Chapter 16

"Can you make some for Tiffany and me? I'm already hungry and I don't know when Tiffany's going to wake up" he whines and I laugh,

"Okay sure" I agree and I grab a hot chili pepper and a grater,

"Eris" he looks at me with pleading eyes,

"Fine" I get the message behind his pleading eyes and I drop the chili pepper. Cody grabs the white plastic bag on the kitchen counter and peers into it,

"So many," he says in amusement but then his eyes dampen, "Eris, can I ask you something?" I nod subconsciously as I pour some batter into the waffle maker, I stride over to the freezer and bring out some leftover chocolate spread and grate four chili peppers in it, I taste and get that tingle in my tongue that I so desire and pop it into the microwave.

"It's for me don't worry" I smile at him and take a sip of cold milk to help soothe the burn. He sighs in relief, "so what's that question you wanted to ask me?" I get back to waffle-making just after I put on my cooking playlist.

"Do you have a boyfriend?" He fiddles with his fingers, his cheeks rosy, "if yes then why haven't I met him yet?" His question stuns me and an image of Daylon flashes in my head, I shake it off and turn to my little brother; he couldn't stop staring at his feet,

"Cody" I roll my eyes, "I don't have a boyfriend"

"It's kinda hard to believe since you're very pretty" he mumbles and my ears pick,

"Thank you for the compliment but I feel there's something else you're trying to get across" I stare into his orbs with a soft smile,

"Mom and Tiffany think your pregnancy is the cause of your sickness and it's only fair to think so since you're smart and very attractive too and your secret boyfriend might not want to show up because he knows mom and dad will say no but I just want you to know that whoever it is I don't care I just want to meet him" he blurts out without a break or pause,

"Cody" I cup his cheeks with a tender heart and smile, "I'm not pregnant and I surely don't have a boyfriend, mom and Tiffany are loco" I cross my eyes which makes him laugh, "I'm not Tiffany, I know our actions affect the ones we love and I will never do anything that would hurt you" his orbs glisten with tears at my words and a small smile spreads across his lips,

"Thank you Eris" he hugs the life out of me and I return the gesture. I love him.

"If it makes you feel secure I can get a pregnancy test done for you" I joke and he cackles,

"No worries but you have to show me your boyfriend when you find him. And also use protection" I burst into laughter and salute him. It was only normal for him to feel scared, he didn't want to have to go through the fear of almost losing a sister again.

"Waffles are ready!" We settle down to eat, Cody keeps staring at me wondering how I could look so cool eating something so hot. My leftovers are always eaten by me, no one else.

"Make sure you lock the door behind me!" I rush out the door,

"Sure! Bye Eris!" Cody waves me goodbye as I jog down to Debbie's house to get my shot administered. Her mom's a nurse too and she's always free on Saturdays so what better way. I wave good morning to Andy the paperman and he waves back, he probably still remembers the incident with me.

I reach Debbie's house and I give the door a gentle knock, I hear Debbie scream in joy and the door opens almost immediately. I'm hit with a bear hug almost losing my balance,

"Good morning," I say in between fits of laughs, "don't you get visitors often?" I place a kiss on her forehead as she adjusts her glasses,

"We do but you're the only one who doesn't use the doorbell"

"We need to change that" she laughs at my statement and lets me in.

"Morning Mrs. Cooper!" I greet,

"Morning Eris!!" Her voice echoes from the kitchen, she's always happy to see me, "what brings you here?" She steps out of the kitchen to give me her enchanting smile,

"Well I have meds and I need help with them so I thought of you, no better person to help me" I return the smile and she giggles at the compliment,

"Okay, give me a minute" she enters into the kitchen once more,

"Hey, how are you feeling now champion?" Debbie inquiries,

"Way better" we talk about school and other things. I get my shot with minimal pain and hang out with my half-sister for a while.

Well, hours actually.

What? I had no homework and I wasn't ready to stay in my room all day doing nothing. So with a lot of persuasions most of it from Debbie, we manage to squeeze out money from her mom to go to a nearby amusement park.

It was fun. We won so many prizes. Well, I won so many prizes for her. We laugh as we approach her door talking about how fun it was. The sun was already setting and I still didn't feel like returning home, I didn't feel secure with my family.

"You girls are back rather early" Max Cooper, Debbie's beloved dad greets us sarcastically, "I almost thought you'd run away with my daughter Eris" he jokes and I laugh,

"I'll only do that when she isn't afraid of me dying" he laughs and Debbie pouts, she's not a fan of my dark humor, especially when it's geared to me.

We gather around the table to have dinner and I leave Cody a message telling him I'm having dinner at Debbie's. I drop my phone to have delicious food until I hear my phone beep,

Daylon: You still game for tonight?

I almost choke on the water I've been sipping, I almost forgot! I reply positive and we agree on 10 pm, Debbie suspects me as I passively rush my food.

After dinner I get my final shot for today and decide to head out, Debbie begs for a sleepover but I kindly decline and tell her next weekend. She sulks and I dash back home. My parents didn't seem to mind that I was out all day, they only had a problem with me coming back.

I cuddle Tyler for a while then head to my room to relax, I stare at my empty bed,

"So lonely, maybe I do need a boyfriend" I sigh and head to the shower. I'm out after a while and settle in my bed wearing shorts and a loose Whitetop, I pull out my literature.

Time passes with pages and I'm downing my 7th Mars, I hear my phone beep,

Daylon: I'm outside your window, bring some snacks on your way down please