A month later
The flight was onlythree hours, but I feel like it was ten, as I pull my hot pink wheeled carry-on case through the jet-way toward the gate’s exit. Bradley said he would be meeting me at baggage claim with Katarina, and her two sisters, so we can all go over to the house together. I’m not sure what time they flew in, but hopefully, no one has been waiting long. I’m anxious to meet Katarina, my future sister-in-law. That still sounds weird.
The airport doesn’t seem too large as I already see signs for the baggage claim area. I retrieve my phone from my pants’ back pocket and thumb in a quick text to Bradley, letting him know I’ve arrived.
By the time my text goes through, I’m on the escalator that will dump me into the open spaces between the baggage carousel. I glance around in search of a shiny, bald head, but none of the lights seem to be reflecting enough. Bradley has been stark bald since his freshman year of college. He had a receding hairline by the age of seventeen and couldn’t handle the sight of his thinning hair, so he shaved it all off and has been shaving it ever since.
I make my way over to carousel B, where my luggage will arrive. I only brought two large suitcases with me and shipped the rest. The thought of traveling with more than a couple of bags stressed me out. It’s okay though; my other belongings should arrive within the next two days.
With my phone still gripped within my hand, I glance down, noticing my text to Bradley never went through. The little green bar at the top of my display shows it’s still sending. Great. I don’t have any service. I’ll need to connect to the airport’s Wi-Fi.
“There she is,” I hear Bradley’s familiar voice. I turn in a circle, searching for my brother, but I don’t recognize him.Mybrother ... because he has a full head of hair now. That’s um, weird.
“Oh, my gosh, I didn’t see you,” I tell him, ignoring the hair and throwing my arms around his neck. Bradley is at least ten inches taller than I am, but he’s lucky to have those ten inches because Mom is barely five-two and Dad rounds up to five-seven. The tall height gene does not run in our family. I’m the shortest at five-one. Wrapped in Bradley’s bear hug, I inhale an unfamiliar scent. He never liked to wear cologne because certain fragrances make his throat swell. Yet, I'm worried aboutmythroat with as strong a scent as whatever he’s wearing.
“You’re still just as little as I left you,” he teases, scruffing up my hair with a claw-like grip.
“You’re not as bald as I left you,” I commented.
“You like it? Kat convinced me to go for a hair transplant. I didn’t think it was going to work, but it did,” he says, running his fingers through the silky amber waves. I had almost forgotten we had the same color hair.
“It’s different. I’ll have to get used to it,” I tell Bradley, reaching up to touch it, acting as though it might jump out and bite me.
“It’s real, I swear.”
It is silky and smooth. It’s nice. The hair does feel real. “That’s great. I’m glad you have hair again.”
“Are you ready to meet your future sister-in-law?”
“Bradley,” I say, sounding like I have a loaded statement to follow. “How long have you and Katarina been together? It’s weird that I haven’t met her yet and you’re already engaged. Your surprise text message/engagement announcement kind of stung a little. We’re close, you know?” At least, wewereclose. I guess I’ve been busy with school this past year, and he’s been busy becoming a full-fledged adult or something along those lines.
Bradley looks smitten as he finds the words to respond. With a flinch and a shrug, he sighs and says, “We met just over a year ago, and … well, we have been sort of inseparable since.”
“Sort of?” I question, watching the green light in the center of the carousel blink on and off.
“Well, you know—normal relationship wear and tear. We took a little break a few months ago after a fight we had, but things have been great since then.”
Yeah, I don’t know if it’s my place to tell him a breakup within a year, followed by a proposal doesn’t seem super impressive to me, but who am I to judge? I haven’t had a relationship last longer than a couple of weeks throughout the last six years. “And you want to move to Virginia?” I question.
“No, I don’t, but we all have to grow up at some point and do things we don’t necessarily want to do, right?”
Yeah, again, I just—something doesn’t sound right. “I guess.” What do I know? I’ve been a college graduate for less than a week. “Well, if you’re happy, I’m happy.” He doesn’t seem to be over the moon happy, not like he was with his ex, Risa, years ago. She broke his heart when she moved to Italy to study fashion. I shouldn’t be so quick to judge when I haven’t seen them interact, but this should be interesting. I’ll call it sibling instinct.
A loud rumble from a motor ensues, and the carousel jumps to life, slowly moving counterclockwise while a plane-full of people anxiously wait for their luggage. Everyone is doing the best they can to stand as close as possible to the small black door flaps where the luggage will be arriving.
One bag drops out, and an object I can’t quite make out parts the zipper. The closer it comes, the clearer the situation—an exposed pair of men’s underwear is what is on display. I’d leave my luggage here if that was mine.
“How was your flight?” Bradley asks.
“It was fine. It was a flight without nuts, pretzels, or water. I had to pay five dollars to use the bathroom and five more to turn the air on above my head.”
“What in the world? No nuts?” Bradley raises a father-like brow at me.
“I’m kind of kidding, but this à la carte business has gone too far.”
“Yeah, I hear ya. We just got back from Brussels a few weeks ago, and we had to pay more for our food on the way home than what we paid for our seats.”
Brussels. He’s living quite a lavish life at twenty-seven. I might sound jealous if I were to say that out loud, but I’ve been living in a tiny two-bedroom apartment in downtown Hartford with Gracie. With how expensive the rent was, it was kind of like we were living in a modern-day prison. I’ve been in school prison. Now, I have two college degrees and no job offer. What was the point?
