Has he never seen a cheek kiss?
“Have a good day,” Mum says, squeezing my arm affectionately.
“You too,” I reply and guide Neriah out of the house with a hand on her back, not entirely comfortable leaving Mum with a stranger, but Dad is home. She won’t be alone with Arkin.
The morning sun beats down on us as we exit the house and head to my car. I grab the handle and look back at the kitchenwindow. Maybe it’s my imagination, but I still feel his intense gaze.
Shaking off the unsettling sensation, I slide in behind the steering wheel, smacking the glovebox to retrieve my sunglasses. Neriah shuts the car door, puts her backpack in the footwell, and fastens her seatbelt.
Hand on the wheel, I slip on the sunglasses before fidgeting with the radio until “Darts” by Stellar fills the space. “You good?” I ask, reversing out of the driveway and straightening the wheel with one final look at the house as we hit the street. It feels different now that Arkin is there. Sure, it’s home, but it’s not. There’s something off about the place, a disturbance that wasn’t present before. Does my sister feel the same way? Probably not. Because she’s more chill than me.
In answer to my question, Neriah shrugs with a small smile, and I ruffle her hair.
The drive to college is quiet. My sister watches the world go by outside, like every morning. She’s not a big talker—never has been.
We stop at a crossing, and I drum my thumbs on the steering wheel while stealing glances at her. “What did you think?” I ask after a while, watching a group of young kids dart across the street with backpacks that almost swamp them. “It’s important that you feel comfortable in our home.”
“He was okay,” Neriah answers, propping her white Nike Air Max on the dashboard.
“You okay with him staying in our home?”
She pops a shoulder as I step on the accelerator. “I’m sure it’s fine. He didn’t look like he’d rob us or anything.”
I briefly look away from the road to check her expression. She seems like she’s fine. “You tell me if you feel uncomfortable, okay? I’ll talk to Dad.”
Neriah nods, flipping down the visor to shield her eyes from the bright sun.
“You gotta promise,” I prompt.
She gently shoves my shoulder. “I promise, you big loon. Eyes on the road.”
I’m not sure about this… Honestly, I’m still not comfortable with the arrangement. Largely because Arkin is a stranger, and we don’t know anything about him other than what little information Mum and Dad have divulged, which isn’t much. With that in mind, I guess we’ll have to wait it out and see.
Ten minutes later, we arrive at college. My friends are already waiting when I pull up in my regular parking spot. Neriah grabs her backpack and exits the vehicle. By the time I emerge, wishing I didn’t have to sit through lessons with a banging headache, she’s already gone.
“Nice shades,” Ryan teases, smacking me on the shoulder and laughing at my expense. Harrison looks like shit too, with dark circles around his eyes and a pale, almost yellow hue to his skin. At least I have sunglasses; he forgot his.
We drag our feet toward the looming building, groaning like zombies. For once, I envy Ryan for being stuck on babysitting duty. Sure, he didn’t get laid in a jacuzzi, which was admittedly a lot of fun. But at least he isn’t suffering this morning like the rest of us.
“Where’s the charity case?” Ryan asks, readjusting his bag.
I forgot mine—the bag, that is. Not the charity case.
“He’s at home,” I reply. “You’ll meet him soon enough.”
“We get to meet him?” Ryan grins. “Awesome.”
“He’s starting college soon, but he needs special education or some shit. Fuck if I know.”
We enter the building, shuffling our way down the bustling hallway. Someone got too excited about the aircon this morning,so the building feels like the inside of a damn fridge. As we turn the corner, the hairs on my arms stand on end.
“Baby,” Amy’s voice rings out behind me.
Ryan chuckles at my piss-poor job of stifling my pained groan.
She’s a good lay—yes—but it’s too damn early for her squeaky voice.
Seconds later, she slides in front of me in her tall heels, dressed in a denim skirt and a low-cut purple tank top. Her lips are painted fire-engine red, and I know what that means even before she walks her long, sparkling nails up my chest. “I had a good time last night.”
