Page 17 of My Twin Sister

“Hey, bud,” she says. “Are you ready to play?”

Carter nods excitedly. “Yes!”

“You gonna hit a home run?”

He laughs. “I can’t hit that far!”

She looks at him like he’s crazy. “Not with that attitude. I want to see a home run. You’re going to hit one for me, right?”

He’s smirking but looks at her unsure.

“Righhhht?” she goads.

He nods.

“You have to have more confidence than that.” She laughs.

“Yes!” he shouts.

“Who’s gonna hit a home run?”

“Me!”

“That’s right!”

She presses her palm against the fence, and Carter gives her a high five. She smiles and waves goodbye before turning and climbing up the bleachers toward Wyatt. I follow behind her.

I’m not sure how it is that I feel like the odd one out in my own family, but I do. And I don’t know if it’s my own insecurities playing with my mind or if Grace is actually stepping into my place the same day she’s come back.

Grace sits with a space between her and Wyatt, leaving a spot for me between them. I take it and try my best to push the negative thoughts out of my head.

Wyatt married me.

Carter and Jack are my kids and they love me.

Grace is my sister and she loves me.

I repeat the mantra as Grace leans over me to ask questions about Carter and Jack. Does Jack play baseball? What position? What position does Carter like to play?

Normal questions. Just an aunt trying to get to know her nephews. Just my sister trying to make conversation.

“I’m going to get some snacks and use the restroom before they start,” she says. “Be right back.”

I watch her saunter toward the concession stand and disappear around the corner to where the bathrooms are. Frank’s truck pulls into the lot in the distance. He’s back in his normal attire. Tina, his wife, isn’t with him today. She only comes to a few games a year. She was the same way with Wyatt’s games, so it doesn’t bother me. But Frank makes almost all of them.

He stops at the concession stand, and I turn my attention back to the field. Things feel uncomfortable between Wyatt and me, and I can blame only myself for that. Springing Grace staying with us on him the way I did. Then bringing up the night at the lake. It was dumb to bring up that night. Now it’s on both our minds.

I reach over and slide my hand into his. He takes it, but he doesn’t look at me or say anything. Things have been rough between us for some time now. We stopped trying to fix it and just learned to live with it. I thought that was good enough, but it isn’t anymore. Not with Grace back.

“I’m sorry,” I say.

He squeezes my hand. “It’s okay.”

I scoot a little closer to him and hope I’m not being cringey. Am I trying too hard? Am I making it obvious that I’m insecure?

I glance back at the concession stand and see that Grace is there talking to Frank. She’s handed a bunch of things and hands off a few to Frank before they both make their way over.

“I got you Twizzlers, Gen,” she says. She hands me the red package of my favorite candy. “Popcorn for you.” She hands Wyatt a bag of popcorn, grease marks on the side. It’s his favorite.