This chapter is dedicated to @playboystiles for the suggesting the title Where We Stand.

Chapter 2: Where We Stand

I stared at the long aisle of chips, watching as my brother practically leaned over the cart and skated down the aisle. His annoying laughter filled the air as the handcart practically tipped over; it would've if he hadn't jumped off when he did. "Can you please hurry this up?" I asked impatiently.

"Stop being so uptight," my brother muttered as he handed the cart over to me. He began walking down the aisle, snatching whatever bag from the shelf that looked slightly intriguing. I'm going to laugh if we get to the register and everything totals up to more than whatever's in his wallet.

Once he had eleven bags in the cart, he turned the corner. I slowly followed him, watching as he grabbed a bunch of chilled bottles of soda and cans that we would put in the fridge. Further down the lane, he noticed candy. I wanted to crawl on the floor and bawl. My brother and candy don't mix well at all. "Okay, isn't that enough candy?" I asked after he practically dumped four rows of sweets into the cart.

He was now shoveling chocolate into the cart. "There is no such thing as enough candy," he reminded me.

"Yeah, it's called diabetes," I muttered as he grunted and moved on. "Aren't we done? We have candy, soda, and chips. What else do guys like?"

"I'd expect you to know that," my brother replied. "You've been living with one for sixteen years, almost seventeen now."

My lips turned downwards as I let out a sigh. "Unfortunately."

"Hey, I'm not that bad," he retorted.

"You're worse," I smiled wryly. "Now can we please check out?"

"Excited to go pick up the guys, are we now?" Dylan joked as he pushed me away from the cart. I guess it was heavy enough now to hold his weight. "Perhaps Axel, since you know, you have a crush on him."

"Yes, I can't wait to see him," I sardonically replied. He rolled his eyes before hopping onto the back of the cart and soaring towards the checkout.

Once I found him, I noticed that he chose the lane with the pretty girl who was obviously a couple years older than us. I wanted to sigh yet again. Nothing's better than listening to your brother chat up a girl. "So...I'm not a minor," he lied to her.

"Awe, you look like one," the girl cooed and my brother's sly grin turned into a frown.

"Not when I don't shave for a week," my brother tried again, offering up a flirty smile.

"I bet you look absolutely adorable then," the girl shot him down.

My brother's frown was permanent as he muttered that he'd be outside getting the car. I snorted before allowing her to bag the food. I stuffed it into the carriage after I paid. Like he said he'd be, my brother was outside, allowing the car to idle. "Ooh, shot down," I grinned as I approached him with the cart.

"Shut up," my brother told me. I got into the car, allowing him to pack up the trunk. It's his food for his friends- he can put it away. I doubt I'll be getting any of it, anyway, not unless I'm the one packing it into the fridge. "Can you do me a favor?"

He was buckling his seatbelt and I quirked an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"Can you not tell the guys about that?" Dylan requested awkwardly as he began driving the car.

I grinned. "Of course I won't, big brother. Now who are we picking up first?" Or in other words, who is going to know about the big ole rejection first?

"Demetri, he lives down the street," my brother told me with a sigh.

We drove down the street towards Demetri's house. I could see him as we pulled up to the home. Standing under the protection of his porch, he had his school bag in his hand and I snorted. "He's going to study, huh?"

"He thinks he is," my brother stated.

Demetri is your average jock. He's tall, sporty, and has a killer smile. His hair is black and his skin is the color of chocolate, mixing well with his hazel eyes. But, unlike most of the other guys, he actually studies. He's the quietest of my brother's large group of friends and some would argue that he's the smartest. He also has a girlfriend who is in her freshman year in college. Noticing the car idling in front of the house, he began jogging over, swinging open the door once he arrived. "Hey Dylan, hey little Dylan," he greeted us.

I sighed, hating the nickname. Dylan just laughed. "Hey, Demetrious."

"Don't call me that; you sound like my mother," he replied. He sat in the seat behind Dylan's, making himself comfortable. "How are we going to fit everyone in the car?"

"You guys will have to squeeze in. You'll live," my brother shrugged, earning a scoff from Demetri.

"This car seats seven normal sized people. You expect seven giants to squeeze in here, along with you and your small sister?" Demetri scoffed.

"Colton isn't a giant," I muttered. "He's only two inches taller than me."

"Yeah, well, everyone else is," Demetri responded. "How are you going to do this? This isn't a clown car, unfortunately. You'll get pulled over."

"Stop complaining- you have a seat. Let the last person complain, okay?" Dylan told him, earning innocent hand raise from Demetri.

"Maybe someone can take their car," I explained.

"And by someone you mean Axel?" Demetri concluded. Of course he had to make that comment. I mean, he's not wrong but he had to say it...

I shrugged. "Yeah, he can."

Demetri rolled his eyes. "You guys are like little kids. Well, you are a little kid, little Dylan."

"You're barely older than me!" I exclaimed, whipping around in my seat. "I'm not a little kid."

About ten minutes later, we arrived at Colton's house. Dylan honked the horn and a little boy dressed in only a diaper came to the door, opening it before grinning. I heard a faint 'Col-Col' from out of my opened window. Colton peeked outside before lifting the little boy and handing him to his mother, who appeared and offered us a wave, which we returned. Once he arrived at the car, Dylan snorted. "Col-Col."

"Just drive," Colton replied, tossing his bag on the floor beneath him. Colton is nice. He's quiet and a little blunt, but nice for the most part. He doesn't really have common sense and is always the one to give someone away when they're doing something they probably shouldn't be.

"Whatever you say," Dylan stated simply before pulling off again. We drove a bit more, pulling up to the familiar duplex. The twins walked out of the home, Isaiah being forced to carry their sleepover bag.

Oh, the twins. Don't get me started on the twins. Isaiah is cool and calm, a bit loud when he wants to be, but an overall nice fellow. Isaac is the complete opposite. Some call him the devil but I think he's a bit more flirtatious than that. He's rambunctious and always has something to say. I'll admit, he's intelligent and can hold a conversation about something he enjoys but he's so hyper that those types of conversations rarely happen. Don't get me wrong, Isaiah is smart too, but it's not really shocking because he's not loud and annoying.

Isaac yanked open the door and allowed his brother to get in first. He hunched over, practically smacking me in the face with his butt, as he sat in the back seat. Our car is set up like a minivan, even though it's not. There are the driver and the passenger's seats, then the two seats behind us. The seats behind us have a gap in the middle where you can walk, or crawl - your choice - and sit in one of the three seats in the back. Isaac, on the other hand, threw himself beside Isaiah after shoving his brother's butt. "Hurry up loser."

"How is everyone going to fit in here?" Isaiah questioned, shoving his head in the space between Demetri and Colton. "We have three more people and one more seat."

"They must fight to the death for it," Isaac announced.

I rested my head against the window, my eyes widening. Gosh, they're so loud. "Well, we'll cross that bridge when we get there," my brother announced.

"Who's next, Demetri?" my brother questioned, looking in the mirror at his friend who had his phone in his hands.

"Holden and Miles," he responded. Those two are...actually not that bad. Holden is a sweetheart. He encapsulates everything a girl could possibly want in a guy. He's smart, funny, and just an overall kindhearted boy. Not to mention his appearance... Miles is also a sweetheart. He's the youngest of the group but he still manages to fit right in. He's quiet and honest and is willing to try anything. It's refreshing to have such a optimistic person around, so he's highly appreciated.

Isaac decided to share his foolproof plan. "How about we let those two losers drive together and we pick up Axel?"

"That's a good idea," my brother shrugged. Kill me, kill me now, "but Axel is thirty minutes from here, and the two guys are only ten minutes away."

Not listening to Isaac and Isaiah's protests, my brother drove off. I saw Holden and Miles on Holden's porch. They jogged over, shaking the rain from their hair as Miles grasped the door handle, yanking it open to reveal the grinning guys and me.

"What's up, bit-boys?" Holden's gaze fell on me and he gave me a sheepish grin. He looked at the one seat in the back before he practically shoved Miles towards the floor, forcing his way to the last seat. "Ah, comfortable."

"Dude!" Miles exclaimed as he regained his balance. "Where am I going to sit?"

"Lex's lap is always available," Isaac suggested.

"No, you weigh like three hundred pounds," I excused. He doesn't weigh that much; in fact he probably weighs less than me; I just don't fancy the idea of having someone on my lap.

"Wow, now I don't have a seat and I'm insecure. You guys sure know how to make a guy feel welcome," Miles sighed.

"You can always sit on my lap, Lex," Isaac winked.

"You can always get out of my car," Dylan retorted. I sighed, pressing my fingers to my temples.

"I was just offering a solution to the problem at hand, jeez, Dylan. I apologize for trying to help fix a problem that you didn't bother to solve!" Isaac exclaimed overdramatically, sitting back in his seat after rolling his eyes.

"Keep rolling your eyes, maybe you'll find a brain back there," Colton murmured under his breath.

"What was that, Col-Col?" Isaac questioned, sitting up and placing his chin on the back of Colton's chair. Colton shoved his face away. "I know what it feels like to be unloved. You still love me, right, Lex?"

"I've never loved you, Isaac," I told him.

He whimpered, placing a hand over his heart. Miles switched from one foot to another. "We get it, no one loves you Isaac, now can we please do something? I'm freezing."

"Way to be blunt," Isaac muttered.

"Are we forgetting that I can't drive?" the fifteen year old asked.

"Well, Holden, why don't you take your car? And pick up Axel?" Dylan asked and Holden groaned, sitting up.

"Holden, do this; Holden do that; does Holden ever get a break? Because he needs one," Holden muttered as he jumped towards the floor, splashing a puddle of mud upwards. Miles quickly lifted his feet, avoiding the puddles wrath. He laughed evilly at Holden as he slammed the door shut. Holden offered him the middle finger before getting into his car.

Isaac and Isaiah began to sing in unison, earning a chorus of groans from everyone else. "If you don't like our singing, then turn on the music!" Isaac snapped, "Lex, can you put on Justin Bieber? Is he on the radio right now? That was stupid question, he always is."

"Aw snap, I left my 'I Heart Biebs' shirt at home!" Isaiah groaned while I tampered with the radio.

I let some crappy pop song play through, mainly because it shut Isaac and Isaiah up and that was a hard thing to do.

+++

"Can you put the food away while we go set up the basement?" Dylan asked me, puckering his lower lip.

I agreed, mainly because I'll pick and choose whichever food I want and they won't have a clue. "Sure, just because I'm a great sister."

"Does anyone want to help?" Dylan asked the group of guys.

Isaac wriggled his eyebrows as he nodded, stepping out from the group of boys waiting behind my brother. "I sure do."

My brother grabbed Isaac's collar as he tried to saunter over to me. "Except for this idiot."

"I don't need help," I insisted. They'd probably snitch me out.

My brother nodded, opening the basement door and allowing his clan of idiots to bounce downstairs. "The doors open if you need anything."

"I'm always here, babe!" Isaac exclaimed. I heard a loud thump and Isaac groaned. I snorted and began shoving the soda cans inside of the fridge. How sexist of them to assign me this job. I shrugged to myself. Oh well, their loss. I'm taking all of the good snacks.

About twenty minutes later, I heard a loud knock on the front door. I sighed, getting up off of the floor, where I was crouched. I had to reach the fridge's corners in order to fit all of the soda. I wiped my hands off on my pants as I walked towards the door. I opened it, not bothering to look through the peephole. "Finally, it took you long enough."

"Why hello to you, too, Axel," I muttered as he practically shoved his way through the door.

"What are you doing?" Holden asked as he noticed a dried chocolate stain on my shirt. Okay, so I was snacking on the job.

"Putting away the food," I shrugged. Holden grinned, rolling his eyes.

My attention was turned back to Axel, who was staring at me. "Where are they?"

"Up your butt," I absentmindedly replied. Holden snorted as he sidestepped Axel and flung open the door to the basement, practically skipping down the steps. Axel followed behind him after he stuck his tongue out at me.

+++

When I got sick of chocolate, which I didn't even know was possible, I walked downstairs. I had changed and showered, preparing for bed, or sitting around for two hours until I got tired. My mother is supposed to get home in an hour and I need her to sign a few forms for school. I whistled as I entered the kitchen, my eyes trained on the freezer. We must have something in there that I could shove into the microwave for three minutes.

I heard the basement door opening and my brother peeked into the kitchen upon hearing my whistling. "I thought I heard your crappy whistling." I playfully glared at him so he continued. "I'm ordering pizza."

"Okay," I nodded as he disappeared down the stairs. I was about to walk back upstairs when my brother's screams interrupted me.

"Lex! Lex!" he screeched from the bottom of the stairs.

I sighed, my shoulders slumping. I walked over towards the basement door, opening it slowly. "Yes?" I asked as I stared down the carpeted steps.

"Can you get us some sodas?" Dylan shouted and I sighed. "Four Sprites, three Cokes, and a Dr. Pepper."

I grabbed seven sodas, leaving the unopened box of Dr. Pepper in the fridge. Axel likes that soda; if he wants soda, he can get it himself. I have a limited amount of arms anyway; I can only hold so much. I distributed a soda to Holden and a soda to Colton, who were both playing an intense game of foosball. I handed four sodas to Dylan, Demetri, and the twins. I walked up to Miles, who was sitting on the couch beside Axel while texting someone at rapid speeds, and handed him the last soda.

Axel looked at me expectantly, moving his face away from his phone. I'm guessing he was having a conversation with someone. "Where's my soda?" he whispered.

"Upstairs- your legs work, don't they?" I replied as I walked towards the stairs.

"I'm going to have to call you back, Vic," Axel explained to his girlfriend before hanging up, shoving his phone in his pocket. He grumbled something under his breath before following me.

"She's just trying to get you upstairs alone!" Isaac exclaimed from the couch. "I know her tricks!"

My brother punched him in the chest and Isaac winced. "Hey, why do you keep hitting me?"

"Why do you keep saying stuff about my sister?" Dylan retorted and Isaac shrugged.

"What can I say? I'm a lady magnet," Isaac replied. I opened the door leading to the kitchen and slammed it shut, ultimately leaving Axel in the stairway. It didn't stop him, but it slowed him down.

Once he opened the door, he had a scowl on his face. "You're so immature."

I just rolled my eyes, mocking him. "You're so immature," I ridiculed.

"Stop," he replied as he walked towards the fridge.

"Stop," I mocked him again.

"You're just like a child, I swear," he snapped.

"You're just like a child, I swear," I taunted as I leaned against the doorframe, watching him as he ducked into the fridge, grabbing a Dr. Pepper.

"You'd think you'd try to hide your jealousy," he responded as he opened his can of soda.

"I'm not jealous!" I barked and he grinned triumphantly. I let out an annoyed groan before turning towards the stairs leading to the second floor. I groaned again when I heard him laughing.

+++

"That's my brother's friend; of course I don't think he's hot," I told Camilla.

"You think Holden's hot," Sidney reminded. I glared at her through the webcam.

"That's different," I informed her as I opened my closet door, set on organizing it. "Holden is cute." I used to have a crush on him long ago. And by long ago, I mean eighth grade.

"Don't tell me you don't enjoy it even a little," Camilla explained. "All those hot guys walking around your house, because I know I would enjoy that so much."

I shook my head as I started bringing my hoodies to the front of the closet, preparing for the cold weather coming up. "I don't. I mean, sure they're cute, well some of them, but they're my brother's friends. It's weird."

"Who cares?! They're hot! Who do you think's the hottest?" Camilla retorted, directing her focus to Sidney with the latter question.

"Okay. I think that Miles is definitely the cutest, and then it's Demetrious, Axel, Colton, Holden, Dylan, Isaac, and then Isaiah," Sidney confessed.

"How are the twins last? And they look exactly alike; you should count them as one person!" Camilla said. "And doesn't Demetri hate being called Demetrious?"

"But Isaac is cuter because of his personality, Isaiah is quiet. I don't really like quiet," Sidney responded. Just get to know Isaiah, I wanted to say, and then tell me he's quiet.

"Well, I think that it's Dylan, Axel, Holden, the twins, Colton, Demetri, and then Miles," Camilla explained. I grabbed the last hoodie, preparing to shove it alongside the other hoodies before I realized that it was Axel's from a few months ago. He let me wear it and I never bothered to give it back.

"No," I responded, shaking my head. "Okay, so first is-," I started.

"Holden, right?" Sidney joked and I tensed, hearing something outside of my door.

I held up a finger to my friends, silently telling them to give me a minute. I tossed the hoodie on my bed, silently walking towards the door, which I yanked open. Axel was standing there with his ear pressed against it, I'm guessing, from his awkward stance. He immediately straightened up his posture and pointed towards the stairs. "Pizza's here."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Were you listening to my conversation?" I asked, already knowing the answer. He quickly shook his head.

He looked over my shoulder at my bed. "Is that my hoodie?" he asked.

I stared at him. "You were listening to my conversation," I insisted with a red face. What if he'd heard me call Holden cute? What if I hadn't heard him in time and he'd heard the rest of my list?

"Look, I'm only here to tell you that the pizza arrived," he replied, holding both of his hands up. I stepped outside of my room and slammed the door shut behind me. Glaring at him, I started down the steps. When we reached the first floor, I moved towards the boxed deliciousness, getting two slices of cheese and one slice of bacon. Holden was in the fridge and I looked at him.

"Hey, Holden, can you grab me a can of Dr. Pepper?" I asked and he nodded, standing up and placing a can of the dark soda in my hand. I smiled at him. "Thanks."

"You're welcome," he replied. I made my way towards the stairs to the second floor.

Pushing past Axel, he whispered something and I swear he'd said, "Holden, huh?"

I whipped around to look at him. "What'd you just say?" I asked and he shook his head, smirking.

"Nothing," he answered. I glared at him before walking up the steps.