Page 37 of Tiebreaker

"She's talking to our other uncle," Rose says, with the solemnity of a child who's used to being the older sibling. "Turner's too loud, so we had to come here."

"I am not," Turner argues.

"Found the cookies," Kai says, pulling out a crinkly package of Oreos.

Turner is all grabby hands as he takes the package from Kai and runs out of the room.

"Do you want to help me make the tea?" I asked Rose.

She's beautiful and I know she's going to be in a lot of trouble when she grows up. Beautiful women always are. She nods and Kai leaves us to it, saying something about having to make sure Turner doesn't destroy everything. I'm not sure how I got roped into this tea making party but I'm not against it. It's kind of nice even. I look over the partition, to where Kai is having a tickle fight with Turner, trying to recover the entire packet of cookies and Rose says something so quietly I can barely hear her.

"What was that?" I ask.

"Are you our Auntie now since you live here like Uncle Vince, and Uncle Kai?" "They're not really our uncle's you know," she says, in a whisper like it's a secret. "Only uncle Everett is."

That's news to me. I didn't know Everett had a sibling, let alone a sister who had kids. I guess I should have asked him, at some point last night in between him being a jerk and eating me out in the limo. My mind reels back from that memory because I'm standing next to a child and I don't want to start blushing.

"I'm not sure," I tell her as honestly as I can. "I don't really know what I am."

She nods, "I think that's a problem most adults have," she says, and I laugh surprised at the unexpected wisdom coming from a child.

"Tea's ready," I tell her as the kettle boils. "Why don't you go in and see if you can get some cookies for us."

She sighs happily, "Mom's always too busy," she says, "And Uncle Everett doesn't know how to do tea, he just likes coffee."

She makes a face like that's the grossest thing in the world to her.

"Coffee is all right," I say, "But tea is better." "What about your grandparents?"

My curiosity suddenly piqued remembering Everett's comment from the night before that I'd never meet his parents.

She shrugs, "Dad's parents are too busy too, they live in England and mom doesn't have parents anymore."

Somehow I'm not surprised, so he's an orphan. Looks like Everett Layton is part of the dead parents club just like me. I have to laugh internally. No wonder he said I'd never met his parents. It wasn't meant to be an insult, it was just the truth.

"Do you think if I gave you a tray with some mugs on it you could carry it into the living room?" I asked her.

She nods enthusiastically, and I load her up before bringing the kettle with me. As I sat on the floor around the coffee table, I noticed that Kai's apartment is decorated differently from mine. It's all steel blues, denims, grays, with a dark leather couch, unlike the white leather in min.

"They'll just be here for a little bit longer," Kai says to me under his breath as I sit down next to him.

"It's fine," I say, "I dropped in on you and I'm sorry about that."

He watches me carefully as I pour the tea. Turner and Rose are talking to each other, and Kai has turned the TV on to distract them. Their attention wavers in and out from us, to the TV behind them.

"How is your event with Everett?" he asks.

Little flashes of Everett's head between my legs, the silk of his hair in my fingers, the hateful way he looked at me. All of it swirls around inside my mind. I don't know what to tell him, I just shake my head and said,

"It was alright. Confusing, I guess. I don't know why he invited me."

Kai lets out a half of a laugh.

“I think he's just trying to get you on his side," he says.

And then he edges closer to me. His fingers brushed against mine, where my hands are resting on the carpet and I glanced at him. The electric shock up my arm sends me in a shiver.

"I only matter until the merger,” I say.

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