“If I go over there, I’m going to want to smooth things over,” I warned. “It’s impossible not to.”
Nate didn’t look convinced. “Have you ever tried not fixing?”
“No, but-”
“Ah.” He held up his finger for my silence. “Listen, Kira. I’m only going to say this once: mouth closed and mind your own business. No more hand-holding. Let the adults figure their stuff out.”
“We are also adults now,” I pointed out.
“What did I just say about mouth closed?” He flicked my nose like he used to when we were kids. “You’re so hardheaded.”
He joined our parents, and I tried not to drag my feet as I fell in step behind him. Greetings had already been exchanged between the couples. From the looks of it, no blood was close to being shed. Thank goodness.
“This is our oldest, Nate.” Mom reached for my brother’s arm with a bragging look in her eyes. Funny. After their argument in the kitchen when the girls were over and Leo was… with me, they’d barely said a word to each other. Now she was pulling him over like he was her most prized possession.
“He’s swimming at Amber U,” she gushed.
“Oh, wow. Congrats. I heard that program’s hard to get into.” The blonde smiled up at Nate. She seemed genuinely impressed. The one with the bun didn’t look as sold. But gave him a quick smile anyway.
“Our twins are swimming at Lincoln Tech in the fall,” the blonde continued and gestured to the two girls who were now getting out of their pool. Their skin was a few shades darker than mine. They wore their hair in cornrows that reached down their back with gold beads hanging on the end.
“Hey,” the taller one greeted with a wide smile. She grabbed a towel her mom offered her and wiped her face before saying, “You guys must be the Andersons.”
Mom nodded, tilting her head slightly to take in the girl in front of her. I think I was the only one that could tell she was sizing her up.
“I’m Ember.” The smiling girl offered her hand to Mom first. “And that’s my sister, Cassie.”
Cassie offered a wave without a smile before starting towards their set of chairs near the pool. She looked a little annoyed, but maybe I was projecting. I did that a lot when I spent too much time worrying if someone was going to call my parents out.
Years ago, when I was in grade school, some random guy called Mom a bitch for “lying her way to a gold,” out of nowhere. We’d gone on a grocery store run, just her and me. Being her usual self, Mom fought back. She fought for so long a crowd formed and I backed away because of all the noise. We got separated for a half hour before she realized I’d found a corner to hide in. She yelled at me for leaving her side. After that, I was always terrified of someone randomly deciding today was the day to express their outrage.
“Are you guys doing the relay too?” Ember asked. Her eyes were large, making her look naturally sweet and curious. She kept looking towards Nate to contribute to the conversation. He stayed quiet.
“Think you have a fan,” I whispered in his ear as Mom took control of the conversation.
“Excuse me?” He glanced over at Ember.
I raised a brow when a frown appeared on his face. “What?”
“Nothing.” He shook his head. “Come on. Let’s warm-up together.”
My stomach dropped. I’d hope some miracle would allow me to avoid getting in the water today. Leo had me start on my arms recently, but I was nowhere near warm-up capable. It was a challenge just getting myself a few feet away from the edge of the pool.
“Actually…” I lingered near the group.
Nate eyed me. “What’s wrong?”
“I ate breakfast kind of late.”
“You’ll be fine,” he insisted. “That rule’s a myth.”
“I could stand to go a few more laps,” Ember interjected.
All eyes turned to us. I shrunk back a little, not liking the extra attention.
“We were supposed to be filming for Insta,” Ember explained and motioned for her sister to come back over. “What are you guys’ handles? I’ll tag you. It’ll be a cool way to raise some awareness about the event.”
“I have a private account,” I informed as she took the phone from Cassie.
