Chapter 16

~Jerome~

       I had to say, repairing the studio had been very therapeutic that past couple days. Not just for me, but for Nolan as well. We had an inspector come in to double check everything, and one of the issues was that the wall between the two offices was rotting and was recommended to be taken down.

       Since the two rooms were going to be turned into one, Nolan had the idea to turn it both into an office and a small lounge. And, of course, I suggested that he painted a mural on one of the walls because I absolutely loved his murals.

       Before we could even get started on designing the office/lounge, we had to get rid of the wall between the two rooms, which was where the therapeutic part came in. I didn't think I had ever seen Nolan have so much fun. Even I was having a lot of fun but then again, why wouldn't smashing down a wall be fun?

       We weren't finished yet when Nolan decided to step back. He crouched down on the floor. "I don't think I can do anymore. I'm getting lightheaded."

       "That's okay," I said. "I'm sure I can do the rest by myself."

        "Or I can ask my siblings to come help. Although, that might be a bad thing..."

       I furrowed my eyebrows. "Why would that be bad? The more people we have helping, the faster we could get this done."

       "The bad part is I want to strap a helmet on Alan and tell him to run through the wall."

       "To be honest, I don't even think you'd have to tell him. He seems like the type of person to would do it without being told to. But for real, I'm all up for your siblings and even Brandon coming in to help."

       Nolan nodded, so he contacted his siblings to see if they wanted to come in while I contacted Brandon. Everyone was free to come in, though it did take Brandon a bit of convincing. He said he just wanted to lie in bed, but the moment I mentioned Alan was coming, he said he was on his way.

       Which might be a mistake because after almost two years of dating, Alan and Brandon still didn't know how to keep their hands off of each other.

       Nolan and I waited in the main studio for them to arrive. They didn't exactly know why we were here. We just told them that we needed help tearing down a wall and they all seemed up to it.

       Nolan's siblings were first to show up. Once they walked in, they looked around the rundown place. "Why exactly are we in this... I don't even know what it is," Ryder said.

       "It's a studio," I said. "It's going to be for both painting and dancing for me and Nolan. I own it."

       "Huh?" Alan asked. "Right, so Nolan's boyfriend buys him a studio, but my boyfriend won't buy me one?"

       "You're not an artist," Ryder said. "What exactly do you need a studio for?"

       "I don't know. I still want one, though."

       "Just complain to Brandon when he gets here," Jerome said. "He's coming to help too."

       "Ooh."

       "No PDA."

       "Says you."

       Alan, in fact, did complain to Brandon when he got here. He literally asked Brandon why he didn't buy Alan a studio.

       "Why the fuck would I buy you a studio?" Brandon asked.

       "Because Jerome bought one for Nolan," Alan said.

       "Yeah, and I bet Jerome is also going to use the studio so it's for the two of them," Brandon said. "If I buy one for you, who the hell is going to use it. And does it look like I'm made of money like Jerome?"

       "I'm not made of money," I objected, even though it wasn't exactly difficult for me to get the money to buy the studio. When my parents were together, my mom did limit the money I spent but now, my dad has no problem giving me a bunch of money. I could literally ask him to pay for everything, but I'd rather work for my money.

       Besides, I did say I would pay him back for the studio. He told me not to worry about it, but I still wanted to. I think he was trying to make up for the way I was treated before the divorce.

       "Right, and did you have to get a loan from the bank to buy this studio?" Brandon asked.

       "No. I had the money."

        "Exactly. So you're made of money."

       "Wait," Ryder said. "Let me get this straight. You're made of money and you haven't gotten your own place yet?"

       "Now, why would I do that when living with your family irritates you?" I asked.

       Ryder glared at me as Orchid said, "So... Are we going to break down a wall or did you lie to get us here just to show off your money?"

       "I'm not... I'm not showing off," I said. "Nolan is the one who wants you to help. Mainly Alan."

       "Awe, Nolan," Alan said, giving his brother a hug. Nolan pushed him off. "I can't believe I'm your favourite sibling."

       "I did not say that at all," Nolan said.

       As it turned out, I was right when I was that Alan would run through the wall to break it. No one told him to. It was literally the first thing he did when we got to the office and pointed at the wall he needed to break.

       Orchid sighed once Alan jumped up on the other side of the wall, having fallen down after crashing into the wall. "This is why you end up in the hospital a lot, Alan," Orchid said.

       "Yeah, I think you've been in there more than me," Nolan said. Everyone looked at him, a bit shocked. "What? I'm allowed to make jokes about it. And I'm serious. Alan was been hospitalized more than me."

       "That's... actually concerning," I said.

       "My doctors said it's a miracle I'm still alive," Alan said, stepping through the hole in the wall to get back to the rest of us.

       "And yet, you thought running through a wall would be a good idea," Brandon said.

       "Was it not?" Alan pointed to the wall. "Look at the hole I made. I'm getting work done fast. You're welcome, everyone."

       "Here's an idea." Brandon said, picking up one of the hammers before putting one of the hard helmets on Alan's head, then one of the safety goggles. "Safety first. And use this hammer."

       "Yeah, sure, real boring," Alan muttered, but he soon forgot how 'boring' breaking the wall with a hammer was when he started hitting the wall over and over and over again. 

       I leaned towards Nolan. "I think he has some unresolved anger to work through."

       "I'm not sure," Nolan said. "He really just likes breaking things."

       It didn't take long to completely tear down the wall now that we had people helping us. It was kind of sad, though. It was the only one we had to tear down. But I did want to get the flooring in the studio replaced. That would have to be another day, though I knew they would all love to come here to help again.

       Since they all helped out, I offered to buy everyone pizza. I got it ordered to the studio and once it got here, we sat on the floor in the main part since we hadn't touched it yet, meaning there wasn't any debris from tearing down a wall.

       Nolan was talking to his siblings while they were eating, so Brandon leaned in close to me to whisper, "So how are things going with that Joel guy?"

       "I still hate him," I whispered back.

       Brandon sighed. "Seriously?"

       "No, no, this time I have a reason. When Nolan was in the hospital, I stayed the whole time unless I had work or school. Anyway, one time when I was there, Joel came with Alan and Orchid. He told me I should go home and get some rest."

       "Oh no. How horrible."

       "Now you're making me feel stupid. Look, I swear... The way he said it sounded... I don't know, like he didn't want me near Nolan. I know I could be overreacting but... I just have a bad feeling about that guy."

       "Yeah. It's called jealousy."

       "I'm not jealousy."

       "Then what is it?"

       "I... have no idea."

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is jerome overreacting? or is joel actually a bad guy? idk we'll find out eventually.

anyway let's alan indeed has been hospitalized the most in the family. once it was because he got a few pieces of candy stuck up his nose.