Page 60 of My Downfall

“How many of those have you girls had?” Ava asks in her serious, sober voice.

“Three,” Harper says from next to me.

“I think they might be stronger than we thought.”

“Oh, yeah,” Bella sings. “I am definitely feeling them.”

“Great,” Ava mutters. “I’m going to have some serious catching up to do.”

“If anyone can it’s you, babe. You’ve got this!”

Yeah, definitely stronger than we thought.

Hudson

They arrived about an hour ago; we heard them the minute they exited the elevator. Pretty sure three of the four of them are drunk already.

Thankfully, they’re staying in the apartment tonight and the chef they’ve got is a woman. Funnily enough, Reed booked that part.

We’re sitting around the dining table of the apartment next door to the girls and eating Chinese food.

“Here.” Reed holds a fortune cookie out to me.

“I’m alright, thanks.”

“You have to take it, and we all have to read them one by one. Don’t ask,” he says when he can see I’m about to question him. “I can’t eat Chinese food without doing this now.”

I take the fortune cookie from him and break it open, pulling the little slip of paper from inside.

“Good friends come in threes.”

“Fuck’s sake,” Reed mutters next to me. “Every fucking time.”

“What’s every time?”

“The fucking words on the thing.” He waves his hand toward the paper in my hand. “They’re always relevant in some way.”

“Well, what does yours say?”

“Something about pineapple probably.” I start to think he might be losing it.

“True love is next door.”

“No, it doesn’t,” River chucklesnext to him.

“Look for yourself.” He holds the paper out for us to see.

Sure enough, the words are clearly written across the cream paper.

“Right, this one won’t be.” River cracks open the sugar cookie and reads it aloud.

“Love thy brother and sister.”

“You put them up to this,” I laugh.

“I wish I had,” he mumbles as he shakes his head.

“How often are they significant?” I ask as I stare at the three pieces of paper laying on the table in front of us.