Snapped

Mason had gone home earlier than usual, after he and his best friend made up, his heart felt considerably lighter. However he could not stop the hurt and guilt that plagued him based on Lisa's reaction the previous night, his sister was everything to him and he wanted to get back in her good graces. He thought over and over about how he could get her to forgive him and still didn't figure anything out till he got home. A part of him wished making up with Lisa would be as smooth and easy as it had been with Evans but he knew that was too much to hope for, Lisa currently considers him a villain and the chances that she would let it go easily is very slim.

"I should have bought gifts on my way back, maybe a nice dress or some jewelry. I could also offer a weekend getaway with some of her friends, I wonder if she's agree to that" he thought to himself as he headed in the direction of Lisa's room. He stood at the door contemplating on whether or not he should knock and in the end decided it was best to, it wouldn't be a good idea to provoke her even more by barging in, she would probably think he was stripping off every single privilege she had. He knocked and waited until he heard her speak "Who's there?"

"It's the worst big brother in the world" he replied hoping to lighten her up a bit before entering. She was sitting at her study table with her laptop open in front of her, it seemed she was in the middle of writing an essay.

"I don't remember asking you to come in" she said, shooting daggers at him with her eyes. It was obvious that she was still mad at him, at least she wasn't completely ignoring his existence anymore.

"Well you can add that to the list of things I have to apologize for" he responded, moving over to her table and perching on one edge. They stared at each other for minutes before Lisa spoke in an irritated tone "Well? Are you here to make things right or not"

Mason smiled slightly before replying "C'mon Lisa, you can't seriously still be mad at me. I really hate that you're not speaking to me"

"That's not an apology" she said pouting slightly but there was no venom in her tone, an indication that he was making progress.

"Lisa I need you to know that you're the most important thing to me in the world and I would choose you over and over no matter what the other option is. I know you think I don't trust you but I do, it's just that I want to keep you safe at all times, that may not be possible but I'd die before I let any harm come to you. I'm really sorry I didn't tell you about Bryan but to be honest, you're one really scary young lady and I wanted to keep my head for a little longer" he finished pleased to see her visibly soften at his words. He had meant them with every fibre of his being and he hoped his sincerity was conveyed clearly enough.

"Yeah whatever. That's just a fancy way of saying you're always going to meddle in my life" she said rolling her eyes at him

Mason laughed and ruffled her hair "I'm ready to grovel for forgiveness each time". Lisa gasped and punched him in the arm making him laugh harder.

"I'd appreciate it more if you just leave me alone Mason, you don't have to be involved in every part of my life" she said exasperatedly

"Look Lisa, we've only got each other. I promise I'll try to be less….me but I don't really know how to just stand by when I feel like I should be doing something. I'll probably go insane if something happens to you while I was just standing by" he said pleadingly hoping she'd understand. Lisa didn't respond, she just sighed and shook her head at home

"So little sis, are you coming down for dinner?" he asked, giving her his best puppy eyes.

Lisa rolled her eyes and turned up her nose at him"Nope. I have work to do and I'm not ready to eat with you anyways "

"Fair enough" he replied, smiling. She wasn't smiling back but he knew she was no longer upset, with a little time and lots of bribe she'd stop sulking and be back to her usual bubbly self. Making a mental note to review things she might want and get them for her, he dropped a kiss on her forehead, chuckling as she wiped it off with a look of mock disgust and left her room for his to take a shower and change for dinner. It definitely was a good day for him, he had gotten his two favourite people back, the world was right again. He started to hum happily as he replayed he and Evans reunion in his head, giddy with joy.

Bryan had gotten to work really early, he seemed determined to make a good impression and he had gotten everything he thought Mason would need for the day ready before his boss arrived. He had memorized the schedule for the day and was telling Mason when he noticed the latter was not present, Mason was staring into space with a faraway look in his eyes, it appeared that he hadn't heard a thing that Bryan said.

"Yo boss did you get any of that at all?" Bryan's voice cut into Mason's thoughts. He had been thinking about his encounter with Lisa at breakfast earlier that morning. He was excited when Mary informed him that breakfast was ready and Lisa was already downstairs, if she was willing to eat with him then that means he has been totally forgiven. However, her countenance at the table contradicted his expectations. She had seemed sullen and withdrawn, giving monosyllabic answers and eating slowly although it seemed her bad mood wasn't directed at him, there was something obviously wrong. He had tried every means to find out what was wrong without any success until he had to leave for work, a little worried about her but hoping her mood would somehow magically improve later during the day.

"Um sorry Bryan, I was a little distracted, what were you saying?" Mason said clearing his throat

"Come on boss I just recited the entire schedule for today off the top of my head and you weren't even listening" He whined making Mason raise an eyebrow

"That's what I pay you for isn't it? Reciting my schedule as many times as I want" He said coolly as Bryan grumbled under his breath oddly reminding him of how Lisa sometimes acted when she wasn't getting her way. A thought suddenly struck him as he watched Bryan mumbling inaudibly

"Hey Bryan, did you notice anything weird about Lisa lately" he asked tentatively making Bryan stop in surprise

"Lisa? You mean Lisa, your sister whom you live in the same house with? The same girl you didn't think I was good enough to hang out with? That Lisa?" He said raising an eyebrow, why was Mason asking him about Lisa? Was it a trick question?

"Don't be cocky Bryan. I just want to know if there's anything wrong with my sister that I might not know about"

"How would I know?" Bryan grumbled folding his arms like a little child.

This response surprised Mason, it didn't seem like Bryan was trying to mess with him. "What are you talking about? You're Lisa's friend aren't you? What kind of friend are if you don't know how she's doing" he said harshly

"Maybe I don't know how my friend is doing because I'm working my ass off for her brother whose intention is to keep me away from her in the first place" Bryan snapped back forgetting that the person he just yelled at is his boss. Mason was stunned into silence by Bryan's response, that must be why Lisa is still moody after he apologized, she probably missed hanging out with her friend. He wondered if Lisa thought he was keeping Bryan away on purpose.

While Mason was thinking this over, Bryan was starting to get uneasy. He had just realized that he yelled at the person who gave him a chance to turn his life around, he waited for a while hoping to receive some scolding but Mason was still silent

"Um I'm sorry sir, I didn't mean to raise my voice" he said meekly

"Huh? Oh don't worry about that. I guess I did take all the free time you used to have" Mason replied making Bryan sigh in relief and they resumed work like nothing had happened.