Chapter 11

The moment I winced, I knew I was screwed.

Alex was still holding onto my arms, eyes scanning my face like he was trying to read my mind. Elijah, Easton, Henry, and Miles had all come into the room, and the air felt thick with unspoken worry.

"What was that?" Easton was the first to ask, his voice calm but firm.

"Nothing," I said quickly, forcing a smile and shrugging off Alex's grip. "Just—just surprised me, that's all."

Alex frowned. "Yeah, okay, except you squealed and—" He mimicked my wince. "—did that like you just got punched in the ribs."

I swallowed hard. "I didn't—"

"You are acting weird," Henry cut in, crossing his arms. "And you were walking funny when you came in."

Oh god. Of course, they noticed.

Elijah stepped closer, his eyes narrowing. "Adrian," he said, his tone softer but still carrying that unmistakable big brother edge. "What happened?"

I gripped my bag tighter, shifting on my feet. My ribs still ached from earlier, and my body felt sore all over from that stupid tackle during PE. But I could not tell them. Not about Tom. Not about the fact that I'd spent all of PE getting thrown around like a ragdoll while Lucas had to pretend nothing was happening.

"It's nothing," I insisted again. "I just—got hit during PE."

"Hit?" Easton's eyebrows shot up. "By what? A car?"

"No! Just, you know—football." I forced a chuckle, hoping they'd just let it go. "You guys know I suck at sports. Someone tackled me, that's all. It's not a big deal."

Elijah sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Did the teacher do anything? If someone hurt you—"

"No!" I cut in quickly. "It was just a normal game, I swear. Just bad luck."

They didn't look convinced, but before they could push me further, Easton sighed and gestured toward the kitchen. "Go wash up. Dinner's almost ready."

I nodded, relieved they were letting me go, and hurried up the stairs to the bathroom.

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Dinner had been awkward enough with all my brothers eyeing me like I was some fragile little thing. I barely touched my food, pushing it around my plate while they talked about school. The last thing I needed was more attention on me, so I just nodded along, pretending to listen.

After dinner, I thought I could escape to my room, but of course, the twins had other ideas.

I had just made it to the hallway when suddenly—WHAM!

Something sticky and wet smashed onto my head.

For a second, I just stood there, frozen. Then, as the smell hit me, I realized exactly what had happened.

Egg.

The twins egged me.

I could hear their stupid laughter before I even turned around. Alex and Miles were dying, clutching their stomachs like they just pulled off the best prank in the world.

"You—" I sputtered, egg yolk dripping down my forehead. "You jerks!"

Alex was doubled over, gasping for breath. "Oh my god, that was perfect—"

"You should've seen your face!" Miles cackled.

I clenched my fists. I could not believe them. It was bad enough that I was already sore, but now they were just adding to my misery.

I was about to murder them.

"WHAT is going on?!"

The moment I heard Elijah's voice, I knew the twins were dead.

Elijah stormed into the hallway, eyes narrowing the second he saw me covered in egg. Easton was right behind him, his arms crossed, looking equally unimpressed.

Alex and Miles immediately stopped laughing.

"Oh, uh—" Miles scratched the back of his head. "It was just a joke?"

Easton was not amused. "You egged your little brother?"

Alex swallowed hard. "Technically—"

"No technically," Elijah cut in sharply. "He's already hurt, and you're making it worse?!"

That shut them up real fast.

I wiped some egg off my face, still fuming. "Yeah, thanks for that, idiots."

Miles winced. "Okay, yeah, maybe bad timing—"

"You think?!" Elijah snapped. "Both of you clean this up. And if I ever catch you messing with Adrian like this again, you won't like what happens next."

Alex and Miles paled a little.

"Got it?" Elijah added, his tone dangerously low.

"Got it," they mumbled.

Easton turned to me. "Go wash up, Adrian."

I nodded, still glaring at the twins as I stomped upstairs.

Elijah pinched the bridge of his nose, looking between the twins, Henry, and me like he was debating whether or not we were all worth the headache.

"Alright," he finally said, voice firm. "Since you two think pranking Adrian is so hilarious, you both have no phone for a week."

Alex and Miles groaned in unison.

"A week?!" Alex complained. "Come on, it was just an egg!"

"Yeah, it was just a joke!" Miles added. "We didn't mean anything by it!"

Elijah's glare was deadly. "And I just told you he's already hurt. Do you two even think before you act?"

The twins exchanged glances but said nothing.

"Exactly," Elijah said. "Now go clean up your mess every single bit of it. If I see even a drop of egg left, your punishment doubles."

Grumbling under their breath, Alex and Miles trudged toward the closet to grab the mop and cleaning supplies.

Elijah turned to Henry next. "And you take Adrian's clothes and put them in the laundry."

Henry, who had been standing off to the side, raised his hands in defense. "Why me?! I didn't do anything!"

Elijah narrowed his eyes. "Oh really? You didn't wedge him earlier and send a video of it to the whole family?"

Adrian froze.

The twins who were supposed to be getting the mop snickered.

"Aw, man, I forgot about that!" Miles grinned.

"That was so funny!" Alex added, smirking.

Adrian's face burned. "Shut up!" he snapped, crossing his arms.

"Enough," Elijah said sharply, giving the twins a pointed look. "You two are already in trouble, so unless you want to add more to your punishment, I suggest you quit laughing."

They shut up real fast.

Elijah turned back to Henry. "Laundry. Now."

Henry groaned but took Adrian's egg-stained clothes and stomped toward the laundry room.

Then Elijah's attention shifted to me.

"And you—" he pointed at me.

I tensed. "What?"

"You can clean the dishes."

My jaw dropped. "Wait, why me?!"

Elijah raised an eyebrow. "Because you were the one who poured cold water on Henry's face earlier."

I flushed. "That was payback!"

"Doesn't matter," Elijah said simply. "You prank, you get punished."

"But—!"

"No buts."

I huffed, stomping toward the sink while Henry passed by, muttering, "Karma's a witch, huh, baby bunny?"

I almost threw a dish at him.

The twins, still wiping up the floor, exchanged a look and burst into laughter again.

Elijah sighed. "Do I need to add more to your punishment?"

They shut up immediately.

Good.

I turned back to the sink, grumbling under my breath. I hated doing the dishes. But if it meant the twins were suffering more? Maybe it was worth it.

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Word count: 1154

Hey Guys Thanks for reading this story so please be nice and kind. I am sorry if there are any spelling mistakes or bad grammar.

Thanks for reading my eleventh chapter and please vote and leave a comment.

More chapters will be coming out soon.

*EMMA HETHRON*