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“Are you pregnant?” she asks, suddenly extremely concerned.
Sydney’s head swivels at the speed of light, a look of confusion clear on her face. “What?”
“Your hand.”
Sydney looks down, noticing what she’s doing.
Chuckling nervously, she takes her hand off, placing it on the counter. “No,” she says simply.
Jerry narrows her eyes as if she doesn’t quite believe her.
“I’m serious. It’s just cramps.”
Looking like she almost believes her, but not quite, Jerry turns back to her phone, letting Sydney be.
But that’s more interaction than they’ve had before, and there was no arguing or yelling involved. That’s progress.
Maybe something can come of this, and Jerry can have a family for once in her life. She’s had us, and we’re more than enough for her, but I think that having a tie to a real sibling would do her a world of good.
Maybe take a little bit of the chip on her shoulder off.
As the hours pass, I find myself more and more in my head.
We just have to get through the next couple of weeks, and it will all be over.
* * *
“Can you take Mav for a walk?” Jerry asks, holding his leash out for me.
She usually does it herself, but she’s been unusually annoying lately.
“And take Sydney, her face is infuriating me,”
Sydney looks up from the couch where she’s curled up with her sketchbook, her forehead creased.
I swipe the leash from her hand, getting up with a sign.
Turning to Sydney, I motion for her to follow me.
We head outside without a word, and I make our way over to the small door in the large gate surrounding the area leading into the woods.
Sydney tucks her hands into the pockets of her pants, looking around.
“The place is nice,” she says quietly.
I like this Sydney. The quiet one. The one that doesn’t argue.
At least, that’s what I tell myself. I like the other one too. The one that will push back. The one who’s angry all the time. The one who would set the world on fire if she could.
I like that one too.
I nod, watching as Maverick sniffs every single leaf he sees on the ground.
“It’s nice. Wasn’t always that way,” I tell her.
She pulls her arms tighter around her, looking up. “I’m not sure what I’m doing here,”
My head swivels to her. “What do you mean you don’t know what you’re doing here? I feel like it’s fairly simple. We’ve spelled it out for you,” I all but hiss.
