Nina's flight doesn't come in at nine.
It comes in at noon.
Which means Bel probably could have slept in until nine. But he doesn't know the flight is delayed, so instead he drags himself out of bed at seven-forty-five this morning (he'd hit "snooze" five times), and makes himself walk out the door, get into his car and take the Expressway to Don Mueang International, where he arrives at nine-oh-three.
And waits at Baggage Claim.
For three damn hours.
Nina is only slightly shorter than he is, and she also looks more American, like their dad. She's got their dad's gray eyes; and instead of the black hair that Bel inherited from their mom, her hair is brown-ish red--like the kind of red you get from a Clariol bottle(except Bel can't really judge her for that cause he's got indigo streaks on either side of his head thanks to that same brand). She lets Bel carry both the roller case and the carry-on she brought with her from baggage claim but won't let him touch the backpack.
"How was your flight?" Bel's question is automatic, because that's what you ask people when you pick them up from the airport. They usually say it was fine, and then they move on.
"Fine," Nina's reply is equally automatic, but it sounds almost robotic. She's holding her backpack like a lifeline and while she looks fine, there's tiny little details that say she's not. Her fingers are clenched, and her eyes are darting around the terminal, looking for the exit in a way that doesn't seem normal to Bel. "Where did you park?"
"Outside, in the parking lot."
"Very funny, you know what I mean. The flight was long, so I just want to get to the hotel and shower and sleep." Nina's face relaxes ever so slightly.
Bel and Nina are fluent in both Thai and English, having lived in both countries most of their lives due to what their dad did for a living; and most of their conversations switch between both languages--sometimes in mid-sentence. It started off as a game they used to play as kids--a brain exercise their dad called it--but now it comes all too naturally.
"You don't want to call Silo first?" Bel can't help but tease his sister.
"And why would I want to do that?"
"Maybe he missed you as much as I did?" That gets him a smack upside the head. "Ouch! Well, it's probably true! Nina, don't look at me like that just—don't break his heart ok?"
Nina smiles at him. "Since when did you turn into a romantic?"
"I'm serious, Nina. If you break Silo's heart, then Gulf will get mad and he'll take it out on me—and not just as the brother of the girl who hurt the guy he loves!"
"I give you my solemn word that I will not break Silo's heart while I'm here, so you don't have to worry about your boss." Nina says. "Besides, there's no definite commitment. We're just dating, and so far as I know it's the same with Gulf, he's ok with it; and Silo's ok with it; and I'm ok with it, so don't worry about it until you need to, ok?"
"That's what Gulf and Em said, I just wanted to be sure."
"Don't worry about it." Nina reassures him. "People are allowed to date more than one person if they want to."
"I know. It's fine." Bel lets the subject drop and Nina turns the conversation away from her and onto him.
"How are you? Do you have a boyfriend yet?"
"You ask me the same thing every time you see me, and the answer hasn't changed." It's true; Bel isn't surprised by the question.
"Well if you can pester me about my dating life, then I can ask about yours." Nina has been asking ever since he moved back out to Thailand for a gap year--except the gap year turned into three, and Bel isn't interested in changing that any time soon.
