Run

III

            "NO, EMILY, WAIT!!"

It was too late; she had already walked around the divider.

"Alex, who's this lady? Why is she in my spot? Why's her hair so short?" Emily asked question after question, not allowing Alex or Nick to explain.

"Shit, Emily, whatever you do, you can't tell mom about this, okay? She can't know." Alex quickly ensured his sister understood that their mother couldn't know.

"Like a secret?" Emily tilted her head, her two braids moving with her

"Exactly! A super secret, secret, that no one but me, you, and Nick know, okay?" Wording it in a way that his sister could understand so she'd be more likely to agree.

"Okay! I won't tell a soul, pinky promise!" She held up her right hand, pinky sticking up. Alex linked his pinky with hers and shook their hands up and down.

"So, where did she come from? Is she okay? Why is she asleep?" Emily asked more questions, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"We found them earlier today; they are hurt, so we brought them back here. They'll be okay; we must wait for her to wake up." Nick responded this time, finally having something he could help explain to her.

"Oh, okay. I'll watch over her then!" As they didn't know Falrens preferred pronouns, Alex decided to let his sister be; he could correct her once he knew. With that, Emily jumped onto the arm of the couch, beginning to look Falren over.

"Pretty lady has elf ears!! Baba, the pretty lady is an elf?!" In her excitement, Emily let his nickname slip, but seeing his sister so happy, Alex couldn't bring himself to care. He watched as his sister closely watched Falren admiring them from the couch arm, waiting for them to wake up.

Alex's phone went off, the familiar chime letting him know it was his mother. He opened the message.

Ma: Dinner is ready. Come get it

                                                                                                                 Me: Can we eat in the garage tonight, ma?

Ma: Sure

Ma: Is your sister staying with you?

                                                                                                             Me: Yeah, she wants to watch us play games

Ma: Okay, baby, come get it

                                                                                                                                                              Me: On our way now

"Ayo! Dinner is ready. Nick, you stay here in case Falren wakes up. Emily, come get dinner with me, please."

"Okay, baba!" Emily ran over to him, grabbing his hand as they headed towards the house.

Nick settled in to watch over Falren. As he sat there, he noticed things about them, their plump lips, the subtle curves of their waist, their long lashes. But at the same time, he saw how their jawline was more robust, and they had a broader nose, the buzzed hair that made their more masculine features stand out. Somehow Falren looked both feminine and masculine at the same time. He couldn't help but wonder what their personality was like. Maybe they were really into make-up or maybe into gaming? Were they assertive, or did they let others lead?

Nick snapped out of his thoughts as the garage door opened again, and the smell of meatloaf filled his nose. He looked up as Alex put three plates on the coffee table and set one more by the couch. The three sat down at the table and began to dig in.