Less is more

As you waited you moved to a more relaxed position and sat next to Lucy with your back to the head-board of her bed, letting you spread your legs out more comfortably while you watched and waited for a reply.

Lucy had always been the one to react as explosively as she could but after everything you told her, her words came across as if she had finally given up on feeling anything towards your father.

“If he’s in some financial trouble then he gets what he deserves. I just can’t believe he actually went and had another kid. How old is he by the way?” Lucy asked, sounding defeated but picking herself up more and more as she spoke.

“Only about 6 months. He’s pretty cute too. I should have gotten a picture for you but… it wasn’t exactly the first thing on my mind.” you replied, a half smile crossing your face when you thought back on seeing him.

“How’d you feel about seeing him?” she asked, the question sounding innocent enough but you could tell there was more behind it.

“...At first when Izzy mentioned him I did worry I would somehow see him in a negative light but it sort of all disappeared when I actually saw him. He’s still our half-brother. He’s done nothing wrong and just because his father is a piece of shit, it doesn’t mean he is too. Same with Izzy. Both of them are people I’ve started caring about and they deserve better than him… Is that something you can agree with or would you rather not meet them?” you explained before putting the question back to your sister.

She rested her head on your shoulder as soon as you finished and it felt like this was the most **** you had seen her in quite some time.

“I knew you would say that. It lets me know how much of a better person you are compared to him” she said, probably giving you the best compliment you could ever receive and the fact that it came from Lucy just amplified how genuine it was.

She let her words sink in but carried on quickly after that.

“I definitely want to meet them. We’re all in the same boat and I can only see positives if we help each other.” she continued, answering your question.

You were still reeling from her words but there was a bit of a sting that you felt along with them, something you had already discussed previously but still wanted to confirm.

“I know you’ve said I’m better than him but the fact that I’m with multiple women still makes me feel…” you replied, getting only that far before she smacked you on the chest, keeping her hand resting on your body after she hit you.

“Don’t even go there. You have more of a right than he ever could and it took you less than a week to reveal what was going on and set everything straight. So far, the secret’s you’ve kept have been for someone else’s benefit and I don’t think you realise how much of a good trait that is” Lucy explained, the compliments continuing to flow from her in unexpected ways.

“What about your boyfriend?...” you said, not wanting to bring up the topic but knowing you needed to.

It had been the one thing on your mind and while stealing Izzy away from your father did have its charm, you knew nothing about this guy, not even his name and had no issue with his existence when you first heard about him. Now though, you were together with Lucy or at least starting to form a physical relationship and being the guy to get in the middle of that wasn’t something you were comfortable with.

Putting it to the back of your mind had been what you were doing so far but with your goal to be more active once you got back home, it felt like you had been given a good chance to bring up the topic.

“...That’s over” Lucy admitted, the silence hanging between you as you urged her to speak more.

“He wanted to chat over the weekend and I realised that the thought of doing that just felt…wrong. If just a conversation with him was bad then the relationship was basically dead. Actually having a call to explain that still sucked but I’d rather be up front with it” Lucy explained with a saddened look, not shying away from making the tough decision she wanted to.

That “wrong” feeling she mentioned had KDK alarm bells ringing in your head but for now, you just put your arm around your sister and let her lean her head against you.

The moments passed and you had already been liberal with the time you had left before dinner and Mom or Sarah would be coming to look for you if you took that much longer.

“Mom did send me up to tell you dinner was gonna be ready soon but we should probably both go down about now. You okay?” you relayed, checking if she felt up to go downstairs after all the serious talk.

“Yeah I’ll be good” she replied with a deep breath, sitting up straight and turning back to you.

“I feel better knowing you have no idea what Mom is gonna tell you” she continued, the smirk returning as she got up to leave.

“Oh come on, you can't give me any hints?” you asked, getting up and following her out of the room.

“Now where’s the fun in that” she joked, speeding up a little to get down the stairs before you could ask anymore questions.

Her strategy worked as by the time you caught up she was already in the dining room where Sarah had just about finished setting the table, seeing you both enter the room at a fast pace and giving you a funny look.

You wanted to explain or at least ask Sarah for more details with Mom not in the room but Lucy beat you to it.

“Don’t tell him anything about what we all talked about!” Lucy ordered, clearing up Sarah’s confusion for a moment before Lucy carried on.

“I promise I’ll owe you a favour if you don’t” Lucy added, wanting to make sure Sarah stayed on her side.

Lucy was the one who rarely gave out favours and was usually the one you regretted owing one to, meaning Sarah made up her mind pretty quickly.

“Sorry Max” Sarah replied, leaving Lucy looking smug as she took her seat at the table.

Mom chose this time to enter the room with the food she could carry but Lucy continued to give you sly glances to laugh at your confusion. Mom made a second trip back to the kitchen before you all sat down.

She did Grace as usual and you got your additional seconds for the KDK that now felt so minor in comparison to your first day. Mom finished her words and you could now get ready to eat, the big question now lingering in your mind.