It's ya girl, back at it again. My Kasey chapters are getting slightly less trash. Hope you lovelies enjoy! ~Shaymie

Kasey

"Oh great, there's two of you."

"Nice to see you too, Peaches. Taking an early smoke break?"

Kasey raised an eyebrow as the peachy-haired man standing outside the bar sighed and handed Angela a cigarette without a word. He thought Angela quit smoking. Guess there's still a lot he didn't know about his sisters yet. It feels like they've changed a ton in just a few short months. Angela's lips twitched in amusement around the cigarette. She pulled a lighter from her pocket and lit it.

"Kasey, this is Chase. He's the cook at the bar and he's also a bit of an asshole. Molls likes him well enough, though."

There was a teasing lilt to her voice. She told him all about what was going on between Molly and Chase on the walk here. He's honestly surprised Angela even promised Molly that she would mind her own business. She was an expert at butting in on other people's relationships because she always wanted the best for them (yet somehow didn't want that for herself). She constantly told Muffy that Jack really wasn't worth all the trouble. He had to wonder what she'd think if she found out that they were expecting a baby together.

Muffy still hasn't told her about the pregnancy. Jack said that she wanted to tell Ange and Reina together but it's hard to schedule when they're both so busy. The museum in Olive Town needed a lot of work, and Angela's turned into such a busybody that it's hard to ever really get a hold of her.

It's funny how the tables have turned. Before, Molly was the one who was always busy and Angela was the one who took it easy. But now Angela's working herself to the bone and Kasey's scared he's the reason why. He always called her lazy and selfish. Now she's working harder than he ever has and doing everything she can to provide for their sister. He should have moved here with them from the start. Then the work would be split more evenly. Molly's trying her best but she can't keep up with Angela.

He's going to find a chance to apologize to her. One way or another, he'd get her to accept his apology. He didn't even care if she didn't apologize to him. She had every right to retaliate after he needlessly picked at her because he didn't understand that she was grieving. Not just their father, but her relationship with Mikhail. It didn't matter that Kasey knew the whole time how scummy the guy was. What mattered was that Ange had loved him and when she came to Kasey for support, he just acted like a stupid know-it-all and made her feel like shit.

"Is he really an asshole or does he just not let you push him around?" Kasey asked, knowing full well just how assertive his sister could be. Most people didn't know how to handle her. They weren't used to a woman like her, someone who wasn't afraid to speak her mind and call out bullshit when she saw it. It certainly didn't help her case that most everyone who went to school with them had seen her at her worst. They've seen her beat up guys nearly twice her size with no problem.

Angela hummed and tilted her head, squinting a bit at Chase.

"Hmm... Little bit of both. But he can be nice when it counts."

"He is also standing right here." Chase looked unamused. Kasey realized how rude it was to talk about someone right in front of them. Angela let out a puff of smoke and smirked.

This was going to be a long night, wasn't it?

"We gotta talk about Molls, Kase."

"What about her?" Kasey raised an eyebrow at his twin sister, taking in her inebriated state. Flushed cheeks, hazy eyes, and a confidence that's different from the kind she usually had. She also tended to say what was on her mind more freely after having a couple drinks. It didn't take much prompting to get her to open up.

"She's growing up," Ange sighed dramatically, popping the cherry from her last cocktail into her mouth. "God, she asked me about sex the other day. Wanted to know if dating is gonna be harder because she hasn't—"

"M-Maybe we should talk about this somewhere else, Angela."

She tilted her head and frowned. For a moment he worried she would argue about it. She could be unreasonable sometimes when she was this drunk. But she just shrugged and waved Kathy down to order some more food. Where the hell was she putting it all? In the time it took him to finish his stir fry, Angela managed to down a massive burger and some onion rings. And now she's ordering a plate of fries?

Was it all the hard work she was doing that made her eat so much? When he had breakfast at his sisters' house, he noticed that Molly was also eating more. More than she'd eat even before Chelsea started messing with her. She assured him that she hasn't purged once since moving here. He could tell by the way she was able to look him in the eyes that it was the truth. She was never able to look at him when she had to lie or hide something. In hindsight, he should have known something was up a long time ago. She'd started speaking more to the floor than she would him.

"You need to drink some more," Angela slurred, reaching across the table to pat his shoulder. Her hand felt heavy on his shoulder. Looking at it, he could see how rough it looked, covered in scars and calluses. Nothing like how Molly's hands were, but that could just be because of her fancy skincare routine. Even moving out here to the country couldn't keep her away from her skincare.

"Ange, I already told you that I'm not getting drunk tonight." He turned into a complete asshole when he drank. He couldn't hold his alcohol at all. There's no way he's letting himself get drunk and risking saying something stupid. No way in hell he's ruining their night out by running his stupid mouth. Angela looked disappointed. He couldn't understand why. She's seen him at his worst. Why would she ever want to risk seeing that again?

There's no way she forgot everything I said to her...

"Then you need to loosen up a bit. Have some fun, Kase. We can do some karaoke. How about some Que—"

"Did you guys get started without us?" Kasey sighed in relief at Luke's interruption. He got here with Owen just in time. Angela's eyes lit up at the sight of her boyfriend. She shot out of her seat and practically pushed him into it, climbing onto his lap with a self-satisfied smile. Luke chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. "She always gets clingy like this when she's had a bit too much to drink."

"'m not clingy," Angela huffed, pouting when Luke asked Kathy to bring some water over. She turned her head and nuzzled into Luke's neck, placing a small kiss there. "I just love you a lot, babe. You're so nice to me. You've always been nice to me. And you make me happy. Why wouldn't I want to be close to you?"

"You make me happy too, Ange."

There was a fond smile on Luke's face as he rubbed Angela's back. It's nice, seeing someone actually treat Ange with respect when she's drunk. Mikhail treated her like a burden, always pushing her away and telling her to behave. Like she was some kind of unruly child instead of a grown-ass adult. She stopped drinking at family dinners after a while. She stopped doing a lot of things because of him.

Kasey felt just a tad bit awkward around Angela and Luke while they're being so lovey-dovey and turned to start up a conversation with Owen... only to find that the miner had gone over to talk with Kathy. Well, that's just great. This wasn't at all what he thought their night out would turn into. He would have preferred to stay home with the kids. This is going to be the longest he's been apart from them since he left them at Claire's for a weekend. Molly's definitely going to monopolize all the time she can with them.

Not wanting to watch his sister be all sappy with her boyfriend, Kasey found himself looking around the bar. There was a small stage with a piano. Molly played there for tips sometimes when the bar dancer wasn't performing. Angela told him earlier that Chase was always enamored by their sister and could never keep his eyes off of her when she played. He could understand why. Molly practically turned into a different person when she performed. It was always magical to watch.

When she was in the hospital, she told him that she felt as if she'd lost her entire identity. Playing the piano in a small-town bar wasn't anywhere near the same as performing ballet on stage, but hopefully it scratched the same itch and made her feel even just a little bit better.

"I wanna go to your house after this," Angela murmured in Luke's ear, reaching up to play with his hair. "Molly took Rosie and G-Man to our house tonight and I don't wanna wake them up."

"You are not calling my son G-Man," Kasey said, looking up to meet his sister's eyes. Angela giggled. Giggled. Who the hell is this woman? Angela never giggled like that.

"Why not? It's better than Gideon. You gave that poor kid a name he won't grow into for like fifteen more years."

"Lumina chose their first names." Kasey felt a tiny prickle of irritation and reminded himself to calm down. Angela didn't know that. She didn't know anything about Lumina or the kids because he still hasn't told them anything. They don't even know how Lumina died. He didn't even know how long she spent in the hospital, how long she suffered until her heart gave out—

"Oh." Angela shrugged and sat up straighter in Luke's lap when Kathy brought over the fries she ordered and the water Luke asked for. That's not just a plate of fries. It's a goddamn mountain! She dug in without hesitation, humming happily as Luke poured her a glass of water and ordered his own food. Owen must have ordered while he was talking to Kathy because he sat down and didn't order a thing. He did try to steal some fries from Ange and got his hand slapped away. She narrowed her eyes at him, a furious pout on her face. "Back off, Rockford. Get your own."

Kasey isn't sure why he's so surprised Owen and Chloe shared a last name. They're related. It's not like it was entirely impossible for cousins to have the same last name. Though it was pretty amusing how the miner had a surname with the word Rock in it. Fitting. Which came first, the Rockfords or their job? Was mining a family trade or was it just coincidence that Owen and Ramsey were passionate about the same line of work?

He felt like a fourth wheel hanging out with Angela and her friends. It's been so long since he's been out to have some time to himself. He's been so focused on the twins and work that he hasn't let himself relax. Angela had to practically drag him out of the house because he worried about leaving the kids with Molly for the night. Gideon still had bad dreams sometimes. Mara would wake up asking for Lumina before remembering that her mother was gone. She'd get quiet for a little bit after that and cling to him while he made breakfast.

Lumina's death was still affecting them. He should talk to them about her. The last thing he wanted was for them to forget their mother the way he and Angela had. Amber Parker was nothing but a distant memory. Aunt Dee is the only person alive that really remembers her, and Kasey's always been scared to dredge up memories for her. He can't imagine what it's like losing your twin. He'd lose his mind if something happened to Angela.

"You should eat more." Angela slid the remainder of the fries over to him and smiled sleepily. Kasey's eyes widened at the sizable dent she managed to make in the mountain in such little time. He'd seen her in the corner of his eye occasionally feeding Luke some of the fries but there's no way it was that many. She had just been stuffing her face. "My treat."

"Good morning, Kasey!" Molly greeted him with a warm smile, stepping aside to let him in. He shook out his umbrella and closed it. Kasey was surprised to see Chase here. He had his sleeves rolled back as he mixed something in a bowl, and he was wearing one of Molly's aprons that was way too small for him. Knowing Molly, she probably insisted he wear it so he wouldn't dirty his clothes. Chase gave him a brief glance before turning his attention back to the task at hand.

Kasey swore he saw a bit of pink in his cheeks.

"Morning, Molls—"

"Daddy!" Gideon's cry was the only warning he had before his son barreled into his legs and hugged him. Kasey chuckled and smoothed down Gideon's unruly hair. Unlike Molly and Angela, he wasn't bothered by Kasey messing with his hair. He bounced on his heels and stepped back when Kasey finished. "You should have been here last night! We had a lot of fun with Aunt Molly, look!"

He held his hands up excitedly, revealing his nails that were painted practically every color under the sun. He wiggled his fingers and excitedly explained that Molly had painted Mara's nails before bed and agreed to paint his after he asked nicely. He couldn't decide what color he wanted and just asked her to use all of them. Even though the colors were mismatched, they suited Gideon well. Kasey realized he hadn't been paying attention to his son (Gideon could talk for and zoned back in just in time to hear the very end of his sentence.

"—and then Aunt Molly's boyfriend came over to bring her sweater and now they're making breakfast!"

Molly let out an embarrassed squeak, her face going so red Kasey was sure she was going to pass out. The flush on Chase's face became even more prominent. Molly scrambled to explain that they weren't dating and were just very good friends. She didn't see the... almost scowl that flashed across his face when she said that. There was also a hint of longing in his eyes but it was gone almost as quickly as it came.

Interesting...

Chase was apparently denying his feelings for Molly, but it was so obvious that it was almost painful. Kasey had to have a talk with his little sister about being more aware of the people around her. Her kindness and inability (refusal, maybe?) to look beneath the surface have already led to her getting hurt once before. It's nice to believe in the good in people but she can't just have blind faith in them.

"U-Um... I'm going to get Rosie up for breakfast." Molly's quiet voice trembled slightly as she spoke. Gideon grinned and followed her to the bedroom. Well, that answered Kasey's unasked question of where his daughter was. If she was awake, she's probably staying in the room to draw. She liked silence-or as close as she could get to it with her sensitive hearing- when she was drawing.

That left the men alone together. The air was filled with awkwardness and the smell of cinnamon rolls. Chase set down the bowl he'd been mixing and drummed his fingers on the counter, eyes going over to the little calico-shaped timer sitting near the oven. Kasey took a seat at the dining table, unsure of what to say to fill the silence. He's never been great at small talk.

"So, uh... You staying for breakfast?" he asked, inwardly cringing at his awkwardness. Chase's fingers stilled, and he gave a half-hearted shrug, brushing peachy bangs back from his face.

"Fre—Molly's probably going to ask me to stay and there's no saying no to her. Not like I really had anything to do this morning."

"I think one of her favorite things to do is cook for other people. Ever since she was little, she's been in the kitchen. Even before she could read. I had to read out the recipes for her. Dad wasn't happy about having a five and ten year old alone in the kitchen but Molly's never liked having anyone else in her kitchen. Guess that makes you pretty special, huh?"

"I'm not that special," Chase said with a roll of his eyes. "I don't even know why she..."

"Why she what?" Kasey pressed when he just trailed off. Chase sighed.

"Angela's not wrong. I can be an asshole. I was even rude when I first met Molly. Practically told her to fuck off because I was having a shit day. Most people would have just left me alone but she still asked to be friends with me. If anyone here is special, it's her."

Kasey bit back a smile as the timer for the cinnamon rolls went off. With Chase saying things like that, it's no wonder Angela liked teasing him.