"Halfway Sober" by Anarbor

I woke up the next morning disoriented and thirsty. The sun was brighter than usual, telling me I was up later than normal. Somehow I made it into my bed. I stretched as I stood up and wandered into the living room. The twins were still asleep, apparently having decided to spend the night here in case Aidan came back.

Guess I owe them some breakfast for their troubles. They slept like bricks, I noted, as I walked by them and into the kitchen. By the time I was putting food onto plates, they were up and in the kitchen. I was right to predict that they'd eat a lot more than I thought they would.

"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph that was delicious," Connor admitted, leaning back in the chair satisfied. Before I could reply, there was a knock at the door. I glanced at the clock. Shit. I forgot to tell the band I wasn't coming to practice.

"Well shit," I muttered, pushing myself up from the table. I opened the door to three very petulant looking guys. They scanned the room, discovered Aidan wasn't there, and then looked surprised when Murphy walked into the room, his blue eyes sizing up who they might be.

"Didn't know you had company," Tyler, the blond, grinned. I rolled my eyes. Murphy looked back at Connor as he came up on Murphy's side. "Well, shit, I'm impressed, McCarthy."

"You're an idiot, Tyler," I rolled my eyes again. He laughed delightedly, walking into the room with full confidence. He extended a hand to Murphy.

"I'm Tyler, Cec's friend." The brothers seemed to immediately notice the instruments on the boys' backs. "You know nothing about any of us, huh?"

"I literally met them last night, idiot," I scowled. Caleb and Adam shared a glance, probably wondering where Aidan is. "Aidan's gone, they helped me kick him out. I think. I was pretty drunk."

"It was mostly you," Connor replied. He took out a cigarette to smoke it. I snatched it from his hand.

"Outside, we don't smoke here."

"You don't smoke at all," Adam corrected, heading straight to the kitchen and helping himself to some bacon.

"Which is why we don't smoke in here."

"Sorry, we'll take it outside," Connor grinned sheepishly. I pointed to a balcony.

"I'll join you," Tyler decided, towering over the brothers as he followed them outside onto the tiny balcony. They looked uneasy but that disappeared pretty quickly. Tyler's very easy to talk to.

"So what happened?" Caleb and Adam asked. They're brothers, a few years apart, but they act like twins sometimes. I sat on the couch with them, quickly running through what had happened the night before.

"And they just slept out here on the floor?" Adam questioned. I nodded. "Chivalry still exists."

"Right? I thought that shit only happened in the movies."

"Well, we'll take Tyler and get out of your hair. If he's done trying to figure out if they're gay or not." A tinge of jealousy colored Adam's voice. I chuckled. Tyler's flirtatious, but he only has eyes for Adam. Everyone knows it but Adam.

"I'm pretty sure they're straight," I laughed. He looked a little relieved by that. The trio came back in from outside, Tyler had them laughing about something or other.

"You done flirting over there, Casanova?" Caleb teased, standing with Adam.

"I have to know what company our girl is keeping," Tyler shrugged. He gave Adam a quick peck on the forehead before grabbing his hand and going towards the door. Caleb shook his head, looking tired.

"My wife is less of a drama queen than those two," he mumbled before pulling some papers out of the front pocket of the case for his bass guitar. "Tyler and I were writing some new bars and a few lines of lyrics if you can make them something usable."

I glanced at the papers, humming out a few notes. "Yeah, I can work with it. I'll work on it later and get back to you guys Thursday?"

"Sweet, you're the best."

"I know."

The three boys gave me hugs before leaving, likely going to go hang out anyway. "Should've guessed you did music," Connor noted, looking around the apartment now that he had a clearer head. There was a baby grand piano in a corner, sheet music scattered haphazardly everywhere, and an acoustic guitar propped up against the TV stand.

"Yeah, Aidan used to bitch I just kept that shit everywhere," I laughed. I guess at some point I had just stopped caring about what he thought about it. My apartment, my space. If he wanted to change it, he could stop sleeping around. I had put up with that much longer than I should have, I thought with a pang of guilt.

"You look like you already need a drink," Murphy noted. I turned to meet his eyes, fighting to keep from examining his face. There was something dark and brooding about him. I'd have to be careful around him because that's entirely my type.

"Probably but it's like 11 AM."

"So? Liquor stores open at 8," Connor pointed out. I looked back and forth between the boys before sighing. Fuck it. I could use a drink. I went into the kitchen, sliding a kitchen chair over against one of the counters. I stood on it, well aware that the boys were watching me. I moved one of the decorative statues I had sitting there to reveal a mostly full bottle of whiskey.

"Hidden liquor," Connor laughed.

"You are our kind of girl after all," Murphy grinned. I rolled my eyes, handing him the bottle. Tullamore Dew. It's usually what whiskey I drink. I opened the cabinet, also grabbing some glasses and handing them to him. Murphy didn't even need my direction. Aidan always did. See, I knew it wasn't that hard.

We poured some drinks before returning to the living room just to hang out. It was like hanging out with Tyler, Caleb, and Adam. Just...easy. The conversations were easy, mostly with the twins, as I learned, trying to outdo one another with embarrassing stories. My dad would have absolutely loved them, I thought sadly. He died when I was little but it never really got easier. I still talk to him every chance I get. Whether I'm just cleaning or doing laundry. He's always around me. Always listening. I don't need proof of that, I just know it.

"What's wrong? Ye look sad," Connor questioned as Murphy excused himself to the bathroom.

"My dad would've loved you guys," I admitted. "He was from Ireland. There aren't many Irish folks where I grew up, so he missed it a lot."

"I'm sorry for your loss," he said quietly, his gaze softening a bit.

"He died when I was eight," I shook my head. "I just miss what could've been, you know?"

"Yeah, our Ma raised us on her own. Never knew our Da," Murphy said, leaning against the door from. He always looked like he was trying to solve me like I was some kind of puzzle, like he was trying to look into me, not just at me.

"Moms are special people," I smiled. I pointed to a picture of my parents on my wall. "That's them."

"Ye look like yer ma," Connor noted.

"'Cept for the hair," Murphy agreed. They nodded in unison.

"Mom's Italian and German," I laughed. "Got her eyes though."

"You do, they're beautiful," the boys answered without missing a beat. I smiled, fixing them with a steady gaze, tilting my head to the side. Were they trying to work some kind of angle on me?

"Thank you, but I hope you know I'm not won over by compliments," I said, fueled a bit by the confidence in my glass. I clearly took them by surprise, Connor especially. They must be used to women fawning all over them. Murphy turned a bit pink while Connor tried to cover up his surprise by laughing.

"You're a bit forward, aren't ye lass?" Connor nudged his brother. Murphy pulled out of his embarrassment just to realize that I was watching him, a smile on my lips.

"I am on occasion," I moved my gaze to Connor. I set my glass on the coffee table, standing up to stretch. I was starting to feel cooped up. Normally I'm off doing something at all times. I have trouble sitting still. If I am sitting still, I'm working on something. Dad used to tell me that idle hands are the devil's play things. So he taught me to play guitar and piano so I would never have idle hands. I got the feeling Murphy was the same way. He was a lot less calm than his brother. He sat less and stood still less.

I stepped onto the balcony. This apartment wasn't the cheapest, but it had a nice view of the city. It was part of why I had picked it. The twins stepped out onto the balcony for a smoke. Connor lit cigarettes for both of them, I noted. They're twins, but they're also best friends. It was nice. Caleb and Adam are the same way. They're also best friends with their significant others, but there's a bond between siblings you can't break. It was something I had always wanted to have with someone but never had. Maybe that part of me was broken, I thought as I looked out at the afternoon sky. I think that's why I love archaeology so much. There are so many stories waiting to be rediscovered and retold. Lovers that died together, murdered each other, or were torn apart by circumstance. Brothers that killed for each other only to be killed by each other. Learning their stories always filled the hole in my chest a little bit. Even if it was temporary.

"It's a beautiful view of the city," Connor broke the silence.

"Aye, we've never really looked at it like this," Murphy agreed as he leaned on the railing beside me. He was studying me though, I could tell without looking at him. Connor moved to my other side, looking down at the street below.

"It's nice, let's go for a walk, aye?"

Murphy looked at Connor over my head, having some silent conversation.

"I mean, if ye feel up to it, lass," Connor corrected himself. I glanced at the boys curiously. "Ye stuck with us now. We don' have many friends. So we keep the ones we make close."

"You've known me for like eighteen hours," I laughed. "Most of which I've been drunk for."

"Best way to get to know someone!" Murphy declared. He seemed to like Connor's declaration that we were friends now.

I couldn't help but laugh. They seem to have that effect on people. "Alright, just let me change."

I went inside into my room, closing the door behind me, and changing into a pair of jeans, a band tshirt, and combat boots. My leather jacket was probably thrown over the couch. That's pretty much what daily attire looked like for me. I left my hair down, deciding that the curls were still intact enough not to have to fuss with it or just put it up. I didn't bother with makeup and I was thankful that I had had some sense at some point last night to take it off.

The boys were sitting on the couch waiting for me, talking in lowered voices. They stopped once I was close enough to hear them. It made me a little suspicious. But I'm naturally a suspicious person. I tried to push the doubt and distrust away. They hadn't given me a reason to think they had ulterior motives. They'd been nothing but nice. And I could use some nice in my life.

I threw on my jacket, grabbed my purse and put my wallet and ID in it from my messenger bag, and then we left. It was a silent walk for a while. But I didn't mind. The boys stood on either side of me: Murphy to my right, Connor to my left. We walked kind of aimlessly until we found ourselves in the Fenway District.

Connor began to break the silence as a car began to drive by. A girl a good ten years younger than me stuck herself halfway out the window.

"I LOVE YOUR MUSIC!" she yelled before disappearing back into the car. I grinned, waving at the car as it disappeared. This is the only district I'm ever stopped by people in. We play shows here frequently. Tyler and I agree we'll be perfectly happy only ever being famous in Fenway. As long as someone relates to our music, that's all that matters, we had decided. Caleb and Adam were far less serious about music than Tyler and I, so they were also content with that thought. Adam was mostly in it for Tyler and Caleb was mostly in it for Adam. Tyler was in it for me and himself. We had a few history classes together the first year I moved here. We were instant friends. Everything just fell into place from there.

"I didn' know yer a celebrity," Connor laughed.

"Only in Fenway," I laughed. We walked by a record store. A poster for our band was in the front window. Murphy slapped Connor on the chest, pointing to it and stopping in his tracks.

"Holy shite, ye are famous lass," Murphy grinned. I rolled my eyes, a smile forming on my lips.

"Only in Fenway. This is one of the places that stocks our music whenever we bother to record it to sell," I admitted. We mostly did live shows. Getting everyone together for band practice was hassle enough.

"In Silent Wrecking," he mused. "That's kind of badass." I actually liked the picture that the boys had picked for the poster. It was about halfway through a set. I was probably a little drunk, based on the whiskey glass by the mic stand. I was sharing a microphone with Tyler while he played on the guitar. Adam was in the back, a look of concentration making his face a little harder than normal, as he kept the rhythm going on the drums. Caleb was grinning at someone in the audience, probably his wife, while strumming on the bass.

"Thanks, it's a lot of fun."

We continued walking along, chatting easily now, until we found our way back to the Irish pub from yesterday.

"Might as well," Connor said cheekily with a wink.

I laughed, realizing that this had been their plan all along. Murphy held the door open as Connor led the way. He picked one of the U shaped booths, making sure I was in the middle. A waitress brought them a bottle of whiskey and three shot glasses. They're definitely regulars.

We had been there about an hour before a tall man with a lot of hair shoved himself into the booth beside Connor. "You would not believe the day I've had! I hate working for those fucks," he said, stealing a shot from Connor. I squinted at the new man. I was a little drunk, but he looked familiar.

He took notice of me for the first time before his face broke into a grin. "Holy shit, Cecilia! I didn't know you lived in Boston now," he grinned before throwing himself over Connor and hugging me.

"Rocco! You were supposed to get out of this fucking place," I chided him. I tugged on his hair. "Still haven't cleaned up, have you?"

"The ladies like it," he grinned, smoothing his hair back in place. I giggled, falling back against Murphy a bit while covering my mouth.

"You two know each other?"

I nodded. "My mom and dad are from Boston," I explained. "Rocco's a friend of my cousin' , I haven't seen you in like fifteen years. Not since you tried tricking me into going on a date with you," I teased.

"Oh man, I remember that," he laughed, looking a bit more boyish. "I thought I was so slick trying to tell you that there was a rabbit den hidden in one of the trees."

"Rabbits nest on the ground," Murphy said incredulously. I turned slightly to him with a smile.

"I knew that but Rocco didn't. I knew you had a crush on me so I made you look for it."

"Until I fell out of a tree and broke my arm."

"Then I felt bad and kissed your cheek."

"I didn't wash that thing for a week. Best day of my life as a teenager." He then looked at the twins. "How the hell did you meet these two?"

"Well, here actually," I replied before recounting what had happened yesterday with some input from the twins.

"Jesus, really?" Rocco asked, eyes wide. "That kind of shit only happens in movies."

"Right? That's what I said."

"Yer talkin' about us?" Murphy teased. I was still leaning against him, I realized. I pulled away slightly.

"I had to explain why there were two random guys in my apartment and my ex-fiance was gone. Caleb and Adam were very concerned that you two had tried to have your way with me when I was in a vulnerable state," I said, trying my best to sound helpless as I took a sip of my whiskey.

"Ye like to take the piss outta people, aye lass?" Connor laughed.

"On occasion," I admitted. The boys opened up even more with Rocco around, who was just as easy to talk to as I remembered. Connor let me out of the booth so that Rocco and I could grab the next round.

"Man, I can't believe you're back in Boston," Rocco grinned, shaking his head, as we waited for the waitress to bring refills to where we were standing at the bar. "And you were engaged?"

I waved my hand dismissively. "Was. I should've ended it a lot sooner than I did. It just wasn't right," I sighed. I've spent too much of my life thinking about that relationship and trying to hold it together with someone who didn't want to work things through. "He cheated on me a lot and I forgave him like six too many times."

"Jesus, I'm sorry," he said, his brown eyes softening. I smiled.

"Nope, none of that. No sympathy looks. I don't want them."

"Fair enough." He grabbed the bottle while I took the tray the drinks were on. He put the bottle on the table, sitting beside Connor before he was able to stand again. I began handing out the drinks, cutting Murphy off from standing up to let me back in my seat, instead forcing him to scoot further into the booth.

"I have no idea whose glasses were whose," I admitted. "But we're all friends here, so we'll just share germs." As we cheersed, I noticed Murphy shoot Connor a smug look. Oh sibling rivalry.

The bar ended up kicking us out at closing time. I wasn't quite as drunk as I had been yesterday, but I was fairly drunk. I kept a hold of Rocco's arm to steady me, still catching up with what had happened in his life since I had seen him last. We came to a corner before the twins turned to Rocco.

"Ye makin' sure she gets home alright?" Connor asked, taking a drag on his cigarette.

"Yeah, I can handle it," Rocco said proudly.

"Jus' don't break his arm," Murphy smirked at me.

"I make no promises and I can't be held accountable for any broken bones that may occur," I said as a disclaimer.

"I can live with that," Rocco said after a moment. The twins clapped him on the shoulder and went on their way. I watched them for a few seconds before shaking my head.

Rocco was a perfect gentleman getting me back to my apartment. We were both mostly sober by the time we got back there. I invited him up for some water.

"You're still doing the music thing, huh?" Rocco asked, admiring the mess of papers everywhere.

"Yeah, I'm in a band. The twins got to meet them yesterday. Or they got to meet the twins? I'm not sure of the semantics," I admitted.

"They sure have taken a liking to you."

I laughed, pulling my hair up. "I'm pretty sure they just think I'm hot."

Rocco motioned at me. "I mean...you are."

I waved my hand dismissively.

"I also don't think that's it. I know the boys, they're good guys."

"Oh, no, I didn't mean that they weren't. They just don't seem," I hesitated as I tried to come up with the right word. "Relationship oriented?"

"Well, I can't really argue that. I've never seen either of them in a relationship before," he admitted.

"Exactly. But they seem like they'd be good friends, so I'm hoping they just settle on that," I declared. I stretched. "I'm exhausted." I glanced at the clock. "You're welcome to the couch if you don't want to go home this late."

"Yeah, can I use my phone to call your girl?"

I nodded, motioning to the phone hanging on the wall. I left him to get ready for bed. I washed my face, brushed my hair, and went into my room to change. It was the first time I got to actually process that Aidan was gone. I sat on the bed, hugging his pillow and looking around the room. It was weirdly empty without someone else here. Our relationship hadn't been a real relationship, not really, for the last year. Well, longer, truthfully. I think I was always in it more than he was.

I pushed those thoughts from my mind and changed into an oversized t-shirt and shorts before crawling into bed. Sleep came uneasily that night.