Shots - Frat!l.h.

One: Nora

"Those who are cold, were once warm." -unknown

Nora Keilee

We had only been in the car for about two hours, but that didn't stop me from feeling the utmost amount of annoyance that one could achieve in such a short span of time.

"You're going the wrong way," I groaned, my skull slapping against the head restraint.

"No, I'm not!" Kailee, my best-friend and now dorm-mate, countered. "We're just taking a shortcut."

I snorted. "What kind of shortcut takes an extra hour?"

"Shut up, Nora," She muttered. "At least I can drive."

"Hey!" I upbraided. "I'm taking my test again during winter break."

"I mean, you did crash into that--"

"We don't speak of it!" I cut her off. I knew very well about how terrible of a driver I was, but that was a full year ago. A lot had changed since then-- I had matured slightly, my anxiety had calmed down, and I felt that I'd be much more prepared for my driver's test this time around.

She grunted in laughter, pulling a harsh turn around a corner.

This woke up my brother. He groaned, rubbing his eyes as he sat up from his slouched position in the backseat.

"Kailee, you're a terrible driver," He said, his body shaking as we rolled over the dirt-road that was supposedly a 'short cut' to our college campus.

"Ha!" I pointed a finger at her.

My brother rolled his eyes. "You're worse, Nora."

Kailee stifled her laugh, keeping her hands on the wheel.

"You're evil, you know that?" I turned to face him, my seat belt contorting around my torso as my waist twisted. "We're twins, you're supposed to be on my side."

He shrugged. "I'm pretty sure we're supposed to be enemies. Sibling rivalries and whatnot."

"Yeah, right," Kailee commented. "The day that you two start actually fighting will be the day that pigs fly."

"Ronan and I fight sometimes," I frowned.

"Yeah, but you've never had a real fight. It's always been about, like, taking up too much space on the couch or being too loud. You've never had a real fight."

"I guess she's right, Nora, we're just too nice to each other," Ronan grinned, flicking my ear with his index finger.

"God, you're so annoying. Go back to sleep."

"No can do, sissy. It's my job to annoy you. It's in the older sibling handbook they hand you at birth. Not that you would know anything about it, considering you're younger than me."

"Two minutes!" I yelled in an exasperated tone. "Two minutes later. You will never let me live that down, will you?"

"Nope," He said, shrugging.

I rolled my eyes again. It was silent for a moment, before Ronan spoke again.

"I hope that mom is okay."

I closed my eyes. I had been worried about it, too. My mother only really had us to rely on, and now that both of us were out of the house, I was perturbed about her well-being. She had never really been one to take care of herself, and since she had gotten sick, she'd just been worse.

"Me, too."

"Calm down, guys. She's got Holiday and your dad with her, don't worry about her."

Holiday was her nurse. She was a petite woman with crinkly eyes from smiling so much, dark skin that matched her black, curly hair, and an incredible sense of humor. I was incredibly grateful for her, because my mother loved her. It seemed like Holiday was a silver lining in the gloomy, tense atmosphere that surrounded us.