CHAPTER 1 #2
— We can get him a fake ID — Rila said, knowing that the idea would be strongly rejected by the two other women.
— Young lady, don't make me get mad at you — Aunt Alex narrowed her brown eyes at her, the few wrinkles on her face becoming accentuated.
— That's why you guys are boring, and Rila is the cool one here — the blonde man walked towards them and grabbed the remaining dishes from her hands — You know I'm your biggest fan, right?
— Stop kissing her ass, Luke — his sister got on her toes and left a slap on the back of his head — You'll have to wait until February like we all did.
— Yeah, your sister is right, I waited until February to drink for the first time — Rila closed her features and faked a serious expression.
— But your birthday is in December — he frowned and stared at her with confusion.
— February of my eighteen — she couldn't hold back her seriousness any longer, and a laugh came out through her nose, making a noise that was everything but feminine.
Lucas joined her, laughing as he walked back to the kitchen while Jessie and Aunt Alex rolled their eyes.
— You're a bad influence — her friend mumbled.
— Awn, thanks, I love you too — Rila threw her arms over her shoulders and pressed against her side, taking advantage of the extra five centimeters she had.
— Come on, let's see if the cookies give us any ideas for your birthday, dear — Aunt Alex said with a little smile on her face.
— Alright, time for the universe dictates our luck — Rila signed before grabbing the four fortune cookies from the counter next to the fridge.
The fortune cookies were something they started after a drinking night at their favorite bar, The Secret.
They were wasted when they ordered twenty cookies through the app — it was supposed to be only two, they just wanted to see what the universe was preparing to them and all this shit that hammered people say — and ended up on the living room floor of aunt Alex's house at eleven p.m with more cookies that they could eat.
After some very loud laughter, Lucas and their aunt showed up and joined them. Since then, they would open fortune cookies after dinner and share the generic phrases inside.
It was a ridiculous tradition, but Rila loved it. Especially because with that tradition she didn't have the risk of ending up with a broken heart, unlike the last one she was part of.
She used to love that tradition, and waited a whole year for it. Almost six years went by since everything happened, and she couldn't think about it without her throat closing up painfully.
So she didn't allow herself to think.
— One for each — Rila started distributing little packages in front of the chair while everyone took their places.
The four-seated wooden table divided the living room from the kitchen, delimiting the first floor, along with the two-seater sofa in turquoise blue, which was her favorite thing there.
The Becker's house wasn't as big as the one she grew up in, but it was infinitely more cozy. Picture frames, plants, and travel souvenirs made it clear that a family lived there.
— Open for me, dear — Alexandra flinched as she asked when Rila approached.
— Your wish is my command, madam — she joked, trying to ease the older woman's discomfort, and opened the package, leaving it in her trembling hand before sitting next to her.
Aunt Alex was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease before she met the family, and the tremors made some trivial activities difficult, such as opening packages.
Rila and the siblings were keeping an eye on the old lady to make sure that she was taking the medications correctly to slow the progression of the disease and to help control her symptoms.
— Ok, you all know how this works — Rila spined her index finger in the air, showing it was time to crack the cookies and read the phrases.
— You're the size of your dream — Aunt Alex started — So my dream is five feet tall. Kind of small, don't you think?
— Mine is better: the size of the mountain doesn't matter, it can't cover the Sun — Lucas opened a malicious smile — I don't know about covering the Sun, but my mountain really is big.
— Ugh, gross — Jessica wrinkled her nose in a grimace while her aunt laughed and Rila made a vomit sound — If you feel lonely, it's because you've built walls instead of bridges.
— This is suitable — the emergency doctor laughed through her nose.
Her friend had indeed built a wall around her heart and avoided relationships like the plague.
It was kind of ridiculous how she only got involved — very superficially — with men that sucked just to have an excuse not to let them get close.
Rila would say that her friend had a rotten pecker, but she didn't know if that applied when it was intentional.
— Shut up — Jessie rolled her eyes — What does yours say?
Rila infolded the tiny paper and held the ends between her thumbs and index fingers. Her eyes slid across the letters, and the small sentence in the center of the white sheet made the hair on her arms stand up.
What is meant to be yours will always come back to you.