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We didn’t all end up here by accident. It started with Quinn and Robbie, who both happened to apply and get accepted. Then Liam and Lane followed, also ending up in Chicago. By the time Maverick was submitting college applications it had become a running joke that we’d all end up in Chicago. Except both him and Kodiak were accepted too. Then Lacey, Lovey, and BJ all applied. By the time it was mine and River’s turn it was assumed that we’d come out here, too, if we were accepted. Only I deferred my acceptance for a year.
After psych class, I meet up with my twin cousins Lacey and Lovey since I have some time to kill before my next class and no desire to go home. At least River, Maverick, and I aren’t the only ones with odd names in our family. They’re sisters to Liam and Lane, who are also twins.
I find them sitting in the back corner of the campus café, and of course, they’re not alone. My cousin BJ is lounging in one of the chairs. His long legs are stretched out, and his head is tipped back, mouth hanging open, because he’s passed out cold. There are three pencils stuck in his man bun, and someone’s decorated his forehead with a row of reinforcement stickers.
“Lavy!” Lacey hops off the couch, jumps gracefully over BJ’s legs, and pulls me into an enthusiastic hug. It means my face is almost mashed into her chest. Lacey and Lovey are willowy, and very nearly identical. There are subtle differences, but unless you know them well, it’s almost impossible to tell them apart. They look very much like Barbie dolls come to life and are the kindest, most genuine girls I know. I’m so glad I’m going to school with them this year.
Lacey and Lovey are in their junior year, both studying public relations. They pledged the sorority and live off campus in a house with six other girls. They’re involved in pretty much every fundraising event there is, and they’re super outgoing. They invited me to pledge, but the idea alone makes my mouth dry, so I declined.
Lovey waits until I’ve made it past BJ before she gets up to hug me. “I love this dress! Do you think I can borrow it?”
Lovey is almost six feet tall, so I’m thinking the skirt would be a micro-mini at best, but if she’s cool with her underwear showing, so am I. “If you want, sure.”
They pull me down, so I’m sitting in the middle of the couch, sandwiched between them while they volley questions at me.
“How are you?”
“What’s your schedule like?”
“Are your brothers driving you nuts yet?”
“Are there any cute guys in your classes?”
“Have you seen Quinn? I heard he got into a fight this morning before the guys even got on the ice,” Lovey says, eyes wide and thumbnail between her teeth.
“Quinn is always getting into fights.” Lacey rolls her eyes. “There’s a party at our house this weekend. You should come and sleep over at our place! It’ll be so fun!”
I make a time-out sign before they can launch any more questions. “Overwhelmed,” I whisper and then realize, with horror, that I’m on the verge of tears and not sure why.
Well, that’s not entirely accurate. Today has been a clusterfuck, and I still have one more class before I can go home and eat all the marshmallows out of a box of Lucky Charms.
“Oh no!” they both whisper back, and suddenly I’m engulfed in a hug from both sides. “We’re so sorry.”
“We know better.”
“Take deep breaths.”
“I’m okay,” I mumble, not wanting to draw more attention to myself.
They release me, but both shift at the same time, pulling one leg up so they can turn toward me, the movement synchronized.
“You don’t seem okay,” Lovey says softly and tucks my hair behind my ear.
“It’s been a long day. And to answer your questions, yes, my brothers are driving me nuts, my schedule isn’t bad, but today is heavy, and I didn’t know about Quinn and the fight. It’s not really a huge surprise, though.” I adore Quinn, but he has a short fuse. “There’s a nice guy in my costume and set design class who might be cute, but I couldn’t see him very well because I didn’t have my glasses, and let me think about the party. A sleepover would be fun, but we’ll see if I can deal with the meeting new people part.”
“The girls in the house are really chill, and the guys who come to our parties don’t hang out with the hockey team, so you won’t have to worry about your brothers showing up, or anyone else.” Lacey chews her bottom lip and glances furtively at BJ, still passed out in the chair. He can literally sleep anywhere.
