everyone's attention with the serious demeanor that was radiating off of him. That and the immense amount of stress.

The man was extremely stressed, though he hid it decently well.

Austin noticed that Baker and Hayes hadn't made it into the family room yet, so he felt it was the prime time to say this.

"Listen up and listen good," Austin ordered, his right hand covering his fisted left hand. "There is obviously some problems we need to talk about, with Hayes and with all of you. Things you may or may not be aware of. So no one leaves this room until we get it all straightened out. Got it?"

"Oh shit," Francis muttered under his breath. He and Glen exchanged uneasy glances before they both nodded, each a little unsure for their own reasons.

Francis' apprehension stemmed from the poor track record these meetings had for the past couple months.

Glen, well his nerves were self-explanatory.

Colton leaned back into the couch cushions, stretching his arms along the top, his fingers tapping against the fabric revealing his own anxious energy. He quietly observed his brothers while trying to practice the mindful meditation techniques some of his colleagues were promoting at school. He thought it was bogus but there was nothing else for him to do at this moment other than wait.

"Wait, what about Hayes?" Glen questioned, taking his seat on the couch next to Colton. It was either by him or Dakota, so he went with the far safer and more welcoming option.

Francis chose his favorite La-Z boy chair to sit on. He pulled the lever on the side, the footrest popping up so he could stretch his legs out.

"She's coming," Austin replied just as the sound of Chubba's nails hitting against the tiled floor was heard.

Incoming...

The dog pranced happily into the room, his tail wagging as he zigzagged all around, making sure to sniff every single human being present in the family room. Then Chubba ran back out to presumably go find Hayes as she was taking too long, only to come skidding back into the room seconds later and jumping onto the couch.

Hayes then appeared, albeit dragging her feet, as Baker prodded her along from behind with his hands on her shoulders. There was a high chance that if he let up his grip even a little bit, the girl would slip away and scurry back upstairs.

She wasn't mentally prepared yet for the showdown, nor would she ever be.

Her heart ached.

Her spirit broken.

Her mind disarrayed.

Sunshine was drowning in her clothes, looking like a blob as she was properly led over to the couch to her usual spot, squished in the L-shaped corner. Whoever's sweatshirt she had stolen and worn all day was draped over her petite frame, the outfit complete with the sweatpants that she immediately changed back into when the siblings had gotten home from dinner.

Her dinner was sitting in a black Styrofoam to-go box in the fridge, waiting for her to heat up after all this. If she even had an appetite, only time would tell.

Hayes' face was tilted at a downward angle to her socks, creating a shadowy look, but the brothers were already aware of the tears that stained her skin. They had seen her flushed cheeks at the restaurant, so they didn't need to see it again.

Chubba patiently waited for Hayes to sit, his tail wagging against the cushions in quiet anticipation. Once Hayes was settled to the best of her cranky ability in crisscross applesauce formation, the dog plopped down right next to her. Then he got up, circled a centimeter to the right, and plopped back down. His head rested on her lap.

Much better.

There was some rustling noise coming from Francis' phone as Emerson returned to the scene with his own hoodie on now. The hood was pulled over his forehead to hide his single flaw. He couldn't see his family gathered around in the room, as Francis' phone was left chilling flat on the coffee table, but the siblings could see Emerson clearly as he held his cell phone in his hand, aimed off-center at his face.

"I'm back. Did I miss anything?"

"No," Austin replied on their behalf, "but now that we're all here, let's get started."

Before Austin took his own seat, he made the extra effort to slide the windowed panel closed. Not to put to use as a sound barrier, as that was silly since everyone in the home was in attendance, but so a little someone wouldn't be able to escape as easily than if the panel was left with an open gap.

As secondary precaution, Austin and Colton both happened to be sat in close proximity to the doorway in case Hayes really did end up pulling a runner on them.

The unpredictable nature of the little girl made them prepared for anything. At least they thought so.

Baker was the last to sit after grabbing a blanket off the top of the storage chest for Hayes to wrap around herself. He chose the open spot between Dakota and his sister, opposite side of where his dog lay. Baker's presence actually made her scoot a little closer to Chubba, steering clear of any physical contact with her brother. If she didn't enforce this, then it would be highly likely that Hayes would cry some more as soon as she was in their embrace.

Hayes was fed up with her tears.

The girl tangled her hands in the dog's golden fluff, avoiding any long glances coming from her brothers. She had been too good at that lately, avoidance, when truthfully, all she really wanted to do was run into their open arms and forget anything ever happened and live happily ever after. But Hayes knew reality. It was cruel and made to destroy any chances of happiness one desired.

She was also a stubborn little girl and would hold her ground until she got the answers she wanted. With her listening ears turned on and mouth glued shut, she was awaiting the answers she so desperately needed.

Then and only then, would she oblige to her yearning of a hug.

Maybe Colton's prediction would come true after all.

Now came the tricky part for Austin to figure out. Which elephant in the room to tackle first... the Bear? Hayes' accusation? Anything else? Bueller? Bueller?

"Are we just going to sit on our asses all night or is someone going to actually say something?" Leave it to Dakota to start them off right.

"Say what?" Francis asked curiously, as he and Emerson had also been left in the dark about He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named and probably everything else, like always. Francis was never filled in on the current gossip, to no one's surprise.

Glen chewed hard on his bottom lip, enough to draw blood even, but the pain didn't reach him. He had his eyes trained on Hayes, overanalyzing her body language, as his bouncing knee picked up speed. He wasn't ready for her to hate him, which is why he blurted out the next words in impulsivity. Put all the attention on someone else in the least subtle way possible.

Nailed it.

Great thinking, Smiley.

"Colton is moving!"

The brothers' heads whipped around to Cole and Glen, as apparently no one was aware of this, including Colton.

Their eyes all flicked between the two brothers, the younger one trying to blend in with the couch as all the attention fell on them.

Glen cursed himself. He should have thought that through better.

"I'm what?" Colton choked out, hella surprised.

Then seconds later, realization seemed to settle on Colton's face when he remembered the recent email he had gotten the other day.

But Cole had not a clue how Glen would have known about that, nonetheless had gotten his hands on it to read it.

Oh.

Fuck, yes he did. All the pieces were suddenly clicking in place in his mind.

The kid had his laptop. Still did, in fact. Or Hayes did, he wasn't keeping track. Either way...

His eyes darted around the room, landing on his little sister who was starting intently at the dog as she combed her fingers through his shedding fur. A pile of fluff was collecting that would no doubt soon be dispersed amongst the couch cushions. A scowl on her face, Hayes still wasn't giving Colton the time of day.

Oh hell.

Everything now made so much more sense.

If Glen had seen it, then for a million bucks, Colton would have to believe that so did she. That would explain all the glaring looks he had been on the receiving end of these past few days.

"Cole did what now?" Francis asked, very obviously stunned by this announcement. Not only did he not know about this but also Glen did know about it and unintentionally just rubbed that in his face.

And man, did that hurt.

Austin and Baker glanced at each other from across the room, conversing silently. They both distinctly remembered talking with Colton about a job opportunity that would entail the brother moving away. But that was a good ways back, like 7 months ago. Colton had come to the two of them for guidance and basically their stamp of approval to even go forth and apply for the position.

But then two very special kids had suddenly reappeared in their lives, answering the miracle the family had been praying for and tossed all sense of direction up into the air.

Since that moment, the three eldest brothers had pledged to one another and to their youngest siblings to be fully present and they hadn't looked back not even once. They strived to give Glen and Hayes the stable childhood they deserved.

Whatever plans of similar nature that any of the siblings had for the future were completely forgone without a second thought.

Then almost two months or so ago, out of the blue, Colton had been officially offered the Assistant Coach position, which he had immediately declined, informing them that he would be unable to accept due to a recent change in circumstances. And that was the end of that.

The hiring committee had been disappointed, of course, but they understood. Family came first.

But this email he had just gotten on Wednesday was a delayed congratulations from an old buddy and mentor of Cole's, who apparently hadn't received the memo that Colton never accepted the job.

How easy a simple, well-intentioned message could create such an uproar.

Colton cleared his throat, having a better understanding of what had happened.

Heart pumping like he just shot-gunned three cups of coffee, Glen sprung up from his seat to a good couple feet away. His hands flew to his blonde hair as he spun around to face Colton, resembling a mad man with panic written all over his face. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to Colton. It just came out, I swear."

"It's okay, kiddo," Colton said evenly, not showing any signs that could be misconstrued by Glen as a warning to take cover.

Nonetheless, Glen wordlessly shook his head that was overfilled with his own frustration. Tugging at his long hair, he started pacing the room, to the backyard door to the fireplace, non-stop.

His frantic behavior made Chubba shift uneasy. The dog sat up with his ears flat and pinned straight back, his eyes locked on the kid's every move. A low whine was heard as Chubba felt the tension Glen was giving off.

Molded to the dog, Hayes' hand had subconsciously gripped Chubba's fur tighter, the rest of her becoming as still as a statue. She was no stranger to Glen's fraught pacing and watched with bated breath, fighting between the instinct to hide before all hell broke loose or to hug Glen and not let go until he calmed back down.

The dog and the girl weren't the only ones transfixed on the kid. All the brothers had sort of froze in place, replaying in their heads how that went from 0 to 100 real quick.

Not exactly what the eldest brother was aiming for.

"Buddy, come sit," Austin's voice held its usual warmth, one that made Glen pause for a millisecond in recognition before continuing his trek. The boy was too caught up in his own mind, all his hard work on controlling his impulsive tendencies was just flushed down the drain.

Austin perched forward in his chair, his elbows resting on his thighs as he continued to track the kid with his eyes. He knew Glen could be as much as a flight risk as his sister.

The La-Z Boy squeaked as Francis shifted forward in his chair, the footrest returning to its original position with a metal clang as his feet planted firmly on the floor. Anxiety radiated off of him in massive waves, not so different from his baby brother.

"Excuse me, will someone please explain?" Francis stressed, proving just how wired he was.

Colton's eyes darted over to Francis. "It's not true."

Francis' hand went to the rubber band that lived on his wrist, snapping it repetitively. "So you're not moving out?"

"Just hold on," Colton said, putting his hands out in a 'calm down' motion. Cole wanted Glen to settle first, not keen on how unnerved the kid already was and they hadn't even reached the high point of the night's discussion.

Colton's action had a paradoxical effect.

"No, no, I will not hold on. Why didn't you tell me?" Hurt seeped into Fran's voice.

"Francis." Baker said firmly as he intervened, providing the land line for Francis to grasp on to. The teen relied on his two eldest brothers' to be that unwavering presence in his life. It was Baker's turn to step up as Austin's attention was zeroed in on Glen, the rest of the sounds blurred out.

Francis didn't mask his emotions as he looked at his older brother. It didn't take much for all his fears of abandonment to make a return to the spotlight. The thought of being left behind was the teen's worst nightmare come true.

The brothers had been so focused on the kids' trauma that they seemed to forget his.

It was hard for Baker to miss that now.

"Fran," his tone taking on a gentler state, "Nothing is happening with Cole. It's not worth getting worked up about, you'll see. He will explain if you give him a second."

Francis was oh so close to listening to Baker's words, but as he took another look around the family room, he realized something. "Why am I the only one surprised about this?"

Baker didn't have a response to that, a grim frown slipped onto his face.

The teen narrowed his eyes onto the television, onto his best friend. "Sonny?"

"Yeah?" Emerson replied, his facial expression had been hidden in the shadows of the hood much like his little sister.

"Did you already know?"

When Emerson lifted his chin up a bit, they could see the guilt flash crystal clear in his eyes. "Yeah," He breathed out deeply, "I did."

"Oh." The single syllable was a heavy weight on their hearts.

Colton rubbed his sweaty hands on his shorts before turning to his left to look directly at Francis. Fran's head hung down, watching his two fingers repetitively snap the rubber band against his reddened raw skin.

"I'm not moving out," Colton stated earnestly.

Dakota chuckled darkly to himself as he continuously tossed the stress ball in the air and caught it.

Colton ignored Dakota as he gave an explanation to Francis. "I was offered a coaching position somewhere, but I turned it down. I'm not going anywhere."

Francis jumped on that. "I don't understand. If you didn't take the job, then why did Glen say that you are moving?"

Colton's eyes flicked to Glen and then to Hayes, neither kid returning the inquisitive glance. "Because I got an email stating otherwise."

"I'm not following," Francis dragged his hands through his hair, scratching his scalp, before letting his arms hit against his legs.

"What don't you get?" Dakota drawled, catching the stress ball in the palm of his hand. He just couldn't help himself, butting in when not needed to only cause more chaos.

Dakota used the same hand that held the ball to point a finger at Colton, "Cole wants to be a big shot basketball coach." His wrist flicked towards Hayes in the corner. "Babies were found." Dakota swiveled back around to Colton. "No more job." He started tossing the ball in the air again with no regard. "Now can we move on to the more entertaining stuff? I'm aging here."

Baker swiped the red ball from the air, while leveling Dakota was a hard glare. "For once in your life, just don't fucking speak."

Dakota rolled his eyes, unbothered, only grimacing a little when Baker smacked the back of his hand hard against Dakota's stomach. Baker unclenched his fingers, letting the ball drop down to Dakota's lap.

"Where's the fun in that?" Kota sarcastically asked, picking the ball up and going back to somewhat minding his own business.

"Don't you have any respect for others?" Baker was exasperated.

"Nope, never heard of her," Dakota mocked.

"Can we just focus for one fucking second here?" Francis spazzed, ready to lose his mind.

Austin paid attention to that. "Francis."

"Austin," Francis challenged, bravely holding Austin's stare until giving into submission after 7 seconds. He dropped his head into his hands and mumbled, "I just want to know what the hell is going on."

By now, with the attention mostly geared at Francis' mental breakdown, Glen settled himself and found a safe spot against the back door, slowly lowering himself to the ground. He sat with back against the solid wood door, his knees bent towards his chest, arms folded tightly with his hands tucked under his arm pits. His hand twitched, the nervous tick of scratching his arm very present.

There were an overload of emotions running through him right now, of his own doing. Glen wasn't sure how much more he could handle until he combusted.

Chubba slid his front paws off the couch, doing a big stretch and then a little collar shake, shedding his golden hairs all over the place. The dog lackadaisically climbed the rest of the way onto the floor before sauntering over to where Glen was. He nudged Glen's arm persistently until Glen finally started petting him.

With the dog gone from her side, Hayes readjusted the blanket tighter around her shoulders, still too strong-willed for her own good to move the couple inches over into Baker's protection.

Colton patted the couch for Francis to come sit next to him. "I'll answer all your questions, Fran. Just give me a chance."

Francis crossed his arms, indicating that he was fine right where he was. "I'm sure you had plenty of chances," Francis mumbled under his breath, thankfully too low for anyone to make sense of his words.

Colton frowned. He didn't blame Glen in the slightest, fully accepting it was his own fault for being put in this position but it still sucked. He hadn't really thought much before about how Francis would feel about him moving. That realization made him feel like a complete jerk.

Cole sighed, "About 6 or 7 months ago, in May sometime, I was asked if I was possibly interested in coaching basketball at the next level. College. I said yes, and they invited me to come out to interview the following week." He kept the details vague, with the unrealistic hope that Francis wouldn't question it. The teen was going to be even more hurt than he already felt.

"Who? Where?" Francis spit out almost immediately.

Colton played with his fingers, pulling at a hangnail. There was no more beating around the bush. "Coach Gregor is planning to retire after next season and he wanted to pick his successor. I'm not sure how the staff got my name, but I went with it. I mean, we're talking about my dream job here. I couldn't pass it by."

Francis stared at Colton. He knew that name. As a matter of fact, half the country knew that name. Coach Tim Gregor was the highest-achieving head men's basketball coach at the very same university that Emerson currently attended. A GOAT in his own right, up there amongst the hall-of-famers like Coach K and Coach Williams. The same college that Francis would be a student at in 8 very short months.

And Emerson knew about this.

Francis felt a deep pain of betrayal in his chest. He thought they told each other everything.

"The Coach Gregor?" Francis confirmed.

"Yeah," Colton nodded, lifting his head to see Francis' reaction.

"But if you went to interview at the college, how did I not know about this?" Francis questioned. He would like to think he'd notice if his brother was gone for any length of time.

"You were at a baseball tournament," Austin informed him.

Francis spun around to face Austin. "Was this all planned so I wouldn't find out?"

"No!" Austin dismissed at once. "Absolutely not. Why would you even think that?"

Francis poked his tongue against his cheek, eating his response. He could think of plenty of reasons.

Staring at Francis' back, Colton shook his head. "I didn't tell you because I didn't see the reason to stress you out when it wasn't even a done deal."

"Look how well that turned out." Dakota snickered.

Francis didn't even hear Dakota. He turned back around to face Colton, an hand casted out in the general direction of the television. "Then why did Emerson know? Answer that for me! He hates change as much I do, if that's your stupid reasoning! He wants to come home every fricking weekend because he is homesick all the god damn time!"

"He needed to know. I stayed at his apartment for two nights," Colton admitted, his indoor voice contrasting Francis' shouts.

Projected on the television, everyone saw Emerson shift his body weight on his bed in obvious discomfort, just knowing that Francis was more than likely shooting daggers at him right now. The stab in the back that Francis felt was clear as day to all his siblings sitting in the family room.

Hayes sunk down into the crevice of the cushions. She was starting to think she should have just kept all this to herself, suffer in silence and never have told Glen.

At least the truth was revealed. But look at what cost. Francis looked like someone had killed his puppy. It made the girl feel terrible. She was always causing trouble someway or another. Would it ever stop?

"Oh," Francis' tongue kissed against his front teeth. "Well on that note, don't mind me."

Colton sighed again, "Francis, don't do that."

"Don't do what? I'm not doing anything." Francis shrugged, his tone laced with sarcasm.

Austin's eyes hardened in warning at the teen to watch himself.

Chaos was getting ready to break out any second now. Hayes could feel it and so could Glen, as their bodies tensed, shoulders rising up defensively towards their ears. It was a 6th-sense almost, one they were entuned to their whole childhood, their guts' way of letting them know when to go hide.

There was a dark shift in the atmosphere as Francis seemed to put a mask of nonchalance in place.

Colton rubbed a hand over his mouth, the silence mounting amongst the siblings.

Everyone was at a stand still.

Baker immediately noticed the change in his little sister's posture. He studied her face trying to find any hint of what was going through her head.

Something, he didn't know what, but something suddenly sparked his memory on what she had told him the other day. Was it Wednesday? When she had been in tears, clinging to him in the kitchen.

Baker moved infinitesimal closer to Hayes, instantly seeing a glimpse of her blue eyes when she caught the movement in her periphery. He made sure his voice was low and soft as to not frighten her. "Sunshine, is that what you're so afraid of?"

Hayes felt paralyzed under his knowing gaze. Baker was figuring it out.

"In the kitchen, you told me you were scared. It was because you thought Colton got a new job and that meant he was leaving, huh? You were scared Colton was leaving you?"

Colton felt miserable at hearing that.

Baker scooted over some more on the couch, the motion unhurried in order to give Hayes time to halt his approach if she didn't want him. He lifted his arm, slowly wrapping it around Hayes' shoulders before pulling her under his wing. He pressed a long kiss to her hood-covered head.

"You can't get rid of us that easily," Baker promised in a whisper, his arms flexing tighter when Hayes nestled closer against the side of his chest. "You know that, babe."

She did know that, but the devil played dirty.

Baker glanced over at Austin, once again the two exchanging an entire conversation with their eyes. Baker successfully put two and two together with what Austin relayed to him about Hayes blindsiding him at Cracker Barrel. The brothers could only hope their reassurances would eventually stick between her ears.

Her's and Glen's.

Austin palmed the arm-rests on either side and pushed himself up onto his feet so he could go check on Glen who had been oddly silent, sitting alone with the dog by the back door.

Dakota yawned loudly, "I have shit to do. Can we get to the good part now? Or like, can I go?"

Austin turned on his heels to address Dakota, ready to tell him off, when Baker beat him to it.

"For fucks sake, Dakota. Stop being a dick," Baker stated, shifting Hayes infinitely closer to his side. His left arm tightened around her, almost as if locking her in place so she couldn't leave him even if she wanted to.

Dakota scoffed. "What? It's not my fault Colton fucked up and Francis is being a little bitch over it for no reason since as we just said for the hundredth fucking time that nothing is actually happening." He summarized the night thus far from his perspective, clapping his hands mockingly. "Congrats Cole. You still live here."

Those were fighting words.

Francis hastened to his feet, feeling the rage flow in his veins. "You think you're so special here, Kota? Why not for once in your life, think about someone else! They never fucking tell me anything! You all see me as this oblivious kid when I'm not. I have eyes, I have ears, and I have a fucking brain!" He flung his arms up in the air. "Am I too stupid to know? Is that it?"

"Francis-" Austin hesitated to take a step forward to the teen, unable to finish two words of a sentence as Francis' rant continued. All he could do was stand there and listen.

The freight train was coming and it was about to crash big time.

"Fine! I get it!" Francis was full-on shouting again by this point. "Colton turned down a job, so it wasn't worth sharing. Cool, I don't blame you for not telling the kid with abandonment issues. But let's talk about Sunday!"

"Fran, please stop," Colton interrupted the spew of fury, trying to stop him from heading down the wrong path. "Just think about this for a second..."

"Oh no, let's continue! Let's talk about another thing you all failed to mention to the stupid, oblivious kid." Francis glanced around the room but was too blinded by the anger to actually see the distress written on the babies' faces. He had reached his tipping point. "That's right, I fucking know all about the Bear. The news was on Glen's phone for shit's sake. Right in front of my eyes!"

"What news?" Emerson asked over the speaker, totally lost.

"Oh, you don't know?" Francis asked rhetorically, crossing his arms with a smug look on his face.

"Francis James, that's enough." Austin snapped.

"Shut the fuck up, Francis." Dakota growled from the other side of the room, clenching the stress ball tightly in his hand that lay on his thigh. Even he could recognize when enough was enough.

Glen scrambled back to his feet, an inscrutable glint in his eyes that made his eldest brothers very worried for what he was going to do. He started his pacing trek again, 7 steps forward, pivot, 7 steps back. His hand ached to scratch his elbow until finally he couldn't stop himself, red marks appearing on his skin instantly from his nails.

Chubba was trotting along at the kid's heels, nipping his shorts as the dog tried to get Glen to stop moving.

Please don't do it, Francis. Please don't.

Francis didn't hear his baby brother's internal pleas. "The Bear is dead, guys. He died Sunday yet," Francis waved an accusing hand at all his older brothers, "not one of you said a single word."

Francis ducked in time when the ball Dakota was holding came flying straight for his face. It deflected off his arm and bounced in Glen's direction. The boy flinched, nearly tripping over the dog. When he recovered, he stayed frozen in place, a panic-stricken look remained on his face when he stared in Hayes' direction, awaiting for her reaction to the sudden declaration.

"What the hell, Kota!" Francis shouted at his brother.

"You're a fucking idiot!" Dakota yelled back. "That's what!"

Fists clenched by his side as if ready to throw a punch, Francis made to take a step toward. Austin gripped his left arm and yanked him backward before he could do more harm.

"Are you out of your fucking mind?" Austin hissed, his hand grasped firmly so the teen couldn't free himself. "You are so out of line right now."

"Because you don't tell me anything!"

"HEY." Baker's hardened voice rose above everyone's to get their attention. He was sensitive to the little girl who snuck behind his back for protection, her hands pressed on the side of her hood as she tried to block her ears.

Her brothers were so loud. Too loud. Hayes didn't like it, not one bit. Especially not when their words were on constant replay in her head, just as loud.

Glen watched her like a hawk, waiting for the words to sink in for his sister. He ignored Chubba who kept pawing his leg to get his attention. Meanwhile, Colton was on high-alert, watching Glen, waiting for his reaction to Hayes' reaction.

Like dominos, waiting for the next chip to fall.

"You're an ass," Dakota disregarded Baker's warning.

"Yeah? Well it takes one to know one." Francis replied, though the previous fire running through him seemed to simmer down. Austin noticed it in his stance and let the teen wrench his arm away. Francis wisely stalked off in the opposite direction of Dakota, his destination now the backdoor. He needed some space.

A flash of regret crossed Francis' face as his gaze landed on Glen.

"At least I don't start something I can't finish," Dakota taunted.

"Cut it out," Baker strongly advised, his hand restraining against Dakota's chest to prevent him from physically going after Francis.

Francis had one hand on the door knob, the other on the lock, when he paused. He turned his head over his shoulder to look at Dakota "That's gold coming from you."

A shrill whistle cursed everyone's ears, but it did the trick to finally get everyone to stop talking for real this time.

Disappointment was evident on Austin's face. "I said that's enough. Now everyone sit the hell back down before we have bigger problems.

"Nah, I'm done talking. I need some air," Francis replied, undoing the top lock on the door and pulling it open. "I'll be outside so you can carry on gossiping without me."

"Francis-"

Francis turned a deaf ear to his eldest brother and walked outside, forcefully pulling the door shut behind him. The slam rattled the entire house.

"Don't let the door hit you on the way out," Dakota scoffed.

"Umm, what the hell just happened?" Emerson was bewildered. He may not have seen it, but he definitely heard it all. Francis' reaction completely hit them like a ton of bricks. Some of it was justified, no doubt, but not all of it.

And now they had to face the consequences.

Austin, Baker, and Colton looked at each other, saying nothing but thinking similar things. How did they let it get this bad?

"Hellooo?"

...

"Yoohooooo."

...

"Anybody still there?"

"Shut the fuck up, Emerson." Dakota grumbled, finally tearing his gaze away from the door Francis left through. He pushed away Baker's arm that was still rigid across his chest and stood up. He walked over to retrieve the stress ball that had come to a rest against the fireplace.

"You okay, kid?" Dakota grabbed Glen's shoulder, but the boy shook him off and restarted pacing, back and forth, Chubba loyally by his side.

Dakota frowned, but respected his boundary and took two steps back to give Glen some space.

Colton leaned over his legs and covered his face with his hands. What a fucking shit show this turned out to be.

As the reality of the screaming fest was still settling down, the little girl's mind was ramping up. With Baker distracted, she managed to slip off the couch and stood next to the television.

Hayes' chin was visibly trembling as she kept her lips pressed firmly together, blinking rapidly to not let the tears spill. Feeling some snot drip, she sniffled and wiped her nose with the sweatshirt.

That one sound was like a bomb went off. Every brother in the room practically got whiplash as they all looked over at her.

"Oh, Baby," Austin whispered, unable to speak anything else. His heart only was just starting to heal and now was breaking into pieces again at the sight of his little girl.

This was not how he wanted her to find out.

Hayes' vision turned blurry as she lifted her head in the direction of her eldest brother.

"Is- Is grandpa dead?" Hayes' voice wobbled. She swallowed hard. "Fran, he said that... Why did he-," Hayes wiped her right eye repeatedly with her knuckle as a sob threatened to break free. "Why did he say that?"

Austin inched closer to her, the other brothers still frozen, afraid to dare move a muscle. "Sunshine, breathe for me."

Hayes was starting to hyperventilate, quiet gasps becoming more frequent as she worked so hard not to cry. Her gaze darted wildly around the room, searching for answers from anybody. "Why would Francis say that?"

"Shhh," Austin managed to gently pull her against his chest, his eyes pinching shut as he needed to stay strong.

Hayes' fingers clenched onto his tshirt, as she buried her forehead against the cloth. Her runny nose transferred on to his shirt as her body began to shake with silent sobs.

She was trying really hard not to turn into a blubbering mess. "He, he said Sunday? Grandpa died on Sunday but, but... I don't..."

"Slow down, baby," Austin reminded her, his fingers curling along the back of her neck. He kept his palm there, his thumb rubbing up and down behind her ear.

Hayes took in a sharp, ragged gasp of air.

"How did? Why did?" Hayes couldn't formulate sentences, her mind bouncing all over the place at once. She pushed on Austin's chest, creating some separation from him as she roughly rubbed both her eyes now with the heels of her hands. Hayes stammered out, "Why didn't someone help? We saw him. I don't... why didn't anyone help him?"

Austin grabbed her wrists, preventing Hayes from accidently hurting herself. She tried yanking her hands away but he was stronger. "Hey, hey, hey, look at me. Sunshine, hey stop. Don't do that."

Hayes was becoming more agitated no matter what Austin tried to do. "Nobody helped him. Why didn't you tell me? Then we could have helped him. I told you! I told you to help him! But you didn't. You- you- Let me go! Let go of me!" She was panicking now. Physically present but mentally destroyed.

Austin switched so now he had both her wrists in one hand, the other hand gripping her chin so she'd look at him. "Hayes. Hayes. You're safe here, it's okay."

"Noooo, no, no!" Hayes shook her head, her hair flying everywhere. "Let me go, let me go," she repeated, her voice cracking at the end.

Hayes sent a hard kick at his shin, surprising him more than anything. Her hands slid from his grasp and she stumbled backwards towards the tv console. When Austin tried to take hold of her again, Hayes flinched and brought her arms up to cover her face. The sounds of her distressed whimpers was not something they'd forget anytime soon.

Austin held up his hands, surrendering as he walk back two steps. He didn't want her smack into the fireplace or trip backwards and fall. "Okay, Sunshine. I hear you, you're okay."

Unfortunately, it was the wrong judgement call to release her wrists.

Skittish as a baby bird, Hayes glanced around the room again for an escape before zoning in on Glen who stood several feet away from her. She rocketed across the room to her brother. She felt every bit broken as she cried out in anguish, "I told you! He needed us! Grandpa needed us and, and you said no! How could you?"

Glen didn't move out of the way and Hayes didn't put on the brakes. The girl collided right into him causing the two of them staggering into the wall off-balance. Chubba barked, circling around their legs as he tried to get in the middle of them.

Hayes began sloppily punching Glen in the chest with all her might. She was uncontrollably sobbing by now, as she continued to blame him.

"It's not my fault!" Glen defended himself against her attacks, verbally and physically. But he didn't return the hits, just tried to block them. "Hayes, listen to me!"

"We could have saved him!"

"He didn't want to be saved!" Glen yelled back at her, "He wanted to die! He didn't care, Hayes! He didn't want us anymore!"

That felt like a sucker-punch to the girl's chest. "You don't know that!"

"Yes, I do! He killed himself, Hayes!"

"The fuck is happening? Yo, stop it!" Dakota was closest to the duo, but he was dumbfounded and looked back at his brothers with alarm. "Do something!"

Austin and Baker were already dashing over, but the damage was done in a matter of seconds.

After Glen's blatant statement, Hayes landed a jab to the boy's left side. It was a particularly tender spot from an old lingering injury, making him groan in pain. Glen cringed, his arms immediately curling inward to cover the sore area, which then left him wide open for a straight shot to the face.

She didn't mean to.

Hayes would swear on her life that she did not mean to sock Glen in the nose, a gush of blood instantly pouring down his chin.

But that's what happened.

That pushed Glen into even more of a frenzy as he cried out, "Sorry, I'm sorry HayHay!" One arm pressing against his stomach, the other hand under his nose as he tried to catch the blood from dripping onto the floor. The Bear didn't like messes.

Hayes reeled backwards at his yelp, nearly banging the back of her head against the fireplace mantle if Baker hadn't lurched forward and grabbed her in time. He had a strong hold on her upper arms as she started to flail against his chest, throwing strikes at him now in panic. Most missed her mark as her strength was slowly waning, but that didn't make it hurt Baker any less on the inside.

The kids' realities were becoming distorted as their panicking states created a disconnect for them. They couldn't find the strength to ground themselves as the hysteria continued to grow between them.

It also didn't help that the dog was barking, freaking out as he didn't know which human to help, making the kids even more distraught with all the noise. Colton grabbed his collar and put golden retriever outside in the yard where Francis was hiding out.

Baker twisted Hayes around in his grip, putting her into a tight hold with her back firm against his chest so she couldn't fight him. Drained of energy, the girl's sobs were becoming less and less as was her struggles to break free. Her shoulders rose and fell with each breath, trying to suck in air.

He shushed her, trying to soothe her with a gentle swaying motion. Baker bent close to her ear to whisper, "It's okay, Hayes, I have you. I love you, Sunshine. Baker loves you, baby. It's all over now. Good, just breathe."

Meanwhile Austin extended a hand out for Glen so he could help him, but the boy recoiled back out of his reach. The boy inadvertently trapped himself in the corner of the room, making it easier for Austin now to control him but Glen was running on hyper adrenaline.

Austin lowered his hands by his sides, giving Glen better visibility to see around him. "You're safe, Buddy. It's just me, it's Austin."

Dakota scanned the room, looking for something other than Glen's shirt and hands to help stop the blood. Spying the tissue box on the coffee table, he stalked over, roughly grabbing a couple tissues. He muttered to himself, "Fuck it," and just snatched up the entire box before marching over to Glen, pulling out a handful of tissues as he went before dropping the box carelessly to the floor by Austin's feet.

"No, please. I'm sorry, I'll clean it up. Just let me clean it up, I promise." Glen brokenly begged as he evaded Dakota's attempt, but it was Dakota. He did what he wanted when he wanted, and managed to catch hold of the kid's shirt. Glen's breath halted as Dakota shoved the tissues against his nose.

Austin moved forward then and wrapped his fingers around Glen's wrist, his other hand rubbing the kid's stiff shoulder. "You're okay, Smiley. We're here to help you. You're not in trouble."

"Jesus, she got you good," Dakota commented, momentarily pulling the tissues away to check the bleeding. It was still actively flowing so he continued holding pressure.

"I'll get some ice for him," Colton announced. He slid the panel open and walked out, running his hands through his messy hair.

Glen was still favoring his left side a bit, his arm guarding against his stomach. Austin narrowed in on that. "You hurt there, Bud? Let me see," Austin slowly pried Glen's arm away but met resistance.

"I'm fine," Glen lied, keeping his elbow tucked. He became distracted when Dakota lifted the tissues to check the bleeding again, the kid becoming ghostly pale. The sight of his own blood made him feel a teensy bit woozy all of a sudden.

Austin felt the boy starting to sweat through his shirt. "He needs to sit down," Austin told Dakota.

"Alright," Dakota muttered, helping Austin lead Glen to the closet chair. He chucked the bloody mess of tissues behind him onto the floor and scooped the tissue box up to get some clean ones. Pressing tissues against the kid's nose, he instructed him, "Lean forward, so you don't fucking choke on your own blood."

Hayes audibly whimpered at the sight, initially drawing backwards more into Baker's embrace. Shame hit her at seeing the damage she had done to her own brother. How could she?

But then like a flip of a switch, the girl started squirming around in Baker's arms. She needed to get out of here before she did anything worse. She didn't trust herself.

Baker somewhat read her intentions. "You're safe, Hayes. It's alright, it was just an accident. Glen will be okay."

Hayes shook her head, trying to get Baker to understand but couldn't get the words out.

Dakota heard the struggle and glanced up at the two of them. He recognized the familiar looming signs in his sister. They were similar in that aspect, the two of them needing to find an escape from their nightmares when the thoughts got too heavy to carry. His escape was to blast music so loud that he couldn't hear himself think anymore.

"She needs to run. Clear her mind," Dakota said.

Baker heeded his advice without hesitation. "Okay. Is that what you want, Sunshine?" He was already loosening his grip, making sure to grab her wrist before she could take off on him. They weren't about to make the same mistake twice now.

The girl wasted no time in fleeing from the room, Baker keeping up right behind her. Hayes beelined to the front door, not bothering to untie the laces of the first pair of her sneakers she saw. She jammed her feet into the shoes, twisting her heels until the backing slipped over the heels properly.

Baker had to work fast to put his own shoes on before Hayes bolted out the door. Grace was on his side as Hayes couldn't unlock the front door quick enough, her fingers tremoring so bad she was unable to slide the metal piece across.

A warm hand landed over hers, stilling her jittery fingers. She tilted her head back, her eyes pleading with her older brother to hurry.

Baker simply stared at her face, taking in all the emotions that flitted across it. After finding what he was looking for, he finally undid the last lock and opened the front door for her.

Hayes slipped out first, immediately jogging down the porch steps and into the setting sun. Baker barely closed the wood door behind him before taking off after her.

Baker matched her stride, settling in for an evening run as he let his sister guide them until the storm in her mind was quelled.

He had a long night ahead of him.

~~~~

If this needs to be edited, y'all just gonna have to suffer until I get back. Pass the time by watching the gif on replay. 😆