Chapter 5: Family Reunion Part 2

The two siblings had taken a moment of silence to gather themselves, while the slender woman was now standing inside their house, a plastic smile glued onto her lips.

They had not seen her in years, and even then, it was obvious she didn't want to. So what exactly was she doing here, Jackson wondered, trying to mask whatever shock that ran through his body at the current circumstance.

Allison hurried to turn the stove off, suddenly remembering about the overly cooked rice, and watched from afar at Josephine's uncanny presence. Her long painted nails appeared to be digging against her own skin, as she placed a coarse hand amongst her right hip.

"Oh my," she gushed melodramatically, looking from one Pierce sibling to the other in utter fascination. "You two have certainly grown into such a fine young man and woman."

"Well it has been nearly 9 years," Jackson interjected spitefully, a passive aggressive tone lingering on his snarky sentence with two raised eyebrows and a shrug. "But...who's counting?"

Josephine nimbly dismissed him, and began entering the living room, actively assessing the same house, that possessed many haunted memories.

"This place has definitely not changed since my last visit," she noted duly, skimming over the insipid walls that held up the house, the overused living room couch that was crawling with loose threads, the same old flower pot shaped like a watering can, embedding dead chrysanthemum's continuously withering away for years, and the family portraits crookedly hung on the walls eerily, staring right back at the viewer.

Allison and Jackson now followed Aunt Josephine's gaze, as she handpicked out all the flaws in the house, now realizing what she had said was quite true. The two never thought to ever rearrange the furniture, or rid themselves of the horrid pictures of mother and father pretending to be perfect, engulfing their entire house.

While Jackson assessed his unvarying surroundings, Allison was the first to strike up a conversation with their beloved aunt.

"Aunt Josephine, pardon me asking, but, what exactly brings you here?" She voiced politely, now scattering away from the pot of rice, to stand beside her brother who seemed to be somewhat dazed at her abrupt occurrence.

Josephine stared at her atmosphere for a bit, then threw her hands in the air, while doing a spin around, to face the two. "Oh I just had to visit my niece and nephew, and spend time with them!" She rejoiced, her bloody red lips expanding at every word. "And I did hear about the divorce."

"Again, that was years ago," reminded Jackson, growing restless by her immaturity, and overly dramatic dialogue.

"Better late than never, my darling!" She declared carelessly, throwing her hands up in the air once again. "So, tell me, where's Janet?"

At the mere mention of their mother's name, the two siblings mentally panicked, as showcased by their increased heartbeats.

"She's um...uh-" Jackson stuttered, endeavouring to make up a believable lie, as Josephine stared at him through her ravenous eyes. "She's out of town."

"What is she doing out of town?" Josephine probed, an eyebrow slightly raised in suspicion.

"She's um...actually on a business trip," Allison budded in nervously, noticing her aunt's change of expression.

"So she just left you two alone?" Josephine further examined, her eyes going left and right to match Jackson and Allison's skittish behaviour.

"Well, we are practically adults now," Jackson confirmed with a plasticized confident smile.

"That you are." She eyed Jackson, through a magnifying lens, trailing up and down to inspect every little detail on his body. "What about the whereabouts of Augustin?"

At the resonance of their father's name, Allison flinched slightly, flabbergasted by the great power it still had on her. She quickly masked her vulnerable reaction, and clutched onto the girth of her jeans, her knuckles whitening at the tight grip.

"Same as you, haven't seen him in almost 9 years," Jackson stated bitterly, observing Josephine's dumbfounded reaction.

"Well isn't that...unfortunate," she responded, swiveling her tongue across her teeth, bending slightly forward, showing off her willowy body in her black dress.

Before Jackson could question again why she was really here, the twins came rushing in from the backyard, indulging themselves in a heated argument.

"Jackie," Jocelyn cried in resentment. "Alex won't share his soccer ball with me!"

She pouted, and ran over to Jackson's side, who placed a comforting hand on the back of her head, as she hugged his right leg with tears plunging down her plump cheeks.

Alex came trailing behind, with a grumpy look on his face, and crossed arms, trotting towards Allison in favour. "It's not my fault she doesn't know how to play. Tell her, Alli," he encouraged, gazing up at Allison, who only flashed him a weak smile in return.

"Who's children are they?" Josephine asked in disgust, staring daggers at both Alex and Jocelyn, who were too involved in their silly little disagreement.

Allison peered ahead at her nearly middle aged aunt, and spat back in a harsh voice. "They're your niece and nephew."

Jocelyn and Alex now dispersed from their places, and focused on Josephine, who stood there in horror, unable to disguise her true reaction.

Jackson withheld the urge to chuckle, and coughed up his laughter instead, feeling the need to enunciate tauntingly. "What's the matter? Cat got your tongue, aunt Josephine?"

Within a second, the flimsy woman fought to gather her composure, and only spoke unaffectedly. "Oh darling, please call me Jo. Josephine seems so...formal."

"She's our aunt?" Alex was the first to say, a bewildered expression clear on his face, along with Jocelyn, who seemed very puzzled at the mention of an unknown aunt.

"Yes, Alex," Jackson confirmed as easily as he could. "She's our mother's sister."

"Lovely to meet you both," Josephine enthused, walking forward to embrace both of them in her cadaverous arms. "Aren't you two just the cutest?"

The twins shuddered at her witchy touch, and fell backwards onto their older brother and sister for comfort.

"This is Alex," Allison introduced, nodding towards the dirty blonde boy who had his arm intertwined with hers as a shield from Josephine, and then referred to her younger sister, who stuck close to Jackson's leg, absentmindedly in fear. "And this is Jocelyn."

"They look just like Janet," Josephine commented slowly, staring intensely at the twins who squirmed at her gaze.

Jackson grabbed Jocelyn by the shoulders in assurance, and stood in front of her protectively, while Alex shot daggers through his eyes, in Josephine's direction.

The eldest Pierce boy opened his mouth to ask Josephine once again why exactly she presented herself here, in hopes to hear more of an elaborate answer, but got interrupted by Bruno sprinting into the house rapidly, through the backyard door that was left open by the twins.

He rushed towards Josephine to greet her, who let out a deafening shriek in dismay, stumbling backwards onto the couch.

"Get this mangey mutt off of me!" She screamed, clear agitation written on her face, as Jackson raced to her aid, pulling Bruno backwards by his collar.

He let out a friendly bark, pestering Josephine some more, but listened obediently to Jackson when he led him towards the backyard, who had an apologetic grin hanging loosely on his lips.

"Sorry, buddy," he whispered, closing the glass door to the backyard, and watched Bruno cower backwards and whimper in sadness.

He took in a deep breath, and marched back over to his siblings, where Josephine had now regathered herself once more, swallowing the urge to burst into curse words.

An uncomfortable silence passed over, when Allison materialized a forced sentence. "Aunt Josephine -erm, Jo-" she instantly corrected herself, then went on, with Jackson listening in confusion. "Would you like to stay for dinner?"

The heinous words that slipped out of Allison's mouth frightened Jackson, as his gaze now drifted over to his aunt smiling cunningly at his siblings.

"Why that would be splendid!" She proclaimed gratifyingly. "Simply wonderful!"

Jackson's neck stiffened in anxiety, and he reached for his sister's arm, in attempts to guide her away from the rest of their family, and the unexpected dinner guest.

"Alex, Joce. Would you two mind setting the table up for dinner? Allison and I are just going to...um." He hesitated on a convincible excuse. "Make sure the flowers on the porch don't need any water."

Quickly, he pulled his sister outside onto the porch, where he shut the front door quite abruptly, now pausing to gaze down at Allison with a mixture of inquisition and bewilderment.

"What exactly do you think you're doing?" He inquired in utter panic, using many hand gestures to express his consternation. "We can't risk Josephine finding out about mom-"

"Jackson, I know," Allison interrupted reassuringly. "But if I remember Josephine correctly; she's selfish, and conceited, and I know she's here for a reason that would benefit her. Why else would she come here after so many years?" She continued, noticing Jackson's look of uncertainty clearly written on his face. "There has to be something that she wants, and I'm going to figure out exactly what it is."

She was visibly determined, but Jackson was still squirming in uneasiness, as he replayed all kinds of tragic outcomes in his head of what could happen if something bad were to occur from this family reunion dinner.

"Come on, Jackson," Allison implored, a faint smile on her lips. "You know I would never place myself in the position to lose you or the twins."

He stared at her intensely, after a few seconds passed, and saw the sincerity in her eyes. He believed her. He trusted her. How could he not?

"Okay," he finally gave in, nodding his head in agreement. "She can stay for dinner." He then warned. "But be really careful with your words if she starts questioning."

Allison smiled at her older brother in gratitude, and then pushed open the door to reveal the twins setting plates on the dinner table, and Josephine creeping suspiciously around the house, dissecting every family portrait hung up on the wall.

The two oldest siblings shared a knowing look with each other, then Allison proceeded to the kitchen, where she started to shift the cooked food into presentable dishes, and Jackson marched over to Josephine in hopes to distract her by small talk.

When he approached her, he struggled to figure out what to say. Luckily, Josephine was the first to speak.

"Strange isn't it?" She spoke rhetorically, causing Jackson to reciprocate a questionable expression. "Time goes by so fast -yet to us, living in the present, it drifts by too slowly."

She trailed her bony fingers along the glass frame that showed a picture of a young Jackson and Allison standing side by side in a grassy field.

"Isn't that the beauty of it?" Jackson countered back, effortlessly, trying to evaluate Josephine's behaviour and intentions.

Her gaze now lifted from the age old portrait, and drifted towards the eldest Pierce boy, who stood there buggy eyed. "I suppose."

She trailed her eyes up and down the boy, who stood still at her strange interaction.

"I remember you as a little boy," Josephine confessed, disbelief radiating in her tone. "And now, look at you. All grown up." She shook her head, her lengthy hair swerving left and right. "It seems so surreal."

"Well, we all have to grow up at some point," Jackson shared insightfully, vivid memories of his childhood coming back to him.

He envisioned his drunk father coming home late, his depressed mother who lay in bed all day, and his little sister Allison. Oh sweet Allison. How he would comfort her at night, whenever mother and father got into a fight. For him, growing up came way sooner than expected.

"Indeed, we do," Josephine agreed, a certain unreadable look plastered on her face, as she stared consumingly at Jackson.

"Dinner's ready!" Allison exclaimed from across the living room, smiling charmingly from the dinner table, where the twins were already seated.

Jackson mentally thanked his sister for saving him from his intense moment with Josephine, and guided his aunt towards the dining room.

"Oh, how interesting..." Josephine trailed off unsurely, inspecting the cooked meal. "What exactly is it?"

"Cooked rice, and Allison and I's famous chicken, encompassing a flavourful gravy," Jackson announced half-jokingly, eyeing Allison who only smiled back at him. "Is what we like to call this."

"How..." Josephine fished for a describable word. "Appetizing."

After Jackson had given Bruno his food to eat outside in the backyard, he returned back to the dinner table, where Josephine was waiting precariously.

With the four regular seats now occupied by the Pierce kids, Josephine placed herself at the head of the table, diagonally from Allison and Jackson. The two siblings shared a monumental look with each other, their minds drifting back to the same thought.

The seat that Janet used to sit in. The seat that had been left vacant for as long as they could remember. The seat that was not exclusively reserved, but everyone knew not to sit in.

The sky outside dimmed, as each of them prepared a plate for themselves. Josephine hesitantly ate the food, and found it surprisingly good.

Now, there was an extended silence that seemed to flood the Pierce house, as Josephine observed each and every one of them, Jackson picked at his food uncomfortably, and the twins somehow knew to stay quiet in this awkward situation.

"So." Allison was the first to break the silence, directing her question at Josephine. "Aunt Jo; Whereabouts do you live now?"

She returned a fabricated smile, and answered honestly. "I actually moved into an apartment close by, a few months back."

Allison listened intently, and nodded in understanding, responding diligently. "Oh so you've moved back into town a few months ago, and you've only bothered to come visit now? Why is that?"

Tension arose, as Jackson immediately looked up from his plate to give Allison a warning look, and to see Josephine's reaction. She, however, remained calm and collected, flashing one of her immediate smiles.

"I took those months to unpack my boxes, and to properly adjust to the new neighbourhood, darling."

Her voice was like poison, coated in sugar externally, to mask the true wickedness behind the sweet, outer layer.

Allison stayed quiet, mentally wondering how unpacking would take several months, then watched Josephine make a face of disgust, after taking a sip of her water.

"Do you have anything stronger...if you know what I mean?" She inquired, her gaze diverting to Jackson, who sat uncomfortably in his seat, fearing the potential events that could play out.

"If you're referring to alcohol, we don't have any," Allison spat back harshly, causing Josephine to roll her eyes in annoyance.

"Jackie," Jocelyn spoke quietly, tugging lightly on Jackson's shirt, as he looked down at his younger sister beside him. "I don't like this."

"It's okay, princess," he assured her in a soft voice, reaching to grab her tiny hand. "Everything's okay."

He stared across the table to find Alex sharing the same look as Jocelyn, and flashed him a sympathetic look. His eyes then drifted over to Allison sitting beside Alex, and noticed her angry expression.

She was not only investigative, but she was also mad at aunt Josephine, and that's what worried Jackson the most.

"Aunt Josephine," Allison stated, after taking in a deep breath, pushing away her anger and frustration. "Why are you really here?" She was taken aback at her straightforward question, and listened to her go on. "Are you really here to get to know us? Read us bedtime stories? Share life experiences with us? Or is there something else you could possibly want?"

Jackson now stared at Josephine for a response, and watched her chuckle in amusement, not affected in the slightest, by Allison's multiple questions.

"Oh Allison," she spoke comically. "You were always the curious one, weren't you?" She went on to laugh hauntingly. "I am simply here to visit my family. Is that such a crime?"

Allison fought back the urge to counter a response, as Jackson stayed evidently quiet, with Josephine clearly having the upper hand.

There was no way around this.

-

It had been almost an hour, and dinner had finally ended. The many topics that were conversed throughout, weren't worth mentioning, as the whole room was utterly silent now.

Bruno laid patiently outside on the grass, Alex and Jocelyn were helping to clear the table, Allison and Jackson were already loading the dirty dishes in the dishwasher, and Josephine was still inspecting the house.

By now, the sun had gone down, and the sky had dimmed immensely, leaving the street lights to illuminate the neighbourhood.

Jackson finished loading the dishwasher with the help of Allison, and then wiped his wet hands on a soft cloth, now looking at the twins.

"How about you two get ready for bed? Allison and I will be there in a few minutes," he advised, as the twins quietly listened to his suggestion, then climbed up the stairs, afraid of what aunt Josephine had in store for them if they misbehaved.

Allison now breathed in a sigh of relief, after her tiresome day, and trudged over to fetch her phone that lay lifelessly on the counter for multiple hours, where she had left it unintended.

Before she could take a look at the screen, Josephine spoke up fascinatingly. "When did you two learn to cook? That was an impressive put-together meal for a bunch of teenagers."

Jackson shrugged modestly, and then slowly made his way into the living room, where Josephine was standing imperturbably, with Allison following behind.

"Just something we taught ourselves," he replied solidly, awaiting her departure.

"Well I think you two have grown into impeccable children," Josephine noted truthfully, giving one of her strained smiles at the two siblings, who stood uncomfortably in her presence.

"Well, it is getting quite late..." Jackson trailed off, hoping she would get the innuendo, and finally leave.

"Oh darling, I do have a proposition." Josephine quickly jumped to the chase, puckering up her red painted lips in a childish pout. "I was hoping I could...maybe spend the night?" Jackson and Allison both held a look of surprise and anguish, as they heard her try to explain herself. "I am gravely exhausted, and do not feel well enough to drive back to my apartment."

She dramatically modelled a weary pose, by attaching the back of her right hand on her overly powdered forehead, displaying her severe exhaustion.

"I..." Allison stuttered, her hands shaking tensely, not certain how to deny her. "It's just..."

"I do have my night clothes in my car that I can fetch," she volunteered so graciously, documenting Allison and Jackson's every movement.

"Aunt Josephine, it's just..." Jackson now attempted to speak, finding it incredibly hard to straightforwardly say no. "I think it's-"

"I just want to get to know the twins a little more," she confessed emotionally, trying to tug at their heartstrings, as Allison glared at her secretively for being so delusional and sneaky. "You understand that, right?"

Jackson and Allison both looked at each other for insight, and gazed at each other with puzzled looks. When finally, Allison opened her mouth to say the five words she regretted shortly after. "You can stay the night."

"Oh how spectacular!" Josephine beamed in excitement, clapping her hands girlishly, eyeing Jackson once more. "I'll go get my things from the car."

She smiled cunningly at the two, and then disappeared through the front door, to access her car.

Meanwhile, Jackson and Allison mentally fought the urge to scream loudly in horror.

"What just happened?" Jackson said in disbelief, shaking his head in fear. "I mean, how did that just happen?"

"She's up to something," the eldest daughter confirmed, narrowing her eyes naturally at the mention of Josephine. "I just know it."

"Why does she even want to stay the night?" Jackson wondered aloud, completely confused at their aunt's odd behaviour. "What does she want?"

In between his words, he gazed at the front door to make sure Josephine hadn't returned in time to overhear them.

Allison only shrugged in response, and shook her head in disappointment, warningly saying. "She can't have whatever it is she wants. We can't let her have it."

"But we also can't risk her figuring out about mom," Jackson argued, placing themselves in a sticky situation. "Look, we just have to pretend to be buddy-buddy with her, and in the morning, it'll all be over, because she'll be gone."

"Am I the only one finding the fact that she decided to pay us a visit after almost nine years, suspicious?" Allison cried in frustration, throwing her hands profusely in the air, to showcase the amount of discontent she had, to her brother. "I can't be the only one who finds that incredibly odd!" She looked at her brother, who seemed to be deep in thought.

Jackson reviewed the obvious details, and nodded accordingly. "No, I -totally agree, but we also can't just accuse her openly," he explained to his sister, who stood there, tapping her foot impatiently. "Let's just get through tonight, and we'll figure out the rest later, okay?"

He awaited his sister's response, but she only nodded frustratingly, clearly irritated by the whole situation. She folded her arms across her chest, along with her phone that was tucked neatly against it, then sighed in fatigue, from the day she just had.

After a couple of seconds passed by, aunt Josephine came hurtling inside the house, with a large carry-on bag hung suavely on her right shoulder, with great content drawn on her ageless face.

"Where shall I take this?" She questioned with exceptional enthusiasm, peering left and right at the two siblings who stared at her incredulously.

Jackson was the first to step up this time, and sacrificed his room to her. "You can take it to my room," he stated calmly, trying to hold all of his vexation in, then volunteered. "I can sleep on the couch tonight."

"Jackson, how generous of you," Josephine recited avidly, smiling brightly at the eldest Pierce child.

"I can show you, upstairs," he continued, turning to give his younger sister a regretful look, as she flashed him a sympathetic smile, standing in her spot with a slight shrug.

Josephine followed Jackson's lead, and ventured upstairs, analyzing her surroundings quite keenly, on her way up.

Allison relaxed into her spot, shrunk back her shoulders, and let out a relieved breath she didn't even acknowledge she was holding in, then turned on her phone, that had mysteriously turned off by itself.

She scrunched her eyebrows, and waited for the screen to pop up. As soon as it did, she was bombarded with multiple texts and calls sent from Ethan himself, and a couple of texts from Rebecca about a so called party occurring at another one of the seniors' house tonight.

Her eyes widened in realization, as she scrolled through the expectant concocted sentences being thrown her way by Ethan. As she read through the tragically delayed read texts, she slammed her hand against her head in anger and frustration.

Allison then contemplated on how she should word her reply, and decided upon simply texting, sorry, my phone died.

She mentally scolded herself for being so generic, and shut her phone off angrily, sighing to herself in sorrow. The one time a boy had actually shown interest in her, she had unintentionally blown him off by ignoring him all night.

As much as she tried to inject a portion of normality into her life, there was always that dysfunctional part that threatened to corrupt and interfere with her expectational one.

Not having much time to grieve over the fact, Jackson came trudging down the stairs, shaking his head in a clearly distressed fashion.

"Was she always that annoying?" He commented lowly, referring to Josephine, and made sure he wasn't too loud for her to hear, as Allison stifled in a chuckle, trying to act in an optimistic perspective.

"On the bright side," she began positively. "For the first time in so many years, we have an actual adult in the house stay over for more than a couple of hours."

She smiled weakly at her older brother, who nodded slowly in agreement, knowing very well the upsetting turn the conversation had taken.

With that being said, he replied jocularly. "She may certainly be the age, but she definitely does not act like it."

Allison couldn't help but let out a small laugh, almost forgetting about the missed texts and calls from Ethan asking for their first official date. She then remembered, and shrunk down on the living room couch, shaking her head in worry.

"What's wrong?" Jackson asked softly, taking note of her dodgy behaviour, as he sat down beside her empathetically.

She didn't know if she should have even mentioned her problem to her brother. It seemed like an odd topic to discuss with him, being that his first interaction with Ethan wasn't quite the way she had planned it out to be. Nevertheless, he was her older brother, and she knew she could tell him everything.

"I just..." she started, trying to form a literate sentence. "I failed to respond to Ethan's texts, and I can't help but think that he thinks I'm ignoring him," she confessed, while Jackson stiffened slightly in his seat, stirring around uncomfortably. "There was just, a lot going on tonight, but I can't exactly tell him what happened -but I also don't want him to think that I don't like him."

During her ramble, Jackson couldn't help but feel guilty for what he had done, and tried his best to conjure up a straight face that didn't reflect his culpability.

On the other hand, he felt totally awkward for having this conversation with his little sister. He never would've imagined the day she'd come to him for advice on boys. As much as he wanted to help her, he wasn't experienced in the relationship category himself, so anything he would tell her, wouldn't sound good enough for him.

After noticing the look on Jackson's face, Allison quickly assumed what she had said was totally unacceptable in their relationship, and had made Jackson uncomfortable.

"Oh gosh, I am so sorry for bringing that up," she immediately apologized, staring at her lap in embarrassment.

Jackson fought back the urge to console her by pulling her into his protective embrace, and instead, sat there beside her, as a friend.

"Don't apologize," he quickly said to her, catching her attention right away. "I was just...a little overwhelmed, but I can tell you, you shouldn't beat yourself up about that. Part of loving someone comes with compromise, and understanding. If he doesn't get that, he doesn't deserve you."

Allison stared in awe at the beautifully spoken advice her brother had given, and raised both eyebrows, clearly impressed. Jackson himself, sat there, curious as to how the words flowed so easily out of his mouth.

"Thank you," Allison spoke gratefully, playing with her fingers that rested on her lap.

The two shared a comfortable silence, until Allison decided to speak once again.

"How's Josephine adjusting to your room?" She stood up from the couch, and waited for his response patiently.

"If I'm correct, she's probably engulfing the entirety of the room with her intoxicating perfume," Jackson said imperturbably. "And I mean that in a bad way."

Allison's lips lifted into an amusing smile, as she slipped her phone into her pocket slickly, facing Jackson with sleepy eyes.

"The twins are also fast asleep in their bedrooms already," Jackson established in his continuous trail of sentences. "I guess they're equally afraid of Josephine as much as we are."

Allison shrugged at his theory, and smiled faintly.

"Will you be okay on the couch?" She questioned in a serious tone, disregarding Jackson's lighthearted humour.

"I think I'll manage," he replied sarcastically, while Allison shook her head at her ridiculous brother who always managed to make the best out of every situation. "Will you be fine?"

Her eyes paused suddenly, and found themselves being fixated with her brother's brown eyes, who easily penetrated the barrier she had kept up to prevent people from accessing her vulnerabilities.

They both knew what he had asked was something only they could share together, but Allison wasn't ready to admit that. Instead, she forced an assuring nod, and smiled one last time, before making her way towards the steps.

Jackson turned around, with his hands tucked inside the pockets of his grey sweatpants -that he had changed into while upstairs, then found his gaze still stuck on Allison longingly.

"Goodnight, Jackson," Allison whispered, her voice being consumed in the darkness that pierced through the glass windows so effortlessly, as she lingered at the bottom of the steps for a second too long, then made her way up the stairs towards her bedroom.

Jackson sighed briefly, in the night air, walking towards the main closet to fetch a blanket for himself. He unfolded the soft, black blanket in front of him, and plopped it down on the couch, making sure to move any unnecessary cushions in his way.

He then ran towards the backyard door, to let a tired Bruno in. His floppy ears relaxed against his oval-shaped head, and he limped inside the house in a zombified motion. Jackson made sure to lock the backyard door completely, then made his way towards the couch, where he planted himself on, in exhaustion.

He patted a spot beside him on the couch, and watched as Bruno slumped down beside him, curling himself into a furry ball.

"Goodnight, buddy," Jackson whispered, stroking his head once more, before resting his own head against the cushion that was pressed up against the couch's arm.

Stirring uncomfortably in his spot, Jackson finally fixated himself into a somewhat pleasant position, and focused his gaze on the ceiling that was glistening in the moonlight creeping in from the kitchen window.

He sighed, then recalled today's events, wondering how his life could be so chaotic at the most oddest of times.

As he laid down, with his hands propped underneath, to support his head, he felt as if he was missing something.

Half an hour passed by, and he remained awake, listening vividly to his murmuring thoughts that seemed to overlap each other all at once. The rattling sound bothered him, until he finally sat upright in his spot, startling Bruno, who stared at him with his wide brown eyes.

Jackson ran a hand through his hair, a habit he had picked up since he was young, exhibiting his anxious behaviour. He contemplated whether or not he should go upstairs.

Since he couldn't find tranquility, he decided upon listening to what his heart desired. Stealthily, he stood upwards, his bare feet grazing the cold hardwood floor, and gestured Bruno to follow his lead.

The two stumbled upstairs, with Jackson holding onto the railing reliably, unable to see because of the darkness. He trailed along the hall, and found himself being drawn to Allison's room. His arm outstretched in front of him, while he gripped the doorknob in his hand ever so slightly, making sure to create less noise as possible, in fear of waking up aunt Josephine from her much needed slumber.

The door opened with a brief creaking sound, as Jackson flinched, cautiously looking behind him to see if Josephine had heard. Instinctively, Bruno went in, and curled up on the rug beside Allison's bed, while Jackson stepped in quietly, closing the door gradually, in attempts to minimize the creaking sound.

Satisfied by the soft click he heard of the door closing properly, he sashayed across the room, to witness his sister sleeping on her side, peacefully. Her hair was sprawled across the pillow, and her body was tucked snuggly underneath the covers.

The eldest Pierce son made his way towards the opposite side of her, and slid effortlessly onto the bed, instantly feeling at ease by her presence. Intuitively, his right arm felt the need to embrace Allison, and as soon as his skin made contact to her body, her eyes fluttered wide open in shock.

She bolted upright in terror, letting a gasp escape her lips, then calmed down after seeing her older brother's assuring face. And then again, a look of horror masked her desperation.

"Jackson, what are you doing here?" She whisper yelled, her eyebrows scrunched up in worry. "What if aunt Josephine sees?"

She looked around frantically, her paranoia kicking in, as Jackson also sat upright into sitting position, sighing incredulously, as he confessed. "I can't sleep."

Allison only looked down at the sheets, avoiding his eye contact, because she didn't know how to react, or reply to that. It had become a nightly ritual between them both; the departure to their separate rooms early in the night, the unable to sleep, and the sneaking into each other's rooms in the middle of the night.

The two had found themselves in a very tricky situation, in which they both could not justify, nor explain. And that's what scared them the most.

"Why is it?" Allison questioned after a moment of silence had endured, turning her head rightwards to face her brother, who had a tired expression on his face, and dark bags underneath his eyes.

"I could never figure that out," he simply replied, while the two stared at each other intensely, hoping to search for some sort of answer as to why they often found themselves in the same predicament.

After awhile, Allison was the first to lie back down on her pillow, leaning on her left side to face her back towards her brother. Jackson also laid down, facing Allison's way, and swung a protective arm around her body, pulling her closely.

"Goodnight," he whispered soothingly, finding himself getting lost in his own words, as his eyelids soon closed irresistibly by nuzzling up against his sister.

-

|12:49 pm|

In the still of the night, the two eldest Pierce siblings slept restfully against each other. The window that was open marginally, escalated a gust of wind that blew on the exposed skin of Jackson's arm that was wrapped tightly against Allison's frame.

His mouth hung agape, and his face was entangled in his sister's long hair that scrambled against her pillowcase. On the other hand, Allison slept easily, overcome by her extremely tiresome day, and in the safety of her brother's arms.

All seemed right and soundly, until Bruno stood upwards abruptly, resting his head sluggishly on the mattress, as he stared at Jackson sleeping with his puppy dog eyes.

A soft whine emerged from his mouth, getting lost in the night air. Another cry escaped his pouted lips, but still no reaction from the two siblings. As he cried each time, it got louder and louder, up to the point where Jackson's eyes twitched open.

He assessed his surroundings, and gazed to his right to find Bruno staring back at him innocently, his lips trembling, begging for mercy. Naturally, he figured out that he had to go to the bathroom.

Slowly, he unraveled his arm that clutched onto Allison so tightly, and started to make his way off of the bed as quietly as he could. Still, with his great efforts to not be heard, Allison felt his presence no longer beside her.

Her eyes opened wide, and she shifted rapidly in her spot to face Jackson, who hovered over her bed.

"Where are you going?" The words had come out of her mouth as quick as a flash, and she struggled to keep her eyes open.

"I'll be back," he assured her calmly, moving to pull the covers over her.

She didn't have enough energy to question him further, and ended up closing her eyes, finding it difficult to stay awake.

Jackson then made his way out into the hallway, where he escorted Bruno down the stairs. The Pierce boy staggered down the stairs sleepily, rubbings his eyes in attempts to fully awaken.

He unlocked the backyard door, and slid it open, allowing Bruno to run outside freely, who was itching to do his business.

Jackson then turned around, only to then notice the kitchen lights were on. He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, and hurriedly made his way to the kitchen, where he found aunt Josephine in her laced nightgown, sipping on a discoloured beverage in a wine glass.

Her long hair hung behind her back, and she leaned comfortably against the kitchen counter, staring nonchalantly back at him, with a sadistic grin planted on her lips.

"Aunt Josephine," Jackson spoke in a startle, cautiously stopping in his tracks to avoid any more close proximity. "What are you doing up so late?"

A small smirk played on her lips, as she straightened her back, no longer leaning on he counter for support. "could ask you the same thing."

Jackson awkwardly gestured towards the backyard door where Bruno had escaped in the night air, as a way to explain himself, while Josephine only tilted her head slightly, studying his behaviour towards her.

Completely dismissing his attempt at an explanation, she spoke provokingly. "I thought you said you had no alcohol."

She raised a keen eyebrow, and shook her glass back and forth in her hand, showcasing her alcoholic beverage, making sure to view Jackson's reaction.

"I...uh-" Jackson stammered, bewildered by her mysterious discovery. "Where did you get that from?"

Josephine grinned eerily, pointing behind Jackson, to a small side cabinet that hadn't been opened for years.

"Your father's secret stash," she replied simply, as Jackson followed her gaze to a condensed spaced cabinet, that had not been touched, or ever looked upon for all this time.

Given that his father was such a severe alcoholic, Jackson always wondered if he had left behind a few hidden bottles unintentionally, but he never knew they would be present in plain sight.

A long, overbearing silence passed over, as Josephine set down her wine glass on the kitchen counter, staring at Jackson in fascination, as she trailed her eyes along his lean body.

"You certainly have grown into a fine young man," she spoke enticingly, eyeing him up and down, while Jackson shuffled his feet uncomfortably in his spot. "Say, how old are you now, Jackson?"

"Um...eighteen," he responded quite shakily, disappointed in how much Josephine intimidated him, even after seeing her after so many years.

"Eighteen," she repeated hissingly, the words slipping off her tongue venomously. "Wow, you're basically an adult now."

"I guess you can say that..." Jackson trailed off cumbrously, scratching the back of his neck nervously, unsure as to where this conversation was going.

"So," she started intriguingly, inching closer to him as she spoke. "Why don't you get out of this place? I'm sure you're not really happy here, are you?"

Jackson scrunched his eyebrows, trying to dissect her intentions, and had planned to fire back an unruly comment, but could only say. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Josephine converged her lips into a girlish pout, and stepped closer to the boy. "Who would want to be stuck here taking care of 3 children?" Her tone was quite eluding, and disbelieving. "I think you're destined for something much greater."

Her eyes twinkled in the moonlight, as she stood inches away from Jackson, who stared at her in confusion. Her laced nightgown hugged her skinny frame tightly, exposing her breasts slightly, and her bony fingers outstretched across from her, onto Jackson's trembling chest.

"I..." Jackson struggled to form a sentence, utterly shocked by Josephine's sleazy behaviour, and stepped back cautiously. "I think I'm fine where I am."

Finally finding his words, he cleared his throat, and feared to look at Josephine, who made her way to him even closer than before, until her hot, alcohol-infused breath was grazing his skin.

"You truly have transformed into a handsome man," she commented seductively, biting her lips at the sight in front of her. "And no longer a child anymore."

Jackson gulped, not liking where this was heading, and stared at his aunt with his eyes widened in astonishment, unsure as to what to do.

"What do you say?" She spoke enchantingly, tracing circles on his chest, a lustful look overcoming her wild eyes. "Want to officially become an adult?"

Jackson stepped back quickly, flashing Josephine a disgusted look, as her eyes shone red from all the alcohol she consumed.

"You're my aunt," he spat in revulsion, shaking his head vigorously. "I would never-" he rejected, left completely speechless at what Josephine had just attempted to do.

He tried to hold back the amount of repugnance he was feeling toward his aunt, and stared at her boldly, watching her seductive mood change drastically into a sadistic one, after being embarrassed.

Josephine glared at the boy in front of her, with a devilish grin partnered alongside. "You can pretend to be disgusted all you want, but I am aware of your deepest desires, Jackson. All men are hungry, and lustful," she expectorated malevolently. "Don't act like I don't know that the couch is completely vacant, and where exactly you are sleeping." She nodded over to the unoccupied couch, that had been abandoned by Jackson so early on in the night.

Josephine had figured out what he had yet to figure out himself, and was pointing an accusing finger at him, when she was the one in the position just seconds ago.

Jackson hesitated to respond for a moment, but was then quick to state defensively. "We did nothing wrong."

His voice was harsh, and stern, pronouncing every possible syllable, amusing Josephine, who found it entertaining to see him all worked up. His fists were now balled up, disclosing his whitened knuckles, and he breathed intensely in anger, radiating a growling sound, while Josephine stifled in a menacing chuckle, reciting three worrisome words,

"Maybe not...yet." She went on further to recite indefinitely. "But, there is a certain charm about the forbidden, that makes it unspeakably desirable."

After her intrepid vocalization, she marched upstairs with a mischievous grin, making sure not to look back at Jackson's defeated face.