Chapter 15
SIENNA
“The rules of the game are simple, ladies and gents,” Alex declares as he explains the tie-dye competition game rules.
We’re gathered outside in the large patch of grass that separates the back deck from the lake.
I look down at the supplies on the table in front of me.
Various dyes, rubber bands, plastic bags, pens, and other tools I didn’t realize were required for tie-dying shirts are laid out across the table.
Theo towers over me as he stands to my right.
He looks excited as he listens to his brother explain the game, as though he hasn’t done this every year since he was a kid.
I was surprised to have slept through the night even though I was on the wrong side of the bed.
Waking up with the lake in view and the sun shining through the window, I felt better rested than I have in months.
However, I’m still trying to ignore the disappointment I felt when I woke up and found Theo’s side of the bed empty this morning.
Eventually, I ventured downstairs to find Theo in the kitchen with his brothers, setting up a spread with what seemed like every breakfast food imaginable.
After dishing up a plate, I joined Beth outside on the back deck, where she was already sitting with her book and a half-eaten omelet.
The guys stayed inside while we had breakfast together, allowing us some quality time this morning.
It was peaceful, quiet, and for a second, as I sat with Beth, I forgot all about my career troubles. The moment was fleeting.
“I still can’t believe you guys do this,” I lean over and whisper to Theo.
To our right stands Beth and Leo sharing a table, and to our left, Roman fidgets with some of the bottles, seemingly taking his color choice very seriously.
Alex stands in front of all of us, continuing to explain tie-dying techniques for us “newbies” as he called us.
“It was Leo’s idea when we were younger. He liked the thought of us wearing matching clothes.” Theo whispers back, leaning in closer, “Our mom always got a kick out of dressing us alike.” I smile at the thought of these four grown men matching with one another.
“Hey, lovebirds!” Alex directs the comment at us. “Anything you two want to share with the class?”
My skin heats when all eyes turn toward us. One glance at Beth and I see she’s donned her signature mischievous smile that I match with an eye roll. I catch a rubber band flying through the air out of the corner of my eye. Following its path, I watch as it hits Alex right in the chest.
“You think you’re the only one who can make a rubber band gun, you little shit?” Alex says, directing his comment toward Theo as he picks the rubber band up from where it landed by his feet.
“Alright, enough,” Roman booms before Alex can escalate the situation. “I’m sure Beth and Sienna know how to tie-dye a shirt. Let’s get on with this. We’ll vote tonight once the shirts are done drying.” With one motion of his hand, Alex ends his lecture, and we’re off to start dyeing our shirts.
Leo leans over to Theo next to me, and I just barely catch him say, “I swear, he gets grumpier every year.”
“You think it has anything to do with—”
Theo’s response is cut short when Roman calls their names.
Even if Theo hadn’t told me, I wouldn’t have a hard time noticing that it’s clear Roman is the one who raised them.
He’s by far one of the most intimidating men I’ve ever met.
A pit opens up in my stomach when I think about having to ask him for help securing a job by this summer.
Part of me still hopes Theo will do most of the work convincing his brother to help me.
Brushing past that feeling, I take a deep breath, focusing back on the plain white T-shirt in front of me.
Thankfully, Leo snagged a couple of smaller sizes for Beth and me so we don’t have as much material to work with.
Everyone else has already started tying up their shirts.
Not wanting to be left behind, I pick up a rubber band and pretend I know what I’m doing.
“I don’t think I’m doing this right,” I say to Theo, after a few minutes of struggling with twisting my shirt and a few rubber bands snapping in the process.
I stare at the mess of white fabric and broken rubber bands before me, embarrassed that I can’t do something everyone else seems to be so skilled at.
I’m immediately overwhelmed when I take a look at Theo’s shirt. It’s tied in ways I didn’t know were possible. He’s manipulated it to look like a star, no longer recognizable as a shirt. Theo chuckles as I stare at what he’s created.
“There’s no ‘right’ way to tie-dye a shirt. You’re doing great.” Looking at him, I raise one eyebrow, calling bullshit on his statement that I’m “great” at this. His laughter grows, and he sets down his shirt as he steps closer to help me with mine.
Grabbing a rubber band, he takes the fabric lying in front of me, twists it at one of the bottom corners, and ties it off.
“See, you just twist and tie. A beginner-friendly design is to just make random tie-offs, then apply color where you want it.” He passes a rubber band to me, and I stare at it, not knowing where to make my next twist.
You’d think I’d have an eye for design, given my architecture degree, but shirts and buildings are wildly different.
When I’m working on my designs, I usually have time to plan, to make blueprints, mess around with renders, experiment with different colors, and really home in on a vibe.
Having to design this shirt on a whim without any plan is wiping my mind of all creative ideas.
Taking the opposite corner of the shirt, I try twisting the way Theo did. I let out a frustrated grunt when the shirt slips out of my hands, not doing what I’ve willed it to do.
“Here, let me help you,” Theo says, placing his hand over top of mine. He makes eye contact with me before continuing, a silent question about whether this is okay. I respond with a small nod of my head. I could use all the help I can get right about now.
Breaking eye contact, we focus on the shirt in front of us.
Well, he focuses on the shirt. I’m focused on how small my hands look in his.
His palms cover the backs of my hands as he helps me work the shirt into a proper spiral, asking me to hold it in place here and there so he can secure it with rubber bands.
Theo places his hands on mine again to help me secure the rubber band.
Our fingers move together, interlocking to secure the knot.
When his fingers linger on mine, I can’t help but look over at him, having to squint given his height and the position of the sun.
When our eyes meet, the world around us begins to blur as I lose my way in Theo’s irises.
My phone dings from my pocket, breaking whatever trance Theo just put me under. His hands pull away, and I shiver from the cold chill that runs up my arm in the absence of his hand on mine.
“There we go. Now all you have to do is apply color where you want it. Easy, right?” he says, smiling down at me.
“Right,” I say, avoiding eye contact, pulling out my phone to see who’s texted me.
Dad
Hey, Pumpkin. Just found out that one of my clients at JR Construction is looking for a receptionist. Here’s the application link. He said he can guarantee an interview if you submit an application.
But think about my offer before applying. You could stay with us through the holidays while you take some time off.
I stare at my phone, wide-eyed, unable to move. My dad has been sending me a few applications here and there over the past few months. This is the first time, though, that he’s presented me with something decent.
Having already downloaded my résumé to my phone, I click the link my dad sent. Taking a few moments to fill out the application, I let out a sigh of relief when I hit submit.
Fresh air is snuffed from my lungs when I look up from my phone to see Theo staring at the screen. His eyebrows are scrunched together, and his mouth forms a flat line. Noticing he’s been caught, he focuses back on his shirt, striking up a conversation with Leo.
I send a quick reply to my dad, letting him know I’ve applied, but my stomach twists as I set my phone down. I don’t like the thought that Theo could be mad at me, but this is an opportunity I can’t pass up. An opportunity that sets me on track for completing my plan.
Besides, I’ve only sent the application. An interview doesn’t guarantee a job offer.
After a day lounging by the lake, we’re back by the tables to vote on the best shirt. The sun sets behind the lake, disappearing behind the expanse of trees and hills that surround it.
Halfway through the day, I received an interview offer from JR Construction.
Although when I accepted the interview, my excitement was bogged down by Theo’s determination to avoid me all day.
I’m not sure if it was our moment of sexually-charged eye contact or the fact that he clearly saw me submit a job application, but things between us have been tense since this morning.
Standing next to Theo now, I push past the suffocating silence between us as I focus on the shirt in front of me.
The soft mix of pink, red, and orange in the sky is the color scheme I was aiming for on the fabric.
Looking down at the shirt I hold in my hands, more brown covers the shirt than the original colors I used.
At one point, I tried to add blue, inspired by the environment around me. I see now that was a mistake.
“It's nice.” Theo hesitates at his compliment, his tone contrasting with his words. His bicep flexes as he rubs the back of his neck, seemingly unsure of the words he just used to describe my unsightly shirt. It’s clear he’s not impressed, but at least he’s talking to me again.
I throw a glare his way, daring him to give my shirt another compliment when I say, “Don’t patronize me, Theo. It’s awful.”
“Here, take mine.” He takes my shirt out of my hands, swapping it with his that he’s yet to unravel.
He holds the shirt up to his chest, the smaller size looking cropped on his frame.
“I’ve always thought brown was a good color for me.
” He throws a playful smoldering look in my direction that makes me break into a fit of laughter at the sight.
He follows suit, and I appreciate the distraction from my failures.
Unraveling his shirt, I hold it up, revealing the perfect blend of blue, purple, and yellow, intricately molded into a heart that spreads from the center of the shirt.
Smiling, I say, “Wow, you’re clearly better at this than I am.”
“I’ve had a lot of practice. Give it time, and you’ll get better at it.” He says it so nonchalantly that I don’t have time to mull over the implications of his comment before Alex stands in front of us, instructing everyone to show off their shirts.
Beth’s swirl design is a vibrant combination of pinks, blues, and purples. Roman also did a swirl design, which I’ve learned from the others is what he does every year. He just picks new colors each time. Except this year, he went with one color—black.
Alex holds his shirt up, showing off a zig-zag design made from a mixture of reds, oranges, and yellows.
The combination is reminiscent of fire, the shirt fitting for both him and his Mustang.
Last, when Leo holds his shirt up, my jaw hits the floor.
My shirt may be in last place, but his definitely takes first, no question.
Who knew you could make a plaid design out of tie-dye?
No wonder he had so many rubber bands on his shirt.
A vote isn’t necessary for us to come to the unanimous decision that Leo wins by a landslide. Last place, however, causes a bit more of a debate.
“Is that actually your design, Theo? The shirt looks a little small, doesn't it?” Alex questions Theo. Not wanting Theo to come in last place because I don’t know the first thing about color theory, I open my mouth to speak up, but Theo beats me to it.
“Yeah, it’s mine. The dye must have shrunk the shirt,” He shrugs at Alex, taking full responsibility for a shirt that clearly is about to come in last place.
“Alright, well, you know what last place means.” Alex drops his shirt in front of Theo on the table, the others following suit.
My eyebrows scrunched together. I look up at Theo, less blinding now that the sun is setting.
“Last place has cleanup duty,” he says to me.
“I can help you clean up. It is my shirt after all.” I stay with Theo as the others start to head inside for dinner. Well, everyone except for Alex, who has lingered for some reason.
“Don’t worry about it. I’m sure you have more important things to do anyway,” Theo replies. I try not to show the hurt on my face.
“Is this about the application I submitted?” I ask. “I wanted to talk to you about that—”
I’m cut off when Alex joins the conversation. “I’ll help him clean up. I wanted an excuse to talk to this fucker anyway.” Throwing his arm around Theo’s shoulders, he has to extend, considering their small height difference.
When Alex smiles at me, I get a strong feeling that leaving the two of them to clean up alone isn’t up for debate. Honestly, it’s a relief. The farther away I can get from the tie-dying supplies, the better. Although I can’t help but feel worse as my distance from Theo grows.
I’m surprised Theo seems upset over my decision to apply for this job. After all, the goal of this trip is to secure a job offer. Theo couldn’t possibly have a valid reason to be upset if I received a job offer through a means other than him.