Page 74 of Organized Chaos

I meekly nodded as she smoothed a hand down my hair.

Raven kissed my temple. It was something all three of them practiced whenever they wanted to console me. Mom never tucked me in or kissed me goodnight. So, they always did it on her behalf. I suspected that the habit had remained with them even after all these years.

Raven sprung to her feet and whispered, “It’ll be great. I promise.” She left the room to find our stack of take-out menus.

I stared out the window, which overlooked the busy street. “Do you know why she is moving?”

“Mia... Raven is...” Reid shifted uncomfortably. “She’s moving because she has no other choice. Raven’s mom lost her business.”

My head whipped back. “Wait, what?”

“It just happened. They are shutting down the boutique. Raven thought it was time to move back and be near her real family. The two of us.”

My breath caught. Raven was broke? All this time, she had been paying for my flights to Paris and everything else. Fuck. I was such an insensitive jerk to her.

“I can’t believe it.”

“I know,” he sighed.

“Will she be okay? I have that emergency fund from Milo—”

Reid smiled, patting the top of my head. “She won’t take Milo’s money. You know that. I offered, too.”

“So, what then?”

“We just have to be supportive.”

I nodded.

It made sense for Raven to be near us during her time of need. After our family fostered her, she became closer to us than her own. Our parents were negligent at best, but Raven’s parents straight up abandoned her. She moved to Paris to develop a better relationship with them, but it never panned out.

Reid nudged me, returning to the previous topic. “So, apparently, we ignore you.”

“All the damn time,” I replied sulkily.

“I think you might be right.”

It was a dynamic I had taught myself to accept, especially in groups. Then Brandon saw me when I never expected him to notice. I hated the asshole but did learn a lesson in the midst. Captivating someone’s attention had changed how okay I was with this arrangement.

I craved to be seen. I yearned to be heard.

“It’s normal for the youngest child to be seen, not heard,” Reid said uncertainly as a timid way of explaining.

“It sucks.”

“It does. And it isn’t fair.”

This wasn’t the first time they had acknowledged this issue, but it was the first time I felt determined to change the outcome.

Reid eyed me somberly, mouth set into a thin line. “But do you think the best way to change your circumstance is by being so reactive? Running off only proved the opposite of your point.”

I stared at my hands. “I really am sorry about today.”

He sighed. “You talk and act like a grown-up, which is great. But you’re also too trusting, and we worry about how easily someone can take advantage of that, especially with your tendency to make rash decisions. It takes time to gain experience, so just exercise some patience. Okay?”

I nodded.

In Nice, I blindly trusted Brandon and followed him to Italy. It quickly went south, and he almost held me there against my will.