(It's been a while . . . Vote if you missed the story! Don't vote if you hate it and want me to delete it lmao)

[Derek's Point Of View]

"Excuse me, young man?"

I looked up and almost jumped back at the sight of an old lady, leaning over the counter, staring directly into my soul with big blue eyes behind square glasses. Her pursed lips moved awkwardly like she had a warhead in her mouth.

"Y-yes? How may I help you?" I asked.

"I need my pictures developed," she said, holding out a disposable camera.

"Uh, we don't do that here, but you can check Honmart down the street."

She looked back confused, scrunching her nose and glaring hard at me. "What do you mean? This is an electronics store. This is an electronic device." She pushed the old camera towards me and I sighed. "Please develop my roll. I found the camera in my basement from years ago and I believe it was from my niece's tenth birthday party. By tenth I mean it was her tenth party that day, she was turning eighteen."

"I'm sorry, we don't develop film here. You have to check the other store."

She grabbed her camera angrily and stormed off.

My eyes gave the Leo eye roll and I sighed deeply as I planted my face on the counter. A co-worker walked behind me and patted my back before leaving for his lunch break.

"Hey, Derek," said Janice, a new person that started working here yesterday.

"Hey," I responded as I looked up and rested my chin on my arms, leaning against the counter.

"Want to come with?" she asked as she removed her jacket. "We're going to eat at Randy's."

"No, thanks. I'm just gonna stay here for my break."

"Alright." She smiled. "I'll see you later."

No thanks, I'm gay.

"See you."

For some unknown reason she walked away slowly. I really wish I knew the reason. If only it was obvious.

Ten minutes later, my break was interrupted by Gerald.

"My dude, there's some dude asking for you outside," he said.

It couldn't be Sasha, Gerland knew Sasha. And Sasha wouldn't make me walk outside when he could just come in and look for me. Even when we didn't have any Cheetos.

"Who is it?" I asked as I left my empty counter.

He shrugged. "He just told me to tell you to come outside."

Gerald went to go help a customer while I walked across the store to find the dude asking for me. I didn't even need to guess when I stepped outside and saw the fancy car parked in the front with the tinted windows.

As I walked towards it, still wondering if I was right, the back door opened. I carefully touched the shiny door as if it were made out of diamonds and pulled it, taking a moment to look around before I slid inside. It wasn't the same car my grandma was in the time she kidnapped me from the hospital, but it was similar, only this one had my uncle.

And Sasha.

"Uh."

"Hi, Derek," Sasha said.

"Hi . . . Sasha?" I said back, confused.

"I stopped by your place but you were not home," Chandler said as he crossed his legs.

"Yeah . . . I was working." I wanted to mention how it was what normal people did, but being sassy has never been my thing. "You've caught me on my lunch break."

"Oh, good. This won't take long," he said as he extended his hand, waving an unopened letter. I reached out and grabbed it, staring at the nameless front.

"What's this?" I asked.

"Open it."

I tore it open like a kid opening his Christmas presents, minus the joy and happiness of it. With the big and suspicious smile he had on, it had to be something good. I read the letter and kind of just blinked.

They wanted to pay my bills. Everything. All of them. But why?

"We want to help you. We talked to your father and–"

"Why are you talking to my dad about my business? You know you can just talk to me right? And ask me."

He locked his hands over his knees and looked like he wasn't sure of how to react.

"We just don't want to make you feel like we are pitying on you for what you're going through."

"Just talk to me," I said. "There's nothing wrong with feeling pity. Your mom wants to help me and I'm allowing her to do so. I appreciate any help. I'm not one to feel too prideful to accept help. I'm happy you're all finally doing something, even though it's a little too late."

"Ah, I'm uncomfortable," Sasha said as he looked out the window.

"Better late than never," Chandler said, smiling awkwardly.

"Why bring a letter? You can just call or I guess visit me and kidnap my roommate."

"Roselle wanted to come visit you again, but she's not here right now and we didn't want to wait any longer. Originally she was sending a letter because she's old-fashioned like that, but I wanted to do it personally."

"Is there a reason why you're doing this? Besides just wanting to help me?" I formed hooks at the word 'help'.

I didn't mean to doubt their intentions, but if they cared about me, they wouldn't have waited till I died to come out of the shadows to shower me with help.

"We talked to your father and he told us a bit more of your story."

That made me furious. I wasn't a little kid. Why were they going to my dad? They could just talk to me and get the same answers, but from me. And why would he do that in the first place? He should know I hate being talked about when I wasn't even part of the conversation.

"Don't go to my dad again." It wasn't a threat, but I surely wasn't asking.

"I'm sorry, Derek," Chandler said, losing any expression on his face and replacing it with a soft and caring one. "I didn't mean to get on your bad side. I want us to be friends. Besides, you're my nephew. Regardless of what you think about us, I do want you in our lives and I hope we can build a relationship."

I hated when people talked like this. I wasn't a formal person. I was a 'say it to my face' kind of guy. If you were real with me, then I would be real with you. If you value our friendship, or whatever it was, then I would, too. Real and meaningful relationships with other people don't come by often, but when they do . . . I'd take a bullet for those people.

But if he kept mentioning how he was my uncle, even though he might as well be my age, we were going to have some serious problems. Gross. Not my uncle dude. I didn't care if it was a fact. Nope. Don't care. If I ever ran into people I knew and he was with me, I was going to introduce him as my cousin. That was more believable and we wouldn't sit there for ten minutes talking about how handsome and young my uncle was.

"Sure."

He relaxed his shoulders and looked more chill. It was as if he dropped the nerves as soon as I didn't immediately punch him for asking us to be friends or not-uncle-and-nephew. I thought about it, though.

"We really need to plan something. I would love to take you to my favorite places. Do you play golf?"

"No."

"Have you ever?

"No."

"Oh, that's exciting. I could teach you. Are you okay going on boats? Do you get sea sick?"

"I've been on a boat once and no I don't get sick. It's cool."

This felt awkward. It was like trying to hang out with a buddy, who was obviously your age, looked your age, looked like you two went to high school together, but mentally he was like thirty years older.

"I got my wife this incredible boat for our anniversary and I would love to show it to you." He was really animated and excited about this boat. Was it really for his wife?

"How long have you been married?" I asked, trying to ease my own tension. Chandler seemed to be okay, mostly because he was in his head thinking about the boat and that oddly made him really happy.

"Five years."

I raised my brows. Surprised anyone would be with im that long.

"What about you? Are you married??

"No, I'm not."

"Do you ever want to?"

"Yeah, I've been thinking about it."

His brows rose this time. I bet he was thinking 'Who would marry this guy?'. The answer was Leo. The answer was always Leo. He was the dumbass that would marry me.

"I hope to meet her," he said, smiling. "You can bring her along when I give you the tour of the boat."

Sasha snorted.

"Sure," I said. "I'd love to introduce you to my boyfriend."

Smile gone.

"What?" he said.

"My boyfriend," I repeated. "I'm sure he would be happy to meet you."

His smile returned, but it was not the same. It was forced.

"Good one. You're very funny."

"I am?"

"He's gay," Sasha muttered. "Stupid."

Chandler gave Sasha a side look and looked back at me confused.

"I've been with my boyfriend for . . . " I squinted my eyes and scrunched my nose as I pretended to remember how long Leo and I have been together. "Ten years? I've been thinking it's time to put a ring on it before he slips from my fingers."

His face turned red. Sad day to be white.

"It's okay, you didn't offend Leo," Sasha said to Chandler while still looking out the window. I think at this point Sasha never wanted to look anyone in the eye. "He'd take it as a compliment that you called him a her."

"T-Ten years? That's a long time," he said.

"He calls us high school sweethearts, but I throw up every time I hear that so he stopped. We started dating really early and have been together since. Like I said, he'd love to meet you."

Was I baiting?

Yes.

"Uh, yeah, sure."

I didn't even need to ask the obvious. When my grandmother said they weren't open minded, she wasn't kidding. I wondered what else they weren't open about.

"Doesn't sound like you want to meet him," Sasha said. "I don't blame you. I wish I didn't meet him either."

I rolled my eyes and tried not to grin, but Sasha never failed to make a moment awkwardly hilarious. His beef with Leo wasn't real. Sasha liked Leo. I think he liked Leo a little too much and that was why he acted like this. He probably secretly wants to fuck him, too.

Who didn't, though?

"No no, I just didn't think you were gay."

"Don't assume people's sexualities, bro," Sasha said. "I assumed my girlfriend's sexuality once and I got slapped."

"I'm sorry," he said, looking at me. "I didn't mean to. I'm sure your . . . boyfriend is nice."

"He's okay."

"I agree," Sasha said.

"Does he live with you?" he asked and I could tell he was doing what I was doing by trying to ease tension by asking questions about the other, showing you cared, even if you didn't.

"No, he lives a few hours away. He goes to school so we can't live together yet."

"That's unfortunate."

"Yup."

"You should just say you hate gay people and get it over with," Sasha said.

"I don't hate gay people. I don't particularly agree with the lifestyle, but you're still family to me. You'll always be welcomed in my home."

"Thanks."

"Kill me," Sasha said.

"So is that all? My break will be over soon and I have to get back to work."

"Well, there's one more thing," he said, clearing his throat and crossing his legs. "Your mother left a letter for you when you turned eighteen."

"What? What the fuck?" I said, not caring to hold back my feelings. "And you're telling me this now? Are you serious? That letter is almost as long as my relationship!"

"I didn't know about it. Somehow the letter got lost, but my older brother had it all this time. He doesn't want to give it to any of us, says he wants to give it to you personally."

"Okay, where is he then?" My heart was beating fast at the thought of something written by my mother that was meant for my eyes only. It must be extremely important if my other uncle hid it from me until now. And he only wanted to hand it over personally? Why?

"He lives in Germany."

"AND?!"

He jumped at my sudden outburst.

"Don't worry, he's returning to the states soon," he said quickly.

I didn't care if I made him scared or nervous, this shit was sketchy and I didn't like it one bit. None of this made sense to me. These people were getting on my nerves. This was my mom . . . nothing about this subject was simple to me. It was sensitive.

"How soon?" I said, lowering my tone.

"Since he lives in Germany, he only truly comes when we honor our father and sister. Every year we host a party to remember and honor them both. A lot of my father's friends and family come from all over the world and this is the only time I ever see my brother."

"When?"

"In about a month. I'll send you all of the details. My grandma wanted to invite you herself, so act surprised when she does. And you're supposed to bring someone with you, but I don't think your boyfriend will be allowed."

That just pissed me off completely.

But I wasn't going to retaliate. I wasn't allowed to bring Leo? Alright, I won't bring him.

"I'm coming with you," Sasha said as I started to move to leave. Chandler was still shocked by me being gay, so he really didn't say much when I left the car. Just a simple good-bye.

"If another family member shows up asking for me, don't go with them and tell them where I work or where I'm at, okay?" I told Sasha as he stood next to me, watching the car drive away.

"Honestly, I thought he was gay until he mentioned he has a wife. He's too pretty."

"Are you falling for my uncle?" I said seriously.

He scoffed. "Yeah, I am."

"Why did you get out of the car again?" I asked as I checked what time it was.

"I hated being in the car. I almost jumped out. He gave me the creeps, but he was still pretty. Probably one of those that sucks dick quietly."

"Oh, okay. Thanks for the mental image."

"Thinking about your uncle sucking your dick?"

I sighed.

"Been there, actually–"

"Don't finish that, please," I said.

So far every interaction with my mom's side of the family was painful. I couldn't relate to them even if I tried. But their help meant a lot to me. The only reason I was able to keep my own this long was because of my mom. The car she left me I sold. I bought another car with the money I got, it was still nice, but not as stupidly expensive. The money I had left I used over the years to pay the rent and put food on the table. It was useful when things got bad, but I almost had nothing left. It was the perfect time. And even though I was trying to bait Chandler, I was serious about the marriage thing. Now with them paying for my rent, I could actually afford to buy nice rings.

It was time to propose to the love of my life.

Even though we had to deal with a lot of issues and that probably will never stop, I wanted him forever. He annoyed me sometimes, he made me really mad most of the time, but there was no one else for me. Those feelings were nowhere near close to the amount of love I had for Leo.

I was ready for forever.

~ SQUISHY SAYS HE MISSED YOU GUYS AND HOPES YOU HAVE A HAPPY DAY

It was late at night when I decided to finally call Leo. I was on my computer desk, relaxing after a long day. Even after work was done, I went out for a bit to look around in the mall. When I didn't find what I was looking for, I drove pretty far to keep looking. I was out for so long but still didn't find anything. I came straight home, wanting to share the news with my boyfriend that I was not going to be paying anymore. I already received the first payment and it was triple what I paid. They never asked how much. Was I going to correct them? No. They probably meant to do that anyway.

I leaned back in my chair and held the phone to my ear, waiting for him to pick up.

"Hey, beautiful," I said when he answered but said nothing.

Leo was crying.

"I miss you," he cried.

"I miss you a lot more," I said.

It made me nervous hearing him cry. I only ever heard him cry when it was because of me, but we didn't fight anymore, so it wasn't the case this time. There was only another thing I could remember. I was confident I was correct.

"That's impossible. You're so ugly for even saying that oh my god."

I couldn't hold in my laughter. The way he said it while crying just burned a perfect picture in my head that he hated. It was a meme. A meme I could not talk about because it made him self-conscious

"Seriously, are you okay? Talk to me," I said as I spun the gaming chair around to make sure I was alone in case he did want to spill his thoughts.

"I'm just stressed with school. I hate it so much, Derek. Hating it stresses me, doing it stresses me, there's nothing I can do or say that will not make me stressed. I feel like I'm running around in circles and I'm so unhappy."

Okay, so I was right. Beside the issues of our past, the only thing that stopped Leo from becoming his full joyful self was the stress that school brought. I felt it and related too well. But I always told him he could do it. He could do so much and more. He was the smartest person and the dumbest at the same time. That took talent.

His parents even suggested he take a year off to clear his mind, but that only stressed him out more.

"Summer is soon . . ."

There was nothing new I could say that I haven't said before. Literally nothing will make him feel better. I thought about how happy he was being here with me every weekend and now that I can quit my second job and even my first one, I could spend so much more time with him. That could take his mind off of things for a while.

"Summer isn't as it used to be. Sure, the first few summers were amazing and fun and incredible memories, but fun is over. I might have to spend all summer either doing my job full time or another internship. I need so much experience and I feel like I'm not gonna ever get enough."

"Or you can stay with me," I suggested.

"You know I'd love nothing more, but I don't know if I can. There's so much I have to do. Like, I understand why you dropped out. If I didn't have help from my mom and her husband, I wouldn't have even survived one year."

"Yeah . . ."

"Baby, stop. You're gonna make me start crying again."

He started crying again.

I sighed. He must have read my monotone voice. "Sorry, I didn't mean to make you upset."

"ME?! I made you upset. Don't defend me. I am a fucking monster."

Again, I had to hold my laughter in. This time I did a better job. He sounded so serious, but at the same time like he was having a melt down. That thought alone was the reason I didn't end up laughing.

I felt hopeless, honestly. I couldn't do anything to help Leo. I knew him better than anyone and nothing could be said. The one thing I could do was sit and listen. But listening to your boyfriend cry wasn't exactly cool. I wanted him to laugh and be happy.

"It's okay. Don't worry about me," I said as I picked up the cold beer sitting on my desk and gulping down a large amount.

"Shut your mouth Joseph."

I coughed hard upon hearing my second name.

"Please," I wheezed as I put down the beer.

"Now I'm thinking about how much time we've lost. Imagine if we were together all this time. Like, just imagine it. Doesn't it make you sad? We could have been living together from the moment we moved out and went to college. Imagine how different our lives would be if we didn't stupidly decide to go to different schools. We could have been there to love and support each other. But no, fuck easy happiness."

"I try not to think about it," I said.

"Derek, I love you. I love you so damn much. I'm sorry for constantly disappointing you."

He got quieter towards the end of the sentence. He was crying again and was trying to be sneaky about it.

"Stop that. You don't disappoint me. You make me extremely happy and you know that. Life can't be simple, but I know eventually we'll be happily together and everything would have been worth it."

I started to slouch on my chair until I was slipping. I hated hearing him talk like this. Being depressed was my number one skill and I would rather fall in a volcano than let Leo fall into a depression episode.

"Are you gonna be up later?" he asked, suddenly changing his tone.

"Yeah, why?"

"Can I call you later?"

"Sure," I said, feeling disappointed, but then an idea hit me. "Love you."

"I love you."

As soon as he hung up I got up and ran to my room, jumping on my bed and rolling over Sasha's sleeping body. He mumbled something in Russian as I woke him up with all my loud movements. I grabbed clean clothes and whatever else I needed and threw it into an empty backpack.

"Hey," I said to Sasha, tapping his shoulder.

"Mmm?"

Sasha had been asleep for a long time. He had spent the previous two days without sleeping. One because of Nicole and second because of his job. His new job had rotating hours and it was kind of awkward, especially when Nicole rolled up randomly without announcing she was coming over. He didn't want to upset her by sleeping. He was an idiot.

"I'm going to be away for the weekend, can you please not set the apartment on fire while I'm gone?"

That forced his eyes open.

"Wait, you're leaving?"

"I'm gonna go down and visit Leo for the weekend."

"You mean I'm sleeping alone tonight?"

"Um, yes."

"I don't wanna."

I ignored Sasha's puppy dog eyes and went through my clothes one more time. I already showered, but I couldn't walk into his dorm shirtless and in pajamas. I changed clothes while Sasha just stared at me with big lost eyes.

"Dude, call Nicole then," I told him as I put on a black shirt.

"If I do that then I'm not going to get any sleep."

"Remind me while I let you sleep with me again?"

"Because two bros can totally sleep in the same bed without it being sexual," he said as he eyed me up and down. "And because you feel bad about me sleeping on that horrible hybrid couch."

"No people allowed while I'm gone, okay?" I told him as I started to walk out of my room.

"Yes, sir! Have fun destroying what's left of Leo's hole!"

I furrowed my eyebrows even though he couldn't see my face. What was that supposed to mean? I wasn't gonna ask, but what?

I left the apartment and got in my car as fast as humanly possible. I filled up the tank at a nearby gas station with the new money and drove. Leo needed me and now it was possible for me to leave my apartment without the fear of getting fired. It was the perfect time to surprise him and I didn't even get the chance to tell him the news. It was perfect.

But having no plan did have its flaws. That flaw had a name.

Nathan.

What was I going to do when I saw him? Everything was out on the table. No one was confused. There were no secrets. Nothing was hidden. I forgave Leo and at the same time I understood why it happened. But just because I forgave Leo didn't mean that it didn't bother me. Was I going to be rational when I confronted him?

Probably not.

▶ This is Margaret. She's tiny but moving you to the next scene is her specialty.

There was a reason I rushed out of my apartment as soon as Leo hung up. The drive was so long that I started to fall asleep. I had to stop somewhere to take a nap in my car. While I slept I received a bunch of calls and messages from Leo wondering where I was. I wasn't going to call or text back. I wanted it to be a surprise.

The rest of the ride was easier when I wasn't so tired. It was morning by the time I arrived at the familiar large building holding all those stressed out college students. I was nervous. The last time I was here I was kicked out by the residence hall director for disturbance. I was drunk, but I refused to believe I was loud. I was never loud.

Luckily no one saw me walk in, I was afraid I'd be stopped and thrown out again. I went up to Leo's floor and walked down the empty halls until I found his room. I was nervous all of the sudden. I hadn't seen him in a month and every time I came down to visit it never ever turned out good. I didn't want this weekend to turn out like the rest. The only thing keeping me slightly positive was the promise I gave him. The promise that I'd be a good boyfriend from now on. So far I was delivering without breaking a sweat. But it was easy when my previous behaviour risked losing everything. Once I realized I could lose him forever . . . well that changed things.

I brought up my hand to knock but before I could even touch the door, it opened. Nathan looked into my eyes and screamed, falling back as I lowered my hand (which was forming a fist, maybe that's why he screamed?).

Leo was in his bed, watching me with big eyes, his phone in his hand. I was going to feel bad if he was just waiting for me to call back or answer his text messages. Nathan was still on the floor gasping for air.

Neither of them said anything, just stared in silence, so I let myself in. Leo smirked to himself, most likely had a thought that nobody wanted to hear and only himself found amusing.

"You can get up, I'm not going to hit you," I told Nathan.

"Yeah, okay," he said nervously as he picked up books off the ground. He came up to me slowly. "If–If you want to talk, or do whatever, I'll be back in a few hours."

"Okay," I said back.

Nathan walked around me and left, closing the door behind him. As the tension left with him, Leo jumped out of bed and ran straight into my arms. I noticed he started crying halfway and it only made me hug him harder. Feeling him melt on me told me how worth it driving here was. I made the right choice.

I also didn't expect how horny I'd instantly become. After some fooling around in the shower, he left for work and I stayed in the room by myself. I took a little nap to catch on all the sleep I lost while driving here. There was something special about sleeping in your boyfriend's bed after not seeing him for so long. I could have stayed there for a couple more hours but I received a warning text from Dakota that Nathan was on his way.

A minute later the door opened and a worried Nathan walked in. He looked at me once and quietly went to drop his things on his desk. He didn't seem like the organized type but judging by both desks in the room, I was wrong. When he finished cleaning up his desk and putting papers away, he went to the bathroom and locked himself in for another couple of minutes.

I thought about all the outbursts he witnessed when Leo and I used to fight. Like the time we were walking back home from the club and I was screaming so loud that you could see the veins in my skin pop like branches from a dead tree. Just thinking about it made me heated. Nathan was always there, he even tried to get in between us. I was glad he was there. I've never laid a hand on Leo, and I wouldn't, but we're aware some of us can do stupid shit while intoxicated out of our minds.

Nathan came out and immediately sat across from me on his bed. I swung my legs over the bed and sat up, watching him as he played with his fingers.

"I'm sorry, Derek," he said.

"If we're going to talk about this," I started, keeping my voice emotionless like I always do, "I want everything out on the table. You're not going to like what I'm going to say. I'm not going to say it's okay when it wasn't."

"Did Leo tell you what I told him that night when he was at my parent's place?"

"When you told him you are in love with him?" I made sure to emphasize the word are. He nodded. "Yes, he told me. I know everything."

"That's what I'm nervous about the most," he said as he tried his best to keep eye contact, but kept breaking to look to the side or the floor.

"Because you said our relationship was shit? That I was emotionally abusing Leo? Trying to control him and manipulate him and drag him down with me because my life also shit?"

He swallowed. "Yes."

"I'd be nervous if I were you, too."

"Derek, I'm sorry."

"It doesn't bother me that you said that. For the most part, it's true. What bothers me is how you took advantage of Leo when he was so upset. What did you think would happen?"

"I already told him it was a mistake to do that. I wasn't thinking."

"Clearly."

He was no longer nervous, I could tell, I was getting under his skin.

"But like you said, it's true. I'm not the only one that thinks it."

I was fully aware about that last part. None of Leo's friends liked me. I honestly didn't care. They meant nothing to me if they didn't understand me or our situation. Nathan was the only one who I thought understood, somewhat. Nathan was the only person I was okay with and not because he was Leo's best-friend.

But obviously things were different now.

"Doesn't matter. I trusted you, Nathan. We've known each other for how long? Well, since you and Leo met. I didn't expect you to be the one to fall in love with my boyfriend. I didn't expect for you to be the one he would cheat on me with."

"I . . . It's not like it happened on purpose, you know that." His voice got more serious. "I wouldn't have done something like that on purpose in a million years."

"Nathan, I was drugged, too, as you're aware. I was still able to recognize that Dakota was a stranger and I didn't know him. I was almost taken advantage of because I couldn't fully function, but I knew what was happening. I put myself in the same place Leo was and imagined it happening. You had the strength to do whatever you did to Leo and you knew it was him the entire time. You knew you weren't supposed to, but because you are in love with him, you didn't stop yourself."

He got up furiously, face red and eyes full of hatred. "THAT'S NOT TRUE!"

"It's true, you just don't want to accept it, because admitting it is admitting something much worse," I said roughly, getting up to meet him at eye level.

"Yes, you're fucking right! I love Leo. I love him because I'm weak, but I would never hurt him. Not like you have." He poked my chest with his finger and I let him. A finger was nothing compared to being punched in the face. "That's the difference between us. You think you can just change who you are by promising Leo that you won't be the same man? Yeah fucking right. You're just scared because you finally felt what it was like to have Leo be a free person for once, without you. And you couldn't help the lingering feeling that he could replace you with someone better. That's why you're back with your false promises. Where were those promises years ago when he needed them the most? WHERE?"

I grabbed his hand and pushed it away. "I don't know what Leo has told you about me, but I can tell you know nothing about me. You're so in love with Leo that you would defend him no matter what he does. At that point it becomes desperation. It's sad, Nathan. Just don't forget I'm his boyfriend. Not you."

"As long as you don't forget that I'm that better someone."

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[Author's Message]: AHH! Once again I've disappeared into the bermuda triangle. I am SO sorry it's been so long since I've updated. Trust me, it wasn't on purpose. Sometimes it's really hard for me to write. I wish I could write new chapters and new books every day, but the reality is I can't. Some people are like that, and those people I hate and I'm so jelly. But I still tried my best to write every single day. I am ALWAYS trying. Anyway, whatever is happening, isn't over, not yet. Soon my loves. Soon the drama will be over, and I will introduce the new drama, the last drama before Step Brothers is completely finished.

But I have an important question for you guys. PLEASE answer in the comments to this paragraph so I can easily find them. So this isn't just a regular story, Step Brothers is written without rules. I write whatever I want, whenever I want. Step Brothers sometimes makes no sense, the characters are so out of this world, the plot is crazy and emotional, but that's why I love it so much. After it's over, I don't want to say good bye to these characters that I've created and loved for so many years. The original story will be over, but I keep thinking, what if I introduce something new? It's not a regular book, it's just a story on Wattpad, so I can do whatever I want, right? I've legit thought about throwing them into a zombie apocalypse, I've thought about writing them in the weirdest scenarios, but I've been afraid of how you guys would feel. So how would you feel if after step brothers finished, I'd continue but in a different format ... think of American Horror Story or Black Mirror, where every episode is different. What if I write more Step Brothers, but putting them in different situations that wouldn't be normal to the original story? This is AFTER it's officially over, not during. Like I've always wanted to know how they would do in a zombie apocalypse, or Nicole figuring out she can talk to grass, or having leo get kidnapped by an ufo and writing the experience, and it doesn't even have to be all that, even like a "third book" where an actual zombie apocalypse happens, and now that their life problems have happened, i can focus on something fresh and new. What do you guys think? I hope I made sense. It's late and I'm sleepy. Let's have a conversation in the comments :) I'd like to know. Thank you for reading <3

(PS: Sex scene next chapter)