It was almost 3pm, which was the time our school usually ends. Alvin and I were in the kitchen, waiting, as Miss Miller and Dave watched us. It was so uncomfortable, but I know why our parents were staring us down; you haven't seen your kid in over a week, so of course they'd want to keep their eyes on us.

"I called Simon and Theodore to tell them to just come home with Jeanette and Eleanor so they can all meet us here." Dave said.

Miss Miller sighed as she looked at Alvin and I and said, "Well? How are you two going to explain this all to your siblings?"

I bit my bottom lip. "Um..."

"I cannot even begin to explain how worried they were! Your sisters, and your brothers, Alvin, were probably more worried that we were!" Miss Miller explained.

Ugh, here we go again...

Dave sighed. "You two better be ready to explain everything to them."

Minutes passed by, and I was beginning to feel extremely nervous. Today has already been a crazy day, and all I wanted was to get some rest, but I had a feeling that once we explain to our siblings why we disappeared all of a sudden, Simon, Theodore, Jeanette and Eleanor would be as upset as Miss Miller and Dave.

Time seemed to be getting slower and slower. Alvin and I glanced at each other quickly, but didn't say anything. But then, just when I thought that our siblings were never gonna come, I heard a click from the front door, followed by distant voices - and I knew exactly who they belonged to.

"Miss Miller? Dave?" Called a voice. It was Eleanor's.

"In the kitchen." Miss Miller replied.

Seconds later, they walked in - all 4 of them walked in. Since Alvin and I were sitting at the very corner of the room, they didn't see us at first. I wanted to say something, but at the same time, I didn't. But I could feel my heart rate increase more and more.

"Hey guys, how was school?" Asked Dave.

"Um, good. But Dave, why'd you ask us to come here?" Asked Simon, referring to the house.

But instead of words, Miss Miller and Dave both turned to look towards Alvin and I. Our siblings followed their gaze, and it only took them half a second before they all erupted into gasps. I could see it in all 4 of their faces that they were surprised, no, shocked - deeply and utterly shocked. Without wasting another second, without even realizing what was happening, they all ran to us and hugged us, almost knocking Alvin and I both off of our feet. Like earlier, everything felt so surreal.

Everything just happened so quickly, I couldn't wrap my head around it.

"Brittany, Alvin..." Jeanette said gently, tears running down her face.

I smiled weakly at her. "Hi, Jeanette." I said.

"What is going on?" Theodore asked.

"I don't get it. Why...how are you guys here?" Eleanor asked.

"Where did you guys disappear to?" Asked Simon.

"Oh God, I can't believe you guys are...that you guys are back home." Jeanette said.

"Whoa, whoa. One at a time, guys." Miss Miller said, silencing everyone in the room. "I'm sure Alvin and Brittany will explain everything, right?"

I nodded before I looked towards Miss Miller and Dave

Miss Miller nodded as if she instantly read my mind. She spoke up and said, "Dave? Why don't we give the kids some privacy. This may take a while."

Dave nodded before he and Miss Miller left the room, leaving Alvin and I in the gazes of our worried, yet growingly furious siblings. The moment Miss Miller and Dave were out of sight and out of earshot, I could tell that hell was about to break loose.

"Alvin, Brittany. What the heck is going on? Where in the world have you two been?" Simon asked

Alvin sighed deeply. "Guys, before we explain-"

"How dare you disappear without telling anyone! Anyone at all! You caused so much pain not only with us, but for everyone else! Everyone thought you guys were missing!" Eleanor snapped.

I looked at my sister. "Elle, calm down, it's-"

"Calm down? My ass! Brittany, don't tell me to calm down when you and Alvin have been missing for almost 2 whole weeks without any explanation!" Eleanor fired.

I sighed deeply and looked at her, then towards the rest of them. "Would you guys please just listen for a moment?"

"Only if you guys explain everything. Why'd you guys run off like that?" Asked Simon.

I sighed. "We didn't run off, Simon."

"Then explain to us how you two managed to disappear at the same time, and showing up nearly 2 weeks later!" Exclaimed Simon.

I sighed again and spoke up quietly. "We...got lost."

"Lost?" Simon asked. "What? Then...how?"

Alvin sighed behind me and said, "You guys may want to sit down."

And just like earlier, Alvin and I explained the entire story to them, and just like Dave and Miss Miller, they were not impressed at all. In fact, our siblings seemed to be more angered by mine and Alvin's disappearance opposed to Dave and Miss Miller.

As we told the story, I could tell that Simon and Eleanor were pissed. Theodore and Jeanette have always been the softer and kinder ones, but Alvin and I both knew that if any of his brothers and any of my sisters got angry at us, it would be Eleanor and Simon.

The whole story took longer to explain to them, compared to when we told Dave and Miss Miller. But like earlier, Alvin and I purposely left out the detail of us being together. Being our siblings, it would come off as more than a little surprise if they find out that Alvin and I are suddenly together. They didn't need to know that much, did they?

We finished off by telling them that Miss Miller and Dave grounded us and confiscated almost everything we own. I looked away for a brief moment, holding my breath, knowing that Alvin and I were in for a long lecture.

Jeanette sighed. "Britt, you guys could have gotten hurt!"

Eleanor scoffed. "Forget about hurt, Jeanette. They could have gotten killed!"

"You guys are lucky that no one got sick, or that none of you got killed. You two are lucky that the family who let you into their home weren't psycho killing machines! To be honest, you guys are both complete idiots." Simon said.

"We know, we know." Alvin sighed.

Simon shook his head. "Wow. I can't believe you guys. That's...that's just extremely irresponsible. I mean, getting lost in a forest due to sneaking out? You two should be disappointed in yourselves. But I'm not surprised, especially with you, Alvin. Doing something reckless does seem like something you would do. "

Alvin just rolled his eyes.

I frowned to myself, not liking the fact that Simon was blaming Alvin. But why? Is it my girlfriend instincts kicking in? Because all my life, growing up with Alvin, Simon and Theodore, I knew that Alvin and Simon get into small brotherly arguments and that Simon would always blame it on Alvin, and I would always laugh it off.

But now, I felt like I had to step up and say something. Ugh, goddamn these stupid girlfriend instincts.

"Don't blame it on him, Simon." I said, wanting to defend Alvin, but instantly knew that was a mistake when I got looks from all 4 of them. I mean, I have never stood up for Alvin on anything! If anything, I would always be opposing him.

"I'm not blaming him, Brittany, I'm just-"

"It's not his fault." But I continued and said, "It's my fault too. In fact, the whole thing is my fault. I was the one who asked him to drive me to the party. I was the one who threw the party in the first place."

"Party? What party?" Theodore asked, looking at his older brother.

Alvin chuckled nervously. "The one I forgot to mention to you guys?" He said slowly.

Theodore raised his eyebrows. "But you told us you were going to were going to watch the NBA finals with your friends."

"He was lying, Theo." Eleanor said, shooting Alvin a bad glare before looking at me. "They both were!"

I sighed again. "Eleanor-"

"I told you going to the party was a bad idea! You never listen, Britt! You guys almost got hurt, and the saddest part of it is that you could have avoided the entire thing if you just listened to us for once!" Eleanor exclaimed.

I groaned silently to myself. "Eleanor, look, I know what we did was stupid, but at least we're fine now. Alvin and I are alive and we're back home, and that's the only thing that matters."

Eleanor opened her mouth to protest, but then she shut it. The 4 of them fell silent before looking at Alvin and I.

Eleanor sighed and nodded her head. "Yeah, I know, but you guys really scared us half to death." She said, quietly this time.

I nodded. "We know. But Alvin and I learned our lesson. Right Alvin?" I asked, looking at him.

"Oh. Uh, yeah. Yeah, of course we did." He said.

I wanted to roll my eyes at how unconvincing he sounded, but hey, that's Alvin for you. I smiled as I looked back at Simon, Theodore, Jeanette and Eleanor.

"And despite all the trouble we caused, at least we can all forget about that now. Please?" I asked.

Jeanette sighed. "I guess so. I mean, Dave and Miss Miller did ground you guys. That's pretty fair, in my opinion."

Eleanor sighed and smiled softly. "Even though you two are absolute idiots for doing what you did, we're all just so relieved that you guys are back home."

Alvin smiled. "Thanks, Elle."

"But it doesn't mean that we forgive you guys just yet." Theodore said. "You guys just have to earn back all our trust."

I laughed and said, "I guess we can live with that. We're just so sorry for causing so much trouble from a stupid mistake."

"With you and Alvin, what else is new?" Simon said.

Jeanette, Theodore and Eleanor burst into laughs while Alvin and I gave each another unamused looks.

It sure is great to be home...

2 weeks later...

It's been 2 weeks since Alvin and I returned home. We were able to contact all of our friends, who of course, we worried to death over our sudden disappearance. But Alvin and I explained everything to them, from the moment we got lost while driving to the party, to the moment we finally returned home.

But to my absolute surprise, our friends told us that they had to cancel the party, since Alvin and I didn't show up. But since we explained to them why that happened, that we were stranded in the middle of the woods for almost 2 weeks, they understood and we all agreed to make it up by having a little get together, just with our group of friends.

But like Alvin and I had promised each other, we had to keep our relationship a secret - even from our closest friends.

I was so glad that everything was back to normal. Though Alvin and I missed quite a few days of school, the school still allowed us to get caught up, and now everything's up to date. But though it's been 2 weeks, Alvin and I are still grounded, yet we were still able to see each other after school.

Today was a sunny Friday afternoon. Miss Miller was out at work, while Jeanette and Eleanor were out at the library or something. Since Alvin and I weren't allowed to use our cars or go out to the mall or wherever, we both figured that since we weren't doing anything today, that we should just spend the day with each other.

It's been a long time since Alvin and I were able to spend even a little bit of time with each other without pretending that we weren't together. And trust me, not being able to have some alone time with him was extremely difficult.

It was now a little bit past 6pm. Earlier, we attempted to get some homework done, but we quickly resorted into watching a movie instead (I picked the movie 27 Dresses, much to Alvin's boredom.)

"Want something to eat?" I asked, as we both entered the kitchen, once the movie finished.

"Nah, I'm good. Besides, I have to be home by 7pm before Dave extends this punishment even more." Said Alvin as he leaned against one of the kitchen counters.

I nodded as I walked closer to him. I frowned. "I hate this."

"What?" He asked.

"You know, this. Doesn't it bother you that we barely get to spend time with each other anymore?" I asked him.

He sighed deeply. "I know, Brittany. I hate it too, believe me. But this is what we agreed on, remember? We're trying to prevent people from finding out about us, as much as possible."

I sighed. "I know. But...but it's just so hard! Like, whenever I see you hanging out with your friends at school, it looks like you're having so much fun, and it hurts me to just walk past and ignore you, pretending that I didn't see you. It's so hard going through an entire school day without saying a single word to you, especially since we actually do see each other at school."

Alvin smiled softly and reached his arms out towards me. I sighed quietly and walked closer to them until he was able to wrap his arms around me. I sighed again as I buried my face into his chest.

"I know it's hard, Britt. I feel the same way whenever I see you with your friends." He said, looking down to meet my gaze. "But you just can't expect the two of us to just suddenly go around the school, holding hands. And you can't expect us to be hanging around each other all day, especially since people know the type of friendship we have. People will start to wonder."

I frowned again.

He sighed before continuing. "Look. I'm not saying that it's a bad thing, but we should just give it a bit more time. After all, we only came back home 2 weeks ago. What would people say?"

I nodded, understanding his point. "I guess you're right."

Alvin leaned in and gently kissed me on the lips. He sighed and said, "You know that I hate spending this much time away from you, but there really isn't much we can do."

"I know." I sighed, then I shrugged. "I guess we should keep this to ourselves for now. And besides, I actually like how we're keeping this a secret. At least no one is getting all up in our business."

"Exactly." Alvin said.

But then I sighed exasperatedly and groaned. "But...it's just so freaking difficult! Do you know how hard I try pulling myself back whenever I see a group of stupid girls, giggling and getting all googly eyed whenever you walk past them? And it doesn't help that you go around the school looking so...hot."

Alvin laughed.

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest. "It's like you're teasing me on purpose."

"What about me? It doesn't help me either whenever I see you out on the field wearing your preppy little cheerleading uniform." He said, leaning into me. "Especially when I see you stretching and doing your warm-up routines."

I laughed and rolled my eyes. "You are such a pervert." I whispered, but I leaned in towards him, close enough so that our lips barely touched and said, "Then again, I do try and impress you whenever I see you on the other side of the field, because I do know that you're watching me."

He laughed and said, "Really? That's funny because I actually watch the other cheerleaders."

I rolled my eyes, knowing that he was just trying to get on my nerves again. "You're a jerk."

He laughed gently and said, "I'm just kidding, Britt. But Brittany, even though we ignore each other during school, doesn't mean that I don't see you, because I do. But this is what we agreed on, remember?"

I sighed.

"You know that I love you, so quit being all jealous." He said.

"I'm not jealous." I snapped, turning away stubbornly.

"Oh, come on, Britt. Sounds like you are a little jealous." He said.

"I am not." I muttered between clenched teeth.

He just laughed before leaning in to kiss me again, but this time, I eagerly kissed him back. Not even a minute later until I felt Alvin's hands move to my waist before he picked me up in his arms and placing me on the kitchen counter behind him. Without even breaking the kiss, I pulled him closer to me as I wrapped both of my legs around his body.

Gosh, it's been so long since we've last kissed like this, and judging by the way we were kissing each other now, we both wanted this.

Our kiss went on for ages, and I could tell that it was heating up. Our hands began to roam each other's bodies, touching every part of each other that we could. I could sense that Alvin wanted to move this kiss into the bedroom as much as I wanted to, but we both knew that that could lead into something else, if you know what I mean. But I have to admit, it's been a while since Alvin and I last did something as fun as that...

Ugh. I shook those thoughts away. The last thing we needed was to get caught.

Alvin slightly pulled away, still keeping our faces close and smirked.

"What?" I asked in a whisper.

"How dead would we be if someone catches us in this position?" He asked me.

"Why?" I asked him.

"Because I think I just heard your sisters pull up in the driveway." Alvin said.

"What?" I said again, unwrapping my arms from his neck, legs from his body, and gently pushed him away before hopping off the kitchen counter.

Alvin and I quickly moved away from each other, putting as much space between us as possible. And as expected, Jeanette and Eleanor soon walked into the kitchen a few minutes later, and judging by the looks on their faces, they weren't expecting to see Alvin here.

"Oh. Hey, Alvin. What are you doing here?" Eleanor asked.

"Nothing. I, uh..."

I automatically jumped in and said, "I asked him to come over to help me on my math homework. Anyway, where'd you guys go?"

"To the library, then to the mall. Miss Miller left us a few errands to do." Answered Jeanette. "Anyway, we should get started on dinner. Alvin, are you staying?"

Alvin shook his head. "I can't. I was just about to leave, anyway. Dave still has me grounded."

"Don't worry. Brittany's still grounded too." Eleanor said.

I just rolled my eyes and said, "Whatever. Anyway, you guys start with dinner. I'm just gonna walk Alvin out, alright?"

And without giving them time to respond, I pulled Alvin along with me to the front door, away from sight of my sisters. I sighed as I looked at him. I hated this part the most.

"Do you really have to go?" I asked.

"No, but I should. It's almost 7pm anyway. But it's Friday; we can hang out tomorrow if you'd like." Said Alvin.

"I guess..." I sighed. "I really hate being grounded."

Alvin laughed and said, "I know. It sucks. But there's nothing we can do except wait for Miss Miller and Dave to unground us."

I scoffed. "Maybe in the next 10 years." I muttered before sighing. "But you really should get going before Dave kills us both."

Alvin laughed and nodded. He looked down at me and said, "I love you."

I wanted to reach up and kiss him, but for obvious reasons, I had to hold myself back. I smiled and whispered, "I love you too."

After he disappeared around the corner, I walked back inside to help Eleanor and Jeanette with dinner. But the moment I walked back into the kitchen, they both turned to stare at me at the same time.

"What?" I asked.

"Okay, Britt. What's going on?" Eleanor asked.

"What do you mean?" I asked her.

"You know exactly what we mean. You and Alvin have been acting really...friendly around each other." Eleanor said.

I forced a laugh. "Well, Alvin and I are friends, if you didn't already know."

"That's not what we meant." Said Jeanette.

"Yeah. We know you and Alvin, and we know that you two cannot stand being around each other, let alone be in the same room as each other. And we haven't only noticed it today, but we've noticed it ever since you two came back home. Is there something going on between you two?" Asked Eleanor.

I rolled my eyes. "Okay, first of all, if you guys forgot, Alvin and I had to spend an entire week and a half in the woods together. Obviously, we're starting to get along. And second of all, just because he was here, doesn't mean that there's something going on. I asked him to help me on my math homework."

"But you're asking Alvin, of all people, to help you on school? Why didn't you ask Simon or Theodore? They'd probably be more useful." Jeanette said.

"Just because Alvin isn't obsessed with school like Simon is, doesn't mean that he's not smart, because if you guys have seen Alvin's grades in school, they're actually pretty high for someone who doesn't like to study." I fired.

"Okay, hold on. I wasn't questioning Alvin's intelligence, Britt. Why are you suddenly so defensive when it comes to him?" Jeanette asked me.

"I...I, uh, well, why does it matter to you?" I snapped.

"It doesn't, but we were just wondering why you and Alvin are suddenly so nice to each other. We thought you two hated each other!" Said Jeanette.

I sighed in frustration. "It was never hate, alright? It was more of a...friendly rivalry between two...friends."

Jeanette sighed. "Plus, we've noticed that you and Alvin have been spending a lot more time with each other ever since you guys came back."

I sighed and said, "I don't know what you guys are trying to say but whatever it is, there's nothing going on between us, okay?"

"Jeanette's right. Ever since you and Alvin came back home, you two are always around each other. Like literally, outside of school, you two are always hanging out with each other. You're always laughing and smiling whenever you're with him. And the weird thing is, you guys haven't argued in a really long time. It seems so...odd." Eleanor said.

Jeanette turned to me. "Are you and Alvin dating?" She asked suddenly.

"Wh-what? No!" I said, but I could feel my face turning red. "Why would you assume that?"

"Why wouldn't we assume that?" Asked Jeanette.

On the inside, I was fuming with anger. I was so annoyed that my sisters were suddenly invading my personal space, and they were being so nosy about it.

I sighed, trying to act as cool and collected as possible. "I don't know why you guys are suddenly so interested in what I do, so can we all just drop it? There's nothing going on between me and Alvin, okay?"

My sisters gave each other quick glances before looking back at me.

Eleanor sighed and shrugged. "Okay, whatever you say, Britt."

That night, around 11pm, I laid in my bed and stared up at my ceiling for who knows how long? I couldn't keep this guilty feeling off my chest, because I knew that my sisters were now suspecting something, and knowing them, they've probably already told Simon and Theodore to keep an eye on their older brother. I looked towards my cell phone - the only electronic thing that Miss Miller didn't confiscate from me - before looking back up.

I wanted to call Alvin and tell him about what happened right after he left today, but at the same time, I didn't want him to be bothered by it. We both agreed to keep our relationship a secret, and surrendering now seems so dumb. But it's not as if we could help it; Alvin and I barely get time to see each other anymore, so of course we'd want to spend as much time as we can with each other without anyone thinking that something is going on between us.

But at the same time, I knew that keeping this a secret wouldn't have lasted long anyway.

So as of now, I guess mine and Alvin's relationship, isn't so secretive anymore.

And to be honest, I was relieved.

This is probably going to be one of the last chapters. Depending on how long the next chapter will be, I'm guessing that this story will only have at least 1-3 more chapters left :(

Well, Jeanette and Eleanor are being very nosy, aren't they? How long will Alvin and Brittany be able to hide their relationship? (Those 2 literally cannot keep their hands off of each other LOL)

Anyway, thanks so much for reading!

PLEASE REVIEW! :D