STOLEN SMILE [ GXG ]

CATERINA

"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched-they must be felt with the heart."

-Helen Keller

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THE PAST HELD A SIMPLISTIC charm in my heart, but that didn't mean I couldn't see the beauty in my complicated present. Urban development stretched to the sky, its pollution blocking the stars, but beneath it the magic of humanity lived on. There was good in the world, and I couldn't understand how the blonde newscaster only focused on the unpleasant.

The alleyway was still, the kitchen staff having already dispersed. Tire noise, honking, and sirens were steady in the background, but even louder than that was the soft, harmonic lilt of a saxophone.

My heels clicked on the asphalt as I took a few steps toward the music. A certain reality settled on me: I didn't have a spellbinding love story to bring to this world. The honest truth was, I only forced myself to enjoy tragic endings because I knew mine wouldn't be far apart.

Warmth brushed my bare back, the whisper of a thrill trailing behind. I turned around to find Jennifer standing so close I had to tilt my head to meet her gaze. She took the cigarette from my fingers, put it between my lips, and then, with the metallic clink of a Zippo lighter with an ace of spades on the side, the mesmerizing glow of a flame flickered between us.

"This is the last cigarette you're smoking, so enjoy it."

I smiled, and as she lit the cigarette, I puffed slowly so I didn't cough and come off as a rookie once again.

"Something funny?"

A soft laugh escaped me. "Yeah. You."

With a pensive stare, she pulled the cigarette from my lips, brought it to her own, and inhaled.

I tilted my head, regarding her. "So, can I call you my sorella now?" I didn't know why I'd said it, but it had just slipped through my lips as easily as air. Nicotine ran through my veins and lightened my tongue.

She looked at me, blowing out a breath of smoke above my head. We were standing so close her sleeve touched my arm. So close her presence obliterated mine. And there was nothing that felt familial about it.

She handed me the cigarette. "No." It was a hard no, not one you debated with.

"Why not? You will be."

Her jaw ticked. "I'll be your cognata, not your sister."

"Same thing, really. You already have the controlling sisterly act down."

Her expression told me she wasn't amused and she wasn't going to participate in this conversation.

"You can call me your sorella. Maybe a sibling is what you need to realize the world doesn't revolve around you."

She let out a breath of amusement, but it sounded like she wanted to choke me. "Smoke your cigarette and shut up."

I turned around to hide the ridiculous warmth that rushed to my cheeks and walked a few steps from her. The soft clicks of my heels in tune with the saxophone's lilt was hypnotic. The nicotine must have been mixing with the alcohol in my system. Or maybe I was just
drunk on her presence.

Spinning around, I leveled my gaze on her. "You don't have to babysit me, you know. I don't usually get assaulted twice in one weekend."

She leaned against the back door, her gaze sparking with sarcasm. "Just once, then?"