48 home ground
There's something unsettling about bringing people into your space. Not just anyone-your people.
Because suddenly, everything overlaps in a way you can't control. The versions of yourself you've kept separate don't stay separate anymore. They sit in the same room, look at each other, and you don't get to filter what carries over.
Which is exactly why I almost didn't suggest this.
And exactly why Jess did it for me.
"Your house. Tonight," she'd said, like it was obvious. Like there wasn't a whole layer of this could go wrong sitting underneath it.
So now we're here.
My house.
All five of us.
And I can feel it immediately-the difference. Not in a bad way, just... grounded. Real in a way that's harder to control.
Jess is already halfway through the kitchen like she lives here, opening cabinets she's opened a hundred times before. Riley follows at a slower pace, more observant, taking everything in without making it obvious. Declan's looking around like he's cataloging the place for later commentary.
And Caiden-
Caiden is careful. It's subtle, but I see it. The way he doesn't immediately lean into anything, the way his posture is just slightly more contained than usual, like he's aware that this isn't his environment and doesn't want to overstep.
He looks different here. Not less confident, exactly.
Just... more intentional.
And I don't hate it.
"You're being weird," I tell him under my breath as we step further inside.
"I'm not," he says, just as quietly.
"You are."
"I'm being normal."
"You don't do normal."
That gets a small reaction out of him-a quick huff of something almost like a laugh-and some of the tension eases from his shoulders.
"Max just turned fourteen last week," I add, glancing toward the hallway like I can already feel him lurking, "so now he thinks he knows everything about everything."
Caiden's mouth twitches. "Good to know."
"That was a warning."
"I figured."
Right on cue, Max appears.
He doesn't walk into the room so much as he enters it with purpose, eyes immediately locking onto Caiden like he's been waiting for this exact moment.
He's taller than the last time Caiden would've seen him-still clearly fourteen, but trying very hard not to seem like it.
"Madi," he says, dragging out my name like it's a question and an accusation at the same time.
"Max," I reply flatly.
His gaze flicks to Caiden again, assessing in a way that would almost be impressive if it wasn't so obvious. "This him?"
I close my eyes briefly. "Yes, that's him."
Max steps closer, crossing his arms like he's about to conduct an interview.
"Caiden, right?" he says.
"Yeah," Caiden answers, steady.
Max nods once. "Hockey."
"Yeah."
"Forward."
"Yeah."
Max squints slightly. "You missed that open pass in the second period last game."
I blink.
Caiden doesn't even try to argue it. "I did."
"Could've cost you."
"Didn't."
Max shrugs. "Still."
I stare at him. "Are you done?"
He ignores me again, still locked in. "You any good?"
Declan snorts behind us. "Oh, this is incredible."
"Max," I warn.
"What?" he says, without looking at me. "I'm asking valid questions."
"You're being annoying."
"I'm being thorough."
Caiden shifts slightly beside me, calm but aware. "I'm decent."
Max goes still. Then he tilts his head, like he's trying to decide if Caiden just insulted his intelligence.
"Yeah," Max says slowly, "that's a lie."
There's a pause.
Caiden blinks once. "What?"
"You're not decent," Max says, completely serious. "You're incredible."
Declan loses it immediately.
Jess actually claps.
I just stare at my brother.
Max shrugs like this is obvious. "I watch the games. You're the best player on your team. You know that, right?"
Caiden looks... caught off guard. Not in a bad way, just... like he didn't expect to be called out that directly.
"I-" he starts, then stops, then lets out a quiet breath. "Okay."
Max nods, satisfied, like the world has been corrected. "Good."
And just like that, he turns and walks off, completely done with the conversation now that it's been resolved properly.
There's a beat of silence. Then-
"Your brother just fact-checked your personality," Declan says, grinning.
"He's fourteen," I say flatly.
"He's right," Jess adds, still laughing.
Caiden glances at me, something quieter in his expression now. "He's not wrong."
I raise an eyebrow. "You're accepting that pretty fast."
"He had evidence."
"That's all it takes?"
"He seemed confident."
"He always seems confident."
"That tracks."
I shake my head, but I can't help the small smile that slips through. Because somehow-
that interaction didn't make anything awkward.
If anything, it did the opposite.
It settled something.
?
My parents come in not long after. Not dramatic, not overbearing, just... present.
My mom smiles first, warm and easy. "You must be Caiden."
He straightens slightly. "Yeah. Hi."
"I've heard a lot about you."
I glance at her. "Have you?"
She ignores me. "It's nice to finally meet you."
My dad's quieter, but I can feel it-the way he looks at Caiden, measuring without making it obvious.
Not unfriendly, just... paying attention.
Caiden handles it well. He answers without overdoing it, doesn't try too hard, doesn't shut down either.
And I notice that too. Because this is my space, my world. And he doesn't try to take it over. He fits into it. Carefully, like it matters.
?
At some point, Max pulls me aside.
Of course he does.
We end up in the hallway, just out of earshot, his expression serious in a way that makes him look older than he is.
"Do you actually like him," he asks, blunt as ever, "or is this another one of your things?"
I exhale slowly. "You know what that means?"
"Yeah," he says. "Do you like him, or do you just like the situation?"
That lands harder than I expect. Because he's not wrong to ask. He's just... early.
And for once, I don't deflect.
"Yeah," I say.
He narrows his eyes. "Yeah what?"
"I actually like him."
No sarcasm, no dodge, just... true.
Max studies me for a second longer, like he's trying to catch me slipping. Then he nods. "Okay."
And that's it.
When I walk back into the room, everything feels... settled.
Jess is still talking too loudly, Declan is still feeding into it, Riley's still quietly balancing everything.
And Caiden-
He looks at me. Just for a second, just enough. And something in my chest steadies in response.
Because this-
all of it-
doesn't feel separate anymore.
It feels like it fits, like maybe it's supposed to.
And for the first time, I don't feel like I have to keep parts of my life apart to keep them working.
I just let them exist together.
And somehow-
it works.