#really early

The kids immediately clung onto whatever they could, bracing themselves as the bus started to speed up.

"Douxie! Douxie stop the bus!" Toby screamed as they came closer and closer to the cliff's edge.

The bus was filled with terrified screaming as it was sent careening off the cliff at 100 mph. As they fell, the kids were lifted from their seats, only adding to the terror.

With a flash and a pop, the bus suddenly stopped in mid-air, tires still turning but washed in a glowing blue light.

Douxie turned to look at them, grinning. "Tada."

Jim glared at him, hand still clenching the seat. I'm going to kill you. He mouthed.

Douxie chuckled and turned back to face the windshield, slowly bringing the bus to the ground. "That wasn't so bad."

"I'm gonna be sick." Toby groaned, practically hugging his seat.

"You're crazy!" Claire screamed, eyes still wide from the panic of falling off a cliff.

"Thank goodness for that otherwise this probably wouldn't have worked." Douxie shot back cheekily.

"Where the hell did you find this guy, Jim?" Claire asked, slowly letting go of the bus seat.

Jim groaned, sitting back as the bus safely touched down at the bottom of the ravine. "He saved my life. It's like owning a stray cat."

"Hey, I was raised by a stray cat. So, not too far off." Douxie said, opening the bus doors. He stood and faced the kids, smiling. "Hope you enjoyed your trip, this is your stop."

Toby immediately ran off the bus, screaming about how he'd never get in a car with Douxie ever again.

Jim and Claire shakily walked down the aisles, both glaring daggers at the older teen.

"Thats the last time I let you drive." Jim said.

"Atleast I didn't crash." Douxie defended, stepping off after them. "And I think I did pretty good considering I dont even have a license."

This morning I was scrolling through Tumblr, thinking, “Wow, like every post is really great! Every single one! My dashboard is fantastic today!”

she’s a real one for going…my stupid ass brother is presenting with what is so obviously bipolar disorder, but he’s in denial about it (despite me and our other sibling being diagnosed with it + having the exact same symptoms + telling him he needs to look into it)

so he’s fully being a terrible husband/dad between being depressed and then manic. not abusive or anything but Bad. he’s rapid cycling like me, too

he got fired from his job because brain stuff, found a new job far away, and moved ahead of his wife and kids so he can start working and find a house while his wife gets the old house ready to sell

but that means my poor sister in law is working full time, raising two kids, AND trying to clean/repair/sell a house totally by herself with zero support

mom and i are worried that she’s going to (understandably) leave his stupid ass if she continues to be under extreme pressure while he lets her drown and refuses to even try to deal with his mental illness

so mom went down for a few weeks to help my sister get the house ready, set them up with food in the freezer etc

we all love my sister in law just like she’s our blood relative, she would still be part of our family if they got divorced. mom and i are closer with her than with my blood brother.

but we also agree that he’s just never going to find a better match for himself than her. when he’s acting like a responsible adult they’re a strong and well balanced couple

and they do love each other. she has been incredibly supportive of him in his mental illness.

but he’s refusing to get help and just sort of ignoring the responsibility he has to his wife and sons. i wouldnt blame her for leaving

plus tbh im pretty insulted that the concept of being bipolar is so repulsive to him he’d rather nuke his own life than consider trying a mood stabilizer

like what does that say about how he sees our sib and i? who are both happy and stable on lithium btw. i mean he’s already taking antidepressants. so its not some psychiatrist/meds aversion. its bipolar in particular :/

he’s always been low key judgemental of me and our sibling about when we were struggling to get a handle on our bipolar so that may be coloring my perception too.