Lust

“Olive, wake up, please?” A voice whispered to me as I lay in bed, not to be disturbed. “Please?”

I grunted in response, not wanting to open my eyes at all. What day is it again? Oh, yeah. It’s Monday. School, work, and then I get to go wherever the hell I want. Who’s waking me up today? There are some things you need to know about me: I am a sound sleeper. If there was a tsunami, hurricane, and an earthquake happening simultaneously, chances are I wouldn’t be bothered. At least, not while I’m asleep. I don’t need that much sleep to function properly either. At the most, I can be alert on three or four hours’ worth of energy obtained from sleep. But if it’s possible, I sleep for as long as I can.

“Olive. Mom said to get up ‘cause she doesn’t want you to be late. She said no more skipping class too.” Another voice piped up, placing their hand gently on my back. Well, my bare back, since I had slept in only my boxers. I rarely slept with the fan or air conditioner on; I didn’t care for blankets and loved the cool breeze from my window. I also lived for the sound of the city that never slept. I guess you could say that it was my lullaby.

“What time is it?” I rolled onto my stomach, the pillow under my head now on top of it. Thank god that I didn’t give a fuck about bedhead hair.

“You’re going to be late.” A third voice added nervously.

I couldn’t help but groan loudly, eyes wide open at this point. I wasn’t going to win this time; not against my three little brothers. Did I mention they’re triplets, all seven minutes apart in age? My brothers are seven years old and they’re technically my half-brothers. My dad left us my mom when I was two and then she decided to marry my stepdad, Gerry. Gerry is alright, so I didn’t mind that my mom re-married. When they were born, I learned how to be responsible and all that shit. Everything turned out for the best.

“Ok, I’m awake. I’m up. Are you ready for school?” I got up, yawning loudly, and turned to face them. They nodded, looking a little unsure. Daryl, Irving, and Paxton stared back at me, brown eyes big and innocent, and their auburn hair just as messy as mine. After making sure that there was nothing out of the ordinary, they left the room so I could get ready.

I took a shower and put on the first clean clothes I saw, which happened to be a wife beater and jeans. I wore my signature leather jacket and steel-toed boots, went through the rest of my routine, and walked downstairs. The dog tags that my dad had given to me before he left hung around my neck as usual. I didn’t try to keep in close contact and the same was true for him. My mom said he never found anyone else though.

“Happy birthday, Oli,” Erin greeted me as I pulled out a chair and sat down. She’s my sister, direct blood relation, and we’re the same age. Her birthday is a few months after mine. This caused me to consider her as my younger sister.

“Thanks, Erin,” I said with a grin, stealing a piece of toast from her plate. I relished the buttery taste that lingered on my palate as I chewed each bite of the bread. An omelette filled with chorizo and salsa on top was what I devoured as well.

The triplets stopped talking immediately and said happy birthday which was funny because they always forgot my birthday. It’s not even a big deal anyway, I thought, rolling my eyes, Seventeen isn’t as important as eighteen. Or twenty-one. I thanked them anyway, ruffling each of their hair affectionately and asking them if they were practicing the wrestling moves I taught them. Of course they said yes, and I was proud. I wouldn’t allow my brothers---even Erin---to be weak in terms of self-defense. Over my dead body would they be powerless and prone to something preventable like assault.

My mom walked downstairs as I took the keys to my Ducati out of my jacket pocket. Erin stood near the front door beside me, the triplets tagging along behind her. She had her car to take the triplets to elementary school every day, while I opted to meet her at school later. Sometimes we’d skip classes, maybe even the whole day, and rarely did we ever get caught. The few times that it did happen though were brutal.

“Olivier, I don’t care if it’s your birthday, you’re not leaving this house without seeing me,” she said boldly, hands on her slightly wide hips. My mother wasn’t thin, yet she wasn’t overweight either. Plus, she looked about five years younger than her actual age. I inherited my dad’s dark hair and brooding eyes, while she and Erin had light brown hair and hazel eyes. We were an eclectic mix of genetics and traits; so many people asked how we were related to each other.

I went over to her, kissed her cheek and smiled. “Morning, ma. I thought you already left for work.” My mom works part-time at a department store, specifically in the shoes section. Gerry leaves to work at a law firm two hours before we all wake up. It’s a rare sight to see him in the morning.

“Obviously not. Erin, make sure that---”

“I know, mom. No more cutting class.” Erin rolled her eyes and smirked. “Let’s go, munchkins.” She opened the door and left, the trio following her, one stopping to close the door. I shifted the weight of my backpack strap to one shoulder, shrugging as I noticed the time on the clock. I would make it to school on time, no problem.

“I gotta go now, see ya afterschool.” I waved, glancing at my mom over one shoulder. She was retreating to the kitchen, the silverware and plates clanging noisily as I departed.

I strolled down the hallway to the elevator, pressing the button with an arrow pointing downward. Living in a penthouse apartment has its perks, I guess. But Gerry kinda hates it here. He wants us to move into a house. These thoughts circulated in my mind as the elevator doors opened. I entered and found the faded button that had a capital letter B for basement. I ignored the elevator music that played softly throughout the ride to the underground level. Erin’s probably long gone by now. . .

Ding! “Finally. The elevator is so fucking slow today,” I muttered, twirling my keys around one finger and looking around the lot quickly. Erin’s car wasn’t there, as I expected, but I didn’t mind.

I approached my Ducati with a satisfied smirk, cleaned a few fingerprints off its side with a cloth, and got on. I revved the engine after starting it and put on my shades. She still sounds brand new like when I first got her. I had a feeling that this was going to be a good day. Maybe even a good birthday, if something or someone didn’t screw it up. Because one thing was certain: I wasn’t going to skip school today but I sure as hell wasn’t staying at home for my birthday either. There’s only so much of the angel act, as Erin calls it, that I can handle.

Angels? Get real. I thought with a snicker as I was on my way to school, the world passing by in a blur. Only little kids believe in those type of fantasyland creatures, along with the tooth fairy, unicorns, and those stupid princess stories mom told Erin when we were younger.

I never believed in that kind of bullshit, nor will I ever.