“My mom’s making me pretend to be a part of this family. Be back in a few,” I replied before putting the phone away again.
“Well, look who decided to grace us with his presence. If it isn’t Mr. Tall, Dark, and Hostile himself,” Kira said with a snarky smile, referencing my exit earlier. It’d been six years since we’d last hung out, but she still spoke with the same air of dry sarcasm that I remembered.
I laughed a little and took a seat on the ottoman beside her, feeling the warmth of the fire against my face. “I would’ve come down sooner, but, you know…I didn’t really want to,” I replied honestly.
The twins laughed, understanding that my mother had forced me to socialize. “Still as broody and brash like always, I see,” Reina added.
I nodded casually and checked my phone again. “You know me. I’m nothing if I’m not consistent.”
“Touché,” Kira replied.
Reina’s eyes shifted over toward our mothers’ conversation. “Since when did the old ones start staying up past 10?”
I shrugged. “Who knows?”
“Ten bucks says they’re over there sharing recipes,” Reina guessed.
Kira disagreed. “Nope. They’re making those same phantom plans for both our families to travel overseas together. Watch this.”
She addressed her mother in Japanese because Mrs. Tanaka had always encouraged them to do so when speaking to her. I guessed it was her way of making sure that they were in touch with the culture despite the fact that they’d been born and raised here just like I had. When Mrs. Tanaka confirmed that she and my mother were in fact discussing a trip to Belize, Kira smiled. “Told you.”
“Here we go again. Good thing I’m old enough to opt out now. If I had to spend one more summer at that lake, I swear…” Reina said with a sigh.
Kira shrugged. “I don’t know; I didn’t mind it so much.”
“Big surprise there, Nerd. Could it be because you always had your nose buried in some dumb book?” Reina shot back coldly.
“Cunt… ”Kira muffled with a cough.
I laughed, but Reina didn’t think it was funny. “Don’t start,” she hissed in a whisper to keep their mother from hearing.
Kira mocked her sister wordlessly and I shook my head, realizing that they still had the same love/hate relationship even all these years later. Mostly it was Reina’s fault. She was the more assertive of the two and always tried to push Kira around. Unfortunately for Reina, while Kira was never one to start beef between them, she never backed down to being the one to finish it.
“This is not how I planned on spending my break. I should’ve stayed on campus and picked up some extra hours at work,” Reina complained. Clearly, I wasn’t the only one displeased with this arrangement.
“Calm down, kitten. I’m sure you’re pole will still be available when you get back. With any luck the baby oil still hasn’t dried on it,” Kira said with a slick smile. I looked away to laugh to keep from fueling their argument. “What’s fun to do around here?” She asked as if she hadn’t just insulted her sister.
“Movies, clubs, bowling, shopping. There’s plenty of stuff to get into.”
“When do you leave to go back to Westwood? It is Westwood, isn’t it?” Kira inquired.
I nodded. “Yeah. I head back Saturday.”
I met Kira’s gaze again when her stare persisted. “What?”
“Either you changed your name to Samantha, or there’s a girl who inspired that incredibly subtle tattoo on the side of your neck.”
I laughed. “Yeah, there’s a girl.”
The slightest hint of disappointment touched her eyes when she forced a smile.
“Been together long?” Reina chimed in.
“A year last month.”
“Oh, that’s cool.” Now when Kira spoke, she made sure that that look didn’t return. “You guys celebrate big?”