Flaws And Feathers [PUBLISHED]

Chapter 3

"Really, Joe?" Gwen looked at him dryly. "You're gonna leave Mum to clear the junk room all by herself? What a lazy bitch you are."

"It's not even laziness, it's pure bitch-ness," I added, making the two of them send me looks. Gwen's read 'you're not helping'.

"Let's just go," Gwen said, walking over to pluck the back of Joe's fleece and pulling him away from the fridge.

Gwen sent me a look, and I I knew she was referring to how we would have to tell Raphael we were going to be gone for a few hours.

"I'll catch up with you guys," I said, already turning to head back to the room.

"Hell no, you won't," Joe said, grabbing my arm. "You don't get to sit out of this one."

I grinned and let out a laugh, "Joe, I'm not trying to sit it out. I genuinely have to just grab my phone from the room real quick. It's charging."

"Hmm," he regarded me with those deep blue eyes of him, before letting go of my sleeve. "If you're taking too long, I'll come and get you myself."

"Whatever," I rolled my hazel eyes at him and Gwen sent me a smooth smile before she left with Joe.

I went back to the bedroom Gwen and I shared, walking right to the double bed.

"Raphael," I hissed, pulling the covers up and bending down to look underneath the bed. "You can come out."

Moments later, the male emerged, holding a scratched up aluminium baseball bat he must have found under my bed. I recognised it as the bat I used to hit against trees when I was fifteen, whenever my anger would reach uncontrollable levels. I hadn't had to use it for over a year now, and seeing it again made me smile fondly. Even though my parents had thought it was a bad way to deal with my anger, I had clearly made progress, I guessed.

"Gwen and I need to go and help our Mum," I explained to him. "Probably going to take hours, if I'm honest."

Raphael sat down on the edge of the bed and silently nodded, running his hand along the baseball bat and down again. The guy could never keep still. I could tell Raphael wasn't even going to reply to me, that he thought his nod was enough. Forcing myself to stay calm, I stepped a little closer.

"Why are you so mean to me?" I asked him impulsively.

Raphael looked up to meet my gaze, a hesitant expression falling across his face, "I am not."

"Yes you are," I didn't miss a beat.

He let out a sigh, "I do not know what you are talking about."

"You like Gwen, but you don't like me. And it's strange because we just met," I continued to insist what I was saying held some truth to it.

Raphael dropped his gaze from mine, his eyes on the baseball bat he was playing with in his hands. I was patient for the first five seconds, then I had to open my mouth to say something, apparently at the same time he did.

"It is just...difficult," the raven haired male admitted.

I raised my brows, not expecting an honest sounding answer. It made me soften a bit.

"What's difficult about it?" I questioned him quietly.

Raphael still didn't lift his head, "It is hard to explain, but if I am blunt with you, it is not intentional."

That made me frown lightly in confusion. So he was admitting he treated me different to how he treated Gwen, but claimed he didn't mean it. It had me more intrigued as to why that was. Did I remind him of someone he used to know?