Twin Sister Denies It Ever Happened

"What did you just say?"

He looked up at his twin, frowning. "What?"

She glared at him from the foot of the stairs. "You heard me. Why would you say that? It's disgusting." She shook her head, then stomped away into the kitchen.

Adam sat on the sofa, the remote still in his raised hand, pointed somewhere near the television. He'd been flipping channels when his twin sister, Ava, had appeared. It was Saturday evening, and she had a date.

She'd stood, preening in the mirror hanging over a small table, facing away from him when she'd spun on her heel, accusing him of... what?

She couldn't have known what he had been thinking. Not unless...

No, that was way in the past, back when they were little. She didn't believe him anymore when he asked her about it, but he knew the truth.

It'd happened. A long time ago, but it was a thing. And to prove it, she'd heard his thought. He hadn't spoken a word.

He sighed. Of course, it had to be that thought. He couldn't help it. She was beautiful. He knew that better than anyone. How could she get mad at him for seeing it, how amazing she was, for responding, if only inside his mind?

Shaking his head, he resumed flipping through channels as he listened to her making a racket and muttering in the kitchen.

Not finding anything to watch, he wondered about it. It hadn't occurred for quite a while, probably over a year. And it was always when he felt that spike of emotion. That one peculiar feeling he had that thankfully happened rarely.

That feeling he had for his sister. It wasn't his fault. She caused it to happen as she'd flounced down the stairs, her incredibly short, pleated skirt bouncing, showing her smooth, slim thighs with each step. Her tits, covered in a thin, silky blouse, bounced only enough to announce their existence without being inappropriate.

Her sex appeal was undeniable, and Adam never could stop his feelings for Ava. They were connected. In a way no one ever spoke or wrote about. Some science fiction stories got close, but this was not that. This was real.

Of course, she denied there was anything, to the point of getting angry with him and refusing to speak to him for a day or more until she calmed down.

That tenuous link that bound them, triggering every once in a while. It had just wiggled again, letting his sister know of her brother's deepest, darkest desire.

And it had pissed her off.

####

"You kids be careful in there. Stay in the tub, wash yourselves, and call out when the water gets too cold." Their father smiled as he looked at the array of plastic toys floating in the bubbly bathwater. "You got all your stuff?"

Grinning, already with soap bubbles in their hair, the twins nodded. "Yup, daddy," Ava giggled, "we're fine."

"Can you put more bubbles in?" Adam bounced where he sat, cross-legged, grinning up at his dad.

He chuckled. "No sport, you guys have enough. Any more and I'll never find you." He lightly splashed his son, then flicked the other way and got some suds on his daughter. Before they could retaliate, he pulled the shower curtain closed and left, his laughter fading as he walked down the hall.

"Wanna do it again?" Adam grinned at his sister as she pushed a rubber duck around, making motor boat sounds.

She looked up at him, her arm driving the small yellow toy. Her eyes twinkled. "Okay."

They sat still, having already found that was the best way to do it. Looking into each other's eyes, they concentrated. Searching with his mind, without the vocabulary to name that action, he looked for his sister.

She hissed, her brows raising high as he felt her. Still as two stone statues, they connected.

He grunted as his vision swam, his eyes feeling funny. He heard her make a similar sound and waited.

"Oh," Ava said, her voice low. A moment later, he echoed her.

He saw himself, a three-year-old boy, sitting in the warm, soapy water, toys floating around him.

Do you feel what I feel?

She nodded, and with some other part of his mind where his eyes were still his, he knew she had. But he was also somewhere inside her. Seeing what she saw and feeling the things she felt.

I do. Do you?

He heard her answer and smiled. Reaching out, he touched her arm as clumps of soap bubbles dripped from his hand. He felt what she felt, the soft, wet feel of his palm sliding over her arm, then across the back of her hand.

Do that to me.

She grinned, gathered some bubbles, then coated his arm with them. He felt her small hand on his arm and hand, but also what she felt while doing it. He felt her thinking about how his arm was larger than hers, compared to what he felt when he touched her.

I love this! I can feel what you do, and what you think and see.

Her giggles echoed off the tiled walls.

I know, it's so neat!

Does everyone do this?

She shook her head.

I don't know. I've never heard anyone say anything about it.

He wondered and felt her in his head as he did.

Have you ever talked to anyone else about... this?

No! Have you?

She had to know his answer before he'd even finished the thought. Of course not. Even at their young age, they knew at some instinctive level what they shared was unique.

What do you think it is?

Her eyebrows rose as she looked at him.

I dunno, but I love it. I love you.

He felt her love as she smiled at him, then lifted her hand and touched the tip of his nose, leaving behind some bubbles. He giggled and brushed it away.

They played silently, speech unnecessary. Elaborate fantasies about pirates and navies, heroes and maidens in distress, all manner of games kids played, filled their time in the bath, all acted out in their connected and combined minds.

They both turned as their father entered the bathroom, then slid the curtain aside. Both Adam and Ava quickly severed the link between them. Whenever they were joined and he came nearby, they felt him, like a rumble only they could hear, and for some unspoken reason, they didn't want their dad to know.

He smiled down at them. "You guys all pruned up?"

Adam hated the feeling of loss when they separated suddenly, and he saw the same feeling in her eyes. It was almost painful compared to the times they disconnected when they were alone. Then, they would agree and, like letting go of hands, they drifted apart, the link dimming, thoughts and feelings fading until it was gone.

"Yup," Ava said, "it's getting cold."

Their father stood them up and pulled out the stopper. He turned on the faucet, checked the temperature, and then switched it to the shower. The siblings took turns under the falling water, rinsing the soap away. One after the other, he helped them out and gave them warm, fluffy towels to dry with.

"Need any help getting your jammies on?" he asked them.

They were big kids now, almost four, and both shook their heads. "We can do it."

"There's my little grown ups." he beamed down at them. "Get dressed and brush your teeth. Call me when you're in bed, and I'll come kiss you goodnight. Momma would, but she's working late tonight."

"We will, daddy!"

They trooped into the room they shared. Two twin beds were separated by a small nightstand. Bureaus stood against both left and right walls, one for each of them. In a few minutes, they'd put on their warm jammies.

Adam and Ava had shared this room since they were babies when their parents had bought the house. Their mother, Mabel, hadn't believed the doctor at first when he announced she was with twins. There were no twins in her family, she explained.

But Dan, their father, had smiled and nodded, keeping his thoughts to himself as the doctor moved the ultrasound wand around, pinpointing the two distinct heartbeats. The warbling sound filling the room, then fading, only to be replaced with a different one.

After returning from the bathroom, teeth brushed, they got under the covers and called out to their father. He came in and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Why do you two sleep in the same bed?" He pointed at the other. "Ava, you have your own."

She frowned and shifted under the covers, curling up into a ball. Adam moved closer to her, putting his arm over her. "We like it this way," Adam said, his face serious.

She nodded at her father, then looked at Adam. "I sleep better like this."

Dan shrugged, then leaned over and kissed each one on the forehead. "Okay, fine. If that's what you guys like."

Ava smiled at him. "We do, daddy."

He had them say their prayers, then with another kiss, he smiled and went to the door, shutting off the overhead light. Two nightlights, one on each wall, glowed enough for them to see. "Goodnight, my babies. I love you."

"Love you, too!"

He blew them a kiss, then closed the door.

####

Adam found a show that seemed tolerable, unable to ignore her presence as she fretted on the other side of the room. Her date was late, and only the most insensitive brother would have missed her growing anxiety.

"He'll be here," Adam said from where he sat, not turning to look at her.

She huffed, then stomped over to the window and peered out. "He better," she muttered as she turned and stood at the end of the couch, staring at him.

He looked over at her. "What?"

She shook her head, but remained silent. He searched, but there was no link. There never was, but he still tried from time to time.

"I don't know." She kept staring at him, giving nothing away.

One of his eyebrows rose. He waited, knowing her. Knowing she needed time to get her words right.

"Oh, fuck it!" She stomped her foot, but remained, her glare growing.

He held her gaze, unimpressed by her outburst.

She shook her arms, slapping them against the sides of her bare thighs. She frowned and tilted her head to the side. "Why do you say those things?"

His smile grew slowly, and she became visibly angrier. Before she could explode, he said, "You know I didn't utter a word." His low, calm voice stood in direct proportion to the bubbling cauldron of emotion that was his sister.

"Don't start with that shit. I'm sick of it!" Her eyes blazed daggers at him.

"Fine. Suit yourself." He shrugged, then tilted his head to the side, studying her. She was mad, her breaths heavy as her boobs moved. That spike in his heart flared for a fraction of a second.

Her eyes widened. He knew he'd not let anything show, and hadn't made a sound. His face was a rigid mask.

She'd felt it. That feeling he couldn't always control.

"You're crazy. That's it. Certifiable, totally fucking nuts." She spun and stormed away. The sounds of a car in need of a muffler came from down the street, treating the neighborhood to a sound Adam thought should be illegal.

"Romeo's here," he called out, again facing the mindless television show.

Her exasperated sound made him smile. Tod was a dick. He drove a dick car, dressed like a dick, treated her like a dick would. Thirty minutes late, and they were supposed to go to a movie.

Obviously they missed the start, so he'd probably just want to take her to Frenchman's Peak to make out instead of at least buying her dinner and taking her somewhere nice. That they had only turned eighteen a few weeks before and this dickhead was in his twenties bothered both him and his parents. He wondered if she was still a virgin like he was.

Adam knew he'd do better than the douche who had finally shut off the piece of shit now parked in front of his house. Without caring if she picked up on his admittedly inappropriate feelings, he pictured holding her in his arms as they kissed in the backseat of his car.

She opened the door, already arguing with the grungy, probably smelly, idiot of a boyfriend. Adam did his best to tune it out as she got her coat and purse. Without a word, she followed him out the front door and slammed it closed.

She couldn't keep denying the random odd things that still happened between them. One day, she'd have to face facts. He grinned. Maybe she had felt his thoughts. Let her. She always denied it, ever since that day.

####

That day had dawned bright. Adam heard birds chirping in the tree outside their bedroom window. He threw the sheet aside and swung his legs over, sitting up and rubbing the back of his head. He sighed, then turned to look at the other bed.

The messy pile of long brown hair was all he could see of his sister. About to enter middle school in a few weeks, she'd been letting it grow out, wanting to appear more mature as she began the change to womanhood. Puberty was on them, morphing both their bodies and minds.

At that age, emotions sometimes ran high. He might snap at her for no reason, then an hour later she might walk over and slap the back of his head. He'd grown taller, now several inches above than her.

A few inches over five feet, she was worried about not growing any taller. He assured her she'd still have some growth spurts, and she'd laughed, asking him when he'd become an expert. Shrugging, he chuckled and walked away, happy to be only an inch shorter than their father, with still more to go, he was sure.

Another change puberty had brought, and not one he liked, was that they no longer played the way they did when little, sitting together, or running around, not saying a word, but laughing, their eyes twinkling at each other.

Over the years, their growing maturity, and the innocence-killing reality of the world around them, infiltrated and changed the life they'd freely bonded over when small.

They still had moments when emotions were shared, making them pause and smile at the other. But as puberty did its magic, it also took the link away until it was a mere shadow, rarely manifesting itself.

Adam and Ava grew, made friends, and slowly drifted apart. Not that they didn't hang out most evenings watching shows, but the transition from childhood to teenager influenced their relationship.

He stood and stretched, faced away from his sister, his arms raised over his head. Clad in a t-shirt and underwear, he missed her shifting and opening her eyes. Lowering his hands, he placed them on his lower back and scratched.

Something niggled at his hindbrain, and he stopped to listen. The warm, familiar presence washed over him, fainter than he'd ever felt, but he knew it was her. He turned his head and stared at her.

Ava lay on her side, her blanket a rumpled mess around her. Only her eyes were visible, peeking through wisps of hair.

"You were looking at me."

"No, I wasn't," she said, her words muffled by her covers.

He faced her and nodded. "Yes, you were. I felt you staring at me."

She rolled onto her back and closed her eyes. "Oh, jeez. Not that again." She lifted her arm and put it under her head.

He looked at her as she lay there, wanting her to feel his stare.

Her eyes flew open as she whipped her head over to glare at him. "Knock it off!"

"What?" He lifted his hands, palms up. "I didn't say anything." He grinned at her scowl.

"I heard you. Stop it! You know it makes me feel uncomfortable."

"I told you. I didn't say anything."

She groaned and rolled to face away from him. "You know you did." She turned her head back toward him. "And don't give me any more of that crap about our 'connection'. You know that's not real."

He watched her turn her back to him again, and that had been the last time he'd felt the link between them. She'd shut him out, not wanting to admit they had something special.

Guys were paying her attention now, and she had a group of friends that took more and more of her time. Taking her away from him.

He sighed, then grabbed his clothes and went into the bathroom that sat between their shared bedroom and the empty guest room.

Later that day, she'd surprised him, and hurt him more than he'd admit, when she asked their parents if she could move into the guest room. Explaining she was growing up, she wanted her own space. Their parents agreed, and that night he slept alone in their childhood room for the first time in his life.

####

Adam had trouble concentrating on the science fiction movie he'd put on. His thoughts kept returning to his sister. He couldn't stop the image of her in that prick's arms, laying back, him hovering over her, leering, wanting her. Like Adam wanted her.

Why did he keep thinking this way? He was reasonably attractive. Not as much as his sister was beautiful, but he'd gotten dates before.

They went nowhere, though, usually fizzling out before a second or third date. It frustrated him, and talking it over with his father hadn't helped. Something in his father's words made him wonder, as if he knew he harbored hidden feelings he didn't want anyone to know.

His mom tried to encourage him, telling him he was a catch and there was a lucky girl out there waiting for him.

Images of Ava as she flounced around in her short skirt ran roughshod through his brain, and again, he saw her in the backseat of that idiot's messy car. She was struggling, conflicted. As if she didn't know what to do, or how far to go.

She was scared now. What the fuck? Why was he having these thoughts? He shook his head, trying to clear it.

Suddenly his phone rang, his sister's ringtone playing as the phone wobbled on the coffee table. He leaned forward and slid his finger on the screen, then lifted it to his ear.

"County morgue. You kill 'em, we chill 'em."

"Adam!" Her voice was an octave higher than normal, and he heard a note of panic underlying her words. "I need you!" He could hear her breathing hard.

"Ava, where are you?" His back went rigidly straight.

"I'm on the road. Please," she begged and he could picture her hunched, the phone pressed tight to her ear. "Just come and get me. Right now!"

He was on his feet, slipping on his shoes as he leaned over to get his keys. He was talking as he headed toward the door.

"What road?" He heard her panting. "Breath. Take a moment and calm down. I'm on my way." The door slammed behind him as he took the steps down two at a time. He hit the button, unlocking his truck.

He heard her sob, but her breathing seemed a little slower as he opened the door.

"I'm by Frenchman's Peak, hiding in the trees."

He started the pickup, then put her on speaker. "In the trees? What the fuck happened?" His tires slid on the gravel at the edge of the street as he backed out. In a slew of tiny rocks, the truck spun, then skidded as he jammed it into drive, throwing more rocks as he took off down the road.

"Tod, he tried to make me..." she sobbed again, and he pressed down on the gas after turning onto the main road.

"Are you okay?" His heart burst with worry and anger. If that fuck had raped his sister, he'd kill him. No mercy, just a long, painful, bloody death.

"Yeah, I didn't do anything, but he wanted me to. Oh, please, just come."

"I'm going as fast as I can. Just a few more minutes, I'm almost out of town." He prayed no police would stop him as the lights of town dwindled in his rear-view mirror. As the road ascended, he drove through the old pine forest on the largest hill of the low range that ran along the outskirts.

He talked to her as he drove as quickly as possible over the dark, twisting roads. He joked around, poked fun at her television shows, anything to keep her occupied until he could find her.

The infamous make-out spot was up ahead. Adam had driven by it a few times, but had yet to bring a girl there. What he hadn't realized was that it wasn't just one location. There were several turnoffs leading down dirt paths to where people would park.

He didn't know which one she was at. As he passed one such place, he asked her, "Where are you? What turn off?"