where cryptids run wild

In your relationship thus far, you were used to watching TV together normally being more like parallel play: you would ask Hex what he'd want to watch, but he'd always defer to you, then spend the run time of whatever you chose appraising shots on his camera from his latest project, or doing some light- and color-editing of said shots on his laptop, or even playing a game on one of his handheld consoles (though he always kept the speakers respectfully on mute). That wasn't to say he was disengaged; he actually paid attention better than even some of your friends, trading jokes and commentary with you through the highs and lows of the plot. If you told him you were sharing something formative with him -- like the first time you showed him your favorite movie, or your comfort show -- then he'd happily set aside whatever he was using to keep his hands busy and pull you into his lap so he could watch attentively over your shoulder (while secretly enjoying your reactions, feeling from how you moved or flinched or leaned towards the screen just how engaged you got even when something was familiar). But while he occasionally watched an episode of the telenovelas he and his mom used to watch together if it came on, he wasn't huge on sitting still for more than a double-feature at most (and even then, unless you specified otherwise, there was nothing to guarantee the two of you wouldn't end up... distracted, before the credits rolled).

This, then, was entirely uncharted territory. After the opener, he was keen to make a definite date for the next group match. When you showed up for that one with some snacks to share and your favorite throw blanket in tow (the House, and Hex himself, always left you a bit chilly), he opened the door to reveal - despite the summer heat outside - a hoodie you'd never seen before: the same green of Mexico's jerseys, with the team's logo embroidered on the left sleeve. You could tell that it must have come from the back of his closet when he pulled you in close for a kiss hello, and he smelled overwhelmingly (but not unpleasantly) of the remnants of his mother's incense sticks that he kept on a shelf. You could also tell that it was definitely an older one; the fabric was worn in some places, and the hood's draw strings were oddly frayed. But it only took until ten minutes into the second half for you to realize why: whenever things got tense on the pitch, his hands immediately went to those, either tying and untying them subconsciously into knots, or (adorably) pulling the hood tight over his eyes when he couldn't bear to watch a risky shot. It was a wonder they were even still attached at all.

It was the first time you'd ever seen him watching something this closely, and it was its own kind of revelation. For the second and third matches, the two of you sat close like you always did, only for him to slowly gravitate into his own space as the clock counted up. He was still affectionate, to be sure: squeezing your knee when he was excited or kissing the top of your head whenever Memo Ochoa kept the ball out of the net. But you'd never seen him so involved -- on the couch one moment, falling to his knees on the carpet for a near miss, or nearly launching off the cushion when the team approached the opposition's goal. His jubilation whenever the ball slipped past their goalkeeper's fingers was contagious, and there was more than one explosion of chips all over the room or other snacks from a bowl when he jumped to his feet. While you'd always known your boyfriend to be intense, you were used to that being something he kept under wraps until exactly the right moment -- the perfect illustration of "still waters run deep." Seeing his heart on his sleeve like this was a rare treat indeed, and though you also hadn't been quite invested at the start, by the time they got to the round of thirty two, you felt like your heart was in their hands.

Once or twice during each game, Maxi and Rora would stop in and casually see what was up. They were both passingly aware of the Cup, but you could see it didn't mean as much to them as it did to Hex.

Maxi would usually appear in the door from the kitchen; if he was still dressed in his black scrubs from the embalming room downstairs, he'd give the two of you a friendly wave, but kept his distance to make sure you weren't overwhelmed by the scent of the chemicals he'd been using. If he was in a suit from having just made arrangements with a family, however, he often came in and sat on Hex's other side for a few minutes, frequently bringing an offering of some sort: a plate of fresh sandwiches, some lemonade he'd made that morning, or even the remnants of the cookies he'd made for clients. Only when you and Hex had each taken something did he seem to fully relax, throwing his tie back over his shoulder and having a quick bite himself.

"Who's got the ball?" he always asked Hex, then listened quietly as Hex gave a rapid-fire recap of the entire game thus far, literally talking a mile a minute. Every so often during this rundown, he'd lean back over Hex's shoulder to make eye contact with you, raising an eyebrow to silently ask if something was good or bad. Sports had never been his forté to begin with; he only knew enough American football to make the smallest of talk about the Saints or the Tigers with the families he served, to help put them at ease during what was already a difficult time. Based on your own reactions - an eager nod, or a grimace - Maxi would either give Hex a grin and an elbow nudge to the ribs, or sigh accordingly and lean for a sec so their shoulders bumped in solidarity. "They're gonna get it, bro," he said either way. "This is their year, it's gotta be." For what little while he would stick around after before getting back to work, he'd be less obviously interested in the game than he would be in observing his cousin react to the events onscreen. Every so often, you would sneak a glance his direction to see him leaning against the arm of the couch with his chin propped on his hand, watching Hex with a gentle, wistful sort of smile that made your chest ache for reasons you couldn't identify.

You wondered if this was what they had looked like when they were just kids, back when the family's legacy and necromancy hadn't taken over their lives yet.

Maybe that's what Maxi was seeing too, when he looked at his cousin.

Rora, however, took quite a different approach, opening the door from the hallway to the staircase with a nudge from her hip with her phone usually in one hand and a drink in the other. "Oh my god, is this thing still on?" she'd drawl, rolling her eyes theatrically. She'd flop over on the other side of the couch and sprawl out so her feet were in Hex's lap, causing him to grumble and shove them away.

Then she'd look at you. "Hi there, sweetness." You knew the two of you had reached a comfortable point in your relationship because now she did things like playfully wink at you or bat her long eyelashes, always pretending to flirt to annoy her cousin. When the two of you had initially been introduced, she'd been cordial but aloof, with a queen's posture, keeping her distance and generally not speaking unless good manners absolutely demanded it. Now she had no compunction about being an annoying youngest sibling in front of you. "He got you shut in here on this glorious day to see grown men kick a ball around? For shame."

"You say that like you actually go outside when plants aren't involved," Hector would mutter, turning up the volume but still moving towards the middle of the couch so she had space to sit.

She'd do so, and then do something like put her whole foot against Hex's thigh again and push so his leg rocked back and forth. "You've got a guest far more lovely than you deserve, and all you want to do is watch TV?" She'd 'tsk' her tongue against her teeth. "What a waste, honestly."

"Cállate, fresa," he'd sigh. "Don't you have some skeletons to go have a tea party with? Or some innocent Disney critters to kill and and skin?" Without waiting for an answer, he'd seize the ankle of the foot bothering him and maneuver her leg using her body weight so she nearly fell off the couch.

"Rude!" Rora would catch herself and move to shove against his shoulder, which in turn caused him to loop an arm around her neck to hold her (not too tightly) in a headlock. The two would bicker at each other for a few minutes as she tried to escape, Hector mussing Rora's voluminous black hair in a noogie and Rora trying to get her teeth in his sleeve in revenge, until something happened onscreen to cause him to drop her entirely in his distraction.

At which point, Rora would settle back onto her side of the couch and quietly loiter while scrolling through an app with lots of photos of strange plants and fungi, or other taxidermists' latest work, or whatever other things caught her peculiar fixation. That said, she was much like her brother in the sense that you'd catch her watching Hex out of the corner of her eye: while part of her face remained hidden behind the dark veil of her hair, the corner of her mouth would tug upwards whenever he cheered, her green eyes no less sharp but crinkled at the corners in a way that spoke of immense fondness. She'd make a show of sighing and rolling her eyes again before shifting in her seat, but her smile remained even when Hex was locked in entirely on the game.

Neither of the twins ever stayed for the full match, both confident Hex would update them later. Which meant, starting around the second game or so, he was free to lean over with ten minutes left in the match and give you a kiss that always managed to steal your breath.

The first time this happened, he pulled back right as you were beginning to forget what the two of you were watching, too distracted by the taste of his lips on yours. You knew you looked confused, feeling it in the crease of your brows as he grinned at you in that way that reminded you of a cat's eyes glinting in the dark. "For luck," was all he said by explanation. "Between you and this--" he nodded down at the team hoodie you hadn't seen before that day. "How could they lose, huh?"

And goddamn if it hadn't seemed to work, for a little while. By the end of the group matches, you were almost more likely than he was to fly to the middle of the couch as soon as the clock ticked up to eighty, willing whatever pebbles of magic you had in the nooks and crannies of your soul to keep the score in Mexico's favor. With each win, Hector was only more ecstatic, peppering your face with kisses as the crowd roared their approval onscreen. Each time, you couldn't help but laugh between his jubilation and the way his beard scratched at your skin, happy to accompany him into the kitchen to help make a dinner worthy of the victory (and to listen to him tell the twins 'I told you so' at every opportunity during the meal itself).

When it came time for the round of sixteen, you even slept over at the House the night before, and helped with snack prep that morning so neither of you would have to pause the game to wander back into the kitchen. For ninety minutes (plus whatever was added on), the two of you would be nowhere else but that couch, there to witness a new chapter in the team history.

Perhaps sensing this game was a bigger deal than the others, Maxi and Rora really didn't come in to tease or watch this afternoon, giving the living room space. Indeed, Hex himself was still excited, but there were tells: his knee bounced like crazy next to yours, and he kept running his hands through his hair, putting it up into a ponytail only to take it down again a minute later. At one point towards the end of the first half, you were worried he was going to tear one of the drawstrings off his hoodie completely with how much he was tying and untying it.

As the second half wore on, the two of you jumped to your feet at every near miss on England's goal, and yelled in alarm whenever they got too close to Mexico's. At the eighty minute mark, the two of you were already locked in at the middle of the couch, squeezing each other's hand as tight as you could without crushing the other person's knuckles.

You turned to look at him, and for a moment, his wide-eyed gaze at the screen made him look... impossibly young.

You and Hex had met as adults, him with a little more than a decade on you. You'd never gotten the chance to know him as the scruffy teen in framed photos hanging in the halls, or the college kid with bottle-black hair and smudged black lipstick in the polaroids on his dresser. He'd always been the handsome, quiet man you'd first glimpsed watching you from afar; smirking in a way that was more amused than arrogant, his eyes glittering with a private joke as he adjusted his camera settings for his next shot.

Seeing him like this, fragile hope so plain on his face, made your chest ache with just how... vulnerable, he looked.

"Hey." You put your hands on his cheeks, making him blink and look at you at last. You did your best to smile. "It's not over yet, right? We can't lose faith."

It took him a second, but he nodded, a ghost of a smile flickering into existence. "Yeah." He squeezed your hand before he leaned in, completing the ritual the two of you had started.

The kiss wasn't as long as usual, neither of you wanting to look away from the screen lest you miss something vital. But you wished twice as hard that the team pulled off some last minute miracle, if only because you knew just how happy it would make him.

...And yet, it just wasn't to be, this time.

Though the forwards made attempt after attempt on the goal in the last few minutes, all valiant efforts, it wasn't enough. The clock counted out the last of the time, and the stadium rang with the roar of the English fans as they realized they were moving on.

When the camera cut to the expression on Memo Ochoa's face, Hex finally crumpled, hiding his face in his hands with groan of defeat --

That abruptly changed pitch into something less... human. Something that echoed despite the small space of the room, distorting oddly even though it came from human vocal cords. The temperature dropped so fast that you gasped, your skin breaking out in goosebumps and a shiver creeping down your spine.

The picture on the screen wavered and was overcome by static as the commentators' voices cut in and out, like the strange sound was an invisible storm was raging against the connection. On the end tables, the lamps flickered rapidly, before the lights of the whole House began to do the same, threatening to plunge you both into darkness.

"Hex? Babe?" You touched his upper arm gently.

Out of the corner of your eye, you swore shadows moved at the edge of the room, darkness gathering around the pair of you. Whispers seemed to come from another room, in voices you didn't recognize that sounded scared, or grief-stricken.

When Hex still didn't respond and the strange, ethereal wail continued, snippets of his voice still entangled within, you scooted so your hip was smushed against his and leaned your cheek against his shoulder. "I know, honey. I know."

Poor little Gil Mora was just visible through the static, clearly in tears as he hugged Don Memo, who patted him on the back with obvious fondness for his young teammate. Your throat tightened around a lump that hadn't been there a second ago, hating this for both of them. It was Mora's first time to play, and Memo's last. It could've been so different.

Through the curtain of hair hanging over his face and being nearly bent double against his own knees, you could've sworn you heard Hector sniffle.

Outside the room, thundering footsteps approached from opposite sides of the House, then tore down the hall together towards the door. You sat upright again as it banged open to reveal the other two Morvants: Maxi with his plastic splashguard still covering his face and wielding a scalpel, Rora in gore-spattered overalls and holding a bone saw aloft like she meant to amputate first and ask questions later. Both their eyes were already gleaming with the respective colors of their magic, and in the unsteady lamplight, your chest went cold at the sight.

When Hex's eyes were purple, now that you were used to it, it looked mysterious, even somehow celestial. Like there were tiny universes hidden inside your beloved's skull.

Seeing the twins like this, however, reminded you how eerie it really must have looked.

In the back of your mind, you wondered about the sheer number of people who might have had those same sets of glowing eyes be the last thing they ever saw, alone on some dark night.

The two necromancers somehow squeezed through the door frame at the same time, then turned in a circle back to back to scan each corner of the room for some sort of threat. When they'd done a full three sixty and nothing presented itself, they each lowered their instrument, their expressions of confusion uncanny in how similar they were.

Maxi looked at you sitting next to Hex as Rora looked to the television, then vice versa, and you could've sworn you saw the lightbulb go off in both their heads simultaneously.

He looked back to the two of you on the couch, tilting his head to confirm what he already had guessed: the team had lost. Mexico's World Cup run was over.

You shook your head grimly, your lips pressed together so your lower one didn't wobble.

It was just a football game, you knew. But still.

He winced, then mouthed 'Sorry' with obvious earnestness. He stepped hesitantly towards Hex, lifting a hand as though to pat him on the shoulder, before Rora grabbed her brother's elbow and shook her head when he looked at her. The two gave you the same grimace in unison before they turned, stepping quietly back out the door.

Before Rora closed it behind her, she made a point to catch your eye, then pointed to Hex's hair.

You nodded, familiar with this trick already from the times Hex's insomnia or his depression had been kicking his ass. You reached up, running your fingers through the long locks he was so vain about --

And the strange spectral sound wavered, the television reception clearing again for an instant.

Rora gave you a grave nod and shut the door, leaving the two of you alone once more.

You leaned your cheek back against Hex's shoulder, letting your nails scrape a little along his scalp as you worked your fingers through his hair. "Hey," you said softly. "I'm still here, pretty boy. We can suffer together, huh?"

The banshee wail began to quaver and fade as you continued petting him, the temperature of the room gradually rising again and the lights stabilizing until he fell silent. After a couple of minutes, the television static vanished as though nothing had happened, the commentators still dissecting the match. Without sitting up, you grabbed the remote and turned them down to a dull mumble.

"They did so well," you murmured. "Really. The whole squad played a great game. They all have a lot to be proud of." You were trying to be positive, but it was hard. Especially when you'd both had so much hope just ninety minutes ago. "And there's always next time, right?" you said, a bit less confidently.

Hex sniffled again, and you heard his voice muffled against his palms.

You frowned, unable to make it out. "...You're gonna have to come out here and tell me that, handsome."

"...Not Ochoa, remember?" Hex sat up at last, pushing his hair out of his face and hastily running his sleeve across his eyes, which only reminded you of the lump in your throat. "It's his last game. Ever." He cleared his own throat loudly, hiding another sniffle, then flopped backwards so he was slumped down in the couch. "He did all that work for years, and for what?"

"Hey." You shifted so you were curled against his side, leaning your head on his shoulder once more. "He got them as far as he could. No one's going to blame him for this. No one's going to remember him as anything less than a hero." You wound one strand of Hex's hair around your finger, fiddling with it. "Now Mora and the others get to carry on, and they'll do it for him, too."

You wound the fingers of your free hand through one of Hex's, squeezing gently. "This sucks, I know." You nuzzled into the fabric of his hoodie. "But they did so well this time! The last time they got this far was..." You paused, trying to do the math.

"I was five." Hex's voice was barely above a whisper.

You blinked. This... somehow hadn't occurred to you.

Hector shifted, sitting so his cheek was pressed against the top of your head as you leaned on him. He turned his hand over as you held it, adjusting his grip so he could run his thumb back and forth over your knuckles. "I was with my folks for that game. It was my first one, ever." He smiled a little. "My dad just... didn't get it. I mean, it's not like they have real football out here, yeah?" He gestured lazily around the room, indicating Greymoon, maybe Louisiana as a whole. "He was still learning all the rules and stuff. But he still knew how important it was to my mom." His thumb traced slowly over the top of your ring finger. "He got us tickets that must've cost an arm and a leg, as close to the pitch as he could find, and surprised her with them. She was so excited, she screamed." He laughed quietly, and you felt the rumble of it in his chest. "That's one of my favorite memories: just the three of us, together, watching the game. No arguing between them, no Tio Vincent and Tia Mathilde talking shit in the background, no Abuela Paciencia whispering in my mom's ear to leave him and come back home..."

You had to fight the urge to sit up and look at him. The few times he talked about the Casares side of the family at all, he'd definitely never discussed his mother's mother.

"And yeah, the squad lost then, too. My mom was furious, but only because she was heartbroken. I'd never seen her so mad, I thought she was going to cuss out the Ref right there," he chuckled. "...Still. It was the only time we ever felt... y'know, normal." Hex's fingers finally went still on your skin. "Like we could go home to some random apartment in the city and be just like any other family. Like the curse and all its bullshit," he gestured at the House in general. "Wouldn't follow us anymore. I'd just get to be some dumb little kid with his parents."

He sighed, and you could hear the slightest shake to it, which made your chest tighten painfully.

"It's kinda stupid," he said quietly. "But they were doing so well this time, that... I don't know." He shrugged. "I remembered what that felt like, I guess. Or... something." He scoffed, sinking lower into the couch. "O sea -- whatever, it's not--"

Before he could play it off with the familiar cool indifference he had for anything that bothered him, you turned and wrapped your arms around his chest as tight as you could, pressing your cheek to where you knew it held his heart. The force of it threw you both flat to the couch, leaving you sprawled out on top of him.

"It's not stupid," you said, your voice somewhat muffled by his hoodie. Your eyes felt too warm again, your throat too tight. "If something makes you happy, Hex, it's not stupid at all." You fought the urge to sniffle. "I love you, and all the weird shit you can do -- the Veil, seeing things, all of it." You had to swallow hard. "But I want you to feel normal with me. I wanna be that for you when you need it."

The room blurred out of focus with the weight of this feeling crushing your chest.

"...Hey, what--? Hey, baby. Look at me?" Hector's calloused hands, ever chill to the touch, found your cheeks and shifted you so he could see your face. You tried to blink away the liquid in your eyes, but couldn't manage it before he got a clear look at you. "Aw, cielo, no." He shushed you gently, his thumbs wiping away the tear tracks left on your skin. "No llores. Hey, c'mon." He leaned down, kissing the top of your head, then your forehead. "Baby, no -- you don't need to cry. It's okay. I'm okay, you're okay. What's that old Tom Hanks movie you made me rewatch? 'There's no crying in futból,' remember?"

"'There's no crying in baseball,'" you sniffled. "If Memo and Mora can cry, I think I'm allowed to. A little."

This, at least, got Hex to laugh, a sound that triggered a wobbly smile from you.

"Aw, see? There's my muse." He cupped your cheeks in his hands, kissing the end of your nose before fully kissing you, albeit briefly. He let his forehead rest against yours, one hand moving to stroke up and down your back. "Hey. No te preocupes, okay?" He tilted his head so he met your eyes with the full warm darkness of his own. "I am absurdly lucky, because I have a partner who's so thoughtful," he punctuated this with a kiss to your cheek. "And kind," he kissed the other. "And so completely extraordinary," he kissed the corner of your mouth. "That it somehow all circles back so I feel like the most normal guy on this side of the Veil. I mean really, look at me," he spread his arms out, gesturing to himself. "Don't I look incredibly normal?" He raised his eyebrows in faux shock, pulling a small laugh from you now. "Just totally ordinary? Nothing peculiar going on here? Or here?" He pointed to his skull, and the genuine laughter this earned made him grin.

"Sure, okay. Nothing to see, nothing of note. Downright average, even," you managed with a smile.

Hex's eyebrows furrowed as he playfully narrowed his eyes. "Hey now. Be gentle with a guy." He touched a hand to his chest as though wounded. "I just saw my childhood dreams get smashed again, I'm fragile." He couldn't totally keep away his grin as he said it, though.

"I know," you said quietly, genuine now as you leaned forward to kiss the end of his nose. "I'm sorry, babe. That does suck."

"Not the first time, won't be the last," he said, shrugging. He moved some of your hair away from your eyes. "But I had the best watch partner, and the loveliest lucky charm." He caught your chin gently in his grasp, tilting your head ever so slightly. "The squad's gonna have to find their own, I'm afraid. "His eyes moved to your lips and back again. "This one's just for me."

This kiss didn't have the urgency of the one you'd shared during the match, but your wish behind it was twice as strong:

That the two of you could just stay like this, comfortable and safe, for as long as you possibly could.

...Which lasted for a good half hour, until Rora thumped the door loud enough to make you both jump to ask what the plan was for dinner (here read: what Hex planned on making).

The two of you then spent the next portion of the evening in the kitchen with the twins, making what the pair of you dubbed 'Extremely Normal Nachos' while Hector filled them in on the highs and lows of the match.

Before long, the kitchen was a soft bubble of light against the night pressing against the windows outside, the four of you still sitting and talking idly around the table over drinks and the remnants of a last minute dessert. Hex held your hand under the table the entire time.

As you glimpsed the late-season fireflies dancing outside the glass, you knew that if you were very lucky indeed, this would stay normal for you both.

[I'm sorry this took so long, Nonny! :'D I hope it was worth the wait. I meant to have it up by yesterday's final, but alas. OTL one thing I'm learning since I moved into my parents' new house is that, being in their mid-60s and early 70s respectively, they need a lot more help with various tasks than they like to let on (esp. with my 90 y/o grandma around). I have more or less become the new troubleshooter/IT person for the entire house, as well as the occasional muscle since my dad hurt his back not too long ago.

and, while they're all supposedly very supportive of me writing, they kind of tend to forget how much quiet and concentration that takes. especially when they feel like they need something done right away :'D so writing even little things like this takes a little more time than they used to back when I was living alone.

this was a lot of fun for me to write, and hopefully that shows!! :3 Hex hasn't had his turn in the spotlight for a hot minute, and watching Mexico perform in the WC this year had me doing a lot of research into games he might have gotten to see when he was younger. (not to mention, I finally got to play around with him having a Howl's Moving Castle-style meltdown, because I always secretly pictured him being capable of those with his medium abilities. we're just assuming reader is used to it at this point lmao.)

a lot of reader's reactions are based on my own when I was watching their last match, too. :'D I might have just got here, but damn if I'm not going to be keeping an eye on that little Mora kid from now on. the fact that they had to put him on little milk cartons because he wasn't(/still isn't???) old enough to drink had me in stitches. :3 also, Carlos Acevedo has the best hair I've ever seen??? like, good god, man, stop being that pretty and distracting.

Main street looked the same, save for a few new stores that had popped up since she was last home. No one seemed to recognize her, which she was happy about. She purposely kept far away from the local church, knowing that someone there would most likely recognize her, and she didn’t want to talk about her asshole parents.

Her route took her down main street towards a lone bookstore at the end near the barrens. She almost ignored it completely, not wanting to give in to her need for new books when she took notice to the name on the sign.

Matheson Books

Without hesitating, she made a beeline for the bookstore, ready to see which of her siblings owned it. Hell, she had been doing really well with saving. She could get away with one book as a reward.

Mal quietly let herself into the store, finding a few other people browsing the shelves. She glanced around the store, giving it a quick once over to see if she could determine which of her siblings owned it by the décor.

“Welcome in,” Mal looked to the front desk to find a woman about her age, maybe younger, standing behind the counter. She had a kind smile on her face. Mal then noticed the skeleton sitting next to her with a homemade Matheson Books shirt on, “What brings you in today?”

“Just looking,” Mal answered, trying, and failing, to return the kind smile.

“Okay,” the other woman didn’t seem bothered by her botched attempt at a smile, “I’m Nessa. If you need any help, just shout.”

“Thank you,” Mal nodded before disappearing amongst the shelves.

She was surprised to find a wide variety of genres, especially the decent sized horror section. She planted herself in front of the section and began her browsing, picking up a book that looked interesting and reading the summary.

“Hey, Ness!” she heard a man’s voice call from farther back in the store.

“Be there in a second!” Nessa called back.

Mal, despite wanting to stay in this section and browse longer, pulled herself away to go and investigate. She slowly made her way closer to the back of the store, still making it look as though she was browsing (and she was), but her goal was to see who had been speaking. Had it been one of her siblings? She really needed to know.

As Nessa found her way into the back of the store, Mal found a section of books close enough to see and hear the conversation, but far enough away to keep the guise of browsing.

“If you’re putting up Halloween decorations already, I’m going to scream,” Nessa was saying. She sounded amused.

The man standing in the back was tall, with dark brown hair that was graying at the temple and kind brown eyes. The moment Nessa had made her comment, he let out an amused chuckle and waited for her to appear. When Nessa did, the grin grew.

“It’s not even July yet!”

“Where’s your whimsy?” the man asked.

“Jude.” Nessa shook her head.

Jude. He was the third oldest of her siblings and had been the first one to be kicked out of their home. Her parents refused to talk about him once he left, and if any of them had mentioned him, even in passing, they were punished. Mal learned very quickly growing up not to speak of him, especially once Nellie had gotten punished pretty severely for even telling Mal about Jude.

Mal tuned out the remainder of their conversation to continue her browsing. There had been so many books that she wanted to pick up and buy, and while she didn’t have the money just yet for them all, she was making a mental note of the names for the future.

One. You can afford one. She thought to herself. She would stick to her plan from earlier and would treat herself to one book.

“Need any help?” she hadn’t heard her older brother walk up behind her. She jumped, letting out a surprise yelp as she whirled around. She wasn’t sure if he was going to recognize her or not, “You look familiar.”

“I’m good,” Mal felt her heart pounding in her chest as she tried to calm down from the sudden surprise, “Just…deciding which book I want with my meager budget. As to the second… I think the last time you saw me, I was 2 years old. Unless you saw any updated photos since then but I doubt that since our parents fucking suck ass – “

“Yeah, you’re a Matheson alright,” Jude laughed, “Hi, Mallory.”

“What gave it away?” Mal mumbled, “Hi, Jude.”

“The obvious love for reading,” he motioned to the book in her hands, “All of us have it. Well, I’m assuming we all do. Your rambling for another, and the cursing. All us Matheson siblings are the same.” He let out a chuckle and his head tilted slightly, “Shit, kid. It’s been too fucking long.”

“Well, I’m 35 now and the last time you saw me I was 2.” Mal couldn’t fight back the sarcastic comment. It didn’t seem to deter Jude, though. He looked amused, “I left the minute I turned 18. This is the first time I’ve been back in Jersey in years.”

“Where are you staying?”

“Some motel close to Leeds Diner,” Mal answered.

“Okay,” Jude nodded, “Listen. Ash has been wanting to get all of us siblings together to get to known each other better. We’ve been looking for you.”

Mal felt tears burning the corners of her eyes, but forced them down. She wouldn’t cry because these people she barely knew suddenly cared about her. By the time Mal graduated high school, most, if not all, of her siblings were out in the world and had lives. The older siblings never checked up on the younger ones, not wanting to be anywhere near Jocelyn and Malachi.

“Well, here I am,” Mal shrugged her shoulders awkwardly. She then made a face after turning over his words, “Even the kiss ass?”

“Even him,” Jude answered, “We’re all getting together here next Saturday. You should come by.”

“Okay,” Mal had wanted to say no at first, but this was the exact reason why she came back home to Pine Hollow in the first place. Despite her sour feelings towards her older siblings (and wow, she didn’t realize how sour they were before speaking with one), this was want she wanted. What she needed. To hash shit out with them and maybe, just maybe, get a fresh start, “What time?”

“Seven,” Jude answered, “Bring whatever you want food and drink wise.”

Mal nodded and when she turned to leave, Jude spoke again. “If I offer my spare room, would you take it, or would you just wave me off for some pride bullshit?” “What do you think?” Mal found herself snapping. “Fair enough. Offer stands. See you next Saturday.” Jude didn’t seem bothered by her snap. Mal set the book she was holding down on a random shelf and walked out of the store.

Aly

Saturday came around too quick for Aly’s liking.

He had spent the entire morning at the rescue, seeing the corgi he fostered off to his new home. Pancake was thrilled with his new family and didn’t spare Aly a second glance when he realized he was going home with them. Aly didn’t take it personally. He was happy that Pancake was eager to leave with the family, that the animal had felt connected and safe with them. He hoped he didn’t see the animal back at the rescue in the future. He then spent some time outside with Baxter and several other of the rescues, knowing that his night wouldn’t be this calm and successful.

He wanted to say ‘fuck it’ and not show up at all. He wanted to ignore his younger brother’s threat, go home and remain there. He wouldn’t. He would go to the bookstore and take whatever they gave him, no matter how bad it was. He had hurt his siblings with his compliance and his coldness towards them. It was going to take some time for them to become friendly with him, if at all. But he would put in the work.

As 7pm rolled around, Aly found himself sitting in his truck in the parking lot of his brother’s bookstore. He shut his eyes, taking in a deep breath to calm his nerves. He was fighting with himself, wanting nothing more than to put his truck in drive and leave, forgetting this stupid idea. He had even started turning his key, when his eyes popped open. No. He needed to do this.

Shaking his head, he grabbed his salad and got out of his truck, deciding that this was now or never. As he turned to head toward the front entrance, he watched as a young woman crossed the street, heading quickly towards the entrance as well. She stopped at the sight of him, watching him approach the entrance along with her. He saw her reach into her bag, knowing that she probably had something along the lines of a knife or pepper spray at the ready. She gave him a closer look and then frowned.

“Oh look, it’s the kiss ass,” she said. She kept her hand in her bag, her shoulders still tense as she took another step toward the door.

Aly’s head tilted in confusion for a moment and then realized this was his youngest sibling. This was Mallory.

“Seriously?” she snapped mistaking his sudden confusion for not knowing who she was, “You only have three sisters, Aloysius! And you’re close in age to one of them.”

“It’s Aly,” Aly immediately corrected, “And I know! You’re Mallory.”

“Wow, lucky fucking guess.” she rolled her eyes, “This is going to be a fun night.” Instead of waiting for him to follow, she yanked open the door to the bookstore and walked inside, leaving him alone.

He entered the bookstore a few moments later, taking in the lack of people at the front of the store. He looked around, taking in his brother’s store for the first time. It was a comfortable space and already Aly could tell it was filled with love and acceptance. It felt safe. Even if he felt uncomfortable and nervous, but he knew that was due to finally coming face to face with his siblings for the first time in many, many years.

“We’re in the back!” he heard someone call up to him.

He slowly made his way toward the back of the store, fighting the urge to not stop and check out the selection of books on the shelves. He would do that later. Well, he hoped he would be allowed to. The moment he stepped out from between the shelves, everyone who had been standing around in the back looked to him. He fought down the urge to run.

“Told you he’d come,” Shay finally spoke after a full minute of silence, “Aly.”

“Hi.” The urge to run was still there and he could feel his heart pounding in his chest as his siblings continued to stare him down.

“Oh, how the mighty fall,” Aly’s attention turned to one of his brothers. Jude. He knew Jude. His younger brother took a few steps forward, staring him down with a sarcastic grin, “You’re who I was afraid of all those years ago?” A few more steps and Jude had bridged the gap between them. Jude stared down at Aly, his younger brother a few inches taller than he was, “Who we all were afraid of because you were a fucking rat?”

“Jude.” Aly mumbled. The sarcastic grin left his younger brother’s face.

“Aloysius.”

“It’s Aly,” Aly corrected, doing all that he could to not look away.

“Aly.” Jude said. It didn’t sound sarcastic which Aly was happy about, “Shay tells us you’ve been back here in Pine Hollow for two years.”

“Can we at least sit down for this?” someone else said.

“You can sit if you want, Ez,” Jude didn’t look back. His focus was still on Aly.

“I have,” Aly answered.

“He also tells us that you don’t want Jocelyn and Malachi to know,” Jude continued.

“No, I don’t,” Aly felt his heartrate spike once more, “I’d very much like for them to believe I’m somewhere out west still.”

“Now why in the fuck would you want that?” Jude asked, “Because last I fucking checked, you were their golden child.”

“I agree with Ezra,” Aly looked to find Ashlee taking a few steps towards Jude, “Let’s sit. We can still hash all of this out, but I’d rather not have everyone look as though they’re going to bolt. I’d also like to eat my food.”

“Fine.”

It took a few minutes, but soon all 8 siblings were sitting around in a circle, the tension still very much present in the air.

“Alright, we’re sitting,” Jude continued, “Answer the fucking question.”

“Because I don’t want them trying to ruin my life anymore,” Aly answered, looking at each of his siblings. In his head, he was trying to put a name to a face and was failing miserably.

“Anymore?” Jude let out a sarcastic laugh.

“Jude,” Ashlee snapped at him.

“They’ve done nothing but ruin our lives,” Jude snapped back, “All of us. But they doted on him. He was their perfect son.”

“Dote on me, huh?” Aly couldn’t fight down the sarcastic chuckle, sounding much like Jude had moments ago, “Dad was trying to mold me into being just like him. The moment I could walk and could understand that I was the oldest, they had me watching over you. I was fucking 7 years old! When I showed any fucking emotion or sympathy towards any of you, I got beat. They didn’t want me to be your friend. And the entire fucking time they were out there deciding my life for me. I had no fucking say.”

“They tried that shit with all of us,” Jude made a face, “They tried breaking all of our spirits. You were the only one that it worked on. You were the only one to conform.”

“Do they think you’re married or something?” Aly looked to find Nellie had spoken, “Are you married? Did you run out on your wife?”

“No!” Aly answered, “No, it’s nothing like that. I just… left one day and made it seem like I was out there doing missionary work. In reality, I was traveling. I was…in the process of deconstructing my faith.”

That had them all go quiet. All of them had gone through the same thing and while most if them had done it earlier on in their lives, they knew that this was a big deal for him.

“Where are you on that journey?” Ash asked.

“It’s still ongoing,” Aly admitted honestly, “But I don’t share the same values or beliefs as our parents.”

“You expect us to believe that?” Jamie asked.

“Over time I hope you do,” Aly told him softly, then looked to all of them, “I have a lot to make up for. I know this. I also know that earning your trust or forgiveness is going to take time and may not happen at all. I’m willing to try.”

It grew quiet between them all again as they took in Aly’s words.

“Why come back here?” Ezra asked him, “Jocelyn and Malachi come back often to visit. To check in on that fucking church. They’re going to find out you’ve been back here and once they do, they’re not going to let you get away again. Especially…” he went quiet and looked to Ash, Shay, and Jude.

“Especially what?” Mallory asked.

“Especially with us still in town,” Jude said, “Well, me. I’m the one that corrupted all of you apparently.”

“We barely spoke growing up,” Jamie said to him, “Don’t flatter yourself.”

“Go fuck yourself, Professor,” Jude snapped at him, but Aly didn’t detect any bite to it.

“If they realize you’re back home, they’re going to try every which way to get you away from us,” Ash explained, “I know this because they tried with me. For years. Wanted me to move to Florida with them, settle down, marry someone who share their ideals, and maybe have or adopt kids.”

“I fled before they could manipulate me into marrying someone,” Aly admitted, “But I know they’re more than likely to try even harder if they catch on to my being here.”

Ash nodded and went quiet a few moments before speaking again, “If this is just some elaborate trick to get close to us and then fuck us over for those people, you won’t like what happens to you.”

The intensity at which she was staring at him had him wanting to get up and flee.

“It’s not,” Aly assured her, “I promise. I have no intentions of fucking any of you over.”

“Wish you had that fucking epiphany earlier on,” Jude mumbled, “Nellie says you work at an animal rescue.”

“Yeah!” Nellie perked up, “Margot told me that Pancake got adopted! She said you all were happy with the family that applied for him.”

“I do,” Aly answered Jude’s question, “I’m a kennel tech. I also foster quite a bit.” He looked to Nellie, “He did. His family picked him up today. And we’re all very happy. I just hope I don’t see him back there.”

“Does that happen often?” Shay asked.

“More than you think,” Aly answered, “But those are becoming few and far between anymore.”

“Shay also tells us you have a cat,” Nellie said gingerly. Shay must have also mentioned that he broke into Aly’s house, “Are they okay with all the fosters that come through?”

“Her name’s Luna,” Aly explained, “She was a stray that one day appeared on my front door and never left. Now, she runs the house. And she doesn’t mind them. If she really doesn’t like them or if they don’t like her, someone else in the rescue will foster or one of our volunteers will.”

“I have one, too,” Nellie offered, “Her name’s Boo.”

“I always wanted a cat,” Ezra said offhandedly.

“So, go visit the rescue,” Shay told him, staring down at his phone.

“No working and no phones!” Ash snapped at him.

“Give me a second!” Shay snapped back at her.

“So, Mallory…” Jude spoke up and all eyes turned to their youngest sibling.

Mal

They hadn’t forgiven Aly, not by a long shot. But Mal knew that this would be a step in the right direction for him and there was a small part of her that was pissed about it. She wanted him to squirm some more and maybe she would be the one who continued doing so. She didn’t know if she was ready to forgive him yet. Honestly? She didn’t know if she was ready to forgive any of them yet.

When attention fell on her, she immediately bristled, her arms still crossed over her chest. She had eaten her food while their focus was on Aly, but now it was her turn and she wasn’t happy to be the main focal point.

“I left immediately when I turned 18,” Mal began, doing a quick summary of her life, “I traveled, working odd jobs here and there. I never really had a permanent home.”

“Why didn’t you try to find one of us? Or go live with Auntie?” Jude asked.

“Why didn’t you come find me?” Mal countered. She looked to each of them, “You all fucking left and never looked back. You were so fucking desperate to get out from underneath our parents, you forgot that there were still other siblings dealing with their shit!”

“I can’t speak for the others, but if I went back to that house, I would have murdered them,” Jude explained, “And I know that doesn’t make up for anything. It was just something I needed to do for me. To stay as far as fuck away from them.”

“I was drinking myself to death,” Ezra answered.

“I don’t want to hear all of your excuses,” Mal felt the tears burning the corners of her eyes, “None of you tried. The only one I’m not pissed off at is Kiss Ass. Because I knew he wouldn’t help. I wasn’t disappointed in his lack of helping.”

“No we didn’t,” Shay finally looked up from his phone, “And that makes us just as big of assholes as Aly. But we needed to leave those fucking people. You may not like that answer, but it’s the truth. Once free? Yeah, we could’ve reached out. 100%. But this is what all this is about. Reconnecting. Making amends. Owning up to piss poor decisions we made in the past.”

“Shit, you don’t ever have to forgive us,” Jude added, “That’s fucking fine. But we’re trying now. We’re all trying to work through the shit those people put us through, trying to fucking heal.”

Mal nodded and didn’t say anything. She wiped away the few tears that had fallen, hating that she was fucking crying.

“I’m willing to try,” Mal spoke softly. “I’d also like to take you up on that spare room while I get my fucking life together. I’m tired of staying at that motel.”

“We’ll get your stuff after this,” Jude nodded, “I’m willing as well. With everyone.”

“Before we all go around, is everyone willing to try?” Jamie asked. Everyone nodded, “Fantastic.”

As conversations began to flow once more, Mal found herself looking out of the window behind some of her siblings. She nearly jumped when she noticed a pair of glowing eyes staring into the window at her from the tree line.

“You know he’s also invited to these shindigs,” Shay commented. He had turned to see where Mal had been looking. He had directed that comment to Jude, Ezra, and Ash, “Or is he unaware of that?”

“I’ve tried,” Ash huffed, “He has no interest.”

“I thought it was only us?” Jamie frowned.

Mal looked around in confusion, finding that the only other person who shared her confusion was Aly.

“Nope,” Jude grinned, “That’s the First.”

“The first what?” Aly asked.

"Okay," Aly just nodded, realizing he hadn't said anything for a few moments. Jeannie didn't really know much of his childhood, but she knew that Aly didn't really talk to his family.

"If you need to go on break or need to step away while they're here..." Jeannie began.

"No, no, it's okay," Aly waved her comment off, "I just... I haven't seen any of my siblings in years. I don't even know who became a vet, to be honest."

Jeannie made a face, looked as though she wanted to say something, but kept her mouth closed.

"This was going to happen eventually," Aly sighed, "It's alright, Jeannie."

An hour later, Aly was sitting in the kennel with Baxter, who seemed to be slowly warming to him, though he remained in the corner. He had taken some treats but was still watching Aly warily.

Jeannie and Margot were giving the new vet a walk through of their facilities, and it looked as though they finally made it to the section that he was currently in.

"Aly's currently working with one of our new residents," Jeannie was saying, "Baxter was dropped off a few days ago. We're trying to let him decompress the best that he can before we have anyone watch look him over."

Aly let out a sigh and turned to acknowledge Margot and the new vet. It looked to be one of his sisters, one of the younger two whom he really didn't get to know growing up. Honestly? He didn't know which one she was, which made him feel incredibly guilty.

He slowly got up and left the kennel, watching his sibling to see if she recognized him. Her head tilted to the side slightly, and she was, in fact, studying him.

"Aly, this is Dr. Nellie Matheson," Margot introduced, "She's the new member of my team and will be working closely with the rescue."

Aly had no idea how to play this. Did he pretend not to know her? Did he greet her with familiarity only to have her be confused and not know who he was? He needed to say something instead of standing here awkwardly in front of her, not saying anything.

"Aloysius?" Nellie broke the awkward silence between the two siblings. Okay, so she recognized him. She didn't look angry per say. Just slightly confused, with narrowed, cautious eyes.

"It's Aly," Aly mumbled, "It's good to see you, Nellie."

"You...too," Nellie took that moment to flash him a kind, but awkward smile as she realized that Jeannie and Margot were still standing there watching them, "It looks like we'll be seeing more of each other."

"Seems so," Aly agreed, wanting nothing more than to get out of there. He turned back to find Baxter still laying in the corner, watching them all timidly, "I need to get back to..." he motioned behind him awkwardly and made his way back into the kennel.

The tour continued, and Aly did all that he could to put it out of his mind.

Nellie

Despite the most awkward interaction with her oldest sibling, the tour had been wonderful.

Nellie was excited to have the chance to work with the rescue, to be one of the main vets who got to come out and visit them on a regular basis. She could see how passionate all of the workers felt about the rescue, and all of the animals seemed happy and healthy. She especially loved the corgi, Pancake, that she met while having lunch in the break room with Margot.

He loved attention and Nellie had been happy to provide the animal with that attention he so desperately craved. Had she been shocked to find out that he was currently being fostered by her older brother? A little bit. But, Aly seemed to be taking good care of him.

Now that the tour was over, she could focus on the next big event. The siblings dinner.

It was being held at Jude's bookstore, one that Nellie still hadn't had the time to get to to browse around. Even if she didn't get to tomorrow night, Nellie was going to make a point to get there soon to actually look around the place!

She had spent all of this past week picking out an outfit, that has now changed 5 times since she started planning. She didn't know what type of food she was going to bring, but she knew it was going to be something that wouldn't, hopefully, mess with her stomach.

All in all, Nellie knew she was making a bigger deal out of this than it needed to be, but she wanted this to work.

Saturday night finally arrived and Nellie was sitting in her car in the parking lot of the bookstore, taking those last few moments to just breathe. Her outfit had changed another 4 times before she finally settled on the original outfit she had picked earlier that week. For dinner, she went with sushi and some dumplings.

After giving herself a small pep talk, she got out of her car, grabbed her bag, her food, and made her way up to the entrance to the store. The sign on the front said 'closed', but Ash had sent a message to her earlier to ignore the sign and just walk in.

As she entered the bookstore, the bell above the door jingled, alerting those already inside to her arrival. No one was up front to greet her, which was fine. She was just...confused as to where to go.

"Hello?" she called out, then winced.

"Nellie?" she heard Ash call out.

"Yes! Hi!" Nellie perked up, "Where are you?"

"Back of the store," this voice was male and Nellie felt bad because she didn't know which of her brothers it belonged to.

"Okay!" Nellie began walking toward the back of the store, urging her heart and mind to calm down. The itching under her skin was starting to become noticeable, but she had a feeling that just had to do with the devil sensing other devils.

Four of her siblings were already sitting around, getting comfortable with their own takeout. Ash had gotten up and set her food on a folding table, before approaching her.

"Hi!" Nellie greeted. She was practically buzzing, excited that she was able to meet up with her siblings.

"Hi, Nellie," Ash greeted back. The sisters stood there awkwardly for a moment. Nellie wanted to go in for a hug, and Ash looked like she was preparing for that potential outcome, "Glad you could join us."

Nellie didn't go in for the hug, but still nodded enthusiastically.

"Thanks for inviting me!" she walked over to one of the empty chairs and settled herself, "It's great to see you all again."

She took a few moments to look at the three brothers who were sitting there. Ezra looked the most familiar to her as they were the closest in age. Shay was the most intimidating looking out of the three of them and was currently staring down at his phone. Jude, who noticed this as well, made a face and nudged him.

"What?" Shay grumbled.

Jude just shook his head and looked to Nellie, "It's good to see you again."

"Sorry," Shay got the idea and turned his attention to her, "It's work related. Anyway, hi, Nellie. How are you?"

"Yes, how are you settling in?" Ash followed up.

"I'm good!" Nellie answered, "And everything's been great so far. My place is almost completely set up, and I'm really loving my job."

They spent the next 20 minutes catching up with each other, all while eating the various takeout they had brought. When the bell above the door jingled once more, Nellie watched the others. The only one who seemed to perk up was Ash.

"Ash?"

"No shit," Jude chuckled, Nellie could tell that he was shocked, "Is that Jamie? He actually showed up?"

"Seems like it," Ash said, also shocked, "Be nice." She then stood up and called out, "In the back, Jamie!"

Nellie happily watched as another one of her siblings walked into the back area of the bookstore. Jamie looked nervous and like he'd rather be anywhere but here, but Nellie was happy that he showed up.

"Hey there, Professor," Jude greeted. Ash flashed him a look, while Ezra and Shay bit back a laugh, "It's good to see you."

"Hi," Jamie greeted stiffly, "You, too."

It was quiet again as everyone settled, Jamie sitting very stiff in the chair next to Ash. Jamie was asked the same questions and while it took him a bit to not give them short responses, the conversations began to flow between the six of them.

"Any luck with finding Mallory and Aloysius?" Ezra asked Ash. He then looked to Shay.

"Not really," Ash answered.

"I get trying to find Mallory," Jamie spoke. He was still a little stiff, but seemed to be gaining more confidence the longer the evening went on, "But why Aloysius?"

"I asked the same thing," Jude agreed with him.

"He's probably down in Florida with those two fucks and has a family of his own that he's fucking over," Jamie grumbled. Jude made a face but lifted his drink, to which Jamie hesitantly clinked his own against.

"Um," Nellie spoke up, "He's here in Pine Hollow."

"What?" all eyes were on her.

"Yeah," Nellie continued, "He works as a kennel tech at the rescue I'm going to be working closely with. I don't know if he's married, I didn't see a ring, or if he's in a relationship. But he works with animals. They seem to like him. He can't be all bad, right?"

"That enough?" Jude asked Shay which confused Nellie.

"Plenty," Shay nodded, "Once we're moved in to the new building, I'll start looking."

"New building?" Jamie asked.

"I'm moving back to Pine Hollow as well," Shay answered.

That brought a smile to Nellie's face. All they needed was Mallory now.

ONE WEEK LATER

Aly

"Come on, bud," Aly helped Pancake out of his truck, and the two walked up to his front door after a long day at the rescue.

While the day had been long, it had been fruitful. Baxter had done a complete 180 over the last few days and was now being moved in with the other residents at the rescue. He got along great with the others, was happy to follow some of the workers around as they watched over everyone, and seemed to be completely different than the scared animal that had arrived nearly two weeks ago.

Pancake was also well on his way to being adopted. His adoption profile was up on the website and had already gotten quite a few applications. Jeannie and the others were sifting through them all, making sure to find the right fit for the happy-go-lucky animal.

Aly unlocked the door and pushed it open, chuckling as Pancake took off immediately to go find Luna. He heard Pancake let out a few barks, which normally wouldn't alert Aly. This time, though, Aly could hear the slight change in tone to the barks. He dropped his things by the front door and made his way farther into his home, coming into the living room, not at all expecting to find someone sitting on his couch.

Pancake was standing by the entryway, cautiously watching the man, though his little tail was wagging slightly. Luna was lying on her usual spot on the back of the couch, and while she was also watching the stranger, she didn't seem bothered.

"Who - ?" Aly began then frowned. He stopped and got a better look at the stranger, "Shay?"

"Aloysius," Shay didn't bother getting up. He was resting back on the couch, looking comfortable and at ease.

"Aly's fine," Aly grumbled at him, "What are you doing in my house?"

"Can't I visit my big brother?" Shay asked, tone dripping with sarcasm, "My turn. When did you move back to Pine Hollow?"

"I think that counts as two," Aly countered.

"Cut the shit, Aloysius. When did you move back here?"

"It's Aly." Aly snapped, "And you broke into my house. What makes you think I want to answer you?"

"You really are a miserable bastard still," Shay chuckled, shaking his head while doing so. He got up from where he was sitting and walked over to Aly, looking down to Pancake, who was sitting patiently at Aly's side, "is this yours?"

"He's a foster," Aly answered lowly, "Soon to be adopted."

"And the cat?"

"She's mine," Aly looked to find Luna watching them, though her eyes were starting to close. She was unbothered, "She do anything when you broke in?"

"Besides giving me death glare for disturbing her sleep? No. She's been there the entire time." Shay shrugged, "When did you move home, Aly?"

"2 years ago," Aly clenched and unclenched his jaw, "Are all of you still here?"

"Most of us," Shay answered, "I don't know where Mallory is."

Mallory was the youngest, Aly thought.

He felt terrible for not really knowing his youngest siblings. He was truly only familiar with Ash, Jude, Shay, and Jamie. Even then, he still didn't really know then all that well.

"How did you get away with us not knowing you were here?" Shay asked.

"Kept to myself. Went to and from work. Shopped online and had groceries delivered." Aly explained.

"So, instead of facing us, you decided to live like a hermit?" Shay's eyes narrowed, "Do Jocelyn and Malachi know you're back?"

"No," Aly answered immediately, eyes going wide slightly, "I'd like to keep it that way."

Shay watched him, head tiled slightly as he tried to read Aly's reaction.  

"How did..." Aly began but trailed off.

"How did I find out?" Shay asked and Aly nodded, "Nellie. A bunch of us got together last week and she told us."

"Right."

"Here," Shay handed Aly a card with an address on it, "Jude's bookstore, Matheson Books, is at the end of main street. We get together on the weekends a couple times a month to keep up with the goings on. I think you should join us at our next one in two weeks."

"And if I don't?" Aly asked. He didn't want to be like this, but he wasn't really happy with the underlying threat his younger brother was hinting at with this proposal.

Shay just chuckled and walked past him, heading for the front door.

"Just remember I know where you live now." Shay called.

Once he heard the door shut, Aly let out a groan. As he went to sit down to just decompress from this entire interaction, his phone buzzed.

Unknown: '7pm. Matheson Books. Two Saturdays from now.'

"And when we have bonfire nights, we can have this at my house," Jude commented as she approached him, "but I like this tradition!" "I'd rather this tradition be somewhere more comfortable," Shay threw in. He had gotten sushi, while Jude had gotten a turkey club from the diner. Ezra pulled out the fast food tacos, causing all of them to grumble. "I fucking asked you all if you wanted anything!" He groused. The four settled into a comfortable since as they ate, each waiting for someone to speak it. It was always Ash, and this would be no different. "Nellie reached out to me a few days ago," Ash begun after taking a sip of her drink. All three brothers gave her a look of confusion. She frowned, "Penelope. Our sister." "Ohh," all three said at the same time. Ash fought the urge to roll her eyes.

"She wants to get to know us," Ash continued. "It's not like we've gone anywhere," Jude mumbled, "Been here all our lives despite our better judgment." "Speak for yourself," Shay frowned. "Says the one who's moving his business here," Ezra threw in. "Both of you fuck right off," Shay snapped at them. "She's taking a job closer to home," Ash tried to steer the conversation back to their younger sister, "She asked once she's settled if we can all meet up for lunch." "Fine by me," Jude answered, "Do we have any clue if she was cursed or not?" "No," Ash sighed, "The conversation was already awkward enough. I didn't want to bring that up first thing." "Any chance she's close with those two?" Shay asked. "Doubtful," Ash answered, "She mentioned that they never showed up to her graduations, so I'd say that bridge was burned."

The three nodded their heads. Ash looked at her three brothers she spoke to, all of them turning over the information she gave them in their minds. Ezra and Jude were the easiest to read. They would welcome their baby sister with open arms, though Jude might be slightly more closed off than Ezra. Shay was always cautious, more so than any of them because of his line of work. It would most likely take Nellie sometime to gain Shay's trust. "Is she the only one to reach out?" Shay asked. He glanced over at her. "So far," Ash answered him honestly, "Jamie checks in every now and then, but nothing more than that. I know Mallory travels, but I've never really spoken with her." "I'm sure Aloysius had his own brood," Jude spoke with a slight bitter tone, "Hopefully he didn't fuck them over, but I doubt it." "You really think he has kids?" Ezra asked softly. "If he's anything like he was growing up, I'm sure he does," Shay commented, "He was Mom and Dad's golden boy. If they told him they wanted an army of grand kids for them to fuck up, he'd happily give them that."

Ash watched her youngest brother go quiet and stare down at the floor for a moments, taking in Shay's words. They didn't truly know if Aloysius had children. They didn't know if he was even still alive. But what they did know was that Ezra still felt enormous guilt for what he had done to his partner a few years ago. Ezra had, at one point, wanted kids. He assured them that specific want had changed to no kids after what he had gone through, but she also knew her baby brother was mourning the life he could have had if it hadn't been for their parents. "Well," Jude finally spoke again, "If he does, I hope he's decent to them." It grew quiet between them all once again, each deep in thought. Ash was curious about her other 4 siblings that she didn't really know. Well, she knew a little about a couple of them, but nowhere near as much as she did with Jude, Shay, and Ezra. 'Maybe it's time to change that'. She thought to herself.

"What do you have brewing in that brain of yours, Ash?" Shay asked, causing her to glance up. All three of her brothers were watching her. "I was thinking," Ash began, choosing her words carefully, "Maybe it's time we get to know our other siblings. Let them know that they're not alone." "And if they don't want that?" Jude asked. "I'm not going to force them to do anything," Ash sighed, "If they don't want to know us, or still want to keep us at arm's length, that's their decision. But, I still want to try." "Even with Aloysius?" Ezra asked. "Even with Aloysius," Ash repeated. "We have to find them all first," Jude spoke up.

"Nellie wants to come visit, so there's one. I know where Jamie is, vaguely, and have spoken with him, so there's two. The only two we have to find are Mallory and Aloysius." "I'll see what I can find and keep you guys posted," Shay told them after typing something out on his phone.

Aly

Not that far away from Pine Hollow and Matheson Books, their eldest brother was sitting in one of the kennels at the animal rescue he worked at, watching the very scared shepherd mix in the corner. The animal was terrified, confused as to why he was here and not at home with his family. Said family had dropped him off two days ago, claiming that they just didn't have time for the dog. Why get one in the first place? Aly asked himself. But this was one of many cases like this he had seen over the years. Aly kept close to the kennel door to give the dog some space, but he still wanted to try and sit with him for a little bit, hoping that it would help the animal adjust. Aly knew that it wouldn't, not completely anyway. He just didn't want the dog to shut down completely. "Aly," one of the other kennel techs spoke softly, keeping out of sight as to not scare the dog even more, "You were supposed to leave 2 hours ago." "I know," Aly leaned over slightly and set a treat in between him and the dog. After that, he regarded the other human, eyes focused on the wall and not the animal, "Got sidetracked." "How's he doing?" his coworker nodded gently to the dog in the corner. "Starting to shut down," Aly frowned, "He keeps looking up at any little sound, hoping his family's coming back."

"People are assholes," his coworker cursed softly. "That they are," Aly couldn't help but to agree, "Overnight team here?" "Been here an hour already." Aly frowned and looked down at his watch, "Come on, man. Go home. Get some rest so you can have your heart broken all over again tomorrow." Aly didn't argue. He got up slowly, letting himself out of the kennel before closing it behind him. He took one last look at the dog, Baxter, who had turned his head away from him. "I'll be back tomorrow, bud," Aly told him softly. He made his way through the kennels and into the back area where the employees kept their personal belongings. A few of them were sitting on the floor, playing with Aly's newest foster, a corgi the rescue had named Pancake. He was doing great with Aly, and they were hoping to find his forever home within the coming months. "How's he doing with Luna?" One of the overnight team asked him. Luna was his former street cat, turned rescue, that found her way to his yard and never left. She had obviously been a pet at one point, having been comfortable with humans, and after months of going through proper channels to try and find a previous owner, no one claimed her. She now lived like a queen, who sometimes shared her home with other fosters. For the most part, she ignored them. She only swiped and hissed at them if they were persistent and got on her nerves, but she was pretty tolerant of most other animals. "She's been ignoring him mostly. He was curious in the beginning, but he's left her alone since," Aly shrugged, grabbing Pancake's leash. The corgi came bounding over to him as fast as he could, excited for the car ride, "he seems to be good with other animals and Jeannie's bringing her kids around this week to see how he does with them." "Looks like he's on his way then!" She smiled at the corgi. Aly clipped the leash onto his collar, said his goodbyes, and walked out of the rescue, ready to crash.

Mallory

After grabbing her duffle bag off of the carousel, she threw it over her shoulder and began walking towards the exit, hoping to find a cheap motel around here. She was back in New Jersey for the first time in nearly a decade. She didn't know why she had wanted to come home, but her brain had been telling her for weeks now that she needed to go home. She actually listened. Mallory walked out into the cool, late spring air and breathed in. Yup. She was home. She found an Uber easily and asked them to take her to the nearest and cheapest motel that they knew of. It wasn't long before they were dropping her off in front of one. It wasn't the shadiest places she had ever stayed at, but it was up there. But there was a vacancy and it was in her budget. She entered the room and checked everything out before getting comfortable, and when she felt she was relatively safe, she pulled a chair in front of the door, locked the deadbolt and sat down on the bed. The room was decently clean, though there were some stains and patched up holes. She took the next hour or so to shower, change into comfortable clothes, and pull out her journal to continue with her planning. She needed to find a place to crash, needed a job to afford a place to crash, and she needed to do everything in her power to avoid seeing her parents. Well, if they were even still alive or in town. She was hoping towards the former, hoping that they were long gone, but that was a big ask. They were older, sure. But they had been in good health when she left at 18. She also needed to figure out why she was being pulled back here. Did she need to visit somewhere special in her hometown? There wasn't anything special about it. Was it a person? She didn't really have any friends, and the ones she did have were superficial and were all big into the church and religion. They weren't really friends. Her head and heart was leaning towards someone rather than something. But who? She wrote down person with a question mark but then scribbled it out and wrote people. Fuck. She knew why her brain wanted her back home. She wanted to try to get to know her older siblings. Huh. Growing up, she didn't care to get to know them, but she didn't even try. Their parents had made it perfectly clear: you were siblings. You weren't friends. And being the baby, most of her siblings have runaway or left the house before she was old enough to realize what was happening. This would be a long shot, but she wanted to try. If she didn't, it would bother her, and she didn't want to have that sitting in the back of her mind while she traveled. She didn't even know any of her siblings still lived in Pine Hollow. But first thing tomorrow, she was going to find out.

Nellie

The move had gone well, with only a few minor hiccups along the way. Nothing was going to break her confidence, though. She had found a good job as a veterinarian close to her hometown, found an apartment that was decently priced in her hometown which was unheard of, and she would finally be able to get to know her older siblings. She was most looking forward to getting to know her older sister, Ash. She was lacking in the female role model department, especially with her mother, whom she wanted nothing to do with. Thankfully, her mother lived in Florida now, giving Nellie this opportunity to move home. Once she had gotten the job, she had reached out to Ash. Ash had been receptive to the idea, stating that she would ask the three siblings that she saw on the regular. It was three of her brothers. Nellie still couldn't believe that she barely knew these people, even after having grown up with them. She was just hoping the damage her parents had done hadn't stuck. Her apartment was nearly put together, and her cat, Boo, was loving her new home. She had set up Boo's cat tree in front of the window, allowing the feline to watch the outside whenever she pleased. After a full day of work and finishing with setting up the last room of her apartment, Nellie collapsed down onto her couch, ready to enjoy the weekend. She pulled out her phone to check if she had gotten any messages, and when she saw that she had one from her sister, she sat up. Ash: 'If you're free this weekend and want a break from moving, we're having a bring your own takeout night at Jude's bookstore just for siblings. Casual, bring whatever you want food and drink wise.' Nellie: 'Sounds fun! I'm in. Just let me know which day and time and I'll be there.' Ash: 'Great! Saturday at 7.' Nellie: 'Can't wait. :)' She knew she sounded extremely enthusiastic, but she was! Ash liked her comment, and Nellie continued smiling. Finally. She was finally getting the family she always wanted. Well, she hoped.

Jamie

Main street looked the same, save for a few new stores that had popped up since she was last home. No one seemed to recognize her, which she was happy about. She purposely kept far away from the local church, knowing that someone there would most likely recognize her, and she didn’t want to talk about her asshole parents.

Her route took her down main street towards a lone bookstore at the end near the barrens. She almost ignored it completely, not wanting to give in to her need for new books when she took notice to the name on the sign.

Matheson Books

Without hesitating, she made a beeline for the bookstore, ready to see which of her siblings owned it. Hell, she had been doing really well with saving. She could get away with one book as a reward.

Mal quietly let herself into the store, finding a few other people browsing the shelves. She glanced around the store, giving it a quick once over to see if she could determine which of her siblings owned it by the décor.

“Welcome in,” Mal looked to the front desk to find a woman about her age, maybe younger, standing behind the counter. She had a kind smile on her face. Mal then noticed the skeleton sitting next to her with a homemade Matheson Books shirt on, “What brings you in today?”

“Just looking,” Mal answered, trying, and failing, to return the kind smile.

“Okay,” the other woman didn’t seem bothered by her botched attempt at a smile, “I’m Nessa. If you need any help, just shout.”

“Thank you,” Mal nodded before disappearing amongst the shelves.

She was surprised to find a wide variety of genres, especially the decent sized horror section. She planted herself in front of the section and began her browsing, picking up a book that looked interesting and reading the summary.

“Hey, Ness!” she heard a man’s voice call from farther back in the store.

“Be there in a second!” Nessa called back.

Mal, despite wanting to stay in this section and browse longer, pulled herself away to go and investigate. She slowly made her way closer to the back of the store, still making it look as though she was browsing (and she was), but her goal was to see who had been speaking. Had it been one of her siblings? She really needed to know.

As Nessa found her way into the back of the store, Mal found a section of books close enough to see and hear the conversation, but far enough away to keep the guise of browsing.

“If you’re putting up Halloween decorations already, I’m going to scream,” Nessa was saying. She sounded amused.

The man standing in the back was tall, with dark brown hair that was graying at the temple and kind brown eyes. The moment Nessa had made her comment, he let out an amused chuckle and waited for her to appear. When Nessa did, the grin grew.

“It’s not even July yet!”

“Where’s your whimsy?” the man asked.

“Jude.” Nessa shook her head.

Jude. He was the third oldest of her siblings and had been the first one to be kicked out of their home. Her parents refused to talk about him once he left, and if any of them had mentioned him, even in passing, they were punished. Mal learned very quickly growing up not to speak of him, especially once Nellie had gotten punished pretty severely for even telling Mal about Jude.

Mal tuned out the remainder of their conversation to continue her browsing. There had been so many books that she wanted to pick up and buy, and while she didn’t have the money just yet for them all, she was making a mental note of the names for the future.

One. You can afford one. She thought to herself. She would stick to her plan from earlier and would treat herself to one book.

“Need any help?” she hadn’t heard her older brother walk up behind her. She jumped, letting out a surprise yelp as she whirled around. She wasn’t sure if he was going to recognize her or not, “You look familiar.”

“I’m good,” Mal felt her heart pounding in her chest as she tried to calm down from the sudden surprise, “Just…deciding which book I want with my meager budget. As to the second… I think the last time you saw me, I was 2 years old. Unless you saw any updated photos since then but I doubt that since our parents fucking suck ass – “

“Yeah, you’re a Matheson alright,” Jude laughed, “Hi, Mallory.”

“What gave it away?” Mal mumbled, “Hi, Jude.”

“The obvious love for reading,” he motioned to the book in her hands, “All of us have it. Well, I’m assuming we all do. Your rambling for another, and the cursing. All us Matheson siblings are the same.” He let out a chuckle and his head tilted slightly, “Shit, kid. It’s been too fucking long.”

“Well, I’m 35 now and the last time you saw me I was 2.” Mal couldn’t fight back the sarcastic comment. It didn’t seem to deter Jude, though. He looked amused, “I left the minute I turned 18. This is the first time I’ve been back in Jersey in years.”

“Where are you staying?”

“Some motel close to Leeds Diner,” Mal answered.

“Okay,” Jude nodded, “Listen. Ash has been wanting to get all of us siblings together to get to known each other better. We’ve been looking for you.”

Mal felt tears burning the corners of her eyes, but forced them down. She wouldn’t cry because these people she barely knew suddenly cared about her. By the time Mal graduated high school, most, if not all, of her siblings were out in the world and had lives. The older siblings never checked up on the younger ones, not wanting to be anywhere near Jocelyn and Malachi.

“Well, here I am,” Mal shrugged her shoulders awkwardly. She then made a face after turning over his words, “Even the kiss ass?”

“Even him,” Jude answered, “We’re all getting together here next Saturday. You should come by.”

“Okay,” Mal had wanted to say no at first, but this was the exact reason why she came back home to Pine Hollow in the first place. Despite her sour feelings towards her older siblings (and wow, she didn’t realize how sour they were before speaking with one), this was want she wanted. What she needed. To hash shit out with them and maybe, just maybe, get a fresh start, “What time?”

“Seven,” Jude answered, “Bring whatever you want food and drink wise.”

Mal nodded and when she turned to leave, Jude spoke again. “If I offer my spare room, would you take it, or would you just wave me off for some pride bullshit?” “What do you think?” Mal found herself snapping. “Fair enough. Offer stands. See you next Saturday.” Jude didn’t seem bothered by her snap. Mal set the book she was holding down on a random shelf and walked out of the store.

Aly

Saturday came around too quick for Aly’s liking.

He had spent the entire morning at the rescue, seeing the corgi he fostered off to his new home. Pancake was thrilled with his new family and didn’t spare Aly a second glance when he realized he was going home with them. Aly didn’t take it personally. He was happy that Pancake was eager to leave with the family, that the animal had felt connected and safe with them. He hoped he didn’t see the animal back at the rescue in the future. He then spent some time outside with Baxter and several other of the rescues, knowing that his night wouldn’t be this calm and successful.

He wanted to say ‘fuck it’ and not show up at all. He wanted to ignore his younger brother’s threat, go home and remain there. He wouldn’t. He would go to the bookstore and take whatever they gave him, no matter how bad it was. He had hurt his siblings with his compliance and his coldness towards them. It was going to take some time for them to become friendly with him, if at all. But he would put in the work.

As 7pm rolled around, Aly found himself sitting in his truck in the parking lot of his brother’s bookstore. He shut his eyes, taking in a deep breath to calm his nerves. He was fighting with himself, wanting nothing more than to put his truck in drive and leave, forgetting this stupid idea. He had even started turning his key, when his eyes popped open. No. He needed to do this.

Shaking his head, he grabbed his salad and got out of his truck, deciding that this was now or never. As he turned to head toward the front entrance, he watched as a young woman crossed the street, heading quickly towards the entrance as well. She stopped at the sight of him, watching him approach the entrance along with her. He saw her reach into her bag, knowing that she probably had something along the lines of a knife or pepper spray at the ready. She gave him a closer look and then frowned.

“Oh look, it’s the kiss ass,” she said. She kept her hand in her bag, her shoulders still tense as she took another step toward the door.

Aly’s head tilted in confusion for a moment and then realized this was his youngest sibling. This was Mallory.

“Seriously?” she snapped mistaking his sudden confusion for not knowing who she was, “You only have three sisters, Aloysius! And you’re close in age to one of them.”

“It’s Aly,” Aly immediately corrected, “And I know! You’re Mallory.”

“Wow, lucky fucking guess.” she rolled her eyes, “This is going to be a fun night.” Instead of waiting for him to follow, she yanked open the door to the bookstore and walked inside, leaving him alone.

He entered the bookstore a few moments later, taking in the lack of people at the front of the store. He looked around, taking in his brother’s store for the first time. It was a comfortable space and already Aly could tell it was filled with love and acceptance. It felt safe. Even if he felt uncomfortable and nervous, but he knew that was due to finally coming face to face with his siblings for the first time in many, many years.

“We’re in the back!” he heard someone call up to him.

He slowly made his way toward the back of the store, fighting the urge to not stop and check out the selection of books on the shelves. He would do that later. Well, he hoped he would be allowed to. The moment he stepped out from between the shelves, everyone who had been standing around in the back looked to him. He fought down the urge to run.

“Told you he’d come,” Shay finally spoke after a full minute of silence, “Aly.”

“Hi.” The urge to run was still there and he could feel his heart pounding in his chest as his siblings continued to stare him down.

“Oh, how the mighty fall,” Aly’s attention turned to one of his brothers. Jude. He knew Jude. His younger brother took a few steps forward, staring him down with a sarcastic grin, “You’re who I was afraid of all those years ago?” A few more steps and Jude had bridged the gap between them. Jude stared down at Aly, his younger brother a few inches taller than he was, “Who we all were afraid of because you were a fucking rat?”

“Jude.” Aly mumbled. The sarcastic grin left his younger brother’s face.

“Aloysius.”

“It’s Aly,” Aly corrected, doing all that he could to not look away.

“Aly.” Jude said. It didn’t sound sarcastic which Aly was happy about, “Shay tells us you’ve been back here in Pine Hollow for two years.”

“Can we at least sit down for this?” someone else said.

“You can sit if you want, Ez,” Jude didn’t look back. His focus was still on Aly.

“I have,” Aly answered.

“He also tells us that you don’t want Jocelyn and Malachi to know,” Jude continued.

“No, I don’t,” Aly felt his heartrate spike once more, “I’d very much like for them to believe I’m somewhere out west still.”

“Now why in the fuck would you want that?” Jude asked, “Because last I fucking checked, you were their golden child.”

“I agree with Ezra,” Aly looked to find Ashlee taking a few steps towards Jude, “Let’s sit. We can still hash all of this out, but I’d rather not have everyone look as though they’re going to bolt. I’d also like to eat my food.”

“Fine.”

It took a few minutes, but soon all 8 siblings were sitting around in a circle, the tension still very much present in the air.

“Alright, we’re sitting,” Jude continued, “Answer the fucking question.”

“Because I don’t want them trying to ruin my life anymore,” Aly answered, looking at each of his siblings. In his head, he was trying to put a name to a face and was failing miserably.

“Anymore?” Jude let out a sarcastic laugh.

“Jude,” Ashlee snapped at him.

“They’ve done nothing but ruin our lives,” Jude snapped back, “All of us. But they doted on him. He was their perfect son.”

“Dote on me, huh?” Aly couldn’t fight down the sarcastic chuckle, sounding much like Jude had moments ago, “Dad was trying to mold me into being just like him. The moment I could walk and could understand that I was the oldest, they had me watching over you. I was fucking 7 years old! When I showed any fucking emotion or sympathy towards any of you, I got beat. They didn’t want me to be your friend. And the entire fucking time they were out there deciding my life for me. I had no fucking say.”

“They tried that shit with all of us,” Jude made a face, “They tried breaking all of our spirits. You were the only one that it worked on. You were the only one to conform.”

“Do they think you’re married or something?” Aly looked to find Nellie had spoken, “Are you married? Did you run out on your wife?”

“No!” Aly answered, “No, it’s nothing like that. I just… left one day and made it seem like I was out there doing missionary work. In reality, I was traveling. I was…in the process of deconstructing my faith.”

That had them all go quiet. All of them had gone through the same thing and while most if them had done it earlier on in their lives, they knew that this was a big deal for him.

“Where are you on that journey?” Ash asked.

“It’s still ongoing,” Aly admitted honestly, “But I don’t share the same values or beliefs as our parents.”

“You expect us to believe that?” Jamie asked.

“Over time I hope you do,” Aly told him softly, then looked to all of them, “I have a lot to make up for. I know this. I also know that earning your trust or forgiveness is going to take time and may not happen at all. I’m willing to try.”

It grew quiet between them all again as they took in Aly’s words.

“Why come back here?” Ezra asked him, “Jocelyn and Malachi come back often to visit. To check in on that fucking church. They’re going to find out you’ve been back here and once they do, they’re not going to let you get away again. Especially…” he went quiet and looked to Ash, Shay, and Jude.

“Especially what?” Mallory asked.

“Especially with us still in town,” Jude said, “Well, me. I’m the one that corrupted all of you apparently.”

“We barely spoke growing up,” Jamie said to him, “Don’t flatter yourself.”

“Go fuck yourself, Professor,” Jude snapped at him, but Aly didn’t detect any bite to it.

“If they realize you’re back home, they’re going to try every which way to get you away from us,” Ash explained, “I know this because they tried with me. For years. Wanted me to move to Florida with them, settle down, marry someone who share their ideals, and maybe have or adopt kids.”

“I fled before they could manipulate me into marrying someone,” Aly admitted, “But I know they’re more than likely to try even harder if they catch on to my being here.”

Ash nodded and went quiet a few moments before speaking again, “If this is just some elaborate trick to get close to us and then fuck us over for those people, you won’t like what happens to you.”

The intensity at which she was staring at him had him wanting to get up and flee.

“It’s not,” Aly assured her, “I promise. I have no intentions of fucking any of you over.”

“Wish you had that fucking epiphany earlier on,” Jude mumbled, “Nellie says you work at an animal rescue.”

“Yeah!” Nellie perked up, “Margot told me that Pancake got adopted! She said you all were happy with the family that applied for him.”

“I do,” Aly answered Jude’s question, “I’m a kennel tech. I also foster quite a bit.” He looked to Nellie, “He did. His family picked him up today. And we’re all very happy. I just hope I don’t see him back there.”

“Does that happen often?” Shay asked.

“More than you think,” Aly answered, “But those are becoming few and far between anymore.”

“Shay also tells us you have a cat,” Nellie said gingerly. Shay must have also mentioned that he broke into Aly’s house, “Are they okay with all the fosters that come through?”

“Her name’s Luna,” Aly explained, “She was a stray that one day appeared on my front door and never left. Now, she runs the house. And she doesn’t mind them. If she really doesn’t like them or if they don’t like her, someone else in the rescue will foster or one of our volunteers will.”

“I have one, too,” Nellie offered, “Her name’s Boo.”

“I always wanted a cat,” Ezra said offhandedly.

“So, go visit the rescue,” Shay told him, staring down at his phone.

“No working and no phones!” Ash snapped at him.

“Give me a second!” Shay snapped back at her.

“So, Mallory…” Jude spoke up and all eyes turned to their youngest sibling.

Mal

They hadn’t forgiven Aly, not by a long shot. But Mal knew that this would be a step in the right direction for him and there was a small part of her that was pissed about it. She wanted him to squirm some more and maybe she would be the one who continued doing so. She didn’t know if she was ready to forgive him yet. Honestly? She didn’t know if she was ready to forgive any of them yet.

When attention fell on her, she immediately bristled, her arms still crossed over her chest. She had eaten her food while their focus was on Aly, but now it was her turn and she wasn’t happy to be the main focal point.

“I left immediately when I turned 18,” Mal began, doing a quick summary of her life, “I traveled, working odd jobs here and there. I never really had a permanent home.”

“Why didn’t you try to find one of us? Or go live with Auntie?” Jude asked.

“Why didn’t you come find me?” Mal countered. She looked to each of them, “You all fucking left and never looked back. You were so fucking desperate to get out from underneath our parents, you forgot that there were still other siblings dealing with their shit!”

“I can’t speak for the others, but if I went back to that house, I would have murdered them,” Jude explained, “And I know that doesn’t make up for anything. It was just something I needed to do for me. To stay as far as fuck away from them.”

“I was drinking myself to death,” Ezra answered.

“I don’t want to hear all of your excuses,” Mal felt the tears burning the corners of her eyes, “None of you tried. The only one I’m not pissed off at is Kiss Ass. Because I knew he wouldn’t help. I wasn’t disappointed in his lack of helping.”

“No we didn’t,” Shay finally looked up from his phone, “And that makes us just as big of assholes as Aly. But we needed to leave those fucking people. You may not like that answer, but it’s the truth. Once free? Yeah, we could’ve reached out. 100%. But this is what all this is about. Reconnecting. Making amends. Owning up to piss poor decisions we made in the past.”

“Shit, you don’t ever have to forgive us,” Jude added, “That’s fucking fine. But we’re trying now. We’re all trying to work through the shit those people put us through, trying to fucking heal.”

Mal nodded and didn’t say anything. She wiped away the few tears that had fallen, hating that she was fucking crying.

“I’m willing to try,” Mal spoke softly. “I’d also like to take you up on that spare room while I get my fucking life together. I’m tired of staying at that motel.”

“We’ll get your stuff after this,” Jude nodded, “I’m willing as well. With everyone.”

“Before we all go around, is everyone willing to try?” Jamie asked. Everyone nodded, “Fantastic.”

As conversations began to flow once more, Mal found herself looking out of the window behind some of her siblings. She nearly jumped when she noticed a pair of glowing eyes staring into the window at her from the tree line.

“You know he’s also invited to these shindigs,” Shay commented. He had turned to see where Mal had been looking. He had directed that comment to Jude, Ezra, and Ash, “Or is he unaware of that?”

“I’ve tried,” Ash huffed, “He has no interest.”

“I thought it was only us?” Jamie frowned.

Mal looked around in confusion, finding that the only other person who shared her confusion was Aly.

“Nope,” Jude grinned, “That’s the First.”

“The first what?” Aly asked.

Main street looked the same, save for a few new stores that had popped up since she was last home. No one seemed to recognize her, which she was happy about. She purposely kept far away from the local church, knowing that someone there would most likely recognize her, and she didn’t want to talk about her asshole parents.

Her route took her down main street towards a lone bookstore at the end near the barrens. She almost ignored it completely, not wanting to give in to her need for new books when she took notice to the name on the sign.

Matheson Books

Without hesitating, she made a beeline for the bookstore, ready to see which of her siblings owned it. Hell, she had been doing really well with saving. She could get away with one book as a reward.

Mal quietly let herself into the store, finding a few other people browsing the shelves. She glanced around the store, giving it a quick once over to see if she could determine which of her siblings owned it by the décor.

“Welcome in,” Mal looked to the front desk to find a woman about her age, maybe younger, standing behind the counter. She had a kind smile on her face. Mal then noticed the skeleton sitting next to her with a homemade Matheson Books shirt on, “What brings you in today?”

“Just looking,” Mal answered, trying, and failing, to return the kind smile.

“Okay,” the other woman didn’t seem bothered by her botched attempt at a smile, “I’m Nessa. If you need any help, just shout.”

“Thank you,” Mal nodded before disappearing amongst the shelves.

She was surprised to find a wide variety of genres, especially the decent sized horror section. She planted herself in front of the section and began her browsing, picking up a book that looked interesting and reading the summary.

“Hey, Ness!” she heard a man’s voice call from farther back in the store.

“Be there in a second!” Nessa called back.

Mal, despite wanting to stay in this section and browse longer, pulled herself away to go and investigate. She slowly made her way closer to the back of the store, still making it look as though she was browsing (and she was), but her goal was to see who had been speaking. Had it been one of her siblings? She really needed to know.

As Nessa found her way into the back of the store, Mal found a section of books close enough to see and hear the conversation, but far enough away to keep the guise of browsing.

“If you’re putting up Halloween decorations already, I’m going to scream,” Nessa was saying. She sounded amused.

The man standing in the back was tall, with dark brown hair that was graying at the temple and kind brown eyes. The moment Nessa had made her comment, he let out an amused chuckle and waited for her to appear. When Nessa did, the grin grew.

“It’s not even July yet!”

“Where’s your whimsy?” the man asked.

“Jude.” Nessa shook her head.

Jude. He was the third oldest of her siblings and had been the first one to be kicked out of their home. Her parents refused to talk about him once he left, and if any of them had mentioned him, even in passing, they were punished. Mal learned very quickly growing up not to speak of him, especially once Nellie had gotten punished pretty severely for even telling Mal about Jude.

Mal tuned out the remainder of their conversation to continue her browsing. There had been so many books that she wanted to pick up and buy, and while she didn’t have the money just yet for them all, she was making a mental note of the names for the future.

One. You can afford one. She thought to herself. She would stick to her plan from earlier and would treat herself to one book.

“Need any help?” she hadn’t heard her older brother walk up behind her. She jumped, letting out a surprise yelp as she whirled around. She wasn’t sure if he was going to recognize her or not, “You look familiar.”

“I’m good,” Mal felt her heart pounding in her chest as she tried to calm down from the sudden surprise, “Just…deciding which book I want with my meager budget. As to the second… I think the last time you saw me, I was 2 years old. Unless you saw any updated photos since then but I doubt that since our parents fucking suck ass – “

“Yeah, you’re a Matheson alright,” Jude laughed, “Hi, Mallory.”

“What gave it away?” Mal mumbled, “Hi, Jude.”

“The obvious love for reading,” he motioned to the book in her hands, “All of us have it. Well, I’m assuming we all do. Your rambling for another, and the cursing. All us Matheson siblings are the same.” He let out a chuckle and his head tilted slightly, “Shit, kid. It’s been too fucking long.”

“Well, I’m 35 now and the last time you saw me I was 2.” Mal couldn’t fight back the sarcastic comment. It didn’t seem to deter Jude, though. He looked amused, “I left the minute I turned 18. This is the first time I’ve been back in Jersey in years.”

“Where are you staying?”

“Some motel close to Leeds Diner,” Mal answered.

“Okay,” Jude nodded, “Listen. Ash has been wanting to get all of us siblings together to get to known each other better. We’ve been looking for you.”

Mal felt tears burning the corners of her eyes, but forced them down. She wouldn’t cry because these people she barely knew suddenly cared about her. By the time Mal graduated high school, most, if not all, of her siblings were out in the world and had lives. The older siblings never checked up on the younger ones, not wanting to be anywhere near Jocelyn and Malachi.

“Well, here I am,” Mal shrugged her shoulders awkwardly. She then made a face after turning over his words, “Even the kiss ass?”

“Even him,” Jude answered, “We’re all getting together here next Saturday. You should come by.”

“Okay,” Mal had wanted to say no at first, but this was the exact reason why she came back home to Pine Hollow in the first place. Despite her sour feelings towards her older siblings (and wow, she didn’t realize how sour they were before speaking with one), this was want she wanted. What she needed. To hash shit out with them and maybe, just maybe, get a fresh start, “What time?”

“Seven,” Jude answered, “Bring whatever you want food and drink wise.”

Mal nodded and when she turned to leave, Jude spoke again. “If I offer my spare room, would you take it, or would you just wave me off for some pride bullshit?” “What do you think?” Mal found herself snapping. “Fair enough. Offer stands. See you next Saturday.” Jude didn’t seem bothered by her snap. Mal set the book she was holding down on a random shelf and walked out of the store.

Aly

Saturday came around too quick for Aly’s liking.

He had spent the entire morning at the rescue, seeing the corgi he fostered off to his new home. Pancake was thrilled with his new family and didn’t spare Aly a second glance when he realized he was going home with them. Aly didn’t take it personally. He was happy that Pancake was eager to leave with the family, that the animal had felt connected and safe with them. He hoped he didn’t see the animal back at the rescue in the future. He then spent some time outside with Baxter and several other of the rescues, knowing that his night wouldn’t be this calm and successful.

He wanted to say ‘fuck it’ and not show up at all. He wanted to ignore his younger brother’s threat, go home and remain there. He wouldn’t. He would go to the bookstore and take whatever they gave him, no matter how bad it was. He had hurt his siblings with his compliance and his coldness towards them. It was going to take some time for them to become friendly with him, if at all. But he would put in the work.

As 7pm rolled around, Aly found himself sitting in his truck in the parking lot of his brother’s bookstore. He shut his eyes, taking in a deep breath to calm his nerves. He was fighting with himself, wanting nothing more than to put his truck in drive and leave, forgetting this stupid idea. He had even started turning his key, when his eyes popped open. No. He needed to do this.

Shaking his head, he grabbed his salad and got out of his truck, deciding that this was now or never. As he turned to head toward the front entrance, he watched as a young woman crossed the street, heading quickly towards the entrance as well. She stopped at the sight of him, watching him approach the entrance along with her. He saw her reach into her bag, knowing that she probably had something along the lines of a knife or pepper spray at the ready. She gave him a closer look and then frowned.

“Oh look, it’s the kiss ass,” she said. She kept her hand in her bag, her shoulders still tense as she took another step toward the door.

Aly’s head tilted in confusion for a moment and then realized this was his youngest sibling. This was Mallory.

“Seriously?” she snapped mistaking his sudden confusion for not knowing who she was, “You only have three sisters, Aloysius! And you’re close in age to one of them.”

“It’s Aly,” Aly immediately corrected, “And I know! You’re Mallory.”

“Wow, lucky fucking guess.” she rolled her eyes, “This is going to be a fun night.” Instead of waiting for him to follow, she yanked open the door to the bookstore and walked inside, leaving him alone.

He entered the bookstore a few moments later, taking in the lack of people at the front of the store. He looked around, taking in his brother’s store for the first time. It was a comfortable space and already Aly could tell it was filled with love and acceptance. It felt safe. Even if he felt uncomfortable and nervous, but he knew that was due to finally coming face to face with his siblings for the first time in many, many years.

“We’re in the back!” he heard someone call up to him.

He slowly made his way toward the back of the store, fighting the urge to not stop and check out the selection of books on the shelves. He would do that later. Well, he hoped he would be allowed to. The moment he stepped out from between the shelves, everyone who had been standing around in the back looked to him. He fought down the urge to run.

“Told you he’d come,” Shay finally spoke after a full minute of silence, “Aly.”

“Hi.” The urge to run was still there and he could feel his heart pounding in his chest as his siblings continued to stare him down.

“Oh, how the mighty fall,” Aly’s attention turned to one of his brothers. Jude. He knew Jude. His younger brother took a few steps forward, staring him down with a sarcastic grin, “You’re who I was afraid of all those years ago?” A few more steps and Jude had bridged the gap between them. Jude stared down at Aly, his younger brother a few inches taller than he was, “Who we all were afraid of because you were a fucking rat?”

“Jude.” Aly mumbled. The sarcastic grin left his younger brother’s face.

“Aloysius.”

“It’s Aly,” Aly corrected, doing all that he could to not look away.

“Aly.” Jude said. It didn’t sound sarcastic which Aly was happy about, “Shay tells us you’ve been back here in Pine Hollow for two years.”

“Can we at least sit down for this?” someone else said.

“You can sit if you want, Ez,” Jude didn’t look back. His focus was still on Aly.

“I have,” Aly answered.

“He also tells us that you don’t want Jocelyn and Malachi to know,” Jude continued.

“No, I don’t,” Aly felt his heartrate spike once more, “I’d very much like for them to believe I’m somewhere out west still.”

“Now why in the fuck would you want that?” Jude asked, “Because last I fucking checked, you were their golden child.”

“I agree with Ezra,” Aly looked to find Ashlee taking a few steps towards Jude, “Let’s sit. We can still hash all of this out, but I’d rather not have everyone look as though they’re going to bolt. I’d also like to eat my food.”

“Fine.”

It took a few minutes, but soon all 8 siblings were sitting around in a circle, the tension still very much present in the air.

“Alright, we’re sitting,” Jude continued, “Answer the fucking question.”

“Because I don’t want them trying to ruin my life anymore,” Aly answered, looking at each of his siblings. In his head, he was trying to put a name to a face and was failing miserably.

“Anymore?” Jude let out a sarcastic laugh.

“Jude,” Ashlee snapped at him.

“They’ve done nothing but ruin our lives,” Jude snapped back, “All of us. But they doted on him. He was their perfect son.”

“Dote on me, huh?” Aly couldn’t fight down the sarcastic chuckle, sounding much like Jude had moments ago, “Dad was trying to mold me into being just like him. The moment I could walk and could understand that I was the oldest, they had me watching over you. I was fucking 7 years old! When I showed any fucking emotion or sympathy towards any of you, I got beat. They didn’t want me to be your friend. And the entire fucking time they were out there deciding my life for me. I had no fucking say.”

“They tried that shit with all of us,” Jude made a face, “They tried breaking all of our spirits. You were the only one that it worked on. You were the only one to conform.”

“Do they think you’re married or something?” Aly looked to find Nellie had spoken, “Are you married? Did you run out on your wife?”

“No!” Aly answered, “No, it’s nothing like that. I just… left one day and made it seem like I was out there doing missionary work. In reality, I was traveling. I was…in the process of deconstructing my faith.”

That had them all go quiet. All of them had gone through the same thing and while most if them had done it earlier on in their lives, they knew that this was a big deal for him.

“Where are you on that journey?” Ash asked.

“It’s still ongoing,” Aly admitted honestly, “But I don’t share the same values or beliefs as our parents.”

“You expect us to believe that?” Jamie asked.

“Over time I hope you do,” Aly told him softly, then looked to all of them, “I have a lot to make up for. I know this. I also know that earning your trust or forgiveness is going to take time and may not happen at all. I’m willing to try.”

It grew quiet between them all again as they took in Aly’s words.

“Why come back here?” Ezra asked him, “Jocelyn and Malachi come back often to visit. To check in on that fucking church. They’re going to find out you’ve been back here and once they do, they’re not going to let you get away again. Especially…” he went quiet and looked to Ash, Shay, and Jude.

“Especially what?” Mallory asked.

“Especially with us still in town,” Jude said, “Well, me. I’m the one that corrupted all of you apparently.”

“We barely spoke growing up,” Jamie said to him, “Don’t flatter yourself.”

“Go fuck yourself, Professor,” Jude snapped at him, but Aly didn’t detect any bite to it.

“If they realize you’re back home, they’re going to try every which way to get you away from us,” Ash explained, “I know this because they tried with me. For years. Wanted me to move to Florida with them, settle down, marry someone who share their ideals, and maybe have or adopt kids.”

“I fled before they could manipulate me into marrying someone,” Aly admitted, “But I know they’re more than likely to try even harder if they catch on to my being here.”

Ash nodded and went quiet a few moments before speaking again, “If this is just some elaborate trick to get close to us and then fuck us over for those people, you won’t like what happens to you.”

The intensity at which she was staring at him had him wanting to get up and flee.

“It’s not,” Aly assured her, “I promise. I have no intentions of fucking any of you over.”

“Wish you had that fucking epiphany earlier on,” Jude mumbled, “Nellie says you work at an animal rescue.”

“Yeah!” Nellie perked up, “Margot told me that Pancake got adopted! She said you all were happy with the family that applied for him.”

“I do,” Aly answered Jude’s question, “I’m a kennel tech. I also foster quite a bit.” He looked to Nellie, “He did. His family picked him up today. And we’re all very happy. I just hope I don’t see him back there.”

“Does that happen often?” Shay asked.

“More than you think,” Aly answered, “But those are becoming few and far between anymore.”

“Shay also tells us you have a cat,” Nellie said gingerly. Shay must have also mentioned that he broke into Aly’s house, “Are they okay with all the fosters that come through?”

“Her name’s Luna,” Aly explained, “She was a stray that one day appeared on my front door and never left. Now, she runs the house. And she doesn’t mind them. If she really doesn’t like them or if they don’t like her, someone else in the rescue will foster or one of our volunteers will.”

“I have one, too,” Nellie offered, “Her name’s Boo.”

“I always wanted a cat,” Ezra said offhandedly.

“So, go visit the rescue,” Shay told him, staring down at his phone.

“No working and no phones!” Ash snapped at him.

“Give me a second!” Shay snapped back at her.

“So, Mallory…” Jude spoke up and all eyes turned to their youngest sibling.

Mal

They hadn’t forgiven Aly, not by a long shot. But Mal knew that this would be a step in the right direction for him and there was a small part of her that was pissed about it. She wanted him to squirm some more and maybe she would be the one who continued doing so. She didn’t know if she was ready to forgive him yet. Honestly? She didn’t know if she was ready to forgive any of them yet.

When attention fell on her, she immediately bristled, her arms still crossed over her chest. She had eaten her food while their focus was on Aly, but now it was her turn and she wasn’t happy to be the main focal point.

“I left immediately when I turned 18,” Mal began, doing a quick summary of her life, “I traveled, working odd jobs here and there. I never really had a permanent home.”

“Why didn’t you try to find one of us? Or go live with Auntie?” Jude asked.

“Why didn’t you come find me?” Mal countered. She looked to each of them, “You all fucking left and never looked back. You were so fucking desperate to get out from underneath our parents, you forgot that there were still other siblings dealing with their shit!”

“I can’t speak for the others, but if I went back to that house, I would have murdered them,” Jude explained, “And I know that doesn’t make up for anything. It was just something I needed to do for me. To stay as far as fuck away from them.”

“I was drinking myself to death,” Ezra answered.

“I don’t want to hear all of your excuses,” Mal felt the tears burning the corners of her eyes, “None of you tried. The only one I’m not pissed off at is Kiss Ass. Because I knew he wouldn’t help. I wasn’t disappointed in his lack of helping.”

“No we didn’t,” Shay finally looked up from his phone, “And that makes us just as big of assholes as Aly. But we needed to leave those fucking people. You may not like that answer, but it’s the truth. Once free? Yeah, we could’ve reached out. 100%. But this is what all this is about. Reconnecting. Making amends. Owning up to piss poor decisions we made in the past.”

“Shit, you don’t ever have to forgive us,” Jude added, “That’s fucking fine. But we’re trying now. We’re all trying to work through the shit those people put us through, trying to fucking heal.”

Mal nodded and didn’t say anything. She wiped away the few tears that had fallen, hating that she was fucking crying.

“I’m willing to try,” Mal spoke softly. “I’d also like to take you up on that spare room while I get my fucking life together. I’m tired of staying at that motel.”

“We’ll get your stuff after this,” Jude nodded, “I’m willing as well. With everyone.”

“Before we all go around, is everyone willing to try?” Jamie asked. Everyone nodded, “Fantastic.”

As conversations began to flow once more, Mal found herself looking out of the window behind some of her siblings. She nearly jumped when she noticed a pair of glowing eyes staring into the window at her from the tree line.

“You know he’s also invited to these shindigs,” Shay commented. He had turned to see where Mal had been looking. He had directed that comment to Jude, Ezra, and Ash, “Or is he unaware of that?”

“I’ve tried,” Ash huffed, “He has no interest.”

“I thought it was only us?” Jamie frowned.

Mal looked around in confusion, finding that the only other person who shared her confusion was Aly.

“Nope,” Jude grinned, “That’s the First.”

“The first what?” Aly asked.

Main street looked the same, save for a few new stores that had popped up since she was last home. No one seemed to recognize her, which she was happy about. She purposely kept far away from the local church, knowing that someone there would most likely recognize her, and she didn’t want to talk about her asshole parents.

Her route took her down main street towards a lone bookstore at the end near the barrens. She almost ignored it completely, not wanting to give in to her need for new books when she took notice to the name on the sign.

Matheson Books

Without hesitating, she made a beeline for the bookstore, ready to see which of her siblings owned it. Hell, she had been doing really well with saving. She could get away with one book as a reward.

Mal quietly let herself into the store, finding a few other people browsing the shelves. She glanced around the store, giving it a quick once over to see if she could determine which of her siblings owned it by the décor.

“Welcome in,” Mal looked to the front desk to find a woman about her age, maybe younger, standing behind the counter. She had a kind smile on her face. Mal then noticed the skeleton sitting next to her with a homemade Matheson Books shirt on, “What brings you in today?”

“Just looking,” Mal answered, trying, and failing, to return the kind smile.

“Okay,” the other woman didn’t seem bothered by her botched attempt at a smile, “I’m Nessa. If you need any help, just shout.”

“Thank you,” Mal nodded before disappearing amongst the shelves.

She was surprised to find a wide variety of genres, especially the decent sized horror section. She planted herself in front of the section and began her browsing, picking up a book that looked interesting and reading the summary.

“Hey, Ness!” she heard a man’s voice call from farther back in the store.

“Be there in a second!” Nessa called back.

Mal, despite wanting to stay in this section and browse longer, pulled herself away to go and investigate. She slowly made her way closer to the back of the store, still making it look as though she was browsing (and she was), but her goal was to see who had been speaking. Had it been one of her siblings? She really needed to know.

As Nessa found her way into the back of the store, Mal found a section of books close enough to see and hear the conversation, but far enough away to keep the guise of browsing.

“If you’re putting up Halloween decorations already, I’m going to scream,” Nessa was saying. She sounded amused.

The man standing in the back was tall, with dark brown hair that was graying at the temple and kind brown eyes. The moment Nessa had made her comment, he let out an amused chuckle and waited for her to appear. When Nessa did, the grin grew.

“It’s not even July yet!”

“Where’s your whimsy?” the man asked.

“Jude.” Nessa shook her head.

Jude. He was the third oldest of her siblings and had been the first one to be kicked out of their home. Her parents refused to talk about him once he left, and if any of them had mentioned him, even in passing, they were punished. Mal learned very quickly growing up not to speak of him, especially once Nellie had gotten punished pretty severely for even telling Mal about Jude.

Mal tuned out the remainder of their conversation to continue her browsing. There had been so many books that she wanted to pick up and buy, and while she didn’t have the money just yet for them all, she was making a mental note of the names for the future.

One. You can afford one. She thought to herself. She would stick to her plan from earlier and would treat herself to one book.

“Need any help?” she hadn’t heard her older brother walk up behind her. She jumped, letting out a surprise yelp as she whirled around. She wasn’t sure if he was going to recognize her or not, “You look familiar.”

“I’m good,” Mal felt her heart pounding in her chest as she tried to calm down from the sudden surprise, “Just…deciding which book I want with my meager budget. As to the second… I think the last time you saw me, I was 2 years old. Unless you saw any updated photos since then but I doubt that since our parents fucking suck ass – “

“Yeah, you’re a Matheson alright,” Jude laughed, “Hi, Mallory.”

“What gave it away?” Mal mumbled, “Hi, Jude.”

“The obvious love for reading,” he motioned to the book in her hands, “All of us have it. Well, I’m assuming we all do. Your rambling for another, and the cursing. All us Matheson siblings are the same.” He let out a chuckle and his head tilted slightly, “Shit, kid. It’s been too fucking long.”

“Well, I’m 35 now and the last time you saw me I was 2.” Mal couldn’t fight back the sarcastic comment. It didn’t seem to deter Jude, though. He looked amused, “I left the minute I turned 18. This is the first time I’ve been back in Jersey in years.”

“Where are you staying?”

“Some motel close to Leeds Diner,” Mal answered.

“Okay,” Jude nodded, “Listen. Ash has been wanting to get all of us siblings together to get to known each other better. We’ve been looking for you.”

Mal felt tears burning the corners of her eyes, but forced them down. She wouldn’t cry because these people she barely knew suddenly cared about her. By the time Mal graduated high school, most, if not all, of her siblings were out in the world and had lives. The older siblings never checked up on the younger ones, not wanting to be anywhere near Jocelyn and Malachi.

“Well, here I am,” Mal shrugged her shoulders awkwardly. She then made a face after turning over his words, “Even the kiss ass?”

“Even him,” Jude answered, “We’re all getting together here next Saturday. You should come by.”

“Okay,” Mal had wanted to say no at first, but this was the exact reason why she came back home to Pine Hollow in the first place. Despite her sour feelings towards her older siblings (and wow, she didn’t realize how sour they were before speaking with one), this was want she wanted. What she needed. To hash shit out with them and maybe, just maybe, get a fresh start, “What time?”

“Seven,” Jude answered, “Bring whatever you want food and drink wise.”

Mal nodded and when she turned to leave, Jude spoke again. “If I offer my spare room, would you take it, or would you just wave me off for some pride bullshit?” “What do you think?” Mal found herself snapping. “Fair enough. Offer stands. See you next Saturday.” Jude didn’t seem bothered by her snap. Mal set the book she was holding down on a random shelf and walked out of the store.

Aly

Saturday came around too quick for Aly’s liking.

He had spent the entire morning at the rescue, seeing the corgi he fostered off to his new home. Pancake was thrilled with his new family and didn’t spare Aly a second glance when he realized he was going home with them. Aly didn’t take it personally. He was happy that Pancake was eager to leave with the family, that the animal had felt connected and safe with them. He hoped he didn’t see the animal back at the rescue in the future. He then spent some time outside with Baxter and several other of the rescues, knowing that his night wouldn’t be this calm and successful.

He wanted to say ‘fuck it’ and not show up at all. He wanted to ignore his younger brother’s threat, go home and remain there. He wouldn’t. He would go to the bookstore and take whatever they gave him, no matter how bad it was. He had hurt his siblings with his compliance and his coldness towards them. It was going to take some time for them to become friendly with him, if at all. But he would put in the work.

As 7pm rolled around, Aly found himself sitting in his truck in the parking lot of his brother’s bookstore. He shut his eyes, taking in a deep breath to calm his nerves. He was fighting with himself, wanting nothing more than to put his truck in drive and leave, forgetting this stupid idea. He had even started turning his key, when his eyes popped open. No. He needed to do this.

Shaking his head, he grabbed his salad and got out of his truck, deciding that this was now or never. As he turned to head toward the front entrance, he watched as a young woman crossed the street, heading quickly towards the entrance as well. She stopped at the sight of him, watching him approach the entrance along with her. He saw her reach into her bag, knowing that she probably had something along the lines of a knife or pepper spray at the ready. She gave him a closer look and then frowned.

“Oh look, it’s the kiss ass,” she said. She kept her hand in her bag, her shoulders still tense as she took another step toward the door.

Aly’s head tilted in confusion for a moment and then realized this was his youngest sibling. This was Mallory.

“Seriously?” she snapped mistaking his sudden confusion for not knowing who she was, “You only have three sisters, Aloysius! And you’re close in age to one of them.”

“It’s Aly,” Aly immediately corrected, “And I know! You’re Mallory.”

“Wow, lucky fucking guess.” she rolled her eyes, “This is going to be a fun night.” Instead of waiting for him to follow, she yanked open the door to the bookstore and walked inside, leaving him alone.

He entered the bookstore a few moments later, taking in the lack of people at the front of the store. He looked around, taking in his brother’s store for the first time. It was a comfortable space and already Aly could tell it was filled with love and acceptance. It felt safe. Even if he felt uncomfortable and nervous, but he knew that was due to finally coming face to face with his siblings for the first time in many, many years.

“We’re in the back!” he heard someone call up to him.

He slowly made his way toward the back of the store, fighting the urge to not stop and check out the selection of books on the shelves. He would do that later. Well, he hoped he would be allowed to. The moment he stepped out from between the shelves, everyone who had been standing around in the back looked to him. He fought down the urge to run.

“Told you he’d come,” Shay finally spoke after a full minute of silence, “Aly.”

“Hi.” The urge to run was still there and he could feel his heart pounding in his chest as his siblings continued to stare him down.

“Oh, how the mighty fall,” Aly’s attention turned to one of his brothers. Jude. He knew Jude. His younger brother took a few steps forward, staring him down with a sarcastic grin, “You’re who I was afraid of all those years ago?” A few more steps and Jude had bridged the gap between them. Jude stared down at Aly, his younger brother a few inches taller than he was, “Who we all were afraid of because you were a fucking rat?”

“Jude.” Aly mumbled. The sarcastic grin left his younger brother’s face.

“Aloysius.”

“It’s Aly,” Aly corrected, doing all that he could to not look away.

“Aly.” Jude said. It didn’t sound sarcastic which Aly was happy about, “Shay tells us you’ve been back here in Pine Hollow for two years.”

“Can we at least sit down for this?” someone else said.

“You can sit if you want, Ez,” Jude didn’t look back. His focus was still on Aly.

“I have,” Aly answered.

“He also tells us that you don’t want Jocelyn and Malachi to know,” Jude continued.

“No, I don’t,” Aly felt his heartrate spike once more, “I’d very much like for them to believe I’m somewhere out west still.”

“Now why in the fuck would you want that?” Jude asked, “Because last I fucking checked, you were their golden child.”

“I agree with Ezra,” Aly looked to find Ashlee taking a few steps towards Jude, “Let’s sit. We can still hash all of this out, but I’d rather not have everyone look as though they’re going to bolt. I’d also like to eat my food.”

“Fine.”

It took a few minutes, but soon all 8 siblings were sitting around in a circle, the tension still very much present in the air.

“Alright, we’re sitting,” Jude continued, “Answer the fucking question.”

“Because I don’t want them trying to ruin my life anymore,” Aly answered, looking at each of his siblings. In his head, he was trying to put a name to a face and was failing miserably.

“Anymore?” Jude let out a sarcastic laugh.

“Jude,” Ashlee snapped at him.

“They’ve done nothing but ruin our lives,” Jude snapped back, “All of us. But they doted on him. He was their perfect son.”

“Dote on me, huh?” Aly couldn’t fight down the sarcastic chuckle, sounding much like Jude had moments ago, “Dad was trying to mold me into being just like him. The moment I could walk and could understand that I was the oldest, they had me watching over you. I was fucking 7 years old! When I showed any fucking emotion or sympathy towards any of you, I got beat. They didn’t want me to be your friend. And the entire fucking time they were out there deciding my life for me. I had no fucking say.”

“They tried that shit with all of us,” Jude made a face, “They tried breaking all of our spirits. You were the only one that it worked on. You were the only one to conform.”

“Do they think you’re married or something?” Aly looked to find Nellie had spoken, “Are you married? Did you run out on your wife?”

“No!” Aly answered, “No, it’s nothing like that. I just… left one day and made it seem like I was out there doing missionary work. In reality, I was traveling. I was…in the process of deconstructing my faith.”

That had them all go quiet. All of them had gone through the same thing and while most if them had done it earlier on in their lives, they knew that this was a big deal for him.

“Where are you on that journey?” Ash asked.

“It’s still ongoing,” Aly admitted honestly, “But I don’t share the same values or beliefs as our parents.”

“You expect us to believe that?” Jamie asked.

“Over time I hope you do,” Aly told him softly, then looked to all of them, “I have a lot to make up for. I know this. I also know that earning your trust or forgiveness is going to take time and may not happen at all. I’m willing to try.”

It grew quiet between them all again as they took in Aly’s words.

“Why come back here?” Ezra asked him, “Jocelyn and Malachi come back often to visit. To check in on that fucking church. They’re going to find out you’ve been back here and once they do, they’re not going to let you get away again. Especially…” he went quiet and looked to Ash, Shay, and Jude.

“Especially what?” Mallory asked.

“Especially with us still in town,” Jude said, “Well, me. I’m the one that corrupted all of you apparently.”

“We barely spoke growing up,” Jamie said to him, “Don’t flatter yourself.”

“Go fuck yourself, Professor,” Jude snapped at him, but Aly didn’t detect any bite to it.

“If they realize you’re back home, they’re going to try every which way to get you away from us,” Ash explained, “I know this because they tried with me. For years. Wanted me to move to Florida with them, settle down, marry someone who share their ideals, and maybe have or adopt kids.”

“I fled before they could manipulate me into marrying someone,” Aly admitted, “But I know they’re more than likely to try even harder if they catch on to my being here.”

Ash nodded and went quiet a few moments before speaking again, “If this is just some elaborate trick to get close to us and then fuck us over for those people, you won’t like what happens to you.”

The intensity at which she was staring at him had him wanting to get up and flee.

“It’s not,” Aly assured her, “I promise. I have no intentions of fucking any of you over.”

“Wish you had that fucking epiphany earlier on,” Jude mumbled, “Nellie says you work at an animal rescue.”

“Yeah!” Nellie perked up, “Margot told me that Pancake got adopted! She said you all were happy with the family that applied for him.”

“I do,” Aly answered Jude’s question, “I’m a kennel tech. I also foster quite a bit.” He looked to Nellie, “He did. His family picked him up today. And we’re all very happy. I just hope I don’t see him back there.”

“Does that happen often?” Shay asked.

“More than you think,” Aly answered, “But those are becoming few and far between anymore.”

“Shay also tells us you have a cat,” Nellie said gingerly. Shay must have also mentioned that he broke into Aly’s house, “Are they okay with all the fosters that come through?”

“Her name’s Luna,” Aly explained, “She was a stray that one day appeared on my front door and never left. Now, she runs the house. And she doesn’t mind them. If she really doesn’t like them or if they don’t like her, someone else in the rescue will foster or one of our volunteers will.”

“I have one, too,” Nellie offered, “Her name’s Boo.”

“I always wanted a cat,” Ezra said offhandedly.

“So, go visit the rescue,” Shay told him, staring down at his phone.

“No working and no phones!” Ash snapped at him.

“Give me a second!” Shay snapped back at her.

“So, Mallory…” Jude spoke up and all eyes turned to their youngest sibling.

Mal

They hadn’t forgiven Aly, not by a long shot. But Mal knew that this would be a step in the right direction for him and there was a small part of her that was pissed about it. She wanted him to squirm some more and maybe she would be the one who continued doing so. She didn’t know if she was ready to forgive him yet. Honestly? She didn’t know if she was ready to forgive any of them yet.

When attention fell on her, she immediately bristled, her arms still crossed over her chest. She had eaten her food while their focus was on Aly, but now it was her turn and she wasn’t happy to be the main focal point.

“I left immediately when I turned 18,” Mal began, doing a quick summary of her life, “I traveled, working odd jobs here and there. I never really had a permanent home.”

“Why didn’t you try to find one of us? Or go live with Auntie?” Jude asked.

“Why didn’t you come find me?” Mal countered. She looked to each of them, “You all fucking left and never looked back. You were so fucking desperate to get out from underneath our parents, you forgot that there were still other siblings dealing with their shit!”

“I can’t speak for the others, but if I went back to that house, I would have murdered them,” Jude explained, “And I know that doesn’t make up for anything. It was just something I needed to do for me. To stay as far as fuck away from them.”

“I was drinking myself to death,” Ezra answered.

“I don’t want to hear all of your excuses,” Mal felt the tears burning the corners of her eyes, “None of you tried. The only one I’m not pissed off at is Kiss Ass. Because I knew he wouldn’t help. I wasn’t disappointed in his lack of helping.”

“No we didn’t,” Shay finally looked up from his phone, “And that makes us just as big of assholes as Aly. But we needed to leave those fucking people. You may not like that answer, but it’s the truth. Once free? Yeah, we could’ve reached out. 100%. But this is what all this is about. Reconnecting. Making amends. Owning up to piss poor decisions we made in the past.”

“Shit, you don’t ever have to forgive us,” Jude added, “That’s fucking fine. But we’re trying now. We’re all trying to work through the shit those people put us through, trying to fucking heal.”

Mal nodded and didn’t say anything. She wiped away the few tears that had fallen, hating that she was fucking crying.

“I’m willing to try,” Mal spoke softly. “I’d also like to take you up on that spare room while I get my fucking life together. I’m tired of staying at that motel.”

“We’ll get your stuff after this,” Jude nodded, “I’m willing as well. With everyone.”

“Before we all go around, is everyone willing to try?” Jamie asked. Everyone nodded, “Fantastic.”

As conversations began to flow once more, Mal found herself looking out of the window behind some of her siblings. She nearly jumped when she noticed a pair of glowing eyes staring into the window at her from the tree line.

“You know he’s also invited to these shindigs,” Shay commented. He had turned to see where Mal had been looking. He had directed that comment to Jude, Ezra, and Ash, “Or is he unaware of that?”

“I’ve tried,” Ash huffed, “He has no interest.”

“I thought it was only us?” Jamie frowned.

Mal looked around in confusion, finding that the only other person who shared her confusion was Aly.

“Nope,” Jude grinned, “That’s the First.”

“The first what?” Aly asked.