“Are you going to let me in or what?”
“Are you crazy? What are you doing here?” I stepped to the side as ferocious winds grabbed at my hair, pulled on my cardigan. Kioni quickly slipped out of the storm, and I fought against the winds to close the front door again, locked it in place.
Kioni stripped off her drenched coat, and I grabbed it from her, hung it from the coat rack. When I turned back around, she was fixing her hair.
“I borrowed Bibi’s car. You shouldn’t be alone in this right now,” she pulled off a boot, then the other, “You know how long I’ve been sitting in your driveway, counting how many steps it would take to get to the door before I got struck by lightning? That’s a real friend.”
My shoulders relaxed. “Oh, it was you in the window?”
“Me? No, why? Did you see someone in the window?” Her head cocked, gaze darting to the window.
“No, I guess not. It doesn’t matter.” I hugged her, just happy she was here.
Kioni squeezed me back, and when I released, she held up a finger before opening the bag in her arms. “I brought us some snacks. When was the last time you had a sleepover?”
Aside from Julian?“Um…never.” I laughed, then there was another knock at the door. “Now who in the world could that be?”
Kioni stepped behind me when I opened the door. The wind howled as two bodies pushed through the door and slammed it close behind them, the entryway feeling too small all of a sudden. Monday and Fable stared back and forth at Kioni and me.
“This is going to be a strange night,” Monday muttered.
“You’re telling me,” I pulled my cardigan around my waist, “What are you even doing here? You’re not welcome in my house!”
“You and me,” Monday’s finger waved between us, “We need to talk. You might hate me right now, but at least hear me out. Besides, you can’t kick me out when there’s a storm. That would be cruel.”
“Oh, so you have it all planned out.”
“Yeah, I kinda do,” Monday said, dropping her bag onto the floor beside the iron coat tree stand. “I brought Fable as a referee, but it looks like you have your own.”
“This is ridiculous. I don’t want to talk to you.” Thunder shook the house, and Monday lowered her eyes. Fable looked down the hall awkwardly. Kioni stood beside me with her arms crossed, eyes narrowed at the two of them. Did she not like them for a reason? I’d noticed it from day one, never thought to ask about it until now. “You can stay until the storm ends.”
“But no eating my Whoopie Pies,” Kioni blurted.
“No one wants your Whoopie Pies,” Monday scoffed.
Kioni rolled her eyes. “Everyonewants a Whoopie Pie.”
Fable lifted a finger. “Yeah, I might want a Whoopie Pie.”
“Oh, for fucks sake, stop with the Whoopie Pies,” I groaned.
The grandfather clock chimed, ringing in midnight. The four of us had been sitting in the living room. Not talking. We were all spread out by at least three feet. Fable and Monday on the far couch, one at each end. Kioni by herself on the longer sofa, and me back in Gramps’ recliner. It had been awkward as hell, but the storm was still going strong, and no one was leaving any time soon.
“I have an idea,” Fable blurted. She’d arrived in leggings and a large drawstring hoodie with a Voodoos logo, a skeleton in a top hat with neon colors. She unfolded her crossed arms. “Let’s drink. I’m sure Benny has good alcohol in this house somewhere. He’s a Grimaldi after all. Fallon, do you mind? Or …”
“Yeah, because alcohol solves everything,” Monday said from the other side of the couch.
“It’s fine.” I waved her off.
Fable stood from the couch. “Alcoholdoessolve everything … temporarily,” she muttered, walking around the couch, on her way to the kitchen. “At least it will get us through the night, because, hello … awkward.”
Monday’s gaze followed behind Fable when Kioni jumped up from the couch and headed for the stairs.
“Where are you going?” I asked, turning in the recliner, not wanting her to leave me alone in the room with Monday.
“There has to be something here we can do. I’m going to go look in the spare room, see if I can dig something up.”
The sound of pots banging against the floor echoed from the kitchen. “I’m good! Everything’s good!” Fable called out.
