Struggles ✔

Chapter 34.

Alexa's POV

Cole and I spent the rest of the day at the beach. When he saw me in my swimsuit, his eyes roamed my body. Not in the disgusted way like the girls did. He looked at me like the boy he is. He then smiled widely at me and dragged me into the water. Other girls would look at me weirdly but I didn't think much of it. It was kinda hard to dwell on the thought when Cole was constantly splashing water at me.

Now the sun was setting and we were sitting in the sand, drinking some alcohol. It wasn't anything strong. He got a beer and I got a margarita. We were laughing and sharing some really bad pick up lines

"Okay okay, how about this. Is there a phone in your back pocket? Cause that ass is calling me" He says with a wink

I burst out laughing and Cole soon joins in and we turn into this laughing mess. My phone rings, and we calm ourselves down before I pick up. I checked the caller I.D. and saw it was Chase.

"Hello?"

"Alex..."  I hear him sniffle. I immediately get worried and sit up straight.

"Alex...Jess told me...Jess told me about Josh." He says

"Chase-"

"Lex...Where are you? Marie says you and Cole went out." He slurs. It was then I knew he was drunk.

"Alex....I need to see youu"

"We're on our way home Chase..." I say softly. I hang up and pull Cole up. I quickly pack our things and he helps me.

"What's going on?" He asks

"I don't know. Chase needs to see me I guess."

He nods and we get home as quick as possible. When we reach home, we find Chase crying on the couch. Cole and I rush over to him. He looks up and cries even harder when he sees me. He hugs me tightly and I comfort him.

"Alex...oh my gosh...You...No...." He hugs me tighter

"Chase...what's wrong??" I ask him

"Jess told me all about your past...she didn't mean to. It just all accidentally slipped." He says. My chest tightens. I look at Cole wide eyed.

"Y-you almost died...I can't lose you..." he cries. Cole's eyes flash with an emotion that's unknown to me.

"I already lost little princess...I can't lost another sister."

Cole shows a look of realization. I look at him confused. He mouths a 'later' at me. After a while, Chase falls asleep in my arms. We sit there in silence until Cole breaks it.

"Chase is an only child." He says

"He was supposed to have a little sister but his mum had a miscarriage. He was devastated because he really wanted to be an older brother. When Aurora was born, he became a second brother. He attached to her and loved her so much...When Aurora died,  he was almost as depressed as I was. Because of this, he became a drunkard" He explained "Recently, Chase has grown quite attached to you. He thinks of you as his little sister. He loves you like a little sister. So when he found out about your past, he was afraid of losing you too. He lost one little sister; He doesn't wanna lost another one."

I look at Chase and hug him. I smiled lightly. It was nice to know someone cares about me.  Cole sighed and I looked at him weirdly. He just shakes his head at me. Cola comes running down and he sits in front of Cole.

"I'm gonna go play with Cola in the  backyard" he declares. I nodded and slowly got out of Chase's grip. He went outside and I went upstairs. I took a nice warm shower and changed into my pajamas and a sweater. I checked my phone to see I have a text from Brian

It's time Alexandria . I'll be picking you up from school tomorrow. ~Brian

I sigh and run a hand through my hair. I am not looking forward to tomorrow at all.

I went downstairs and to the backyard. Cole was playing catch with Cola. I walked over to them. When Cole saw me, he grinned and pulled me to him. He held me by my waist and snuggled his head on the crook of my neck.

"Hey." He smiles sheepishly

"Hi." I giggle

He hands me the ball and I throw it for Cola to catch. Cola runs off in the direction of the ball.

"So I have to go somewhere for...maybe the whole week." I tell him

"Why? Where? Do you need a ride? Are you okay?" He interrogates me

"Every 2-3 times a year, Brian takes me to a doctor. They check up on me and help me get better. The process usually takes around a week...maybe more if I wasn't recovering." I sigh deeply

I hated these check ups. They ask way too personal questions and they always make me eat such a large amount of food that i wanna throw it all up. They monitor me and are just all up in my personal space.

"Okay..." he says sadly

"Hey...I'll be back soon." I say

"Please." 

Cola comes running back to us. I squat down to meet his eyes. I pet his head and smile

"Cola, Buddy, I want you to keep Cole company. You gotta be there for him and cheer him up when he's sad. Make sure that Cole is always happy, okay?" I talk to Cola

He barks and I take that as a yes. I ruffle his head and hug him.

"I'm gonna miss you Lex."

"Me too...ALWAYS take your inhaler wherever you go and do your nebulizer,okay?" I instruct. He nods and hugs me tightly.

God I'm gonna miss him.

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