Clayton was pacing in front of us.

The ESPN stream had been muted, as Clayton had immediately noticed the two of us walking into the house, the shift in mood.

And he wasn't taking the news well.

"What are they testing for exactly?" Clayton demanded. "Cancer cell markers, right?"

"I didn't want to say that part out loud," Bryce mumbled.

I reached over, lacing my fingers through his. Squeezing tight.

"No." Clayton's voice was strong, defiant. "Absolutely not."

"I have to go in the for the testing—" Bryce started, but Clayton cut him off.

"I'm the one in this friendship that had the long hospital stay," Clayton said. "The fucked up one. Not you. You're the optimistic one who showed up at my hospital room with that stupid teddy bear that sang."

"I sang," Bryce corrected. "It was beautiful. And I put the speaker inside the bear at Build-A-Bear."

"It was terrible," Clayton corrected. "But we're not taking turns."

"Nobody said he was sick," I pointed out. "Just testing, right now."

"I'm not the glass half full type," Clayton said. "You can't come to me with this kind of news and expect me to give you a positive spin. I'm not that guy."

"I know that," Bryce said, reaching his hand out toward Clayton. "Come on, take my hand. You know you want to."

"I don't."

"Do it."

Clayton glared at him, before rolling his eyes and dropping his hand into Bryce's with a thud. "Why?"

Bryce squeezed my hand. "Because we're all in this together."

Great. "I love spending time as a threesome."

"Don't call us a threesome," Clayton said.

"We're already off to a great start!" Bryce said, with his ever-present smile. "Sophie is taking me to my specialist appointment next week."

"Good," Clayton said. "She knows all the medical stuff. She'll ask the smart questions."

"But for now, this stays here," Bryce said, as Clayton dropped his hand.

And proceeded to wipe his hand on his shirt, like he was brushing off the cooties.

"Noted," Clayton said, as I nodded.

"Should we hug this out?" Bryce questioned.

"No," I said, at the same time as Clayton responded with "Fuck, no."

Bryce laughed. "Alright, alright. Just an idea. A bonding moment."

Clayton's eyes flickered over to Bryce, and I could sense that for just a moment, his guard was down. "People would be really upset if something happened to you."

He said it without looking at either of us. Like if he did, it might come out too raw.

Bryce met his gaze anyway. "Tell those people I know. And I love them."

"You love random people?"

"Only these specific people."

Clayton rolled his eyes, the moment clearly over. "Okay, next time I see the bleachers full of fans, I'll make sure to yell out how much you love them."

"Thanks. Really appreciated."

Bryce held up his phone. "Now I have to call Kayla."

"That I am not sticking around for," Clayton said, throwing his hands into the air in mock surrender. "Your sister is going to go full lawyer mode on you. Twenty questions minimum, and that's just the warm-up."

"You better take notes, Mr. Pre-Law Major."

What?

I tried to conceal my shock, but I must not have done a good job, as Clayton rolled his eyes. "It's not a secret, I just didn't tell everyone," he said to me.

"You're going to be a lawyer, then?"

Clayton's face scrunched up, like he'd smelled something bad. "Let's not start saying things yet. I declared a major. I reserve the right to change my mind."

"I always said he'd make for a good professional arguer," Bryce said to me. "He'll get paid to do what he loves the most. Annoy people."

"I'm done here." Clayton disappeared back to his room, the door shutting behind him as the finality to the conversation.

Bryce sat for a few moments, his phone in hand.

"She'll freak out if you don't tell her," I pointed out. "She cares a lot about you."

"Older sisters are the worst," Bryce groaned.

He pressed Call, putting the phone on speaker.

It rang twice before she picked up.

"Hey, loser," she said, as she smacked her gum. "I sent you a Tik Tok this morning. You didn't even respond."

"Hi, Kayla," Bryce said quietly.

The tone shift on the other end was immediate. "What's wrong?"

He didn't deflect. Just told her. The symptoms. The bloodwork. Everything.

Kayla didn't say anything right away. I could hear her typing in the background, fast and focused, like she was already pulling up research articles and a list of specialist reviews.

"What kind of elevation are we talking?" she asked. "Did they give you numbers?"

"Yeah," Bryce said. "I screenshotted the lab portal. I'll send it."

"You should've sent it before you called."

"I wasn't just going to drop a random screenshot of my white blood cell count on you with no context," Bryce said. "That would've been worse."

Kayla exhaled. "Maybe. Still. You scared me."

The typing stopped. "Okay. You've got appointments scheduled?"

"Not yet. The hematologist's office is calling tomorrow. Neuro too."

"I want names. Addresses. The full workup list. Send it all to me and I'll help you prep questions for both."

"See?" Bryce looked at me, half-smiling. "Told you she'd go full lawyer."

"You're damn right I am," Kayla said. "This is your health, Bryce. It's not something to mess around with."

"That's exactly what I've been telling him," I said, which got me a glare from Bryce.

"Which is why I'm glad there's at least one adult present," Kayla said. "And yes, I know Bryce is making faces right now. I don't care."

"I'm doing my best," Bryce mumbled.

Kayla's voice softened. "I love you. Which is why I'm going to be very annoying about this. I'm going to ask every question. I'm going to triple-check every report. I will call the specialist myself if they so much as blink the wrong way during your intake."

"Sounds like a dream," Bryce muttered.

"I'm your sister first, but a lawyer second," Kayla said. "And I take both jobs seriously."

"Just do me a favor?" Bryce asked. "Don't mention this to dad."

Kayla groaned. "You know he's going to want to know why I'm googling specialists on the work laptop."

"Tell him to let his employees do whatever they want and to keep his nose out of it."

She chuckled at that. "Yeah, I'll tell my boss that right away."

"Please, Kayla?"

"Did you tell Mom?"

"No."

She groaned again. "Great. Okay, I'll keep your secret. Unless it gets too big. Deal?"

"Deal."

We got some Clayton & Kayla content in here. Bryce's support group, who might care a little too much about him. But is there really such a thing?

I started a new job yesterday and it has been very overwhelming. as starting anything new can be. but don't worry, my dog Cooper had a great time at doggie daycare.

Teaser: Bryce is getting worse & Sophie isn't going to stand by and let that happen.

This book will update again on Monday.