Irritated By Family

I sighed as I looked at the two round circular clouds that were connected together by a thin line of clouds. I bit back a groan when Nathan moved into my vision, blocking out my cloud before I could think about what it looked like. I narrowed my eyes on him.

“Yes?” I asked, my annoyance very evident.

“I was wondering if it would be okay if I went to check on Miriela?”

“No. Let Rose handle her for a little while,” I instantly denied his request.

He crossed his arms over his chest as he glared at me. “Last night you said that you would show me how to look at the surveillance cameras. You haven’t done that yet, and if you have no intention of doing that, then I am going to see her. You weren’t even considered when I made that choice. You can’t stop me.”

I jumped up before going toe-to-toe with him. “Listen here, Nathan. You may be the person that brought her here, but you brought her *here.* This is my community. I am the boss. I make the rules. Rose and Doc are my secondaries. What we say goes! Disobey my rules and the boundaries I set in place to protect *my* members, and I will throw you out without hesitation.”

“Look, Brennan, all I want to do is make sure she is okay. You told me that you would show me how to access the footage. You didn’t. I am not wrong for wanting to check on her. If it was your woman, you would not care about the rules either,” he said, trying to reason with me, not that he had to.

As soon as he mentioned Leah, it was over with. I knew that I would risk being thrown out of Eden if Leah needed me and I couldn’t get to her. I sighed before jamming my hands in my pockets.

“Listen, I was thinking that I would train you to run Eden. Of course, you would be running it with Doc and Rose, but you will live here at the office. You are the only one who doesn’t have your own house. And right now, you cannot share a house with Miriela,” I told him.

“Why can’t I? I would never hurt her,” he spat, pacing away from me a few yards with his hands clasped tightly behind his back.

“Because she can’t handle it right now. She needs to heal, Nathan. That is the best thing for her. Not you. Her,” I replied.

“I can help her heal.”

“I know you think you can, but healing doesn’t work like that. As much help as people get, it is still up to them to do it for themselves. Just be patient, Rowan. I know this is hard, but the end will be so worth it,” I said softly.

“Is that what helps you sleep at night? Telling yourself that in the end, healing by yourself is worth it?” He asked.

“What are you talking about?” I inquired, my heart pounding.

“I saw the letters you’ve been writing to Leah. She left you because of your inability to say three little words to her. I don’t want to make the same mistake. And you’re the only one getting in my way of making sure I don’t,” he answered, finally stopping his pacing to meet my eyes.

I narrowed my eyes on him as I took a couple of deep breaths to lessen the desire to punch him in the face. My jaw clenched tightly as I nodded.

“You’re right, Nathan. I made a mistake by not telling her what she wanted to hear. That’s why I need to teach someone how to run Eden. It’s time I moved on. It’s time I faced the world again. If you accept my offer, I will teach you everything you need to know and then leave. You, along with Doc and Rose, will continue helping people.”

“And what are you going to do?” He pressed lightly.

“I’ll be going to grovel at Leah’s feet and beg her to take me back even though I don’t deserve it. But enough about me and Leah; do you want to lead Eden in my absence or not?” I tossed back at him.

He searched my face for a moment before nodding. “I want access to the cameras first.”

“Alright. I can do that. Let’s go.”

Over the next several hours, I showed him how to navigate the security system, including the cameras, taught him how to review the order list, and how to place the orders. Once we finished placing the next week’s order, we left the office building so I could show him around Eden. As we walked slowly through the streets, I explained where everything was, as well as the community’s schedule. When we neared the street where the Adams’ house was, he slowed, and I instantly knew that he was going to want to visit Miriela. I placed a hand on his arm when he tried to veer off toward the house.

“Rowan, listen to me, this isn’t going to be forever. Give her some time.”

He sighed, and before he could say anything, the door opened. His head whipped around so fast that I was a little surprised that he didn’t get whiplash. His shoulders immediately sagged when he saw Rose, who hurried over to us.

“Rowan, R. H. M. Hi! How are you guys?” She asked.

“Not good, Rose. How’s Miriela?” Nathan asked her.

“She’s doing okay. Not as well as I hoped she would be doing, but she’s still adjusting.” She paused, glancing back at the house before hesitantly continuing, “Between you and me, I don’t think she’s moved. She was in the exact position in the same spot she was in when I left her. It would help if I knew a little bit more about what she went through before she got here.”

Nathan glanced at me, silently asking for permission. I nodded as I looked down at my watch.

“Look, I have to go somewhere. Rose, can you handle this?”

“Yes.”

“Rowan, do not go inside that house. Rose will make sure she’s good. I’ll touch base with you when I get home. Alright?” I directed.

“Yes. I understand.”

After one more warning look, I walked off toward the gate, a little anxious about tonight’s meeting. I was going to tell the meeting leaders that I would not  be attending any more meetings. I had some big plans that needed to be put into motion already. From what my family was telling me, I had hope that I still had a chance with Leah. I wasn’t going to waste it. After I got in my car and started it, I drove through the gate before calling Caleb. I tapped my fingers on the steering wheel while I waited for him to answer.

“Hey, Brennan. What’s up?”

“Are you busy?” I asked.

“Not really. I’m just with a date.”

“And you said you weren’t busy. Call me when you’re done?”

“It’s fine. She’s staying the night,” he told me.

‘Of course she was,’ I thought to myself, rolling my eyes.

“I was just calling to check on Leah. How is she doing?”

“Brennan, listen to me, I can’t answer that. You should be asking her how she’s doing. I am tired of this. I’m not going to keep feeding you information. If I do, you will never get your shit together. You are in love with her. Just as much as she is in love with you. You two need to talk without a middleman.”

“Don’t you think I would ask her if I could?” I snapped. “Can you just tell me how she’s doing?”

“No. What else do you want to talk about?” He asked.

“Fuck you, Caleb! You’re sitting there acting like I’m not trying. I want to be with her. I’m doing what I have to do to be worthy of her. You don’t want to help me and be there for me, fine. I get it. I won’t ask about her again. But do me a favor: don’t be a dick. I’m struggling enough without your fucking attitude.”

“Of course you are, because you’re the only one who is allowed to have an attitude. Did you treat Leah like this? Is that part of the reason as to why she left Eden?” He taunted.

“You’re a bastard, Caleb! I hope that when you find the woman who puts your ass on the floor, it’s perfect from the start, because this sucks. So, let me say it again, fuck you.”

I pressed the end button before yelling in anger and punching the dashboard hard enough to leave a small crack in it. I frowned as I threw one hand up in the air.

“Just fucking great. Now I have to fix this shit too!”

I was so pissed. How dare he say that shit to me? I hadn’t done anything to him. All I wanted to do was check on her. I was worried, so shoot me. I wasn’t going to apologize for it.

“Asshole,” I grumbled.

As I neared the building where the meetings were held, my phone rang. I glanced at the screen above the radio dials, relaxing when I saw that it was Joey calling. I pressed the answer button, groaning when there was nothing but silence on his end.

“Listen, Joey, if you’re calling me to lecture me about what I said to Caleb, you can save it. I don’t care. He deserved it for being an asshole.”

He sighed. “I’m not calling about whatever happened between you and Caleb.”

“So, why are you calling then?” I inquired.

“Because we need to talk,” he finally said.

“About what?”

“Leah…”