Author's Notes:
Hacins 2020 all rights reserved.
All characters engaging in sexual relationships or activities are 18 years old or older.
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INTRO
It had been almost three years since Mom and Dad died in a car crash. I was just sixteen and my sister Jenny has just turned eighteen and was about to head off to University to study art history, but she stayed to make sure I was fine, so she ended up studying her undergrad via correspondence instead. It has been the two of us ever since.
Our mom was always wise and had made sure that there was enough money saved to pay off the apartment and send us both to university to get a higher education. Jenny had waitressed for extra money to spend, while I was working part-time for my friend's Dad moving service. We've been doing fine, all things considered. Jenny struggles more with it, she's a free spirit. Me, I just try to put it away and be strong for my sister, you know to be "the man of the house." Somedays I can almost forget the pain.
I was coming home from work and as I opened the door I saw my sister sitting on the sofa. Her legs were tucked under her, leaning against the arm of a sofa, her golden bronze hair trailing down her shoulder. She was reading The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy, being completely overtaken by it not even noticing me coming in.
And that's how she is, she is dedicated and passionate, and once she dedicates herself to something she turns off the world around her and focuses completely on the given subject. Jenny has lots of interests, but she hates it when she has to do more than one at once. She says it makes her feel disorientated and that she can't focus as much as she likes to if she has too much to do. Of course, sometimes that made me annoyed but at the same time, I admired her for it.
Me on the other hand? Well, I am the complete opposite of my sister, where she does one thing at a time, I love to multitask. It makes me feel alive and without distractions, I get bored quickly.
I'm currently in university studying to become a teacher in physics. I also like to dress up and I would describe my style as formal casual so you can usually catch me watching a button-up shirt and jeans. I also don't socialize much outside of a few close friends, with who I usually work out, go for a beer, or work on the weekends.
CHAPTER 1
"Hei Jen I'm home," I called out.
No answer -- she's deep in her book. I walked to the kitchen and made myself a coffee and some green tee for her. Jenny loves her tee and I try to keep the cupboard stocked as much as possible. It's just one of the little things I do to show my appreciation for her.
Waiting for the tee to brew gives me some time to think. Our apartment is quite large and we haven't changed it much since the passing of our Parents. I took over Dad's study, mainly because I loved the rustic look of the room, the leather chair, and his antique desk made out of cherry wood. We still sleep in our old rooms and have left Mom and Dad's bedroom pretty much as it was. Every time we talk about cleaning it out we end up not doing it. We probably do it on purpose on some subconscious level, trying to keep their memory alive. So we live on Jenny with her books, dancing and hobbies and me with my studying, boxing, and lifting.
I poured the tea into the cups and headed towards the couch.
"Jen?"
She moved her book slightly from her face, looks at me and smiles. "Sorry Charlie. I'm just so caught up in the history of the Medici family." She extends her hand and takes the cup.
"Thanks. I needed this." After a short pause, she continues "I was just thinking that I should go for a walk."
"Well there is the path I usually walk through the park, "I offer, hopefully.
"Oh? " says Jen, interested.
"Yeah, it goes down along the river that flows into the pond in the middle. There are some benches around the pond that I like to sit on."
Jen smiled and said enthusiastically "Yeah. Let's go. Walkies yay! I need some fresh air."
She can be so childish sometimes I thought to myself, but that is just one more thing I loved about her.
We grab our coats and put on some sneakers. April is already warm in our part of the country but with frequent rain and wind. So we bundle up warmly before heading out. There is a light breeze and the sun breaks through the white puffy clouds, making it quite a lovely day.
On our walk, I'm mostly watching Jenny not giving much attention to the nature that surrounds us. She walks with a dancer's grace a sort of hypnotic style that one is helpless against, so one can do nothing else but stare like an idiot.
"How far is it to the pond?" she asks. So far we'd been walking in silence.
"Max 10 minutes," I reply. "I usually run towards it, my best time from our apartment to the pond is 8 minutes 23 seconds."
"Wow, Freak," she responds with a laugh, trying to tease me. Jen always gets up before me but I always find her wrapped in a blanket on the sofa with a book in her hand, as I head out for my morning run. Jen eats a lot and still has a slim build, it's probably from the dancing practice she does about three times a week and fast metabolism.
"Well you have to work hard to be fit like me," I replied with a smile on my face.
"Can't lie, you do look, good bro," she replies.
We both laugh. I sneak a quick look at her, she is smiling so carefree, staring off in the distance as we walk. A burst of wind blows and lets her hair run free in the wind, making her look even cuter than she is.
"You can always come to the gym with me," I said.
"Am no thanks. Too many men."
She has a thing about being watched by men. She just hates it, plain and simple. Strangely though she doesn't have that problem with women, that's why she dances in an all-women dance club.
"They're just looking to creep," she continued, then takes my arm and walks closer.
"Ou come on, they are just looking for love, haha," I replied sarcastically.
"Hahaha. So are you one of them too, bro?"
"Am I one of who now?"
"One looking for love?"
I miss a step and stumble, and if she didn't catch me I would have face-planted for sure.
"What do you mean, exactly?" I ask.
"I'm just curious. You're all grown up. Yet I have never seen you with a girl longer than a few weeks. Are you that bad at making a long-term connection with someone?"
"Jen..." I start, uncomfortably, caught completely off guard. Jen loves to pry, but she never dug into the relationship zone before, and it's unsettling, to say the least, for her to suddenly take an interest.
"Charles! Spill it already! I'm bored and restless and part of that is due to not knowing whether you're happy!" she said demanding an answer.
"I'm not seeing anyone. And for the connection part, I just haven't found anyone I can connect with on an emotional level." I try to give her an answer that would make her quiet.
"Why not?" she continues to pry.
"Because," I whispered.
"Whyyyyyy?" she wheedles.
I can't help myself but laugh. Jenny has this way of sounding impossibly cute and adorable. If I had to describe it, I would say it looks like a young puppy craving for attention. I'm powerless against it, and she knows it.
"Because I've never met anyone who could keep me interested for more than a couple of weeks. I just get bored with them, wanting to do the same thing, not wanting to try new things, new adventures..." after a short pause I continue. "Besides I have work, Uni, and my workouts. Besides that and hanging out with you there isn't much time left for me to give girls the attention they deserve. Or let's put it differently think they deserve."
She seems satisfied with my action. We walk on for a bit, then she starts again.
"So you say you don't get bored with me haha. I'm flattered," smiling as she speaks. You can see the devil in her eyes while she says it, teasing me making me feel uncomfortable, waiting for me to answer her so she can boost her ego.
"I won't boost your ego, Jenny! So you can just drop it, " I replied then continued in a whisper "but yes, I don't get bored with you."
She grabs my arm tighter, not letting me break free from her tight grip. For a slim girl, she was pretty strong. We walk on, and I listen to the wind playing with the tree branches as I think about the conversation we had.
My mind raced to my past girlfriends, or flings are better putting it. I never was with a girl long enough to even consider her my girlfriend. Maybe I was just afraid of commitment and I was just telling myself that the girls I have been with lack the adventurous spirit that I possess. Maybe underneath it all there was just that fear of abandonment.
But I had Jenny. I always had jenny to rely on and talk to. I told her everything, except this, this I will keep to myself.
We've reached the pond and I stop, take a deep breath, shoving off my thoughts.
"Here we are!" said Jenny. I shoot her a glance, she's looking around with sparkling eyes, being surrounded by the unfamiliar.
I sit on a nearby bench. The wood is warm and the sun is out. I love the noise of the water and wind in the trees. Thus I regard the pond as my sanctuary, my little piece of heaven. I come here to think, and more often than I care to admit, to wallow in self-pity.
"Welcome to my little piece of heaven," I announced, pointing my finger to space next to me. "Sit m'lady."
"Don't mind if I do good Sir," she laughs and sits down next to me. We lean companionably against one another. There is no sound but the wind in the trees and the water beneath us. It was a moment of pure clarity and Jenny's shoulder is warm against mine.
After a while, my curiosity got the best of me and I asked "Why the sudden interest in my love life?"
"I worry about you, always have, always will," she responds.
I snort and answer teasingly. "I'm a big boy now, I can take care of myself."
"Haha, you idiot. I know you are, but still, you're my baby brother, and I still feel responsible for you," says Jenny.
