“Big surprise.”
“You don’t have to judge her so much, you know,” he sighs. “It’s hard for her.”
“Sure it is,” I snort before taking a swig of the carbonated water.
“Hopefully this helps her sober up some. She actually worried me tonight.” Marcus nods toward the cup of tea with an apprehensive smile.
I sit the bottle down and wrap my hands around the teacup he’s holding with a sigh. Before I can pull the cup completely from his grasp, his free hand comes down on mine, brushing his fingers over the back of my hand. My skin crawls under his touch.
“You just need to be easier,” he murmurs and I have a feeling he’s referring to more than just Laney.
“You’re not exactly my type,” I laugh, hoping he’s joking. I’ve never liked him but I’ve never been able to put my finger on why, until now. It’s beyond inappropriate for him to be treating me so intimately. For one, he knows I’m gay. For two, his girlfriend is passed out drunk not fifteen feet away from us. And for three, said girlfriend happens to be my sister!
“You wouldn’t be the first woman to change her mind for the right one.” I search his face for any sign showing he’s joking, but he isn’t and it takes every ounce of self-control I possess not to knock the arrogant douche in the mouth. “You just have to say yes once,” he whispers, his voice dripping with a promise that makes my stomach turn.
I manage not to hit him but I can’t stop the shudder that makes my head twitch as I yank the cup from his hand and retreat to the living room. My nose drifts side to side over the cup, trying to identify the smell. I realize I don’t know what all he put in the tea as I crouch down beside the couch.
“Laney, wake up,” I hiss, shoving her shoulder gently. “I need you to drink this.” And to get your dude under control.
“It’ll detox her,” Marcus calls from the kitchen over the sound of cabinet doors opening and closing.
What the hell is he doing in there now?
“Mm?” Laney mumbles, swatting at my hand as she rolls over onto her side. Grinding my teeth, I slide my hand under her neck to the back of her skull and lift her up, little by little while she protests. “Let me sleep!”
“You’ve got to stop doing this.” I shake my head, pushing the cup toward her mouth. She reeks of liquor. “I can’t believe you let her get this drunk,” I snap, hoping Marcus can hear me.
“She’s grown.”
“She has a problem.”
“No, I fucking don’t!” Laney snarls, snatching the cup from my hand so fast some hot tea splashes onto my arm. I jerk backward, staring at her in disbelief. She’s so fucked up she can barely hold the damn cup in her hands but of course, she doesn’t have a problem.
“Whatever!” I throw my hands up in the air, admitting defeat and stomp my way down the hall. When I get to my room, I slam the door closed for extra effect. I’m tempted to scream at the door, but it’s not like they’d hear me if I did.
No one has ever listened to me about Laney’s drinking problem. At first, I thought I was being a good sister by helping her sneak back into the house when she was too drunk to do it herself. But as the years went on, and late high school parties turned into week-long-college-binges, I realized I was actually enabling her.
I pull the phone from my back pocket and flick to my mom’s contact. It’s so tempting to call her, but Marcus is right. Laney is an adult and nothing is going to change until she is ready for it to change. I click the screen off and lay the phone down on the dresser.
It’s dark in the room except for the glow of the computer screen and the moonlight splashing across my bed. Shaking my head as another skeevy shudder racks my spine, I try to push the weird encounter with Marcus out of my head.
“I’m going to have to tell her about that tomorrow,” I groan to no one. Beezlebub chitters softly across the room and I find myself looking for him. When a shadow darkens the computer screen, I move to my desk, slumping down in the chair. “What do you think, man?”
The oversized moth just stares at me, perched precariously on the corner of my screen. A new red notification catches my eye and I slide the mouse over to see who it’s from.
Ally! That’s dope as fuck! Thanks man!
I roll my eyes at the nickname but a smile still creeps across my face. At least someone is happy with me right now. Even if it’s just a client.
I wake up to the sound of yowling. With a groan, I roll over and come face to face with Beezlebub. Fuzzy grey hair covers most of his body, interspersed only by the darker grey of some of his markings and deep blood red designs that he’s known for. The fur around his mouth twitches as he stares at me with unblinking eyes and I roll mine.
“Good morning, B.” He rubs his two front feet together in a gesture I’ve come to think of as ‘hello’ over the years.
Another loud yowl tears through the house and I rub my temples. The rooms are soundproofed—magically soundproofed no less—how the hell can I hear Juniper? I swing my feet over the side of the bed and Beezlebub flutters his wings but makes no move to get up.
“Lazy.”
A surge of amusement courses through me and I know it’s not my own. No, it’s got to be Beezlebub’s because I’m annoyed as fuck.
I stomp down the hallway, my arms crossed over my chest. My sock covered feet slide to a stop on the smooth wooden floor as I enter the living room to see Laney mid-argument with her familiar.
“Juniper!” she snaps, reaching for something the snow leopard has in her mouth. “Give it back!”
Leaning against the wall, I decide to watch instead of intervening. When I heard Juniper screaming, I’d thought something was wrong, but watching a very hungover Laney chase a seventy-five pound cat is free, wholesome entertainment.
“You could help.” Laney doesn’t even turn toward me when she says it. I roll my eyes and pad toward the large leopard with a smile.
“Whatcha got for Auntie Alandra?” I ask, bracing my hands on my knees. My most annoying baby voice takes over. “Whatcha got? Wanna gimme? Gimme it.” I hold out one hand and wait, smiling at the beautiful cat as she bounces back and forth away from my sister before running toward me.
My fingers find the scruff of her neck as I pet her, holding her still while Laney rushes over to fish out whatever’s in her mouth. “That’s a bad kitty,” I coo at the oversized house cat.
“She chewed my fucking charger to pieces,” Laney growls, glaring at her familiar. “She’s been doing this so much lately!”
“Probably because you’re always on your phone.” I shrug. The truth was, Juniper had been eating chargers since Laney started seeing Marcus. The fact that she has to lock Juniper in her bedroom or out of the bedroom when Marcus is over should be a big, fat, flashing warning sign. Leave it to my sister to ignore it for a pretty face.
“I don’t understand why she’s so mad. I’ve dated before. I wonder if it’s because she can sense how serious Marcus and I have gotten. Maybe she’s jealous.”
I snort, drawing a death glare from Laney and try to cover it with a cough. Her usually perfect, raven colored hair is jutting out in every direction this morning. It’s obvious she hasn’t touched it since she woke up. Having a pixie-cut will do that to you. Those cuts take the kind of dedication I can’t commit to. My fingers comb through my own platinum colored waves.