The Two Of Us

Attie (Chapter 1)

I want to love; is that so much to ask for? I want someone who appreciates me, is interested in my hobbies, and is so sickeningly in love with me that he'd promise to keep my family's secrets. But, again, is that too much to ask?

It doesn't matter that I'm sitting at a local coffee shop in Boston watching my twin sister Allie flirt with a boy—a boy who just happened to be my crush since the 9th grade. Unlike me, Allie was outgoing, funny, flirtatious, and prettier than me, which is crazy considering we are identical twins.

I held the dish towel so tightly my hand was turning red.

"Attie, are you okay?"

I spun around, coming face-to-face with my twenty-one-year-old brother, Holden. He just so happened to be the manager of this little coffee shop, and it just so happened that his eighteen-year-old twin sisters were two of his employees.

I grimaced as I watched my seven-year-old brother Tate swing around in a chair until he looked close to throwing up.

I ignored Holden's question, "I thought Tate had school? Didn't Mom mention that she wanted to take him today?"

It was currently 7 in the morning. School for Tate started at 7:50 AM.

Holden smiled. We all looked just like our father, but looking at Holden. It felt like I was talking to a younger version of my father. The same light blonde hair and dark brown eyes. He even smiled as my father did.

"When mom actually shows up to be a parent, that is when I'll take your questions seriously. Tate is staying here, I'm not letting him go with her. Who knows what is in her system."

I nodded as I finished cleaning the remainder of the glasses. I was still fuming at the sight of Allie flirting with Bradley. It's not her fault, though. I tell her nothing about my personal life. It's not her fault she doesn't know.

"Can I just get a cup of black coffee?"

A boy around my age slid into the seat across from me. I didn't even realize it.

He was wearing prep school attire. His brown hair was sporadic, sticking up left and right. His eyes are what drew me in, though. They were dark green.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

I snapped out of my gaze, "Yeah, you can order up there."

He glanced at my name tag, "Thank you, Attie."

I watched as he made his way over to my brother. First, my brother laughed at something he said before sliding him a cup of black coffee. Then, to my surprise, he came back to my table.

"Did your parents name you Attie after Atticus Finch from, To Kill A Mockingbird?"

His question caught me off guard. No one had ever made the connection before, especially not a stranger.

I nodded, "My little brother Tate and I were named after the book. My brother Holden and sister Allie were named after the book, The Catcher In The Rye."

He smiled in amazement, "I find that so cool. Your parents must be pretty sweet."

I laughed, "Far from it."

He gave me a puzzled look. That's when I noticed Allie staring at me from across the store. Bradley was nowhere in sight.

"What's your name?" I asked him.

"It's Griffin."

I nodded; Griffin was a nice name.

"Okay, Griffin, I need you to do me a favor. I need you to pretend to be on a date with me okay?"

He choked on the mouthful of coffee he had drunk out of his cup, "What?"

Allie started making her way over to the table.

I smiled at Griffin, "Okay, thank you."

Allie stopped in front of us, batting her eyes. I forgot to mention to Griffin that we were identical twins, so when he noticed her, he had to do a double-take. Allie and I had the same facial features: dirty blonde hair and dark brown eyes. We were close in height and even weighed the same. She was slightly taller and skinnier, but people had difficulty telling us apart. There was no denying this Griffin boy was attractive. He was far more appealing than any boy I've seen and more beautiful than Bradley. I could tell Allie thought the same thing. She looked back and forth between the both of us.

"I'm Atties twin sister, Allie," Allie said.

Griffin smiled, "I can tell."

Allie's cheeks turned a shade of bright pink. I couldn't help but smile because she was caught off guard for once.

"You didn't tell me you were on a date?" Allie said, directing the comment toward me.

"Yeah, well, Griffin here showed up unannounced. So I told him to show up at lunchtime."

I caught Griffin smiling as he looked up at me, "Yeah but Attie here is so amazing. I couldn't go one more second without seeing her today so I decided to stop in before school."

"Why is it that my two workers are not working?" Holden asked from the front counter.

Allie jumped at the sound of Holden's voice. Then, walking back to the table Bradley was at and started picking up the dirty dishes.

Griffin smiled, handing me a five-dollar bill, "It was a pleasure meeting you Attie."

I was still frozen in shock even after he left the store. Then, finally, Holden snatched the bill out of my hand. "Get to work, Attie. I don't pay you for nothing."

I stuck my tongue out at him, "Yeah, yeah."

As I walked past him, I ruffled Tate's hair, and he smiled at me. Tate was our last hope of reuniting our family; look how well that turned out.

Holden collapsed in his desk chair, putting his head in his hands in defeat. Holden's office was the storage closet. He crammed a desk in the corner and one chair in front of it. He used it when he held interviews, but it's not like he needed a lot of employees. I worked every day after school, sometimes when we didn't have school, like today. Allie worked five days a week, and three other workers he filtered in throughout the day.

"I think I might just home school him here at the cafe," Holden said.

I sat across from him, "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

Holden let out a long sigh, "I think it is the only option. I can't take him to school. You and Allie have class, and you also work. It's not your responsibility to take care of Tate."

"It isn't your responsibility either. You're his brother not his father."

"I'm going to call the school tomorrow and unenroll him. I've already talked to someone that works at this online learning academy. At least this way, I know for sure he is going to school. He is seven years old, he needs to get an education."

I felt terrible for my brother. He's had to care for us since my parents both went off the deep end. We've lived with him upstairs of the coffee store for the past two years.

"It might be harder for Tate to start so young."

"Attie, it's the only option I have."

Holden only recently obtained full custody of Tate, yet he still acted like he couldn't make decisions without talking to Mom. But, of course, it's not like Mom answered her phone anyway.

My brother was twenty-one and had his whole life ahead of him, yet he had to watch over his three little siblings.

I decided not to press the conversation any further. When Holden decides about something, it's hard to convince him otherwise.