Can You Keep a Secret

I knocked on Ray's door, hoping he was in there. I knew his girlfriend had left earlier in the morning to get home for her work, but he should have been there.

I bounced on my heels anxiously. Finally, Ray's door swung open. He smiled down at me. "Hey, little sis," he greeted.

"Hola," I responded. "I need to talk to you," I began. I walked into his room before he could respond.

"Okay. What's up?" he asked curiously.

I sat down on the chair, my knee bouncing. "Okay, you have to sit down," I told him.

He followed my instructions and took a seat next to me. "What's up?" he asked again.

I continued to bounce my knee, nervous of how he would react. I knew I needed to tell him, but I was scared to do so.

Ray watched me patiently. I let out a sigh before deciding to just bite the bullet and get it over with. "I'm in love with Eric," I blurted out.

Ray smirked. "Why are you telling me this?" he questioned.

I groaned. "Why do you always do this?" I demanded.

He laughed at my frustration. "Do what?"

"Always take this shit so calmly," I explained. "Why aren't you all weirded our or mad or anything?"

He shrugged. "Rick, it's really nothing new... We all knew you two had something going on. You two are just... I don't know. We all just knew you two would end up together," he explained.

I groaned. "I don't know what to do," I whined.

"Well, first off you get up. Second, you go down to the lobby where he's at. Then, you tell him and you two just get together," he said.

I glared at him. "You aren't very funny," I muttered.

He groaned as he hauled himself out of his chair. "Come on, I wasn't kidding. Get up," he told me.

I shook my head. "No! I'm not telling him right not!" I explained.

Ray pulled my up by my forearms. "Yes, you are. Why wait? What if he dies tomorrow? Are you really going to want to live with the regret that you didn't tell him?" he asked.

I stumbled over my feet. "But..." I whispered. I knew my brother had a point.

"Listen, do you want to live tortured because he refused to tell him or do you want to just find out his reaction?" Ray asked me.

I simply stared at him, too stubborn to admit he was right. He smirked. "I'll carry you down to the lobby," he warned.

I scoffed. Before a word could come out of my mouth, Ray had flung me over his shoulder. He strutted down to the lobby, not phased by the odd looks. I wiggled in his grasp, hoping he would drop me long enough for me to book it back to my room.

"Hey, Mrs. Staal. Where's Eric?" Ray asked.

"He's out by the rental car. Hi Ricky," she greeted as Ray headed out to the parking lot.

I grimaced, but gave her a small wave. Ray packed me around, not phased by anything. I could see Eric ahead of me, meaning Ray was headed in the wrong directions. He waved and smiled at me. I shook my head and tried to motion for him to go away, but he didn't catch on.

"Why's your sister on your shoulder?" Eric asked as he walked up behind us.

I hung my head in defeat. Ray turned around. "Hey! You get to talk to my sister," Ray told him as he put me down. I glared up at him. Ray smiled down at me. "You should tell her what you talked to me about a few weeks ago." Ray strolled back into the hotel shortly after.

I groaned before turning back to Eric. "He's going crazy, I swear," I mumbled awkwardly.

"Is that any surprise?" he asked. We both laughed. "So, why did he say that?"

I shrugged. "He's just... Being weird, you know," I lied.

Eric watched me carefully. I could tell his was consentrated on something on his mind. "So, what did you guys talk about awhile ago?" I asked finally.

Eric chewed on his lip. "You remember that night a long time ago when I, uh..." He cleared his throat and glanced over my head. "When I kissed you?" he asked.

I felt a blush on my cheeks. "Yeah."

He nodded. "And you remember how I told you I would put how I felt about you behind me?" he asked. I nodded again. He sighed before running a hand through his blonde hair that was no longer gelled up. "Well, that didn't really work out..." he finished.

I watched him carefully. "What do you mean?" I asked slowly.

He looked me in the eye finally. "I love you..." he sighed. He looked hopeless as he spoke.

My stomach was jumping. My heart was poudning. I glanced over his shoulder at the sudden movement. Ray was watching from around the corner, smirking. I felt my cheeks burn. "I would, um... I'd kiss you right now, but my brother's watching," I whispered.

Eric turned around. "So?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not going to do that when he's watching. That's just awkward," I told him.

Eric turned to face Ray. "Hey, Ray?"

"Yeah?" my brother called back.

"Can I kiss your sister?" he yelled over.

Ray chuckled. "Go for it, broski," Ray hollared.

Eric turned back to me. "I don't see the problem," he told me.

I sighed before leaning up to press my lips to his. My fingers ran into his hair and pulled him closer to me. I felt his smile against my lips. "I love you, too," I whispered after pulling away a little bit.

Eric smirked. "Does this mean I can take you on an actual date?" he asked.

I laughed. "I'd hope you'd ask for more than just a date," I replied.

"Hm... Like if I asked you to be my girlfriend?"

I shrugged. "Couldn't hurt to ask."

"Will you be my girlfriend?" he asked.

I smiled. "Yeah. I guess so," I teased.

He kissed me once more. "Definitely didn't hurt to ask," he told me.

There was a loud whistle from back where Ray had been watching. We both glanced back to find not only my brother, but his three brothers and mom standing there. Jordan let out a loud whistle before cheering.