AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I laughed as he did let go what I’d done, leaving the kitchen. Laughing himself, Ramses watched Ares’s exit so he didn’t see me until I got him in a hug.
“Thanks, Dad,” I said, squeezing. He had definitely just let me get away with hitting Ares. Not to mention helping me in the mornings. I squeezed him harder. “And for the training.”
I was still blown away I got to hug my dad and have moments like this. Godfrey had been my father, but it wasn’t like these times with Ramses. Godfrey had never been one to express much emotion, even when he had been well.
Ramses was never guarded with his, hugging me back and instantly. He rubbed my arm. “No problem,” he returned, and I noticed he held that hug for a second before letting me go. Brielle did too sometimes when I hugged her, but I didn’t mind. There’d been a lot of hugs we didn’t get to have.
And we were making up for that.
There’d been a lot of hugging too at Ares’s and my graduation party, grandparents, friends. Ramses’s dad hadn’t been there, but Ramses had talked to our whole family after that prom night. If Ares and I wanted to see our grandpa, we could, and Ares and I had had more than one discussion about it. He wasn’t quite ready yet, but when he was, I’d be with him.
At least, the potential of that was out there.
I stayed in that hug a little longer too before letting my dad go. I told him I loved him as well before I left the room, and I’d never forget what he mentioned as he said it back.
“Never gets old hearing you say that, kid,” he stated, his eyes warm. “Never gets old.”
*
Legacy pizza night happened to be at the Mallick household tonight, which was great because that coincided with date night for Ramses and Brielle. They’d been doing that a lot less recently with Bru, Ares, and me being home for the summer. They wanted to spend time with us.
We actually all had a big trip to Greece coming up, a family trip Ramses and Brielle had gifted Ares and me for graduation. I still couldn’t believe this was my life sometimes. That I had two parents and a family of not just two brothers but four with Thatcher and Wells. The two were a couple of characters, but they definitely held a place in my heart. I had a little sister too with Bow, and our crew spent as much time together as we could. I ended up getting accepted at Pembroke University, which was an Ivy League not far from town. I’d been floored I’d gotten in with the year I’d had, but I’d managed it. Ramses had gone there so that helped, but I tried to do my part academically.
I had help.
Bru and Ares both were geniuses, and they’d helped me prepare, alongside the dark prince. He was modest about how smart he was too, and he’d also gotten into Pembroke University. Apparently, he was legacy there too, with others in his family having gone there.
I was looking forward to the fall semester, but things would change once again. I’d be headed to a new school, and even though I could come home and see my family (the school was only a couple hours away), things would be different again in my life.
I hoped they’d be good changes, and discussions surrounding college did come up during pizza night. The crew had all been raiding the kitchen for snacks before the pizza delivery when Wells strode into the room with a joint behind his ear. He had a letter in hand, and when Ares noticed it, he grabbed it.
“You in my shit?” Ares asked, slapping his friend’s chest with it. Wells lifted his hands.
“Chill, my guy. I was looking for your stash.” Wells pulled the joint from behind his ear as proof, and at this point, the whole room’s attention had shifted toward the conversation. Wells braced his arms. “I didn’t know you applied to Pembroke.”
“Because it was supposed to be a surprise,” Ares said, looking a bit sheepish when he noticed us all looking at him. Dorian reached for the letter, and when he read it, he smiled.
“You going to Pembroke?” he asked before returning his arm around me. He never went far. Dorian grinned. “I thought you were going to design school in New York or something.”
That’d been the plan, and though Pembroke had excellent options for Ares, they were nothing compared to the schools I knew he’d already gotten offers from. Our senior project had basically gotten him his pick of any school he wanted.
I took the letter, and Ares watched me scan it.
He shrugged. “I just figured with you and little going there…” He scratched his neck. “I don’t know. I just thought it’d be cool.”
“Aww. Wolf.” Thatcher dropped an arm around Ares, jostling him. “Buddy, I didn’t know you couldn’t stand to be away from all of us,” he said, obviously referring to the fact the university was so close to Maywood Heights. Thatcher, Wells, and Bru still had a year before they graduated too, and Bow wouldn’t be far behind. Thatcher grinned. “That’s so adorable. I didn’t know you’d miss me so much.”
Ares growled when he shoved Thatcher off him, and Wells threw popcorn at Thatcher, which, of course, made everyone else want to throw popcorn at Thatcher. Bru and Bow had their own bowls, and Dorian and I reached into them. We all threw popcorn at the Legacy boy while he flipped the bird at us.
The large man-boy wrestled kernels out of his hair, calling us all assholes, and he was right, but that was just Legacy. There were antics, but there were always good times.
Ares barked at Thatcher to let the college thing go, and I think he only did because he didn’t want to get any more snack foods tossed at him. In any sense, the doorbell rang, and the whole kitchen basically evacuated to assault the pizza guy. The only people who lingered back were Ares, Dorian, and me, but I think Dorian noticed I wanted to speak to my twin. I started to approach Ares with the letter, and Dorian nodded at me.
“I’m going to go make sure Thatcher leaves some pizza for the rest of us,” Dorian said, kissing my cheek with a full hand on my head. He always loved to manhandle me. He hit my ass before he left (another favorite of his), and Ares laughed.
“Yeah, I’m kind of starting to rethink my decision. Four years of the two of you doing that shit?” he groaned but was mocking about it, teasing when he nudged me. He sat on a barstool. “I was considering D as a roommate, but I might have to think of other arrangements because nah. Seriously, won’t be able to take y’all doing all that shit.”
Smirking, I leaned back against the counter. “Why didn’t you tell me you applied to Pembroke?”
