Page 8 of Rules of Association

“I’m pretty sure if you shake hard enough, a cloud of glitter would puff up and choke me.”

“You haven’t even seen the best part,” her grin turned serpentine, and that’s how I knew she wasreallyhaving fun.

Turning, she pointed out the window past the various relatives littered around the food and other festivities to three girls sitting where Ceci had just been. One, fair-skinned and round faced, was wearing a green feathered tube top and matching green mini skirt. The second, who had the trademark Fernandez dark hair, dark eyes, and deep olive skin, wore feathers too. Although she wore the least, her black feathers were still visible tacked onto the ends of the sensible black sleeves of her dress. Finally, the third girl—the one that looked like me with her dark skin, light brown eyes, and curling hair, wore a pale pink dress with short sleeves and a regular feather free neckline. It wasn’t until she rose to her feet to reach for something across the table that I saw the feathers along the bottom hem of her dress. I scoffed.

“How did you get them to agree to that?”

“They offered,” she shrugged, looking at me with mischief in her gaze. I called bullshit, staring down at her with accusing eyes. It only took her a few seconds to break. She laughed; the sound full of infectious happiness. “I told them if they didn’t dress up with me, their favorite stuff would start to go missing.”

Of course she did. Shaking my head I peeked out at the Bird-feather Squad again and chuckled. They looked ridiculous, and like me, they’d gone along with it to make Ceci happy. “Who broke first?”

“Who do you think?” she chuffed. “Your sister almost started swinging when I told her I would take that weird cow toy she keeps by their bed.”

My mouth wobbled, “You better watch out with her. She’ll actually do it.”

“I know she will!” Turning suddenly, she broke away from my grasp, her back facing me as she flipped her hair to one side while simultaneously pulling her ear forward. “See this mark? She clocked me on the side of the head with a rubber spatula not too long ago.”

“And what did you do to her first?”

“AllI said was that she was being a scared-ass punk for not going for her cookbook when we allknewthat’s what she really wanted to do, and if she was going to be a pussy about it then I had no time to listen to that crap,” she said, a little harumph edging her voice. It had been at least a year since Tine got her first cookbook picked up by a publisher, which meant this squabble had to be at least that old if not older.

I scoffed again. I scoffed a lot around this girl.

“Oh, well ifthat’sall you said.” Nodding thoughtfully, I pretended that I was agreeing with her. When I got her attention, her gaze flipping over her shoulder at me expectantly, I smiled with mock sweetness, adding,“Then you deserved it.”

Her mouth dropped open, a gasp escaping her like she couldn’t believe what I just said. The reaction pulled at the corners of my mouth. Seeing this, she smiled too, and as if the entitlement of her argument just floated away, she waved a hand through the air. “Anyway, what's up? Why did you signal me in here?”

“I can’t just want to wish you a happy birthday?”

She pursed her lips like she really needed to think about it. “You could…but my last happy birthday came with cake. If you can’t top that, then I don’t want it.”

I huffed, reaching into my back pocket and pulling out a long wrapped box, “Well it’s a good thing I have something for you then.”

Straightening, she looked from me to my hands and back to me, like she hadn’t expected that as my answer.

“But you already got me something. I found it on my pillow this morning,” she said, but her eyes grew wide with excitement as they tracked the box wrapped in blue wrapping paper. When I held it out to her, she peeked up to me as if she needed to confirm that I remembered leaving a different little blue box on her pillow before leaving her apartment this morning.

I did. I remembered it all vividly. Waking up in her guest bedroom after taking her annoying ass to the emergency room and staying with her until they strapped her into a thick black brace the length of half her forearm. Walking into her room the next morning, I remember seeing it against her blue sheets and blue pajamas and thinking how much it would clash with her theme today. I also remember leaving before I could watch her open her first present to have enough time to get her a second.

I already knew the little blue butterflies dangling on a white gold hoop would look good on her. And I could see how much she liked them now as they dangled from her dainty ears. She didn’t need to worry about it. I’d gotten them because they reminded me of her. This blue box was of a different price range. Just something to lighten her spirits on her birthday…not that anything could really dampen this girl’s spirits to begin with.

“I remember, Cee.” Reaching forward, I fingered the little earrings, watching them move as they swung on the hoop. “They look good on you.”

She beamed, her smile unapologetic at the compliment. Nodding to the box in my hands she bounced excitedly. “Then what’s this?”

“Last minute addition,” I said, nudging it forward for her to take.

As I thought, she needed no further coercing. She tore into the wrapping paper and then the box without a second protest. Seconds later, she was pulling out a small cylinder shaped garment made with tough poly fabric that laced down the front. It was almost identical to the one she wore on her wrist now, but instead of the ugly black it was her trademark blue. The same blue as all her favorite things. Her car, her clothes, even some of her furniture, taking on the same hue.

It hadn’t escaped me that even at one in the morning as she fought sleep and exhaustion Ceci still managed to ask the doctor if the brace came in different colors. I knew she was hoping for that same blue. As predicted, they didn’t have it for her. But it was her birthday, so I didn’t mind waking up a little early to go get it. I just hoped it paid off.

The excited look that overtook her eyes immediately told me it did.

“Hell yeah,” she whispered under her breath, doing a little bounce as she started pulling at the laces of her current brace.

“Woah, hey,” I said, my small bubble of happiness from seeing her so excited popping acutely as I watched her destabilizing the wrist I worked damn hard to get stable last night. “Don’t change itnow.”

“But I want to wear it now,” she said, continuing to undress her injuries. “This thing issougly, Con. I almost didn’t wear it today.”

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