LARA

“Shit.” I curse at myself as I run out of breath trying to chase after you. I know it’s selfish, but the hurt in your eyes at the sound of my sisters voice has stirred a small amount of hope inside me that my caring has not been in vain. I was surprised to see you staring back at me when I opened the door. It should have been the food that Riley and I ordered, not your haunted brown eyes, and for a moment I was caught off guard. You haven’t been here in almost a month. I’m trying not to admit too loudly to myself that I missed you. I walk back into my apartment to find my sister standing in the doorway with a confused look on her face. “I guess that wasn’t the pizza.” She says when she sees my face.

We make our way further into the apartment and I take a deep breath and lean against the counter behind me. “It was Alice.” I say quietly as I push my hair out of my face trying to decide what to do. Riley raises her eyebrow at me and I roll my eyes. She thinks that I am lost on You. She thinks that I should give up and move on. That’s what her entire visit is about. After three days of agonizing silence from You I finally called my sister and told her the entire story. A few weeks later and here she is standing in my kitchen looking at me with a tone that can only be accomplished by family. “Ri.” I lace her name with a warning and she reluctantly shakes the tone from her face and walks over to embrace me.

“So, what happened?”

I smile despite the situation. “You scared her off when you yelled. I think she thought that you might be a new girlfriend, and she shot out of here. For a second I thought that her feelings might be a little bit hurt.”

“Good.”

“Riley!” I look at her accusingly and she throws her hands up defensively.

“Whoa! I meant good for you. If her feelings were hurt then that means there’s hope.” She explains quickly and I smile at the fact that even though we haven’t lived in the same city for a long time, we still think exactly alike.