The house was peaceful, your mom was out doing grocery shopping, your brother, Barnes, was at prom, and you were home alone. Everything was well. The night was cool, rustling your curtains as wind flowed in like languid, invisible smoke. Your laptop sat on your desk, head pressed into your palm as you wrote your novel. Music gently played through your headphones, calm washing over you. You've never felt so at peace.

Then Barnes rushed in your room, leaning against the doorframe. He ran a hand through his hair, chest heaving. Seemed like he ran here. He swallowed his pants down and locked eyes with your confused ones.

"Look—" he panted again, holding his hands up as if to say 'wait'. "I just got a date with Remi Aguilar—"

Remi Aguilar? The girl your brother met literally last year in Winter on a train. She was, like, the smartest person in your whole town. Perfect grades, colleges begging at her knees for the girl to join their schools. Scholarships piling in like normal mail to her. Heck, she even had a Google interview. She was on TV. Not famous, but might as well be for her perfect ass grades. That Remi Aguilar?

No way your no-future, go with the flow, no college brother Barnes had pulled her. But, seemed like he had. "And she's coming over here." He said, finally calming down. "So.. just – like – just stay in your room." Okay. Ouch.

You raised an eyebrow, the expression of a teasing sister. You were his annoying sister. But he loved you nonetheless.