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❝ 04 , fix it ❞

It was a quiet evening on 35 Portland Row. George had been reading in his room for most of the day. Demi was in the library, finding herself lost in a book for the first time in a long time. When she finally lifted her head out of her book, she had seen George rush down to the kitchen for a snack.

She was sitting sideways on the armchair across from Anthony. Her feet dangled over the arm, dangerously close to the circular table that sat between the two. The table had their long abandoned mugs of tea (for Lockwood) and hot chocolate (for Demi). The two of them had been sitting in comfortable silence for hours.

Demi was quick to return to her book after she met Anthony's gaze and gave him an amused smile. It was held above her head as she read. But the position was quickly making her arms numb so she eventually dropped the book against her chest and closed her eyes. The exhaustion was heavy in her bones this late in the evening. The natural lull in her energy levels was coming around quickly and she knew that it would be time for bed sooner rather than later.

But she didn't want to sleep yet. She opened her eyes and her head tilted as she watched Anthony for a few minutes. Lockwood had been sitting in the other armchair just as long as Demi had. He was reading the gossip columns. It was his way to unwind which Demi did her best not to judge. But it was amusing to her. He was an arrogant prick and he hated society with a burning passion yet he still read about what all the rich did. It was cute.

She slid further down into the armchair. Her gaze moved from the boy in the chair to the ceiling and she let her eyes fall closed. She told herself that she was only resting her eyes but the better part of her knew that she would fall asleep like this if Lockwood let her.

But before she could get truly comfortable, she heard footsteps on the stairs outside the room. The familiar creak which meant George was coming up from the kitchen. Then she felt a sudden heavy weight on her stomach and the wind was knocked out of her, breath rushing out of her cheeks.

"George!" Lockwood exclaimed as Demi's eyes snapped open. The object had knocked against Demi's legs before landing on her stomach and probably left a bruise, "What are you playing at?"

"Fix it." Demi looked at the object which turned out to be the toaster before she looked up at George. He had dropped the toaster onto her stomach. She glared at him, "I wanted toast but it stopped working, again." The hangry annoyed look in his eyes was hard to ignore and the way he ground out the last word made it clear that this conversation was going to end well.

So, rather than arguing, Demi stood up. She brushed the crumbs that had skittered across her t-shirt to the floor - much to Anthony's dismay - before she followed George back down to the kitchen.

Demi placed the toaster on the side but rather than speaking to George, she grabbed a pen from the middle of the table and wrote 'dickhead' in bold letters with a quick doodle of George next to it. George ignored it and Demi went back to her task.

She plugged the toaster in and flicked the switch before grabbing a piece of bread. She dropped it into the toaster and pushed it down.

But it wouldn't push down. She tried to be as gentle as she could with it but it wouldn't budge even a little bit. She sighed. It was jammed, again.

"It's the crumbs again," Demi snapped as she pulled the crumb drawer from the bottom of the toaster. She emptied it into the bin and glanced at George who was cooking his toast on the grill but he didn't look happy doing it.

"It's not my job to clean it out," George bit back and Demi's hands slammed against the counter before she whipped around to face the boy.

"You use the toaster more than me. You clear out your crumbs. It's your crumbs that jam it!" She responded, her voice was slightly raised. Demi didn't know why she was annoyed. She shouldn't have been. It was a toaster for God's sake but she was tired and he had dropped it onto her stomach of all places.

"I do everything else to keep this kitchen clean," He responded bitterly. Demi scoffed and she turned back around to face the toaster. She picked it up and shook it over the sink, trying to get all the crumbs out from the side. It definitely didn't help that George had dropped it onto her stomach which would have just jammed crumbs everywhere.

"You're a prick sometimes," Demi mumbled as she slammed her hand against the sides of the toaster. A few more crumbs fell into the bottom of the sink.

"It wouldn't be an issue if you hadn't taken it apart. You lost the proper casings," George said. Demi rolled her eyes. It had been an accident and yes, they were paying for it but she had to fix the toaster after George broke it. She didn't think casing would have been this much of an issue when she replaced some of the parts inside. It was all his fault anyway.

Demi didn't even want to entertain his words so she glanced around and saw the butter that he had taken out for his toast. She grabbed the butter and walked over to the bin, pressing her foot down on the pedal. The lid swung open. George whipped around when he noticed her taking the butter and he was now glaring at her as she held it threateningly over the now open lid.

"Don't you dare." George warned. Demi cocked an eyebrow and her face screamed 'try me'. He crossed his arms over his chest.

This wasn't the first time she had thrown away butter when she and George argued over the stupid toaster. She always bought another tub but he got on her nerves so she wanted to be an inconvenience. It gave him a reason to actually be annoyed at her.

"Dem, step away from the bin," Anthony's voice suddenly joined the conversation which forced Demi to break her eye contact with George. She looked at Anthony and her anger dulled ever so slightly. He looked tired, cute and completely done with their antics.

"He's being a prick," was all that Demi thought was necessary to say.

"I don't care if he's being a prick, give me the butter." Anthony walked closer to her and she glared at George before looking up at Anthony.

"Tell him to apologise." Anthony looked back at George who scoffed. Demi then decided - fuck it - and hurled the butter at George instead. It smacked him harshly in the chest and she glared at both the boys, "I'm not gonna fix the toaster until he apologises. He can use the grill." Demi said before she swerved past Anthony and headed up the stairs. She wanted to go to bed but she didn't have her glass of water. Going back downstairs now wasn't an option so she decided she could get that later.

Her feet stomped against the stairs and she went straight to her room, slamming the door behind her. A rough huff escaped her lips as she pressed her back against the door. It was such a stupid argument but she was tired and it hurt. He had dropped the fucking toaster on her stomach. She crossed over to the full-length mirror across from her bed and lifted up the edge of her jumper, checking to make sure it hadn't bruised.

She gently poked at her skin but it seemed okay. A little tender but not visibly bruised which was good. Less of a reason to be annoyed. She glanced back at the door before she turned to her desk and sat down. Her latest project was still laid out and she decided to do some tinkering until the boys went to bed and then she could get her glass of water and brush her teeth in peace.

The thought of seeing either of them right now made her annoyed. Anthony always came to George's rescue even when he was being mean. Demi wished just once, Anthony took her side and told George to stop being a knobhead.

***

Demi didn't realise how long she had been tinkering until she glanced up and realised that it was nearing 1am. Her hands were covered in dust and oil from the spring mechanism she was trying to fix. But with no luck in three hours, she decided it was best to leave it for the rest of the night.

She slid back in her chair and tidied away the bits and pieces she was using to create her project before she got up and headed to the bedroom door. For a moment, she listened for movement but when there was none, she opened the door and headed to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her hands.

Once she was sufficiently clean, she returned to her room where she stripped her shirt and pants off before switching into a comfy set of pyjamas.

She decided on a cream fluffy jumper that when she pulled the hood up was a sheep's face. It was one of the first pieces of clothes that Demi had bought for herself. She loved it and she was just glad it still fit. She paired it with some cream sleep pants before she walked to the bedroom door again, mentally debating.

Even at this late hour, she knew that George might be downstairs. He was a night owl and he always had a midnight snack. So, she found herself sitting on her bed and began to debate whether to even go downstairs. She had taken her glass to the kitchen that morning so she couldn't even fill it up in the bathroom.

And she knew she couldn't sleep without getting a glass. It ruined her entire routine. A soft sigh escaped her lips and then she heard a gentle knock at her door. Her head shot up and Lockwood was standing there, in a t-shirt and tartan sleep pants and... a glass of water.

He didn't wait for her to say anything and pushed her door open fully and stepped inside. He placed the glass down on the bedside table and looked down at her. The hood of her jumper was pulled up and he thought she looked so adorable.

"Are you okay?" He asked, not entirely sure what to say. Demi nodded her head but he didn't believe that. He watched as she shuffled back on the bed so her back rested against the wall. It was her way of letting him sit beside her on the bed. So, he sat down on the edge of the bed, his body turned to her with a small frown on his lips, "What happened earlier?"

"He was getting on my nerves," She mumbled. Her voice was so quiet and she suddenly felt so silly for everything that had happened, "And it hurt." She added quickly in an attempt to justify why she had gotten so annoyed so quickly, "It was stupid but it hurt. And the reason that there was even an issue was because of him. He jammed the toaster, again!"

"I'm going to get a new toaster in the morning," He said, cutting Demi's rambling off. She was fiddling with the drawstring of her pants but his words made her head snap up. She opened her mouth to tell him that he didn't need to, ready to make all the excuses in the book but his face said enough. So, she shut her mouth. "Do you need anything?" He asked. His voice was so soft. He was being so kind and she wanted to be annoyed at him because he had taken George's side but she just couldn't be.

"Chocolate," She mumbled. He chuckled softly but nodded his head.

"Your usual?" She nodded and he smiled. He reached out and tentatively squeezed her hand in a gesture he hoped would be reassuring, "I told George to apologise. Try to get some sleep." Lockwood then got up off the bed and he sent her a reassuring smile before he left the room. Demi didn't even get to mumble out a thank you before he was gone. Demi sighed and she flopped down against the bed.

It was stupid but so were most of the arguments in their little home. So, she forced herself to get under the covers, left her door cracked open and turned off the big light in favour of her bedside lamp. She then rolled over and tried her best to sleep.

***

He didn't apologise. George didn't fucking apologise. Demi was past the point of caring. They communicated through the cloth on the table but that only consisted of George asking if she wanted tea. She said no. And so they didn't speak.

It was somehow worse than when Lockwood and George argued. When the boys argued, it was the end of the world but this was somehow worse. And Anthony had been out of the house most of the afternoon getting them a new toaster so there was no buffer, no third party. It was just them.

So Demi decided that if Anthony could get out of the house, so could she. There were a few errands to run and a new store had opened that she wanted to take a look at. It would hopefully have some new supplies that she could use to tinker.

By the time she was done with her errands, curfew had already set in. Going into Central had been a bust and she had come back empty-handed, feeling worse than when she had left the house.

She didn't want to go back inside but she did. Neither Lockwood or George had seen her but she could hear them talking downstairs. Which meant that if she left the house again, one of them would come after her.

The entire company was capable of protecting themselves if they went out in the night but it wasn't safe. It was never safe, for any of them. Any manner of things could happen to them and none of them wanted to see another hurt even if they were arguing over something stupid like the toaster - which Anthony had replaced as promised.

Demi was sitting on the bottom step in the entranceway, glaring at the door, as if it had done her some great disservice. It shouldn't have bothered her that George hadn't apologised. He rarely did, not because he wasn't sorry but because he didn't understand why he had to apologise. Especially in the rare case where he didn't mean it. It all felt like a stupid formality to him.

But for once, she just wanted an apology.

As if he'd come straight from her mind, George came up the stairs from the kitchen. Demi didn't say anything. She shuffled to the side so he could go up the stairs if he wanted to but he paused and looked down at her a few steps up.

"Going out after curfew is stupid," George said. Demi didn't say anything. She didn't even acknowledge that he had spoken to her as her gaze stayed locked on the door, "God, girls are so dramatic," He mumbled as he walked up the stairs past Demi. She still said nothing.

Even if that comment made her seethe, she stayed completely silent. She wanted an apology and he would get the silent treatment until then.

"How long are you gonna do that?" Lockwood asked from the door to the kitchen. Demi lifted her head, looking at him through the gaps in the railings. She shrugged, "Don't give me the silent treatment too." There was a teasing to his tone but she just rolled her eyes. She put her head on the side of the railing and stared at the door again.

"He didn't apologise," Demi said simply as Lockwood came to sit beside her. He dropped down on the steps and she turned to look at him, a small frown on her lips. Anthony sighed, he leant back on the stairs. His elbows rested against the stair above him and he looked so effortlessly beautiful as he turned his gaze up to her face, "And don't say that I'm being petty because you are the same," She cut in before Anthony could get a word in. He chuckled, smiling with his teeth and amused by her words. He turned his gaze away from her.

"I suppose." It was a non-committal answer and so very Lockwood of him. She turned to look at him, admiring his face. The way his smile grew as he thought about the argument and how petty they all seemed to be. It was funny to him when he wasn't in the middle of the argument.

"I want to go out for a walk," Demi said after a moment of silence between the two. Anthony sighed as he turned his gaze down to her. His head tilted slightly as he looked into her eyes. He thought she looked so pretty in the dull light of the hall.

"You know you can't," He responded. She huffed in response and turned away. That's the same thing he always said. It was too dangerous, you can't do that. But she was an Agent, she should be allowed to go outside.

This was her job, if she couldn't even protect herself at night, how was she supposed to protect houses? And if Lockwood had just gone with her? It would have been fine. They would have been safe, together.

But she wasn't allowed. She never was.

Demi's elbows pressed against her thighs as she leant away from him. He gently reached out and took a hold of her shoulder, urging her to turn to look at him again. Looking at her kept him sane.

"I'm just going to go to bed. I'll be running in the morning anyway," She mumbled as she turned back to Lockwood but not in the way he had hoped. She was standing up, looking down at him as she stepped back away from the staircase and him.

"Do you need anything?" He asked, scrambling up from his seat just to be close to her. Demi shook her head and she headed towards the kitchen door, "Night, then," He said quickly. Demi looked back at him from the staircase.

"Night, Locky."