"Do you normally make-out with the people you're hired to kill? It doesn't strike me as very professional."
"Put the gun down," Gabriel panted, not answering her.
"Why on earth would I do that?"
"Because you're not going to shoot me," Gabriel rep...
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"Mom looked beautiful tonight," Carter told Ashlyn. Ashlyn nodded, thinking back to her mom's outfit for the evening - a beautiful, dark green dress, with a beaded, shimmering top, and a slightly flared tulle skirt, connected at the gown's high waist.
Ashlyn found herself slightly irritated at the fact that if she were in high school like a normal kid who had just turned 15, she could be going to school dances and wearing dresses like that herself. Instead, her parents were the only ones who got to go out and party all night while she watched her little brother.
She wasn't angry though, just irritated. Her brother was actually pretty great for a 12-year-old boy. He didn't really need to be watched, the two just liked keeping each other company more than doing their own thing. She also never understood how to be around people her own age, so her parents were doing the right thing by keeping her away. She would just be awkward and miserable the whole dance anyway. Her parents were only trying to protect her.
Besides, it wasn't as though they went out all the time. This was her dad's annual company gala. Her parents went every year, stayed in a hotel for the night, and came back the next morning.
"Are you done with your homework?" she asked Carter.
"Yeah, but I'm sure it's wrong. I'm not good at math like you."
"Well, I'm not good at music like you," Ashlyn told him.
It was true. Carter had been composing music since he was five. At 12, he could play ten instruments, and he was especially talented on the piano. Ashlyn could listen to him play for hours, his hands flying over the keyboard with intense speed and accuracy. Ashlyn had played piano as a child as well, but even though she could be as precise as Carter, the notes always sounded hollow. Carter's playing had such a richness to it - like putting on a warm blanket.
"Let me check," Ashlyn said, looking over her brother's work. "This is actually really good, C. But here, the derivative should be 3dx. And when you integrate, don't forget the constants."
Ashlyn went through, checking the rest of his homework. He may have been insecure about his work, but for someone who had just recently learned integration, he was doing very well. They got to the end quickly.
"So what can we do now?" Carter asked.
"We could play trivia. Or read."
"We can do those things when mom and dad are here," Carter complained. "Can't we do something they wouldn't approve of?"
"Carter..." Ashlyn began.
"We have some freedom for once, Ashlyn! We should take advantage of it."
Ashlyn frowned. "Freedom is overrated, Carter. Mom and dad know what's best for us."
"God, you're boring. Come on. Let's watch something dumb. Mom and dad would be so horrified."
