The picture was taken on one of Lily and my competitions. We just received our medals for second place as Aaron had run across the ice to get to us.
The camera has captured the moment when Aaron had run into my armsfirst, instead of his sister’s to congratulate us for our win. You can’t exactly see my face, but I know I was smiling widely, even more so when Aaron was hugging me.
And Lily? She’s looking at the camera, holding up her medal like a proud mother.
I remember when Lily turned around and had just forced herself into the hug because she thought it was a group-hug rather than Aaron being proud of me.
But then again, we were like six years old, it’s a little less deep considering our age.
“You weren’t blind, you were a child,” I kindly let her know while quickly putting on some underwear from my dresser as I am still in Aaron’s shirtonly.
“Ah, well, I should have known,” she says, turning around to look at me. Her eyes follow me as I walk over to my closet and take out a pair of black leggings. “I did kind of plan a wedding for you guys though.”
I laugh. “That one time we were playing house does not count.”
“You guys made me be yourdog, what the hell else was I supposed to do?”
“I don’t know, Lily, what do dogs do?” I put on my leggings, then go and find myself some socks because it’s getting quite cold. “Bark and, I don’t know, pee, I guess? But they definitely do not plan weddings.”
She holds up her hands like I was holding her at gunpoint. “I was a very talented dog. Even to the point where I could hold the entire ceremony.”
Being a child really is magical. You find joy in everything, and your imagination doesn’t hold back. See a stick? No, it’s now a wand. See a leaf and have sand? No, it’s now a weirdly shaped, self-built cup with tea.
I take a seat on my bed again, taking a deep breath before letting out a question that’s been on my mind since she’s got here for my birthday. “You’re not mad at me for being with your brother, are you?”
Lily frowns at me like she’s seconds away from bursting out laughing. She shakes her head, making her way over to me only to take a seat next to me. “I am sorry for you. I always thought you were smarter than dating someone like Aaron.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Ah, you know. Only that he is the worst human imaginable?” She leans her head on my shoulder. “Like, did you hear him talk? He’s worse than Colin, ego wise, I mean. Aaron truly believes he’s the best of the best.”
Yeah, okay. I can’t argue that. But Aaron does happen to be pretty good at hockey, so I can’t blame him for being proud of himself for it.
“No, seriously, Sofia, I am happy for you. I told you, I don’t care, it’s your life. Besides, I always wanted to hold a great wedding speech and not having to lie about liking my brother’s spouse. I can include how you guys excluded me when we were younger and only did the exact opposite of what I wanted. So, it’s convenient.”
“I thought your last one was great. With all thewoof’sand growls.”
I don’t remember exactly what Lily had said back then, but not a lot. She was supposed to be a dog after all.
“Well, if you would have had a child instead of a dog, maybe you would have gotten some words, too.”
I truly wish Lily and I could have gone to school together, grow up together. Imagine all the stories we would be able to tell, all the things we would have experienced together. Though, unfortunately life doesn’t always give you want you want.
“Oh, uh, what I actually came here for,” Lily says, sitting up straight again, “Colin wants to go to a bar for New Year’s, and he was wondering if you would come with us. We’ll even make an exception for Aaron.”
“How gracious of you.”
48
Aaron
“I swear that I’ll be yours forever, till forever falls apart”—Till Forever Falls Apart by Ashe, FINNEAS
“Another round of shots?”Colin asks, though he has already ordered four new ones and is currently setting down all four of the shots on the table.
“Tequila shots?” Lily asks, though before receiving an answer, she has put some salt on the back of her hand, licked it up and downed the shot, then shoves a slice of lime into her mouth.
Colin kisses the side of her head before downing his own shot.