Control (Dark Romance)

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Hagen, age 10
Nikola, age 5

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Hagen's P.O.V

"Josey, please," I beg on a near whine while I watch her scramble to squeeze yet another shirt into her overnight bag.

She spares me a glance, but there isn't any pity or guilt on her face, only disgust as she wrinkles her nose. "The begging is already a lot. Whining doesn't suit you, Hagen. Stop it."

I let the pout I'd been about to pull out of my arsenal fall at that. Shit like that never worked on Josey, even less when it was coming from me.

"It's just one night," she reminds me like a tired teacher. "Aren't you looking forward to a night on your own?"

"No," I deadpan, making her chuckle a little.

"While it is super adorable that you're so attached to me, your big sister-"

"It was a c-section- who came first was by chance," I interject.

"It's about time that you learned to stand on your own two feet," she continues with wilful ignorance and a smile I'm sure she meant to be sweet. I'm sure in some parallel universe, it was. "I can't always be here to look after you, little brother."

"Okay, why don't we bring this," I circle my hand to reference her entire vicinity, "down to a manageable, floor level. I'm not hounding after you, I just don't want to sleep alone."

"You're ten, Hagen," Josey reminds me as if I didn't know that already.

It should've been embarrassing- the way I couldn't sleep alone- but honestly, I didn't feel any sort of shame.

So I liked having someone else around while I was at my most vulnerable, to me, that sounded like something everyone should want. If anything, everyone else should be embarrassed that they lacked my heightened sense of self-preservation.

"You'll be fine, Hagen," Josey says while she scans over the catastrophe she called a bed. "Where the hell is my phone?"

I look at the phone that had slid down her comforter earlier and now hid under her bed, and I keep my mouth shut.

I didn't care if it was mean, I wasn't helping her find her way out of this place in any way.

Folding my legs under me, I rest my face in my hands as I look at my sister, "I blame this on you."

"The fuck?" Josey questions as she flings an offended frown my way.

I nod my head seriously. "If you didn't insist on following me to the land of the living, I would've been born on my own and gotten used to sleeping on my own as a pup."

"Oh my Goddess."

"Instead, I've shared everything with you since birth. Now, I've got separation anxiety," I accuse while I stare at her. "This is literally, all your fault."

Josey closes her eyes and takes a deep breath before she turns back to her overflowing bag. "I'm just going to ignore you and let you wallow in your self-pity because I know this is hard for you, okay?"

That was a pretty good deal considering Josey could literally cut me to threads with her words if she wanted to.

"Okay," I agree begrudgingly. "... but do you really have to go?"

"Oh my Goddess, Hagen, please!" Josey shouts, releasing her frustration in one big huff.

"Okay, fine," I say, raising my hands. "Are you excited about your first sleepover then?"