Garett Graham x sister oc
The call came halfway through Briar's home game.
The arena was loud, packed with students and fans dressed in Briar colors, the energy crackling through the building like electricity. The hockey team was in the middle of the second period, battling for possession, while up in the stands, Phil Graham sat watching with the intense focus of a man who treated every hockey game like it was the Stanley Cup Finals.
His daughter, however, was nowhere near the arena.
She was currently standing beside Garett's truck on the side of a road twenty minutes away, staring at the crumpled front bumper with growing horror.
The words left her mouth for the hundredth time.
She had only borrowed the truck for the day.
Garett had tossed her the keys that morning without even asking why.
"Bring it back with gas in it."
That had been the only condition.
Now the front end was dented, one headlight was shattered, and she was pretty sure Garett's beloved truck looked like it had lost a fight.
Her hands shook as she stared at her phone.
The accident itself hadn't even been terrible.
A distracted driver had stopped suddenly in front of her and she'd slammed the brakes, but not fast enough.
The other driver was fine.
But Garett's truck definitely wasn't.
She could already imagine the disappointment.
Of course somehow Phil Graham already knew.
The man possessed supernatural abilities when it came to discovering things he wasn't supposed to know.
"What happened to the truck?"
The same voice Garett hated.
"The accident wasn't my fault—"
"You crashed Garett's truck?"
"You didn't mean to?" Phil repeated. "Do you have any idea how irresponsible—"
Her shoulders instinctively curled inward.
Even at her age, that tone still made her feel twelve years old.
"Sorry doesn't fix a truck."
Phil's voice immediately hardened.
She gave him the location.
And suddenly she wished she'd been hit by a meteor instead.
Forty minutes later, she found herself standing beside the damaged truck while Phil examined it like a detective investigating a crime scene.
The look on his face wasn't helping.
Neither was the fact that he kept sighing.
Each reaction made her feel worse.
The words landed harder than she expected.
Her eyes immediately dropped to the ground.
"Do you know how hard Garett works for things like this?"
"You borrow someone's vehicle and this is what happens?"
"You should've been paying attention."
"I was paying attention."
Her fingers clenched into fists.
The guilt had already been eating her alive all afternoon.
Now every word felt like someone digging the knife deeper.
The sharpness in his voice made her flinch.
And somehow that only seemed to irritate him more.
"You need to learn responsibility."
"You need to start thinking before you—"
The voice came from behind them.
Garett was standing there.
Still wearing part of his hockey gear.
His jersey hung loose over his shoulder pads, his hair damp with sweat from the game.
And judging by the expression on his face, he'd arrived at exactly the wrong moment.
His eyes immediately landed on his sister.
The way her shoulders were curled inward.
The way she refused to look up.
The way her eyes looked suspiciously glassy.
"She crashed your truck."
Then looked at his sister.
She waited for the explosion.
Instead Garett walked directly toward her.
The question sounded almost impatient.
Like he couldn't understand why nobody had answered it yet.
Like a giant weight had just fallen off his shoulders.
His hand immediately landed on the back of her head.
"You scared the hell out of me."
Meanwhile Phil looked annoyed.
Garett finally glanced toward it.
His sister looked between him and the truck.
"Because I crashed your truck."
The words came so casually that she almost wanted to cry.
Phil clearly wasn't impressed.
"You spent a lot of money on that truck."
Garett looked at him like he'd asked whether water was wet.
The resemblance between them was impossible to miss.
The difference was everything else.
"She needs to understand consequences."
The silence that followed felt heavy.
His sister immediately recognized the look on Garett's face.
The one that appeared whenever Phil started pushing too hard.
Garett stepped slightly closer to her.
Not enough to be obvious.
A big brother placing himself between her and the storm.
"The accident wasn't her fault."
"She still crashed the truck."
Garett stared right back.
Then he pointed toward the dented bumper.
The words hit harder than anyone expected.
And his expression softened immediately.
"If I'd gotten a call saying she'd been seriously hurt, do you think I'd care about a bumper?"
Because everyone knew the answer.
Then gently squeezed her shoulder.
"I don't care about the truck."
The guilt she'd been carrying all day suddenly felt heavier.
His attention immediately shifted toward her.
The concern in his eyes was genuine.
That somehow made everything worse.
Because now she really wanted to cry.
"You absolutely did not."
His expression softened even more.
Without hesitation he pulled her into a hug.
The kind only Garett could manage.
The kind that felt like being wrapped in a weighted blanket.
She buried her face against his chest.
And finally the tears came.
Not because of the accident.
But because she'd spent the entire day terrified Garett would be furious.
And instead he'd shown up worried about her.
She laughed weakly through her tears.
Then pressed a kiss against the top of her head.
"Next time you borrow my truck..."
"...try not to hit anything."
A surprised laugh escaped her.
And maybe that was the thing about Garett Graham.
For all his recklessness.
For all the trouble he caused.
When it came to the people he loved, there was never any hesitation.
The truck could be repaired.
Money could be earned again.
But standing safely in his arms was his little sister.
And as far as Garett was concerned, that meant the only thing that truly mattered had survived the crash.
_____________________________________
The atmosphere somehow managed to become even more tense after Garett pulled her into that hug.
She remained tucked against his side, wiping at her eyes while Garett kept one arm draped across her shoulders. It wasn't even a conscious gesture anymore. The second she looked upset, Garett's protective instincts kicked in automatically.
Unfortunately, Phil wasn't done.
The older man crossed his arms and looked between the damaged truck and his daughter.
Phil's expression remained firm.
"No allowance for six months."
The words hung in the air.
His sister immediately froze.
Like he genuinely thought he'd heard wrong.
"What are you talking about?"
"Actions have consequences."
"No allowance for six months."
His sister's stomach sank.
That wasn't a small punishment.
And judging by the look on Phil's face, he wasn't joking.
Garett's arm tightened around her shoulders.
"She was in an accident."
"An accident she caused."
"That's not what happened."
"You need to learn responsibility."
The irony almost made Garett laugh.
Instead, his expression darkened.
His sister felt it immediately.
The one that happened whenever Garett was genuinely angry.
Garett looked right back.
The single word was calm.
"You don't get to decide that."
His sister immediately looked between them.
The word came out sharper than intended.
The silence that followed was uncomfortable.
His sister wished she could disappear.
Maybe crawl into the damaged engine compartment.
Maybe live there forever.
Then Phil made the mistake.
"Maybe if she actually faced consequences for once—"
Garett immediately stepped forward.
His arm never left her shoulders.
"You don't get to do that."
"Talk about her like she's standing ten feet away."
Garett stared right back.
His sister suddenly felt very small standing between them.
Or rather, behind Garett.
Because somehow she'd ended up behind Garett.
Like her brother had subconsciously positioned himself there.
His sister physically felt Garett stiffen.
The air around him seemed to change.
A short disbelieving laugh.
Then he pointed toward her.
"She spent the entire day terrified I'd be angry."
"She nearly cried herself sick worrying about my stupid truck."
"And now you're standing here trying to make her feel worse?"
The words came out instantly.
Seen the way she'd been shrinking into herself every time Phil raised his voice.
For a long moment nobody spoke.
Then Phil crossed his arms.
Then something shifted in his expression.
Something undeniably Graham.
The response came immediately.
Garett took a step forward.
But underneath it was something powerful.
"You may have given birth to her."
His sister's eyes widened.
Garett pointed toward himself.
Even the traffic nearby seemed quieter.
His sister simply stared at him.
Because Garett wasn't joking.
For years he'd been the one helping with homework.
The one making sure she ate.
The one answering late-night calls.
The one protecting her whenever things got hard.
The one who always stood between her and the world.
But in every way that mattered.
Phil looked completely speechless.
Garett took advantage of that.
The abrupt change nearly gave her whiplash.
"So crying burns calories."
That was not how science worked.
But Garett was already grabbing her hand.
And just like that he started dragging her away.
She stumbled after him while Phil called his name behind them.
The hockey player simply raised one hand without looking back.
A universal not today gesture.
His sister couldn't help laughing.
"You're going to get in trouble."
"I'm already in trouble."
Twenty minutes later they were sitting inside Malone's.
The familiar restaurant buzzed with conversation and music.
The second they'd walked through the door, Garett had immediately claimed a booth in the corner.
Now his sister sat across from him surrounded by enough food to feed a small army.
Garett's logic was simple.
His sister stared at the table.
Garett shoved fries toward her.
Eventually Garett noticed the color returning to her face.
The tension slowly leaving her shoulders.
That was the entire goal.
He leaned back in his booth.
A few minutes later she glanced up.
Garett immediately softened.
The thing she'd been carrying all day.
He reached across the table and stole one of her fries.
"I'm gonna tell you something."
"If I had to choose between my truck and you..."
He popped the fry into his mouth.
"That's not a fair comparison."
The answer came so fast it wasn't even funny.
His expression turning serious.
And somehow they meant more than any speech ever could.
A moment later Garett ruined the emotional atmosphere entirely.
"If you do crash my next truck though..."
"...at least pick something cooler than a bumper."
She threw a french fry at him.
Garett laughed so hard he nearly choked on his milkshake.
And for the first time since the accident, she laughed too. The kind of laugh that loosened the knot in her chest.
Because the truck could be repaired.
The bumper could be replaced.
But Garett Graham had made one thing very clear.
No matter how angry the world got.
No matter who was yelling.
No matter what mistakes she made.
Her big brother would always be standing right beside her, ready to throw himself between her and the storm, then drag her to Malone's afterward and force-feed her fries until she smiled again.