Morning came and Ash woke up to the sound of his alarm blaring. He groaned and reached over to hit the snooze button, before remembering their parents were coming back in a few hours. He reluctantly got out of bed and walked into the living room, to his surprise he saw Ava already awake. "When are mom and dad getting back?" he asked. "around 10, and I already replaced the vodka we drank" Ava replied. "Oh, good" says Ash as he goes over to the sink to load the dishwasher. "Oh look at you being a good little housewife" Ava joked. Ash rolled his eyes at Ava's teasing. "Well, someone has to be responsible around here," he remarked back. "hey! I'm very responsible" she defended, "really?" he said, "you let your younger brother drink vodka" he laughed. "Yeah" she said with a sad tone in her voice. Ash looked over at her, filled with concern. He was only joking, yet he still felt guilty for bringing it up since it obviously made her feel uncomfortable. Ash sighs "you know I don't blame you for it right?" Ava looks away "I guess so"

Ash ~ "I'm serious, it wasn't your fault-"

Ava ~ "your my little brother! it was my fault" Ava interrupted.

Ash ~ "I'm only 3 and a half years younger than you Ava"

Ava ~ "i know, but it was still my fault, you were drunk and- I don't know"

Ash ~ "its not like I wasn't aware of what was happening, you didn't force me into anything"

Ava glanced up at Ash, her eyes filled with uncertainty. "You're my little brother, and I feel responsible for keeping you safe." Ash leaned against the kitchen counter. "Ava-" he said gently, "I appreciate your concern, but we're both adults now. We make our own choices." She sighed softly. "I know that logically" she replied. Her heart skipped a beat as he looked into her eyes. He wanted to reassure her, to let her know that it wasn't anyone's fault, not hers or his but words failed him in that moment. He moved over and hugged her "its okay" he said, "Look it was either both our faults or neither our faults, and you were just as drunk as I was."

"Okay" she said before awkwardly pulling away from the hug. "I guess you're right" she said softly. "So are we okay?" he asked. Ava hesitated before answering. "I don't know," she admitted, biting her lip nervously. "I mean, things feel super awkward and I think will for a very long time." Ash nodded in agreement, his mind racing with memories of the night, the way she looked at him, the sound of her voice that was so full of lust still echoing in his ear, the way her hand felt- "why can't I stop thinking about her?" he thought to himself. Despite telling Ava that it was no one's fault, part of him still felt guilty about it as well. "I know," he said "But we can't change what happened now." Ava sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right," she said finally.

They finished cleaning the house and Ava put the vodka in the cabinet. They both sat back on the couch, a bit tired from all the cleaning. As they waited for their parents to come back home. Ash's mind kept wandering back to that night, replaying certain moments over and over again. He tried to push those thoughts away but it was difficult. Ava could tell he was distant and lost in thought. "Hey," she said softly, "Are you okay?" Ash looked up at her..."you know you can talk to me if you need to-" they heard the clink of keys followed by the door opening.

Ash and Ava quickly separated as their parents walked in, trying to act casual. "Look at you two! What happened while we were gone?" their mother commented with a smirk. "W-what do you mean?" Ash stuttered, feeling embarrassed. "Well, you're sitting on the same couch and not kicking the other one off," his mother replied sarcastically. Ash rolled his eyes while Ava tried to hide her smile. "We just cleaned up the house," she said, trying to change the subject. Their father chimed in, "And did a good job too! You guys are growing up".....we stopped by and got some food from that place you both like. They all sat down for a late breakfast, Ash and Ava sat relatively quiet while eating with their parents. Awkwardness filled the room as they tried to make small talk about school and work. Ash couldn't stop thinking about that night, and he knew Ava was feeling the same way. They both glanced at each other hesitantly, unsure of what to say or do. Their mother noticed the tension in the air- "Well, this is fun," she said dryly. "I always love having silent meals with my family." Ava rolled her eyes while Ash smirked, glad for the distraction from his thoughts. "Sorry mom," he said while glancing over at Ava once more, "We're just tired from cleaning up after ourselves for once."

Their father chuckled before taking a sip of his coffee. "Well, you two should get used to it," he joked. "You'll be living on your own soon enough." Ash felt a wave of anxiety due to his father's words but tried not to show it. He knew he had to start thinking seriously about his future soon but didn't want to face reality just yet. "Yeah, I guess we will," Ava replied with a hint of reluctance in her voice. The truth was she hadn't really given any serious thought about moving out since she and her boyfriend broke up a year ago. The idea of living alone terrified her, but she knew it was inevitable. "I mean, who's going to cook for me?" she joked half-heartedly, hoping to lighten the mood. Ash chuckled before replying sarcastically, "Yeah Ava, because that's the only reason you need someone around." Ava rolled her eyes at him before taking another bite of food. The conversation died down again, while Ash couldn't help but wonder what it would be like living on his own.

He had always been independent, but the thought of living alone seemed so lonely to him. Ava noticed him lost in thought and asked, "What's on your mind?" Ash hesitated before answering, not wanting to sound vulnerable in front of his parents. "Nothing, just thinking about the future," he replied vaguely. Ava raised an eyebrow at his response. "The future? You mean like where you're going to live?" she asked. Ash rolled his eyes, wishing she wouldnt ask such things in front of their parents, he couldn't help but feel anxious about the idea of being on his own. "Yeah, something like that," he muttered under his breath. Ava could sense his reluctance and decided to push him further. "You know you can always crash with me if you need to" she offered. Ash scoffed at her offer, "Like I would ever want to do that." But deep down inside he knew it was nice having someone around all the time - despite the fact he would probably never admit it to Ava. He liked having her around these last few years, It was nice to always have someone around despite the fact she annoyed him and took his stuff sometimes. He enjoyed not being the only child anymore. He often felt pretty alone growing up.

As they finished their breakfast, Ava suggested they all watch a movie together. Ash agreed, grateful for the distraction from his thoughts. They settled on a comedy and sat down on the couch together. As they watched, Ash couldn't help but feel a sense of comfort being around her. He tried to push those thoughts away, reminding himself that they were siblings and nothing more. But as the movie progressed, he found himself stealing glances at her when she laughed or smiled at something funny on the screen that he couldn't care-less about. He shook his head in disbelief at his own thoughts and tried to focus on the movie instead. All while images of her and Ash played over in Ava's mind, the conversations and things they did on the couch...."I'm gonna go make some popcorn" Ava exclaimed while getting up from the couch. After a couple minutes she came back in with a big bowl of popcorn. Sitting back down next to Ash. "Want some?" She says while getting comfy.

"Sure" Ash says, grabbing a handful from the bowl that was sitting on Ava's lap and eating it. After finishing what was in his hand, he moved his hand down, placing it on Ava's thigh. She tensed slightly at the touch but didn't move away. "What are you doing?" she asked with a hint of annoyance in her voice. "Just getting comfortable" he replied. Ava rolled her eyes. They continued to watch the movie, both unsure of how to act around each other after what had happened. Part of Ash wanted to touch her more intimately, but he knew it was wrong - they were siblings for fuck sake! Not to mention the fact their parents were right next to them. But he couldn't help it. He slid his hand further down between her thighs. Rubbing slightly before pulling away. Stretching his arms out. "Man I'm kind of tired, Might go take a shower and have a nap" Ava glared at him ~