✅ My Sister's Problem

34. Threes

This chapter is dedicated to Uoi, who started supporting me on Patreon today. Thank you Uoi!

"Good game," Nadine nodded and shook my hand. The match had ended in a draw, which seemed fair enough. And we'd managed what we came for, which was a little more experience as well as thinking about the big picture. Maggie was feeling better now, having been forced to sit out most of the game but feeling well enough to make her own way home. What I hadn't managed was finding out why Nadine was so upset. I needed to know what I'd done to offend her. So as we were picking up our bags, I approached her again.

"Nadine?"

"You'll need to be going. Playing with balls next, right?"

"Yeah, but... What's wrong? Have I done something to upset you? I don't understand unless you tell me."

She sighed and said nothing, but she wasn't walking away this time. That had to be an improvement. And as we filed out of the school gates she seemed to have no problem heading in the same direction.

"Following me home?" she asked after a few moments.

"Going to the park. Via Brunchietta, of course." I noticed that she hadn't turned down Oak Street, so she couldn't be going straight home. I hoped she would say something soon, because I couldn't stand the idea of my best friend refusing to even talk to me.

"Sorry," she said. "I'm not mad. Not with you. Just never expected... I'm worried about you. Don't make the same mistakes I did, y'know?"

By that point we were at one of our favourite little cafés, and I picked up a sandwich from the cabinet by the door. I paid for Nadine's lunch too, in the hope that would make it easier to talk. Neither of us made a move to sit down; it must have been obvious that I was planning to eat on the way to the park, and she was willing to join me now. I was still on edge, but I felt like she was willing to open up.

"I'm learning to play basketball," I told her, when we were outside and heading towards the park. "You saw us at the start of summer. Hugo's been teaching me. Maybe I should have told you first, but I didn't think you'd... I don't want to bring up bad memories. If I'd known..."

"You'd never do anything to hurt a friend, right?" She shook her head. "Must make life hard sometimes. But I think I should have told you everything, last year even. I just never thought you'd be interested, you were so caught up in skating, and then you were learning hockey and you were so excited about it. You throw yourself into everything you do, like a hundred and fifty percent. I just... it's not your fault, don't worry."

"What's wrong?"

"Just never thought you'd end up there, you know? Like, you remember when I was seeing Hugo Eisen? I'd be waiting outside your house every day waiting for him. We got chatting so many times then, I guess before that I was just another girl on the team, right?"

"Yeah. I'm glad, you're a fun person."

"Exactly. It was that guy who gave us an excuse to be good friends. And now I try not to think about him, even when his personal cheer squad are squealing. He doesn't deserve their attention."

"Why not? You seemed so happy, always excited. I mean–" I stopped myself there. I still wanted to know, but it wasn't something I could just ask her. Not when she'd been so irritable lately, and it was obviously something Hugo-related. Did she still miss him? Did she resent that I was spending time with him, or did she think there was something else there? I couldn't tell if she really thought it was some kind of relationship, or if that was some kind of joke rooted in her current emotional state.