Hey everyone, sorry about the whole no update thing but I'm almost finished my exams so they should be more frequent soon!
An awkward silence filled the room, until Casey stood and wandered over to Kyle, clapping him on the back as they both turned to grin at the stunned siblings.
"Err hi" Heath muttered, rubbing the back of his neck and watching while Bianca extended her hand for their supposed new brother to shake.
"Sorry" Kyle apologised "I know this must come as a shock to you all, believe me, I didn't accept it till a few weeks back"
Lily snorted, folding her arms across her chest as she looked the man up and down.
"So are you moving in with us or what?" she grumbled, tilting her head.
Brax nudged her as he made his way over.
"Nothing to stop you from staying a couple nights I guess" he offered hesitantly, shaking his hand "You're family now right?"
Casey nodded hurriedly, squeezing Kyle's shoulder until the sound of Sophie's cries interrupted them once more.
Kyle raised an eyebrow "You a Dad already Casey?" he joked, stepping inside and shutting the door behind him.
"She's mine actually" Lily told him coldly, scraping back her chair and disappearing from the room.
"Was it something I said?" Kyle wondered, looking round at everyone.
"No, she's just been going through a tough time" Ricky explained gently
"But how old is she 16?"
"15" Brax corrected, hoisting himself onto the back of the couch
"And she's got a kid?"
"Not by choice believe me" the eldest Braxton informed him with a grimace.
"Are you done judging me?" a voice snarled from the doorway. Lily stood holding a grizzling Sophie in her arms.
"No-one's judging you" Kyle told her softly "She's cute"
"Wow, known us for 5 minutes and already trying to worm your way into the good books"
"Lily!" Brax snapped "Reign it in!"
"Why should I? Everything is his fault!"
Casey rolled his eyes, directing Kyle to a seat at the table.
"Excuse me?" he asked in confusion "What have I supposedly done?"
"You and your dodgy deals, ruined my relationship and wound me up raising a baby by myself!" Lily spat as Ricky took Sophie from her.
"You're Leo's chick?" Kyle asked with a snort
"What's that supposed to mean?" Heath questioned with a frown
"Well, Benny mentioned to me that he thought Leo had a girl on the go...who knew it'd turn out to be my sister!"
"Don't call me that!" Lily insisted sharply, folding her arms "I'm nothing to you!"
With that she turned on her heel, grabbed Sophie and went to bed.
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Next morning Lily slumped against the pram as she made her way down the beach. Sophie was screaming and had been for the past 20 minutes, nothing the young mum did would stop her.
"Please, for me" Lily begged, stroking the baby's cheek and wincing as the ringing in her ears increased.
"How's motherhood working out for you now?" a smug voice cooed from behind.
Lily turned to see Benny watching her, arms folded and an eyebrow raised.
"What do you want?" the teen grumbled, keeping a steady hand on the pram as she stared him down.
Benny shook his head at her pityingly before thrusting an envelope into her hands
"From Leo" he grunted, not bothering to hear her reply as he went jogging off along the sands.
Lily frowned, pushing down the brakes on the buggy before tearing into the letter curiously.
Hi Lil (Or if Benny's being a nosy git and reading this...piss off)
I'm sorry I left so suddenly, it was wrong of me to just abandon you and the baby. I'm not gonna tell you where I am, because knowing you you'd come and find me or something crazy like that...But Lily, I seriously think we should consider having her adopted...the baby I mean. It's too much for either of us, and every time I speak to Benny on the phone he tells me you look knackered. I've found some great possible parents, give them a call? The number is on the separate piece of paper. I've met them and they're awesome, she'll be in good hands with them. Then maybe I can come home to you? Speak soon love Leo X
Lily slowly lowered the letter, pulling out the slip of paper with a number scrawled across it.
Sighing, she plonked herself down on the floor and buried her head in her hands. She needed to think.
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"There you are! Everyone's been looking for you!"
Lily looked up to see Ricky hovering over her, a concerned frown on her face.
"Sorry, lost track of time" she mumbled, brushing off her shorts as she stood up.
"Finally got her to sleep then?"
Both peered inside the pram to see Sophie snoring gently, tiny fists curled.
Lily bit her lip, silent tears falling down her cheeks as she watched.
"Hey, hey what's wrong?" Ricky questioned, running a hand through the teens hair
"It's Leo" she sniffed "He sent me this"
Lily extended the letter and stood quietly until Ricky had finished reading it.
"He's got a nerve" she said firmly, folding it and handing it back.
"What if he's right?"
"What do you mean kiddo?"
Lily sighed, wiping her eyes as she shoved the envelope into her pocket.
"I can't do this" she admitted after a pause "I'm always tired, she never stops crying, I've got exams soon! I just want my old life back!"
Ricky nodded along silently before brushing a stray hair from the girls face
"You wanna give her up?"
"It's what's best for her"
The woman nodded "Okay, so we're gonna ring this number?"
Lily turned to look back in the pram, a small smile gracing her lips
"It's for the best" she repeated, trailing off to look out at the horizon.
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"Geez Rick, when I said go look for her I didn't expect you to go missing too" Brax stated as the two girls returned some time later "Dinner's going cold"
Darcy jumped out of her chair and rushed over to see Sophie, despite Heath telling her to finish her food first.
"Why the long face squirt?" he asked instead, turning to his sister as she slid into a seat beside Casey.
"Don't worry" she mumbled, proceeding to push food around her plate.
"Maybe later?" Ricky suggested, dropping into her seat beside Brax.
Heath shrugged, a frown on his face as he returned to his dinner while ordering Darcy to do the same.
...
As the meal progressed, talk turned to Kyle as he sat telling everyone about his first day in Summer Bay.
"I thought I'd stick around, get to know my family a bit more"
Brax nodded encouragingly, turning to the others "He's gonna do a couple shifts at Angelo's"
Bianca smiled "Well I think it's great...but exactly how many Braxtons are there in the world?"
The table erupted into laughter, except Lily, who was still contemplating whether or not to call this couple about Sophie.
Casey read the signs wrong, dropping his cutlery and rounding on his younger sister.
"What is your problem?" he demanded, stunning the others into silence
"What?" the teen asked in confusion
"You've been grumpy all day and you're not even listening to what anyone's saying!"
"I've got a lot on my mind alright?"
"You again?" he laughed in disbelief "Why is it always you?"
"I didn't say it was!"
"Okay guys drop it" Brax instructed firmly, glaring at them
"You've had a chip on your shoulder ever since Kyle turned up, just because your precious boyfriend couldn't hack staying with you! Well you know what? I'm beginning to understand why he left!"
The room fell deadly silent as Lily shakily got to her feet.
"You think you understand?" she hissed "I'm 15, about to start exams, with a baby to look after. No job, barely any friends, and about 3 family members that actually give a stuff! My boyfriend, the father of my baby has done a runner and I've suddenly gained a new brother. And today the brother of my boyfriend gave me a letter and a phone number which I'm about to ring and say to some strangers that they can have my baby. So don't you dare think you understand a thing Casey Braxton because you don't!"
With that she backed away from the table, still shaking, only to bump into Bianca who'd quietly got up and gone round to stop her from leaving again.
"Breathe kiddo" she whispered, holding Lily in her arms "Breathe"
The teen choked out sobs, sinking to her knees and taking Bianca with her as the others watched shocked.
"Alright Darce, why don't you go next door and put your PJ's on?" Heath suggested, stroking his daughters hair.
She nodded, glancing back at her aunt before sprinting across to her own house.
"Want me to go over and keep an eye on her?" Kyle offered "I'm not exactly..." he trailed off, gesturing to a sobbing Lily on the floor.
Heath smiled "Nah don't worry mate, she'll be fine, probably watching the TV when we go back" he said softly, getting out of his chair and going to join his wife and sister.
"Did you know about this?" Brax asked Ricky quietly, head resting in his hands
"Only when I went to look for her"
He didn't reply, so the woman stood and crouched beside Lily, wrapping an arm round her.
Casey stayed where he was, no words coming to him.
"You okay?" Kyle wondered, patting his shoulder
He shook his head, mouth slightly open as he helplessly watched his little sister fall to pieces in front of his eyes.
Okay so that was kinda sad :( anyway I've got the next few chapters planned out so hopefully they'll come quicker than the last couple. Next update soon!