The Poet

6

Giana

The four-hour flight home seemed like it took an eternity to get through. When we landed, Rafael got our things, and we went to get the rental. I gave him directions to my mom's house, and within forty-five minutes, we were there. There were no lights on, and everything seemed off. Rafael pulled into the driveway, and I hopped out, heading straight to the front door. I unlocked the door and walked inside. "Tristan? Christian?! You guys home?" I yell, walking through the house. Rafael walked in and closed the door behind him. "Where do you want me to put these bags, G?" He asks, sitting my purse on the couch. I show him to my old bedroom down the hallway—the same as I left it. Nothing is out of place anywhere. "In here is fine, Ra," I say. He heads in, sits our bags down, and heads to my bathroom.

I walk to my brother's rooms, first knocking on Tristan's doot. No answer. I go to Christian's next. I knock and twist the knob. "Boys? You in here?" I ask, and as I open the door, I see them sleeping on Chris's bed. I walk over and give them kisses and place the blanket on them, trying not to disrupt their slumber. I quietly back out of the room and head to mine to unpack and process my thoughts. As I walk in, Rafael is walking out of the bathroom. I stop for a second and stare at him as he moves around the room like he's been here before. He unpacks his bag as he talks to, who I'm assuming is Jason. He pulls out his stash box and some sweat pants and heads back into my bathroom. I never realized how handsome he truly is until now. I mean yeah he's an attractive man but something about him is different. Is it the poetry? The way he talks? I don't know but I like it and whatever the attraction is I want to explore it. Or maybe I'm hungry. I decided to shower in my mom's room and get dressed in pajamas. I check on my brothers, still asleep, then head to my room, where I find Raf rolling up. "Did you find the boys?" He asked, sealing the wood. "Yeah, they're asleep. Do you want some food, or are you going to smoke first?" I ask. He puts his tray to the side and looks at me as he speaks. "Whatever makes you comfortable. This is your domain, so if there are rules, I will happily follow them." He smiles sweetly at me, reassuring me that he's going to behave.

"You should put the car in the garage. It gets gross at night." I give him the garage key as we walk back into the hall. I head into the kitchen to start cooking. "Alexa, play Just Like Magic by Ariana Grande," I say, and Alexa does as commanded and plays the song. I sing and start making Philly Cheesesteak Stuff'd Burgers with sweet potatoes fries. I hear footsteps behind me shuffling hesitantly towards the kitchen as I'm cooking. "Giana? Is that you?" I hear Chris call out from the hall. "Yes, it's me," I say, laughing a bit.

They run in and engulf me in their love. I almost didn't recognize them, seeing as though they were now towering over me. "Damn! When did you get so big?!" I laugh out as we step away from the hug. They laugh and joke about puberty and how they can call me Shorty G now. I finished the food and made plates, and then came the questions. "So, who's the extra plate for?" Chris asks. "Yeah, did you bring a boyfriend back with you?" Tris jokes. As I was about to answer, Raf walked through the garage door. "Sorry, it took so long. I went to the store for some more woods and some juice." He says, looking up from the bag and scanning the room.

"Boys, this is Rafael. Rafael, these are the boys, Chris and Tris." I say, trying to ease the growing tension in the room. "So, who are you to, my sister?" Chris asks in the rudest tone I've ever heard from him. "Oh, it's not like that, trust me! I'm just a friend here to help if there's anything to help with." Raf says, putting the bag down on the counter finally. The boys followed his movements, and then out of nowhere, Tristan started laughing. "Bro, we honestly do not care. As long as you're good to her, you're good with us." He says as he stands to put his plate in the dishwasher. "Damn, G, the tall gene did skip you," Raf says as he watches the boys walk into the living room to watch tv.