Chapter 1 #2
Unlike us, Felix and Myles aren’t members of the Rebels. That means we’re not supposed to talk about house business with them, but some rules were made to be broken.
We use our discretion, of course, but both guys, especially Felix, are unique cases, so we tell them what they need to know.
Myles is what we call a first gen, meaning he’s the first of his family to be invited to study here at Silvercrest. First gens live under a different set of rules than the rest of us, and they’re forbidden from having anything to do with any of the four frats on campus, including the Rebels.
He normally wouldn’t even be allowed in the dorm because of his first gen status, but he and Jax being together changes things.
So does his working with us to improve our security, so we aren’t as tight-lipped as the rules say we should be around him.
Felix is a different story altogether because not only is he Killian’s stepbrother and our step-cousin, he’s also under Rebel protection after multiple attempts were made on his life at the beginning of the year.
He’s also Killian’s roommate, and the only person in the history of the Rebels to live in Hamilton House while not being a member.
That gives him a weird status where he’s not one of us, but he’s still part of the day-to-day workings of the frat, so he’s privy to a ton of information that would usually only be told to members.
We’ve all known Felix for over a decade, and he’s been part of the family for the past six years.
We weren’t friends, or even friendly, until the shit with him nearly getting offed went down, but it wasn’t much of an adjustment to shift him from the “periphery family member we fuck with because he fucks with us” to the “one of us” category.
Myles and Jax have only been together for a few months now, and while their meet-cute is anything but adorable and their entire relationship came to be because Jax stalked Myles, he’s as much a part of us as Felix is.
He just hasn’t completely internalized that yet and still has moments where he thinks of himself as an outsider we tolerate because he’s with Jax and not as a part of the group.
“Nothing?” Felix asks.
“Not a damn thing,” Killian says. “Just a lot of talking and not a lot of explaining.”
Felix shoots him a confused look.
“They basically told us to be on the lookout for something but didn’t tell us what it was,” Killian explains.
“How are you supposed to watch out for something if you don’t know what you’re supposed to be watching out for?” Felix asks.
“Fuck if I know.” Killian presses a soft kiss against Felix’s temple.
“I’m so glad we wasted our Friday night at a meeting that could have been a text,” Xave says as his phone chimes with a notification. “Speaking of texts,” he says as his phone chimes again.
“It’s barely ten,” Felix points out. “There’s still lots of the night left.”
“Maybe so.” Xave pulls his phone out of his pocket and checks the screen, a sly grin tilting the corners of his mouth as he reads whatever’s on it. “But that’s still two hours of my life that could have been used to have some fun.”
“I know that look,” my brother says as Xave finishes reading the text and types out a quick reply.
“Someone’s getting lai-aid,” I singsong at him, stretching the word out to be annoying.
“Maybe.” Xave flips his phone in his hand a few times.
“You’re going to pretend like that wasn’t a booty text?” Felix asks with a knowing look.
“Oh, it totally was.” Xave grins at him. “But it’s also the third one I’ve gotten tonight, so jury’s still out on which offer I’ll be partaking in.”
Xave’s phone chimes again, and he quickly unlocks the screen to read the text. “Okay, now I’m getting laid.” He types out a reply, then tucks his phone into his pocket. “Remember Hailey?” he asks me.
I shake my head. I don’t make a habit of keeping track of Xave’s many hookups, and the name isn’t familiar.
“You remember her,” he insists. “The blonde with the double D’s? She lives in Belmont House.”
“That really doesn’t narrow it down as much as you think it does.” Felix snickers. “That describes half the girls who live there.”
“True.” Xave shoots him a lazy grin, then fixes his gaze on me again. “Lianna’s best friend.”
“Oh, right. Her.” I nod as the names finally click into place. “And why do I care that you’re planning on plowing Hailey tonight?”
“Because she just said that Lianna is looking for some fun too, and she specifically mentioned that they’d be down for whatever”—he emphasizes the word in a way that’s the verbal equivalent of making air quotes—“if you wanted to tag along.”
Myles makes a choking sound, and his eyes are as round as saucers when I toss him a look.
“You good, kiddo?” I ask.
He nods quickly and attempts to school his features back into a neutral face. “Yeah, sorry. My brain just went to a really weird place for a second there.”
“Oh yeah?” I ask. “Mine’s always in a weird place. What did you think about?”
“Nothing,” he says, but his flushed cheeks tell a different story.
“Nothing, huh?” I arch one eyebrow at him, making sure to add a teasing lilt to my voice so he knows I’m only fucking with him. “I’m calling bullshit.” I make a “go on” motion with my hand. “Come on, non-bio bro, share with the rest of the class.”
His gaze flicks between me and Xave, then he swallows nervously. “It’s nothing, but just the way Xave said that, it sounded like she was suggesting the three, or maybe four, of you do whatever together.”
Xave laughs. “Honestly, you’re not wrong. I know for a fact they’d be down for a cousin foursome.”
Myles’s jaw drops and his cheeks go even redder.
“Easy, kiddo,” I assure him. “Xave and me are both into some fucked up shit, but we’re not cousin fuckers. We’re close, but not that kind of close.”
Myles visibly relaxes as his shock melts into embarrassment. “Yeah, of course. I didn’t mean to imply—”
“It’s all good.” Xave waves dismissively. “What’s the point of having fucked-up thoughts if you can’t share them with the fam?” He ticks his chin at me. “You should hear some of the shit that comes out of that one’s mouth. A little cousin ’cest is nothing compared to what goes on in his head.”
Myles swings his gaze to me, and I give him a big, cheeky grin. “He’s not wrong. Cousin ’cest doesn’t even register on my radar of weird. That should tell you how fucked up my brain is.”
Myles shoots Jax a quick look, and my brother just gives him a little smirk-smile. “Trust me when I say he’s been on his best behavior around you so far. Just wait until he drops the mask and starts verbalizing the really fucked up stuff he thinks about.”
“You’ll get used to it,” Felix assures Myles as he swings his bewildered gaze between Jax and me. “Life is never boring when you’re with the Hawthorne cousins.”
“Isn’t that the understatement of the year,” Myles says, a smile finally overtaking his earlier shock and embarrassment.
“So,” Xave says, his gaze fixed on me. “What do you say? You wanna have some fun with a couple of Belmont girls tonight?”
“Tempting.” I lean back in my chair. “But nah. Not interested.”
“Really?”
I shake my head.
“Suit yourself.” Xave stands. “I guess I’ll just have to entertain both of them since you’re obviously too much of a pussy to take what’s being handed to you.”
“Thank you for your service,” I deadpan.
“See you fuckers later.” Xave gives us a quick wave, and we echo his goodbye as he heads out of our room.
“I’m kinda surprised you said no,” Felix says as the door closes behind Xave.
“Why’s that?” I ask as I pull my butterfly knife out of my pocket and snap it open.
“Didn’t Lianna and Shane have a thing?” Felix asks.
I spin and flip the blades around my fingers in a simple pattern. “They did.”
“And isn’t Shane your archnemesis?”
“Archnemesis makes it sound way more dramatic than it is.” I switch so I’m spinning the knife with my left hand. “But essentially, yes.”
“So wouldn’t hooking up with his ex be a major fuck you to him?” Myles asks hesitantly, like he isn’t sure if he’s allowed to join the conversation.
“Yep,” I tell him. “Although I’m not sure she really counts as an ex since they were only together for like, a week before she moved on to greener pastures.”
“Yeah, probably not,” Felix says. “But it would still piss him off.”
“Oh, yeah, it definitely would.” I balance my knife on my knuckles. “But I’m not in the mood for easy.” I snap my blade closed and slip it back in my pocket. “Not tonight.”
Felix isn’t wrong. Usually I’d be all over the chance to piss Shane off, but going through the whole song and dance of hooking up just to get a rise out of him isn’t all that appealing tonight.
I’ve been feeling restless and untethered for the past few days, and I’m not in the right headspace to slip into the role of the enamored suitor who seduces the coy debutante. Usually I can be whoever my partners want me to be, but it would be a struggle tonight, and it’s just not worth the effort.
Not even to piss Shane off.
Jax’s look tells me he knows there’s more to it than I’m letting on, but that’s not unexpected.
Jax isn’t just my identical twin brother; he’s also my best friend and my other half.
He knows me better than anyone, and he’s also the only person on the planet that I can’t lie to, the same as I’m the only person he can’t lie to.
He won’t call me out in front of the others, but it’s only a matter of time before he says something when it’s just the two of us.
Killian’s look is also dubious, but like Jace, he doesn’t say anything.