sunsets with jude

chapter thirteen- demonic sisters

Jude

"What's good, nerd?" Abbey joins me in my car. "Pass all of your finals?"

I nod. "That was fun."

"You know what's fun? That high school party you're going to be at." Abbey rolls her eyes. She can't tag along since she has a soccer match in Fleming Island. "Have loads of fun for me, Judey." 

"Thanks." 

"I'm sure you and Emi's babies will turn out lovely, but I don't want to be an aunt just yet." She teases as she buckles her seat belt. I want to put her in her place, but don't feel like crashing the car over the shots she's fired at me since the day she learned to speak. 

I glance at my sister playing with one of her perfect blonde braids. "You're strange, Abbey Anne." Her jab gets me thinking about the future for the rest of the drive. If babies are in the cards, I hope they have Emi's milk chocolate eyes, tan skin, and straight, white teeth.

"But I'm right." I give her a serious look so Dad, who is working from home today, doesn't catch us arguing. Abbey sticks her tongue out and goes to her room to pack her things for this weekend. While she'll get yelled at by my parents in the bleachers, I get to hang out with Emilia while the setting sun paints the sky the prettiest colors.

The party isn't for another few hours, and Lucy wants to play with me for as long as she can before I leave. 

I unlock her cage. "Hey, girl. We're gonna walk, mkay?" 

Lucy bolts to the front door at the prospect of giving her favorite owner his daily exercise. We step into the warm sun and take in the blue sky and houses minutes from the beach. The clouds decided not to ruin the perfect sky and let the blinding sun steal the show.

While my Pit Bull gets her energy out, music from my AirPods drowns out every other noise. Enjoying that song about four guys thousands of miles away and their yellow submarine runs in the family. My dad's been a fan since birth, given he named his two children and dog after songs of theirs. They mix in pretty well with Tyler the Creator's whole discography.

That's my playlist for you.

Within ten minutes of walking my favorite dog, I can't breathe and sweat dampens my face. At the end of some song, I end up taking Lucy home and letting her get the rest of her energy out in the yard. I never have the energy to play with her and she's too energetic to care about me. After she nearly falls asleep on the overgrown grass, I let her back in through the sliding glass door. 

"Son." Dad emerged from his office recently. "How were finals?"

"Too easy." I say. Teaching what I know to others will definitely guarantee me at least mostly A's. "Wait. Are you about to head out?"

He nods. "Mum will meet me there."

"What time is it?"

"Nearly 5 o'clock." He turns to face the stairs. "Abbey! We're leaving!" 

My sister looks like she might fall over with all the heavy equipment she has. Abbey's head comfortably fits under my chin, but she's quite lean thanks to soccer and track. The weight of the bags might cause her to fall over. 

As she struggles, it registers to me that Emi said our party transportation will arrive at 6:30, an hour and a half away. After I say goodbye to my dad and listen to the whole "don't do drugs whilst at that party, love ya" speech he gives, I dash upstairs to get ready to see her. I believe she said Tori from last night's brother is giving us a ride.

My skin, hot and flushed because of the sun's heat, welcomes my shower head's frigid water. It darkens my hair and makes me look like a person again. After my shower, I put on some shorts and don't bother to add a shirt. I'm by myself with no one to body shame me. After plopping onto my bed, I send Emi something impulsive.