Page 38 of Barefoot Chaos
And it was nice.
We talked about everything and nothing, no topic too silly to discuss. I shared a bit about my mom, my sister, and the genre of books I read at night when all my papers were graded. I learned more about his family, the way he grew up, what he did in his spare time. We bonded over the fact that we'd had divorced parents. He hated being separated from his dad for such long periods of time. I believed him when he said he wanted to be around every single day for his kids, when that time came.
We never discussed our relationship or where we stood. It was all about getting to know each other and developing a deeper level of comfort with each other. We'd already been intimate, but I felt closer to him now, knowing who he was underneath all the tan and muscles and gorgeousness.
Friday night came quickly without any further run-ins with my Principal, and I was looking forward to a night of pajamas the moment I walked through my door. In my estimation, a frozen burrito, some light music, and a good book were the ingredients for a perfect night.
I was jammed up, as Esa would say, when my doorbell rang. I groaned, the first bite of burrito taunting me from my untouched plate, fresh out of the microwave. A quick look in the peephole showed my sister standing on my doorstep holding a plant.
I swung open the door and let her in, apologizing for my state of undress. She laughed me off and shoved the pot in my hands.
"Here. A housewarming gift." She breezed into my living room, leaving me to find a spot for my newly acquired plant.
When I made it to the living room, sans plant, I found her wolfing down my burrito.
"Oopth. Thorry, wa da for ou?" she mumbled with her mouth full of bean burrito deliciousness.
"I live alone, Rainna. Who else would it be for?" I crossed my arms, leaning against the doorway. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your company this fine evening?" A sickly sweet smile split my face as I unleashed my irritation in the form of sarcasm.
She wiped her mouth with the 'Books Are Life' napkin I'd meticulously placed under my plate earlier. "Well, I missed your actual housewarming a few years back, so I thought I'd remedy that now. Hence, the plant."
Okay, that was kind of nice. A lot nice. I dropped the false smile and flopped down on the couch next to her.
"Thank you. That's really thoughtful. I'll probably kill it with my black thumb in a matter of days, but the thought is very nice." I gave her a quick hug. "So what's new with you, sister dearest?" I hopped off the couch and waved at her to follow me into the kitchen. My stomach growled right on cue.
"I don't have a client till ten p.m. so I thought we could just hang out for a bit." She sat on a bar stool and watched me heat another burrito.
"Sounds good to me. I didn't have anything planned except relaxing." My phone buzzed with a new text on the counter. I leaned over and saw it was from Kai. I swiped it open and read it, quickly typing a reply and sending.
Rainna whistled. "Who's got you blushing and smiling like that, huh?" Then she began to sing-song like only an annoying sister could. "Hessa's got a new boyfriend...Hessa's got a new boyfriend."
"Shut it, woman!" I was embarrassed to be caught in the act, like a naughty teenager, but I really wanted to share my excitement with my sister. The microwave dinged, so I took the burrito and went back into the living room, Rainna trailing me.
"Details, give me details."
"Let me eat first and then I'll tell you everything you want to know. Wait. Almost everything."
"Ooooh! Those kind of details, huh? I can't wait." Rainna sat on the floor across from the coffee table and waited not-so-patiently for me to inhale my burrito. Her eyes sparkled and her skin glowed. She looked good, which was nice to finally see.
I took my time with the last bite, making sure to chew it at least one hundred times before swallowing, and then wiping my mouth thoroughly. Rainna glared at me, knowing I was doing it just to annoy her. Then the doorbell rang again and I laughed out loud at her expression.
"Nooooo!" she whined. I hopped up and looked through the peephole again, seeing a crowd on my doorstep.
"Prepare thyself!" I yelled back to Rainna. I swung the door open a second time that night and let in the circus. Also known as the Beach Squad.
After all the introductions were done, I opened the bottles of wine the girls brought and handed out wineglasses. Rainna declined, opting for water instead, which impressed me. I didn't have enough furniture for everyone, so half of us settled on the floor with minimal squabbling.
Bailey leaned over to me while the girls were still shouting over each other about the nuances of white versus red wine and passed me an envelope. "I looked into that thing we talked about. Found some interesting things. But remember, I had nothing to do with the information you have there. Got it?"
I took the envelope, winked my acceptance, and put the envelope on my counter to be opened later when I was alone. I was curious to see what she'd found, but knew there was nothing I could do about it right this minute, anyway. I’d look at it tonight, sleep on it, and then approach Jack with the information if I felt it would help the investigation.
As soon as I sat back down, Esa shushed everyone and all eyes landed on me.
"What?" I asked, bewildered.
"You've got some 'splaining to do, Lucy!" Shasta said with a ridiculous Ricky Ricardo accent.
"That was bad, real bad," Bailey muttered into her wineglass.
