I open my door quietly and peer round the corner into thehallway. The sliding glass doors that lead to the living room are still closed, and I can hear the TV from here. I stealth-walk past, and my phone buzzes as I step into the kitchen. I gently close the door and dump my trash before looking at it.
Alessandra:On my way to see you both, I have been worried. A
Dad must have asked her to check in with me. She already sent two texts last night and one this morning that I left on read.
Oh god. I better tell Izzy. I take a deep breath, square my shoulders and walk to the living room, sliding the door open a sliver. “Erm, Iz? Can I come in?”
“Your house,” she replies shortly.
It’s not really my house, but I don’t bother to correct her. We don’t need to argue any more right now. I push the door the rest of the way open but don’t step inside. There’s a twenty-four-hour news channel playing on the TV and Izzy is still wearing her pajamas. She’s sitting cross-legged on the floor, Kim’s tarot deck spread out before her again. She doesn’t look at me.
“Alessandra is on her way.”
That does it. Izzy’s head snaps up and she narrows her eyes at me. “Why?”
“I forgot to text her back last night. And this morning.” I wince. “So she’s checking on us in person. I know we’re not talking, but—”
“But we don’t want her to tell your dad we’re fighting on top of everything else.” She looks up guiltily. “I heard you talking toyour mom.” She looks at the sofa, which is still dressed up as a makeshift bed. “I’ll put that back in your room.”
“Thanks,” I say, and Izzy pushes herself to standing, gathers the bedding and tiptoes round the tarot cards as she leaves the room. “Leave it in there, if you want?” I add.
“Okay,” she says without turning round, but I know she’s accepted my olive branch. No doubt she’ll make me talk it out later, because that’s what Izzy does, but for now we can present a united front. I have to admit, I’m dying to tell her what I found today, but I should probably wait a bit before bringing up The Four again.
I return to the kitchen and put the kettle on, hoping a cup of tea will prove how sensible and civilized we are. Luckily, we’ve kept the place pretty tidy, so I pull some clean cups from the dishwasher and listen to the gentle roll of the boiling water as I search the cupboards for Kim’s glass teapot. I finally find it tucked into the back of the mug cupboard as Izzy returns and hovers at the threshold, dressed now in baby blue sweatpants and a matching cropped sweater.
“I shut your bedroom door,” she says, looking at her bare feet. “In case Alessandra goes to the bathroom or something.” She’s seen that I’ve ripped everything off the wall, then. I wait for her to make a snide comment, but she just looks at me with her big doe eyes. “Maybe we can go and buy some paint tomorrow, to cover it up before your dad and Kim get back?”
“That’s a good idea, thanks,” I say, gratefully accepting the peace offering without having to get into it. The kettle clicks,fully boiled, so I turn my attention back to tea as I mumble the next words. “Iz, I’m sorry.”
“Me too,” she replies. We let the words hang in the silence for a second, and then she comes up behind me and squeezes me in a bear hug. “This week has been like something from a horror movie, hasn’t it?”
“Yep,” I sigh. I pat her hands, and she lets me go.
“Are you making a pot of tea?” she asks, head cocked.
“I’m trying to look like a competent adult,” I admit, holding up the jar Kim keeps the loose tea in. “Do you just, like, put this in hot water?”
“I guess?” Izzy peers inside the pot. “There’s a little metal strainer. I think the tea goes in there and you fill the pot with water.”
“That makes sense.” I spoon some of the loose leaves into the mesh and then pour some hot water over the top until the dried leaves darken and swell. “It smells good, anyway.”
“Well done.” Izzy pats me on the back as the doorbell rings. She flinches. “Are we going to get a talking-to for not being in touch after what happened to Jen?”
“I really don’t know,” I admit. “I’ll answer it. You find some biscuits or something.” I approach the front door, my insides doing some sort of complicated Irish jig. As I’m pulling it open, I realize I should have checked the peephole, but luckily it is Alessandra. She sighs when she sees me.
“Thank god, youareokay,” she says, tsking at me before ushering me back inside. I hold the door open for Alessandra as she’sladen down with bags, and I point in the direction of the kitchen before closing it and following her. “After everything that has been going on, I was worried when you did not text me back. I almost called your father!”
“I’ve been speaking to him, I promise,” I say. “I’m sorry, I meant to text back but…” I trail off. I don’t have a good excuse.
“You have had a terrible week, I understand, but I have been thinking about you all day, and it felt wrong to go another evening and not see you both.” Izzy and I watch in awe as she starts to unpack the bags, stacking Tupperware containers onto the kitchen table and filling the room with a smell that can only be described as heavenly.
“I know you are probably living off fast food, so I cooked. There is bruschetta to start and some gnocchi and cheese tortellini with tomato sauce, enough for the next couple of days.”
“Thank you, you really didn’t have to,” I say as I try not to salivate on the spot. Instead, my stomach rumbles loud enough for all three of us to hear.
“I see it was a good idea.” Alessandra finally breaks into a smile, and I look at her properly. Her long hair is pulled into ahigh ponytail and she’s wearing the sort of all-black athleisure wear that could almost convince me to go to the gym. Even off duty, she’s the most glamorous person I know. “I will go now I have seen you both with my own eyes.”
“Oh, don’t go yet. Fliss made tea!” Izzy says, sounding so proud I can’t help but laugh. “I’ll bring it into the living room, if you want to make yourself comfy. Just don’t slip on the tarot cards.”
