-1Chapter 2: I Blame You
As clear as it was to Josh that his girlfriend and his brother didn't get along, it was causing him a great deal of stress. He would always get upset when they fought, but lately they had just gone over the top. It wasn't the simple insults as usual; this time Drake and Mindy really had it in for each other and, even after having to deal with this kind of thing for months, he still didn't know why. Still lying on his bed, he closed the book he was reading and pushed it aside as he put his head on his crossed arms and fell asleep.
"Dude, get up!" Josh heard Drake say.
He was a little startled, but groggy and only managed to let out a soft "Huh?" as he saw Drake standing over his bed.
"Come on, Josh," his step-brother implored.
"What's going on," Josh said through a yawn. He looked around for a moment only to notice Drake was missing. That's weird, he thought to himself before he heard yelling coming from downstairs. Not again!
"Me? How is this my fault?" he heard Drake say. Sure enough there was Mindy, standing with her arms crossed and a sour expression on her face. Josh just wondered what it was they were fighting about now.
"It's your fault, because despite the fact that he's your brother you still treat me like garbage!"
"It's only because you tried to get me expelled last year!"
"So you can't let that go even if I'm your brother's girlfriend?"
"No, because you're a selfish, uptight bitch!"
Mindy's mouth fell open at the words she just heard. She stared at Drake incredulously for a while before regaining her composure and said "I'm selfish? At least I'm not the one picking fights for no reason. Selfish, please."
As much as Drake hated to admit it, he knew Mindy was right. Not wanting to concede to her, he turned around, shot Josh a look that said "you finish this, I don't care," and ran upstairs. Josh just shrugged and walked toward his girlfriend.
"Hey. I'm sorry about Drake, it's just..." he exhaled deeply "I don't know what it is with that kid anymore...I-"
Mindy looked at Josh with worry in her eyes. She knew that although she had placed the blame entirely on Drake, it was partially her fault, too. Had it not been for her in the first place, they never would have hated each other. She sighed and apologized to Josh and gave him a kiss goodbye.
"You're leaving?" he asked her.
"Yeah," she said in response "I'll see you later."
Josh walked her to the door and made sure she got to her car safely before closing the door. He cared about Mindy a lot and he hated to see her sad. As that thought crossed his mind, he began to think about someone else who seemed to be having the same problem. "Drake..." he said to himself quietly and almost ran up the stairs.
"Whatever you're gonna yell at me about, I don't wanna hear it," Drake said as soon as he heard the door to his room open.
"I'm not gonna yell at you," Josh explained. "Come here for a second, yeah?"
Drake raised an eyebrow curiously. "Sure," he said as he jumped off his bed and sat next to Josh on his.
"Look, I know you and Mindy don't get along," he said "but I wish you would consider trying."
"Why?" Drake replied "So that she can rub it in my face and tell me she was right all along? I'm trying Josh, I really am, it's just-" he bit his lip and caught himself before he said what he wanted to say, "I'll try, Josh. But I'm not doing this for her sake. I'm doing it for you."
Josh smiled at Drake and gave him a pat on his shoulder. "Thanks, bro. You're the best... We should probably go get dinner, huh?"
"Yeah." Drake sighed and thought to himself. There was something he needed to get off his chest, but now wasn't the time nor the place. He decided against it and put it off for another day. After all, it couldn't hurt...could it?
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Note: I apologize for the shortness of this chapter, but it's just a transitional one between the first and third chapter (which I'll post later). ;)
Thanks in advance to anyone who reviews! You guys make my day. 3
