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“Do you think my dad will come for me here?”
Kip kicks off his muddy shoes and tosses his jacket on the makeshift hook of their tree house. “No way. No one knows about this place. Plus, if he shows up, Pops will tell him to get lost.”
I wish that was true. “I never want to go home. I hate him.”
Kip lights the candle, bringing a dim glow into the small fort, and hands me a Hostess Twinkie from the stash of junk food he keeps hidden up here. “Maybe you don’t. Mom and Pops love you just as much as Han and I. We can ask them to adopt you. You can share my room. I have plenty of clothes.”
He makes it all sound so easy. So promising. But I know he’ll come for me. Needing a punching bag or a servant to fetch his addictions. He won’t let me be happy. “Hey, don’t worry. He’s not going to hurt you anymore. You’re family, and we don’t let family down.”
“I’m not your real family.”
He pauses for a second in thought, then grabs a notebook off the desk and sits crisscross in front of me. “You are to me. You’ll always be my brother. Whether we share the same parents or not.” He opens the notebook and begins writing.
“What are you doing?” I lean forward, trying to read his words, but he doesn’t reply until he’s done. Lifting his head, he hands it to me. “What is this?”
“It’s a legal document between us. No matter what, this letter states we are brothers. Through thick and thin, we will always be there for each other.” He grabs it from me, draws out two lines, and signs his name to one. “Sign.” I fill the other line with my scribbled name. “Now, we seal our bond with blood.”
“What!”
“Yeah! I saw it in a movie. Here.” He unsnaps the safety pin from his backpack and pierces the top of his finger, drawing a drop of blood. “Just like this.” He presses his finger onto the paper, placing a red fingerprint next to his signature. “Now, your turn.”
I take the safety pin and prick my finger, squeezing until a drop of blood surfaces. I take the piece of paper and press my finger next to my name.
“There. No one can ever tell us we’re not brothers. No matter what, as long as we have this seal of blood, we are. We will always be there for each other. Promise?” I fight to hide the emotions surfacing. No one has ever cared about me like this. I suck in a deep breath and nod, unable to find my voice. “Cool! Let’s look at the comic—”
“Boys!”
“Crap. Dinner’s ready. Race you. Last one to finish their Twinkie has to sit next to my sister at dinner.”
I couldn’t believe he kept it. A makeshift document swearing us as brothers. He told me he meant what he said that day. Through thick and thin. The lies hurt. But knowing his sister was with someone who would do anything to protect her, he wouldn’t want it any other way. When Hannah returned, she found us on the couch like any other day watching sports, talking stats. She never questioned anything or pointed out how my eyes were red-rimmed, and didn’t press on the emotional moment between her brother and I.
Bringing my thoughts back to the present, my gaze returns to Hannah, her happiness the center of my world. She laughs at something Ben says, sticking her tongue out at Chase. I finally answer him. “She’s good. Better. Happy. I’m not sure her battle is over, but she’s a fighter. And I’ll be right next to her the whole way, helping slay her demons.”
We sit in silence for a bit before he speaks again. “Heard Pop offered you partner.”
I nod. “He did.”
A few seconds pass. “Heard you also turned it down.”
I nod again. “I did.” I can’t take my eyes off my girl. A slow, mischievous smile spreads across her face as Ben says something, then throws himself out of his chair and dives into the pool after Chase. “I would love nothing more than to work side by side with your dad, but the long hours…it’s not where I need to focus my time right now. She needs me. I need her. My decision was an easy one. It was the right one.”
Jim’s response made it even easier.
“I’m sad to know you’re turning it down, but I’ve never been prouder of you, son.”
His response shocks me. He’s coached me for the position since the day I decided to become a lawyer, and then when the time comes, I turn it down. “You’re not disappointed?”
Jim laughs, surprising me even more. “Disappointed? Well, of course I am. You’re the best. This firm would thrive with you in the seat. But I’m more thankful to call you my son. A man who’ll take my place one day as the most important man in my daughter’s life. I entrust you to keep her safe. And knowing that’s where your heart is, I couldn’t be prouder of you. You’ve always been a son to me. You don’t have to share the same blood as my children to be just as significant. You’ve been a part of this family since the day Kipley brought you home. And I have a feeling one day you’ll make my little girl one happy bride. Be her strength. Her comfort. Help guide her just as I would, because she is miraculous and the most extraordinary thing in my life.”
