Chapter 3 - Cousins

Author's note: I deleted the previous chapter 3 because I decided to focus on just one clique for this thread. So, the fork on the road with Oliver won't happen here anymore and we continue the story with Logan after the chat with Paris and Bonnie.

Not much was said after that, Paris claimed that she and Bonnie were meeting some of the other girls on the team at Alfred’s, the popular hangout spot for youngsters in Sunset Haven, and drove off. Logan also left in his car, but his destination was home instead. It was time to face Heather, if she was in the mood for talking, that was.

Driving past the tall iron gates, the Ravers Manor rose in black bricks beyond an ornate, quite beautiful courtyard that his grandmother made it a point to oversee herself. A smooth cobblestone path led to the garage, where the family’s collection of cars was displayed. I definitely don’t envy Tara, he thought about their mechanic, who single-handedly kept all those vehicles in pristine and working conditions. From the garage, there were direct paths to almost every part of the mansion, so Logan chose the longest one, which would take him to the center wing. As fate would have it, he was soon intercepted by a longstanding employee.

“You’re finally here, Master Ravers,” the silver-haired butler greeted with a look of understanding on his face. “Your cousin is waiting for you on the west balcony.”

“Aww, thanks, Roger,” Logan let out a nervous chuckle, falling into step next to Roger Calvert, the sixty-something man who had served as the Ravers’ butler for decades now. He had tried for a long time to get the man to drop the ‘Master’ thing, but the efforts proved to be fruitless. “She’s mad at me, isn’t she?”

“She seemed a little distressed to me, yes, but didn’t ask for a cup of green tea, so that must be a promising sign, don’t you agree?” Roger animatedly replied as they walked by the stony, wooden-paneled walls of the manor.

Logan smiled at that, Roger was always looking out for them. Due to the parents spending a lot of time outside working, the kind butler and the housekeeper, Loretta, were instrumental in the raising of the Ravers kids, and knew a lot of their quirks and needs. “I suppose it is, so she might be just half-mad, then,” he grinned. “In any case, maybe ask Marianne to get a cup ready for her, just to be safe, please.”

“Agreed, Master Ravers,” Roger nodded, a concerned look creeping up to his experienced face. “If I may ask, what happened between you two?”

Logan sighed before meeting the older man’s gaze. “Sharon. I thought she knew, and it turned out she didn’t.”

“Ah, say no more,” the butler grimaced, connecting the dots. When the staff learned that Daniel and Audrey had been called to school for something young Logan had been caught doing, he and Loretta quickly surmised Sharon had been at the center of it. Those two had always been quite close, and they knew that the friendship had progressed to something more a few years ago. Roger had always been of the opinion that the kids should be honest with themselves, but they were Ravers and that meant things often weren’t that simple. Hence why he and Loretta made a vow to help keep them on the right path, just as Roger himself had done for Daniel, Robert, and Howard. “Here we are, Master Ravers.”

They had crossed the entrance hall and were at a large set of doors that led to the back section of the property. Logan paused in front of it, his hands closed around the door handles as he tried to calm down. This is just Heather, not some three-headed monster from hell, just relax, he told himself, letting out another sigh.

“If I may offer some advice, Master Ravers, just be honest and try not to say something that can wind her up. Your cousin may be explosive at times, but she can also be rather reasonable,” Roger advised. In that sense, young Heather reminded him a lot of her grandfather, his old friend Herbert.

“Thanks, Roger,” Logan nodded with a genuine smile directed at the old butler. “Well, wish me luck.”

Roger nodded, returning the smile as the young man opened up the doors and stepped outside. Like his older cousins, Lorraine and Bryce, Logan could often be one of the less complicated examples amongst the current crop of Ravers kids, but he had that tendency of, when he required some assistance, some big thing or moment was always involved. Just like his father.

The west balcony was… well, a balcony, directly attached to the mansion on the back. Stony and spacious, it was a spot that was often used by several members of the family in warmer weathers due to the all-around pleasant environment and the stunning view it offered of the property. It had a few sets of circular white tables and chairs, but Logan located Heather sitting on one of the stony benches by the railing, seemingly observing how the sunset cast the back grounds of the manor in an orange-ish hue. A large pool could be seen directly below the balcony.

He walked over to her, noticing she was still wearing the same clothes from before, a blue tank top and jeans that looked painted on her, an outfit he would spend some time debating with himself on how sexy it was, but due to current circumstances, he limited himself to just plopping down into the spot next to his cousin. The two of them watched the sunset together for a few moments before she broke the silence.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” She finally asked, not turning to him.

Damn, she’s gorgeous, he had been admiring her exquisite features before she spoke. The dark-haired boy then let out a sigh. “Truthfully, I thought you knew. That Vicky and Ash knew,” he admitted. “I should’ve suspected you didn’t when Sharon went out of her way to keep it a secret, but alas, I didn’t. I’m sorry about that, Heather.”

She nodded, but still didn’t turn to him. “Do Cody and Sebastian know?”

“Yes,” he gravely nodded. “They caught us on separate occasions, had to discuss it.”

She briefly turned to him, her electric-blue eyes narrowing in annoyance. “Fuck! How long?”

“Two years ago, after a party here. We had already been sneaking out to kiss and stuff, but that night, we couldn’t hold it back,” he explained, the memory of that night a couple of years ago warming his heart for a moment. He braced himself for the explosion, and even though Heather didn’t disappoint, he was glad she seemingly didn’t get too pissed.

“Two yea… Logan! That’s just after I did it with Andrew! I told you when it happened, dammit!” Heather punched him in the arm, though not with too much ****. “I obviously knew you fucked since sometime last year, and sure, I was hurt that you didn’t tell me, but I never pried! Guess now I know why.”

Logan felt his stomach dropping, and turning to his cousin, he felt like a big jerk at the dejected look on her. Despite the fact that both of them had siblings, they had always kind of felt and acted like brother and sister as well, sharing basically every little fact about each other’s lives. That was how close they were. Risking losing the limb, he tried to wrap an arm around her shoulders, and she unexpectedly let him, her perfect body leaning against his side.

“I’m sorry, I know I should’ve said something. But Sharon insisted on keeping it quiet and I guess that even I, deep down, was a bit afraid you wouldn’t like the idea of me fooling around with one of our friends,” he explained, affectionately rubbing the smooth pale skin of her upper arm. “And like I said, I thought you knew and was being coy.”

Heather let out a chuckle. “No, I didn’t. Congrats, you two managed to sneak by me for two years! I can’t fucking believe it,” she then dissolved into a fit of laughter, her head leaning on his shoulder. “For the record, I don’t mind you and Sharon fucking each other all you want, you’ve always been weirdly close, but don’t go after Ash or Vicky, you hear me?”

He laughed with her. “Hey, I’m not a freaking collector, you know?” He playfully nudged her, even though a second-long flash of both girls under him crossed his mind and exited it just as quickly. “Plus, I love them like sisters too.”

“Didn’t stop you from boning Shar, ‘Lion’,” she fired back teasingly, emphasizing the nickname Sharon had for him.

“You got my meaning,” he nudged her again, receiving one in return before the cousins began a playful elbow war that finally had them laughing heartily, clutching each other on that bench as the sun descended just a little bit more.

“So, what’s gonna be? Suspension? I couldn’t get a hold of Sharon,” she inquired, her quite large bust pressing against his side.

Logan tried to ignore that feeling, and he guessed that only his experience with girls allowed him to. “Hartburn offered some alternative punishment, but Aunt Kat didn’t take him up on it, so Shar will likely be grounded for some time,” he explained. “But I’m on community service duty. I’m to help clubs and teams with whatever they need for a month. Maybe you’ll see me during cheerleading practice,” he repeated the joke he had made to Paris.

Heather threw her head back and laughed as she hadn’t done in weeks. “Oh, I gotta tip my hat off to Hartburn! They got you good with that one, Mr. I’m Not in Any Clubs,” she teased. “But don’t worry, I’m gonna make good use of you and those arms in practice. You know there’s schools with male cheerleaders, right?”

His eyes briefly widened at that. “More power to them, but yeah, I’ll pass on that, I’m afraid,” he told her. “Well, there’s something else… about my punishment. My parents decided on this part.”

When he told her about his parents’ ultimatum, her eyes widened before a deep frown took over her face and a very loud “Fuck!” escaped her lips. It even made Hades, the Doberman, lift up his head from the spot he was napping on the corner and stare at his owner with an inquisitive look, as if he was waiting for instructions. Logan hadn’t even noticed that his cousin’s dog was there.

“Uhn, wanna scream louder? I think Hades might not have heard you,” he chuckled, but Heather ignored it.

“They can’t do that! The Inner Circle has always gone to the school dances together!” Sure, with their respective dates and all, but none of them had ever missed a dance, or any opportunity to show off the unity and bond between them.

“What?” Logan smirked at her. “You doubt my power to find a real date?”

She cocked her head to the side with a Ravers smirk of her own. “Oh, I don’t doubt your power to seduce a date. But a real one, like a girlfriend? You know that one month is just not enough.”

The young man shrugged playfully. “Well, I have **** but to try,” he replied. “Besides, I might’ve been thinking about giving the whole real dating thing a try for some time now.”

Heather raised a curious, disbelieving eyebrow at that. “You and Sharon never… you know?”

“No, things were much more physical between us, even if we… love each other a lot,” he awkwardly concluded, the relationship between him and Sharon was too complicated to describe in just a few words. “I’ll tell you another time.”

“Well, in that case, you know just what you need, don’t you, Loggy?” Heather’s smirk grew at the look of doubt on her cousin’s handsome face. “We’re gonna put Ashley on the case.”

If they counted, Logan probably didn’t blink for a full minute.