“What’s an ITZY?”
“Hello, only like one of my favorite K-POP groups.“
Shit, I had definitely gotten her a birthday present from the wrong group then…Maybe I still had time to return it. “What happened to BLACKPINK?”
“Oh I love them too, but I’ve already seen them live like twice.” Crisis averted. “This is my first time seeing ITZY, so I’m really excited. We tried to get tickets for the commuter line, but they sold out immediately, and I’d really like to not pay for a hundred-dollar Uber.”
“So naturally you want your big brother to play chauffeur?”
“We have a couple of spare tickets from some friends who bailed. We were going to sell them, but you can have one?” sheoffers, her puppy dog face intensifying enough to make me cave.
“It’s fine. I’ll drive you.”
I pull the phone further away as she starts screaming. “THANK YOU, thank you. You’re the best big brother ever.”
“Yeah, yeah. Let me know what time I should pick you up.”
“You wanna hit up Cornwall’s this Saturday?” Ollie asks, stretched out on the couch while I prepare dinner for the house.
“Can’t. I have to drive Sienna to Foxborough.” I throw the pasta into the sauce that’s been simmering on the stove for the past hour, adding extra salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
“Sienna? I can drive her if you want.”
“Then how would we both go to Cornwall’s?” I loved Oliver but sometimes I had no idea how his brain worked.
“...Right. My bad. How’s the food going?”
“It’s ready. Feel free to dig in. I’m going to take some over to Eliana.” I nod to the giant pot on the stove and the Tupperware filled with food.
I hadn’t heard from Eliana all day, and at the risk of sounding like an extra clingy boyfriend, I missed her. A lot. Her Google calendar informed me that she was swamped this week and I had no intention of adding additional stress to her life. But I was hoping that I could hang out in her room while she worked.
When Nicole opens the door, I assume Eliana’s out. Likely at the library to increase her efficiency. “The library holds a certain aura of anxiety that makes me go into hyper-productive mode” she’d once confessed to me. I made her take an extra long break that day. Nicole gives me a slightlyconcerned look before stepping aside and gesturing to the dining room.
A sense of joy fills my chest when I hear the sound of Eliana’s contagious laughter fill the apartment. She didn’t do that enough. Another thing I would have to change.
“Now I need to figure out how to make you laugh like that after one of my jokes.” I freeze when I notice a kid sitting next to Eliana.
Their similar features clue me in to who she might be. Josie. Eliana likely would have informed me about this, which probably meant this wasn’t a planned trip. I try to gauge how she’s feeling, but her eyes are locked on her sister.
“Hi. I’m Jake.” I smile at the child, who holds her chin up at me.
“So you’re the boyfriend.” She eyes me down like she’s not sure what to think of me yet. Evidently my first impressions with both Jasper women would be rough.
“That would be me. And you must be the incredibly smart and funny little sister?”
“Flattery will win you some points, but I have more questions for you.” She cracks her knuckles like a mob boss, then points to the seat across from her. “Sit down. We have a lot of things to discuss.”
“Josie! Stop harassing him.” Eliana exclaims, pressing her lips together to suppress a smile.
“No, it's fine. I imagined this day would come.” Eliana spoke about her little sister the way a proud mom would. She also emphasized how she admired Josie’s ability to speak her mind and stick up for herself. “Please continue.”
Josie stares me down. “State your name, age, and occupation.”
“Jake Keeley, 22, Westchester U Hockey Player and alternatecaptain. You watch a lot of crime shows, don’t you? Probably with your older sister, right?”
“I’ll be asking the questions today,” Josie states. “Your intentions with my sister?”
“To make her happy.” Josie gives me a look that screams, “Well duh.” My palms started to feel clammy. Damn, she was really sweating me out. “And to support her. In any way that I can.”
