Page 34 of I Wish We Weren't Related

“We needed you when we were kids,” interrupted Sita. “But all you’ve ever done is just do your own thing and ignore us. When Mum fucked off to Bollywood, you forgot about us and just focused on yourself. Like you always do.”

“I was a kid myself!” cried Reeva. “Why was it on me to save you all? I didn’t even know how!”

“Because there was nobody else,” shot back Sita. “Most older sisters would have become a surrogate mother if they were in your position. You did the opposite.”

“That’s not fair,” cried Reeva, wishing she didn’t sound so much like her teenage self as she said it. “I mean, I was a child. You can’t expect that from me. I did what I could. What else could I have done?”

“Speak to us maybe,” said Jaya. “And be an actual sister. Younever told us what you thought about anything. You always just... disappeared.”

Reeva stared at her in growing rage. She felt a familiar urge to swallow down her fury—and then ignored it. She didn’t know if it was all the massaging or the result of spending four days with her sisters, but something inside her had released. “Okay. You want to hear what I think? Fine. How about, I basically had a breakdown when you went off with Rakesh because I was abandoned by my boyfriendandmy youngest sister. Not to mention my other sister totally betraying me by siding with her! Jaya, having to deal with you getting engaged to Rakesh is the hardest thing I’veeverhad to do. And... and now... I have to be here with you both acting like everything is fine while we try to find out why no one ever told us our dad was alive! And the only theory either of you will even consider is the only one that makes me want to curl up and cry. Oh, and to top it all off, my brand-new boyfriend has stopped speaking to me because I gave him a blow job in our dead dad’s bed!”

There was a long silence. Sita and Jaya gawped at their sister in shock. Reeva stared back defiantly, but as seconds of silence passed by, the hot fury inside her dulled down. Instead, a cold wave of regret washed over her, settling into a steel lump inside her stomach. What had she just done? How—why—had she said all that to her sisters? This was so unlike her. The Ayurveda had gone to her head. She was the one who didn’t react, not the one who lost her shit. This was a mess. A disaster. A total fu—

Suddenly Jaya’s face twitched, and she burst into loud laughter. “You went down on Nick in Dad’s bed?!”

Reeva felt her jaw literally drop. As if Jaya was laughing at her! A choked sound emanated from the other side of the bathroom. Reeva whirled around and saw Sita was doing it too. Shecould not believe her sisters found this funny. “Are you kidding me? Seriously?!”

“I’m sorry,” said Sita, trying and failing to swallow her laughter. “I can’t stop imagining you and Nick while we’re all praying downstairs. It’s so retro. Who even gives blow jobs anymore?”

Reeva stared at her, speechless. And then the laughter caught her too. “Oh my god, I can’t believe I’m laughing at this.”

“It’shilarious,” cried Jaya, holding her stomach.

“It’s just... so... inappropriate,” gasped Sita.

“You think that’s bad,” snorted Reeva. “The worst part is that mid-oral, Nickstopsme. And says, ‘Sorry, I don’t want to come in your mouth while you’re still grieving.’ He didn’t feelcomfortabledoing it. Oh, and he didn’t say ‘come.’ He said ‘finish.’ ”

“No!” cried Jaya as Sita cackled loudly. “That’s the most British thing I’ve ever heard.”

Reeva sat on the bath mat, her shoulders shaking, as her sisters joined her.

“Oh god, we have to be quieter,” said Sita. “They’re praying downstairs.”

“Praying!” Reeva exhaled. “What have our lives become?”

“It’s fine, they’ll think we’re shrieking with tears,” said Jaya. “What with our dear dad having just departed and all.”

“And instead we’re discussing our older sister’s sex life. Who knew?” Sita paused. “Though, at least you have sex. That’s a long-forgotten dream for me.”

“Really? How long has it been?” asked Reeva.

“Years. Too many.”

“What?!”cried Jaya. “You still have it alone though, right?”

Sita raised an eyebrow. “Maybe once a year. I don’t have time for anything more than that; the girls are always there.”

Jaya looked at her, aghast. “I knew sex could die down afterhaving children, but I didn’t expect solo sex to do the same. Oh my god.”

“I wish I’d taken a break from sex,” said Reeva glumly. “Then I wouldn’t be dying with shame right now. Guys, you should have seen his face when he stopped me. It was this mixture of pity and... judgment. I felt like a kid getting told off at school.”

“Don’t worry; I’ve done worse,” replied Jaya. “I once shat on my ex. Anal. Top tip: Never eat a massive bowl of tiramisu before you do it up the bum.”

Reeva’s jaw dropped again. “Oh my god. I can’t believe that happened—or that you just told us!”

“Nitin and I had sex in Mum’s honeymoon suite at the Palace,” said Sita. “During the wedding.” She cocked her head. “Huh, that was probably the last time we actually had sex.”

“That was four years ago,” cried Jaya. “And ew!”

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