“Shit.” Claire gasped when the pants suddenly came off. Her weight shifted so quickly that she fell flat on her ass.
We both started laughing. She tossed the pants in my direction and pushed herself up to join me on the bed.
“Why the hell would you put these things on?” She waved at the jeans. “These aren’t big enough to fit a grade school kid.”
“They were my lucky pants.” I held them up, feeling nostalgic looking at them. “I had my first kiss in these… And I won a spelling bee shortly after.”
Claire laughed. “As one does.”
I sighed and tossed them across my bed. “Looks like I’m going to be needing some new luck.”
“You’re not the one that needs luck tonight.” Claire moved to my closet, disappearing behind the avalanche I’d created. There laid my color-coded system. I would have to spend the entire weekend rehanging my stuff.
“Leo should be shaking in his boots.” Claire reappeared with a dark purple dress in hand. It had long-sleeves with a scoop neck and wide skirt that would fan out when spun.
“I forgot I even had this.” My eyes widened. I took the dress from her and held it up to my body. “It’s perfect.”
“Shaking,” Claire repeated and nudged me towards the bathroom to change.
By the time I stepped out, she’d folded a few shirts from the rejection pile I’d created. She smiled when she watched me spin.
“Oh, my god.” She smiled and pulled me in for a hug. “I feel the pride of a big sister. You look amazing.”
I laughed too and held onto her. “You are my big sister, Claire. As close as I’ll ever get.”
She pulled back to show me how happy my comment made her. “Good. I thought…”
“What?” I frowned, worried about her change in tone.
“I thought after the break-up, you wouldn’t want to be as close. I know you have to take Nate’s side.” She shrugged like it was no big deal.
“Claire.” I hugged her tightly again. “You’re my family too. Families can’t survive on taking sides.”
“That means a lot.” She sniffed a bit. I hadn’t realized things had gotten so hard for her. I knew she often felt alone here in Florida. Her dad was a trucker, so he was barely home and the rest of her family was another state away. Nate and I were all she had and I couldn’t imagine how scary it must have been when Nate broke things off. Claire was a family person without a family.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered and in the apology was a promise to do better. To worry less about my silly rules and schedules and spend more time with her.
“Stop,” she said with a laugh and a wave of her hand. We let each other go so she could wipe away the few tears that fell on her cheeks. “Don’t apologize. None of this is your fault. I’m crying because I’m happy, Kira.”
“Still.” I walked over to grab a few tissues and helped her wipe away the running mascara. “I hate the thought of you being lonely when I know it scares you.”
Claire shook her head. “It’s a fear I had to face. The sooner the better, right?”
I twisted my mouth to the side, half in agreement. But it didn’t feel right, her facing fears on her own.
“Anyway, this isn’t my moment,” Claire decided with a roll of her shoulders. She was back to herself in a second, and I wasn’t sure if I should be concerned or grateful. “This is about you and, apparently, Leo.”
I laughed when she wiggled her eyebrows. “Why are you saying his name like that?”
“I don’t know.” She led the way to my desk where I kept a small mirror and bag of makeup. “Maybe because you’ve been crushing on him since you two met. And he’s felt the same about you.”
“You knew?” My eyes widened.
Claire picked up a rattail comb and parted my hair down the middle. “Kira, my love, you are many things, but an actress is not one.”
“I suppose not.” I blushed. “But how did you know about him, too?”
Her hands paused in my hair. I tried to turn my head around to see what was causing the hesitation. She placed her hand on the side of my head, keeping me from moving.
