Chapter 5

Brandon looked seriously pissed.

I gave him a smug eyebrow raise, brushed past him, and headed straight upstairs.

I paused at the doorway of room 502, took a deep breath, and pushed open the half-closed door.

The room was dim, with the curtains pulled shut. There was a faint medicinal scent lingering in the air.

On the lower bunk by the window, someone was curled up under their blanket, only a head of soft hair showing.

Across the room, at the desk, a guy in a matching white shirt spun around as soon as he heard the door open.

Our eyes met, and the air instantly turned awkward.

The guy at the desk had the exact same face as the "Brandon" I'd seen downstairs.

The one in bed slowly peeked out from under the covers, his face flushed with fever, but still sporting the same features.

Well, that was the full duo.

I leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, watching this ridiculous scene play out with a half-smile.

"Hey, everyone's here, huh?" I said.

Brandon, the frosty brother who'd blocked me downstairs, suddenly looked like he'd been slapped.

Elliot's eyes widened in shock, then all the color drained from his face as he tried to sit up.

"S-Sofia? What are you doing here?" he croaked, his voice raspy and thick with congestion.

"If I hadn't come, were you planning to let your brother date me for the rest of our lives?" I snapped, walking over and slamming the thermos down on his desk.

"No! I didn't!" Elliot was on the verge of tears, coughing as he tried to explain. "I... I just didn't know how to face you."

"So you simply shoved your brother to me instead?" I pointed at Brandon, who was standing there with a "not my problem" face. I turned back to Elliot. "Elliot, you really outdid yourself."

"I'm sorry..." was all Elliot could say.

"Okay, cut it out with the apologies," I said, dragging a chair over and fixing both of them with a look. "Let's clear things up right here and now. Which one of you is my boyfriend, really?"

Elliot stared at the floor, saying nothing.

Brandon didn't miss a beat. He pointed at his brother. "Him."

"And you? What are you supposed to be, playing a guest role?" I shot at Brandon.

Brandon's cheek twitched, like he was forcing himself to stay calm. After a moment, he squeezed out, "I'm his brother."

"So what? Just because you're his brother, you can take his place, ignore his girlfriend, and make me question my sanity?" I snapped, my temper flaring again.

"This is our fault," Brandon said, owning up without any excuses. "If you want to yell or punish us, we'll take it. But Sofia, Elliot really does care about you."

"So loving me means lying to me?" I shot back.

"I..." Elliot finally looked up, his eyes red and full of tears. "Sofia, I swear I didn't mean for this to happen. At first, I thought you were interesting, and wanted to mess with my brother a little.

"But then I really fell for you. I think about you all the time, I want to talk to you, see you. But I was too scared to tell you the truth, because I was afraid..."

"Afraid I'd fall for your brother instead?" I finished for him.

Elliot nodded hard.

I looked at Elliot's miserable expression, then at Brandon, who looked like he'd rather be anywhere but here. Honestly, I was torn between irritation and laughter.

What a mess this was.

I sighed, opened the thermos, scooped out a bowl of oatmeal, and handed it to Elliot. "Here, have some oatmeal. We'll sort this out once you're not sick anymore."

Elliot took the bowl in a daze. Before he could help it, his tears started falling, landing in the oatmeal.

"Come on, what are you crying for? Are you a grown man or not?" I said, acting annoyed, but my heart turned to mush.

Brandon looked conflicted as he watched, then quietly grabbed a few tissues from the desk and handed them to Elliot.

Elliot kept crying, eating his oatmeal, and apologizing in between bites and sobs.

I looked at the twins. One was crying like a 400-pound baby, while the other just stood there, looking totally lost as he handed over tissues.

Now that everything was out in the open, I wasn't nearly as pissed as I'd imagined I'd be.

I actually kind of wanted to laugh.

It looked like I'd got myself more than one boyfriend.

That was not such a bad deal, right?

After we laid everything out, the vibe in the room turned oddly calm, almost like some weird harmony settled in.

Elliot was sprawled out in bed, looking pitiful and letting me pamper him, all while peeking at me with those wet, puppy eyes. He seemed terrified I'd lose it and break up with him right then and there.