Between Clouds and Closure

"Where'd You Keep Your Uterus?"

"You're so skinny, amorcita." she said, pulling at my cheeks when we separated. I rolled my eyes at her. "You look good too," I said instead.
"I'm not trying to be mean, you know I'm not. It's just that you're..."
I cut her off, "So skinny. Dragging a divorce for almost a year would do that to you."
"I'm sorry, that was insensitive of me. It's just you've lost so much weight and I understand that it's the divorce taking it toll."
"It's okay, how have you been?"

She motioned for someone to take my luggage upstairs before turning to face me again.
"I'm happy now that you're here, how long are you here for?"
"Three weeks at most. The court hearing's next week, after which we finalize the divorce and then I become a free woman."
"I'm so happy for you, Ava. You didn't deserve all of that, I'm glad it's all coming to an end now."
"Yeah, thanks. Where's your husband?" I asked, deflecting. I didn't really want to talk about my divorce.
"He traveled to New York this morning, he had a fashion show to attend. I would have gone with him to show my support but I had to be here when you landed. He'll be back the day after tomorrow. He sends his love though."
"Good to know," I said.

"You must be starving, I had the chef make you a feast. He made some..." she droned off and in that moment, she reminded me of our mother. I was indeed hungry but I wanted to clean up first.
"I should shower before I come back down to eat."
"Of course, of course."

As I walked up the stairs, I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. Fishing it out, I saw that I had a notification from Adam. The text read:

I'd like to see you before the court hearing next week. Let me know when you get to LA.
XO.

Why the hell was he ending the text with an 'XO'? Shaking my head, I dropped my phone back into my pocket, ignoring the text completely.

Once I entered the room I usually stayed whenever I came to my sister's home, I locked the door behind me and proceeded to take off my clothes as I walked towards the bathroom.

After thoroughly washing every inch of my body with almost scalding water just as I had promised myself that I would, I walked out of the bathroom putting on a bathrobe, feeling refreshed. A knock came from outside of my bedroom and I knew it was my sister. I could tell she was bored without her husband home. The two were always joined at the hip. With their only son off to college, there was no one at home to keep her busy.

She walked over to the bed and perched at the edge, crossing her legs.
"So, what's new? How is traveling the world going for you?" She asked excitedly.
"I quit," I replied, bending over my box to pick out what I intended to wear for the day.
"What?! When? Why didn't you tell me?!" She exclaimed, her eyes widened.
"Three weeks ago. I just made the decision recently. I decided it's not too late to pursue a career in psychology. I've seen enough of the world, and if I never travel again, it would still be too soon." I replied, with a noncommittal shrug.
"Wow, I'm so proud of you," she said,  looking up at me, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.

My sister had always been the more emotional one of the two of us. She cried when watching soap operas or whenever an animal died. In more ways than one, she reminded me of our mom, who was equally as emotional. They both had really long blonde hair that fell to their backs, while I was blessed with a shoulder length mix between blonde and brown, dirty blonde? Light brown? . They were tall at 5'10 and 5'11, while I've been stuck at 5'7" since I hit puberty. They were curvy where I wasn't. My sister always gushed about my body, saying if I was taller, I could totally be a model. But I secretly envied the fullness of her hips and the perfect figure eight she possessed. They had brown eyes, mine were hazel. The only physical features we all had in common were our perky nose and pouty lips. My dad used to say I took his features, but that couldn't be true because he had an almost jet black hair and had brown eyes like my sister and mother.

"Thank you," I replied, taking off the robe  to dress up.
"Woah, your stomach is so flat, where'd you keep your uterus?" she gushed now, sliding her hand over my stomach. I rolled my eyes but didn't respond, pulling a shirt over my head.
" I guess that's what happens when you don't have kids. My stomach has been stretched so far, I could use it as a duvet," she continued and flopped backwards on the bed dramatically with a thud. I chuckled at her over exaggeration. Yes, she didn't have a flat stomach, not since having her son Javan, but it was barely noticeable that she'd even had a child.

We had always been close, especially being the only children of our parents even though, we were polar opposites. She was a good eight years older but no one would have guessed it. She still looked to be in her early thirties although she'd recently clocked forty. She had flawless skin that I chugged to all the skincare products she was using. She always had a tube of sunscreen in her bag, I couldn't blame her, she did live in California after all.

After I had fully dressed up, she took my hand in hers and led me to the dining room, where I ate to her heart's content,  while she talked to me about everything she could think of.

By the next day, I was beginning to feel smothered by her, so I told her I was going to see a friend.

"Do I know this friend?" She'd asked coyly, while lying sprawled across my bed.
"No, you don't," I'd replied, getting dressed into something casual. I was yet to call Bryce to meet up.
"Is that what you're wearing?" She'd asked then. Her husband being a fashion designer had obviously rubbed off on her and now she deemed herself the fashion police.
"Yes, I told you, he's just a friend," I said, resisting the urge to snap at her.
"Oh, you didn't mention he was a he," she said, her smile teasing.

"What does it matter?" I asked, rummaging through my bags for my jewelry box. After I found it, I put on a pair of hoop earrings and a diamond encrusted necklace with my initials. Standing in front of the full length mirror, I stared at myself. My face was bare of any makeup and my hair was tied in a ponytail. I was wearing a simple nude chiffon top with a  high-low cut and a pair of high waisted black jeans. I wiggled my toes as I was still barefoot. Deciding that my outfit looked okay, I sat on the edge of the bed to put on a pair of black leather boots .

"It always matters, baby. Besides, you're getting a divorce and I'm happy that you're putting yourself out there, you know, moving on," she explained.
"Again, Rosa, he's just a friend," I said. I would have told her the truth,  but I didn't want to hear her tell me I was making a mistake, that I was doing what I did with Adam again. Except that I wasn't, I was only using it as an excuse to leave the house. But I couldn't tell her that either, I didn't want to hurt her feelings. She was being so supportive and also housing me even though I had my own house.

"At least, put on some lip gloss," she said
" I don't have any."
She ran out of the room and came back a couple minutes later, throwing a tube of what I knew was an expensive lipgloss that read Fenty.
"Keep it," she said right as she walked over to me, collecting it from me like I couldn't apply it myself. She applied a thin layer, smeared off the excess and smiled approvingly. "You sure you don't want me to give your face a natural no makeup, makeup look?" She asked hopefully.
I declined and thanked her, walking down the stairs, with her following closely behind.
"I could have Peter drive you,"  she said.
"Thanks, but I'll take a cab," I replied, as I walked outside the house and headed towards the gate.
She would have followed me all the way to the gate but Godforbid she walked outside of her house with what she called 'bedroom slippers'. I could tell she was about to protest when I hurried my steps and walked out of the gate .