Page 48 of Tilly in Technicolor
“Hi,” I say at last, feeling an odd mixture of annoyance and excitement at the surprise of seeing the last person I expected.
My sister.
Chapter 23Contemplating Sororicide
OLIVER
“What are you doing here?” I ask Cubby, stunned to see her. Despite our texting and trying to coordinate, I didn’t think our schedules would line up this summer while Cubby’s touring with her band.
“Ollie, truly, there’s no need to roll out the red carpet like this to greet me,” she says, rolling her eyes then throwing her arms around me in a hug. “I missed you,” she adds, giving me an extra squeeze before letting go. “I convinced the bandmates to skip some shithole pub in Odense so I could come see you instead.”
I glance over her shoulder for her usual crew of misfits: Darcy, Harry, and Cubby’s boyfriend, Connor.
“I left them back at our hostel,” Cubby says, reading my mind in that easy way she’s always been able to. “We can meet up with them later. I figured you and I could get dinner first and catch up.”
I nod, my fingers tapping wildly at my side as it slowly hitsme that Cubby, my favorite person, is actuallyhere.I tend to be a bit slow to process, and showing excitement doesn’t come naturally for me, but I’m thrilled to see her.
Cubby notices my tapping and grins, sliding past me into the room.
I turn to follow her and end up smacking into her back.
“Well, hello,” Cubby says, looking at Tilly, who’s standing like a frightened owl in the corner. “Who are you?”
Tilly glances at me, then back to Cubby, at me one more time, then down at herself, like she has no idea how to answer the question. Her cheeks are still the dusky pink they were a minute ago when I touched them. When I was hungry to kiss them.
“This is Tilly. She’s my… no… her… I…”
“I’m Ollie’s boss’s younger sister slash summer intern or whatever,” Tilly says, saving me from my endless sputtering. “Hi.”
“Of course,” Cubby replies slowly, a smile crawling across her mouth. “Ollie mentioned he was traveling with someone around our age.” She pauses. “He failed to mention how ridiculously stunning you are.”
There’s a fresh beat of silence, and I would like to, quite simply, die. Or murder my sister. Perhaps both.
Then, Tilly lets out a wild boom of laughter while I subtly pinch my sister’s arm. Cubby pushes me off and walks over to Tilly.
“It’s so great to meet you,” Cubby says, extending her arms in a hug.
Tilly hesitates for half a second before stretching out her own arms and hugging Cubby like they’re best friends.
“Okay, first things first,” Cubby says, pulling away from Tilly after a moment. “We absolutelymustvideo call Mums.”
Before I can get a word in, Cubby’s already stripped off her jacket, made herself comfortable on my bed, and is holding up her phone while a ringing fills the room.
The call is picked up in no time.
“Darling!” Mum’s voice trills across the line in greeting.
“Our sweet little cub,” Mãe says over her. “What city are you in today, my love?”
“Look who I’m with,” Cubby says, grabbing me by the elbow and pulling me down next to her, smooshing our faces together. My parents screech in unison, and it takes all my willpower not to slap my hands over my ears.
“Oliver, our wonderful boy, how we’ve missed that precious face!” Mum says, and my cheeks heat.
I accidentally glance at Tilly, and she’s staring at me and Cubby with a massive grin on her face. I blush even harder.
“Wait, where are you both?” Mãe asks again, leaning so close to the screen that we have a magnified view of her forehead.
“I surprised Ollie in Copenhagen,” Cubby says. “Although, based on the less than enthusiastic welcome I got from dear Oliver here, I think I must have interrupted something.”
