Chapter 4 #2
Apollo got mad, but not at them. He got mad at me for bringing Mom and Dad into it, for causing an investigation that got his teammates suspended from an important game. Why couldn’t you have just let me handle it? I could’ve dealt with them myself!
After that we didn’t talk much. I couldn’t deal with the fact he didn’t have my back. But we were kids. Clearly after meeting Jessica, something changed. I wished I’d gotten that experience of him being protective, of caring how I felt, how I know some brothers are. I didn’t.
But now, who knows? Maybe we can. Maybe.
I push thoughts of him to the side as I get up and stretch.
Nolan and I spent Friday night together at the park.
His presence, his voice, his messages are a kind of addiction I didn’t know I could have.
I hung on his every text this weekend like he lassoed the moon in the sky for me.
The pulse of excitement every time his name fed through my earbud while I was attached to my computer in my room was a high I couldn’t help but keep feeding.
Cyber Street doesn’t open until ten, so I have some time.
I notice Jessica and Apollo’s bedroom door is open already, and the light is on.
She’s always an early bird, never one to sleep in, and by the quietness in the house, I know her mom has already taken the children for their early morning walk to the nearby preschool.
“Good morning,” I call by the threshold, just in case she left the door open by accident and is changing or something.
When I don’t hear an answer, I poke my head through and look around.
Their room has a lived-in look, with some of my brother’s clothes and socks littering the ground.
The bed isn’t made yet, and a ceiling fan lazily spins overhead.
That’s when I hear a loud gag from the bathroom. It takes a moment to register, but then it hits me.
“Jessica?” I wander through their room and into the master bathroom. The toilet is in its own water closet, the door ajar. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fi—” she begins to say, but then it’s clear she’s not fine as she retches again. I wrinkle my nose and step back. I wonder if she has some kind of stomach bug. I don’t want to get sick too.
“Do you want me to get you some water or something?” I ask worriedly, not sure how to help in this case. “Some meds?”
Jessica sniffles, her voice less than enthused. “Meds won’t help. It’s morning sickness.”
Stunned, I stand there speechless for a few moments before gathering my wits about me. “So you’re pregnant?”
“Yep, about ten weeks along. Found out at a doctor’s appointment the day before you flew in. And I’ve had nausea every morning. Some days worse than others, like yesterday.”
“Does Apollo know?”
“Not yet.” Jessica flushes the toilet then steps out. I give her space as she swiftly brushes her teeth and washes her face. “We didn’t plan for this one. So I’m not sure how he’s going to react, but I guess we’ll find out.”
“I think it’s amazing, Jess. I’m so excited for you!
” I tell her. “Please, let me know if you need anything.” I can’t help but smile.
Another niece or nephew on the way? Their kids are so cute.
I’ve never really wanted kids for myself, but it’d be nice to hold a baby again. I haven’t done that in a while.
“There are some saltines downstairs,” Jessica says. “Would you mind getting them out of the pantry for me? I’ll be down in a second.”
I all but race down the stairs to do as she asks just as Apollo comes through the front door carrying his duffel bag. He spots me and nods. “Kids already gone to school?”
“Yep,” I reply, heading straight for the pantry.
“By the way, how was the store the other day, when you were on your own?”
“Fine.”
“You sure? You came home pretty late.”
“Went for a walk in the park,” I reply. It’s not a lie, and I shoot him a look. “What’s with the third degree?”
He shrugs. “Just curious.”
Except I sense a hint of suspicion in his voice. Rather than try to ignore or avoid it, I decide to lean into it. What the hell. “Nolan and I were talking.”
“You and Nolan?” He arches his brows as he sets his duffel down with a thud on the floor and takes a glass bottle of water out of the fridge. “What do you mean?”
“We were talking, and we were gonna hang out,” I reply with the most casual shrug I can manage. “But we were short-staffed, so he came by to help me out and then we went for a walk. Talking.”
“Talking.” He doesn’t sound convinced, squinting at me.
I’m suddenly thinking maybe I chose the wrong time to broach this subject. My body is tense from my legs all the way to my jaw as I set Jessica’s crackers on the counter. “Yeah. Talking.”
“Well, make sure that’s all it is,” he warns before guzzling water.
That gets under my skin. “I don’t think you have a say in what is and what isn’t when it comes to the men I decide to talk to,” I reply as calmly and firmly as I can.
Jessica is in the middle of fastening her black hair into a ponytail when she enters the kitchen. She looks a bit pale, but better than she did in the bathroom. She glances between us. “Hey.” She puts her arm around Apollo and kisses his cheek. “What did I miss?”
Apollo looks just as annoyed as I feel, his arms crossed as he leans on the counter. “Oh, nothing. Mia was just telling me how she was spending time with Nolan at Cyber Street last night.”
“Aw, well, isn’t that sweet of him to come and help?
” Jessica says, grabbing the box of crackers.
She promptly snarfs one down, even though she doesn’t look like she’s enjoying a single bite.
“You can let Nolan know I appreciate it, but I’ll be in the office today handling things myself. Don’t worry.”
Apollo grunts, but even with Jessica’s sweet and reasonable presence here in the kitchen with us, the tension doesn’t entirely dissipate.
“I was just telling Apollo about how Nolan and I went to the park afterwards, spent the evening talking.” I grab my own bottle of water and stubbornly sit on a stool.
“An evening in the park?” Jessica perks up curiously, half-smiling at me. “That sounds—”
“Romantic?” I interject for her, looking straight at my brother as I say it. “It was. I enjoyed it.”
“Now, wait a minute,” Apollo growls. “What the hell do you mean, romantic? What’re you talking about? Nolan would never.”
“Nothing happened, but Nolan and I already exchanged numbers, and like I said, we’re talking,” I reply, folding my arms.
“Like hell you are,” Apollo begins, but Jessica cuts him off with a warning look. “I don’t think you should be talking with him.”
“Why?” I ask, a little baffled. “Because he’s an android?”
“No, because he’s my best friend and my colleague,” Apollo replies. “Both things seem pretty off-limits to me for a little sister.”
I scoff. “When have I been off-limits for your friends, Apollo?” I demand. “Enlighten me.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” He may be getting hot under the collar, but so am I. This has nothing to do with Nolan anymore, and everything to do with us. “You’ve always been my sister. I love you, and I’ve always looked out for you.”
“Recently, yes, and I appreciate that. But when did you ever, before?”
“When we were in high school!”
“Apollo, I hated you when we were in high school!”
The kitchen goes silent. Apollo’s mouth is slightly hung open, looking like I just stabbed him in the stomach with a knife and twisted. That kicked-puppy expression only makes me more upset. Was he seriously living in his own bubble, thinking everything was hunky dory?
Jessica looks a bit helpless, unable to do or say anything to contribute, but her eyes are sympathetically on me as Apollo speaks up. “You hated me?”
“Yes,” I reply, exasperated. “It was bad enough that you were cold and distant at home, you never wanted to spend time with me. Video games? Too cool for that. Going for a bike ride? Too busy with your own shit. And then when your friends destroyed my art project, after I’d poured hundreds of hours into it, instead of tearing them new assholes, you went after me!
All over your stupid game and being short players for a championship. ”
Apollo doesn’t answer right away, his expression twisting from hurt to defensive. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
“What would that do? You didn’t listen back then.”
“What about Mom and Dad?”
“Please, Mom and Dad always defended you,” I reply. “Prince Charming could never do wrong. You could fail a class, and they’d still prop you up as the perfect kid.”
“That isn’t fair,” Apollo scoffs. “They’d rip me a new one for failing too. Maybe not in front of you, but they did, and I felt it. You don’t know the pressure I was under back then.”
“You’re right, I didn’t know, but I needed you to have my back, and you didn’t.”
“Is that why you’re talking to Nolan, then? To get back at me?”
“Apollo,” Jessica warns him again, frowning. I’m glad I have her, if nothing else.
I bristle, countering. “No! Nolan is nice. He’s sweet, and funny, and he’s a gentleman, and I like him. That’s all.”
“And I don’t get to have any say in this?”
“No, you don’t have a say. I’m telling you because I’m trying to show you respect and be honest,” I reply with an edge in my voice.
“The least you could do is show me the same courtesy. I’m telling you Nolan’s a good man, and I like him, and we’ve started talking. I’d like you to be on board with it.”
Apollo falls silent. Jessica’s mother comes in, humming a little song quietly to herself, and pauses when she sees us all gathered in the kitchen. She blinks, as though sensing the tension, and speaks softly with a sweet and motherly smile. “Miya, ni ele ma? Wo qu zuo zaocan.”
“Xièxiè, Laolao, but I’m not hungry.” I get up from where I’m sitting, giving Jessica an apologetic look. I didn’t mean for everything to come out quite like this. “I’m sorry. Maybe this wasn’t a good idea. I’m gonna go get ready for work.”