HER SISTER (18+) (GXG)

Beach Dinners & Thoughts

"Wow this is so good," I breathed out, grabbing another crispy fry.

Mili nodded, eating another fry, "Yeah, this place has the best food in Laguna," she said.

"Oh, so you eat here often?" I questioned curiously.

Mili nodded, grabbing her glass cup filled with water, "If I was ever in town—nine times out of ten, I'd end up here," she admitted, taking a brief sip of her water, before she said, "It's just something about Laguna that calms me."

I nodded, tracing the features of her face. This is the first time everything felt so casual with Mili.

It's like we were suddenly in a different universe away from LA that was made up of a certain promise I made.

Here it felt different—which was fun, but at the same time, it sucked.

I knew we'd have to head back to LA soon.

"What are you thinking about?" Mili said, her dark eyes still placed on me.

I looked down at my plate of food that I had barely touched, "I don't know..." I trailed off, trying to decide if I should confide in her or not.

I looked back up at Mili, whose face was neutral—not cold or tense. Just neutral, like she was waiting to hear what I had to say before reacting.

She raised a slight brow, looking me up and down as a signal to tell her.

I sighed. "I don't want to go back to LA," I admitted in one breath.

Mili laughed once, "You're telling me."

I shook my head with a slight smile, grateful that she was keeping the mood light even when it wasn't. "Seriously, I really don't want to. I like it here," I said.

Mili's expression softened slightly, but only for a split second–I almost questioned if I imagined it.

After a few beats of silence, Mili sighed dramatically, "Fine, I guess we can abandon LA and live here," she said, her tone light and joking, "We'll just have to buy everything we once had since we can't go back—Mya would murder us before we had a chance to leave."

I knew she was joking, but even the idea of staying here with her and abandoning the life I had created, actually sounded pleasing.

"I'd rather go back than be wanted by Mya for murder," I said, laughing slightly.

Mili chuckled. "Facts."

I laughed again, staring at Mili, who held a small smile on her lips.

Later, we ended up getting our food to-go and grabbing the check, which Mili had already told the waitress to put on her tab, which meant that she was truthful about eating there often.

Back in the Cadillac SUV, we sat in a comfortable silence, heading back to a place that neither of us wanted to go.

Mili was transferring her pictures from her camera to her phone while I sat quietly staring out of the window.

Without giving the question a second thought, I said, "Tell me something that I don't know, but should know."

Mili glanced over at me, an amused expression suddenly coating her features, "Tell you something that you don't know, but should know?" she reiterated.

I nodded, smiling slightly.

For once, I didn't feel shy. I had officially warmed up to Mili fully—which meant thoughts or questions like these, came out easier than I expected.

I raised a brow at her, "That's what I said hm?"

Mili laughed through her nose once, "Yeah, I guess so," she said, sitting her phone to the side as a way to show that I had her full attention.