His Girl #Wattys2016

26. Slumber party

"What took you so long? I've been waiting for you two since hours!" Drake chided me when we arrived.

Aaron and I had spent a few more minutes in the playground before we decided to leave. I had finally forgotten what I had been feeling sad about all along, and Drake seemed in a mood to remind me all of it again. Before I could respond to him, I spotted a girl with black hair and big brown eyes staring at me.

"Saaaaaaarah!" She cried out as soon as my eyes met hers.

"Duffy! Oh, my God! Is that really you?" I gasped.

"You cannot call me that in front of Aaron Mason, Sarah! Please!" She wailed as she landed herself in my arms. "I missed you so much, you are still as pretty as you were back then."

Duffy, or Daphne, Drake's seven year old sister, and I had been more or less inseparable the last time we were in the same room. Which was two years ago. She was taller now, prettier too, and she had finally, and completely, lost her cute lisp.

"I miss that lisp of yours," I teased her. "You know, Aaron, the first time I met her she was barely five. And she came up to me, and said 'hi, I'm Duffy. Nife to meeth you,' and I lost my heart to her."

"You should stop telling this story to everyone, Sarah. It's not appealing to anyone except you!" She hissed at me.

I pulled her in for a hug, and kissed the top of her head. Daphne was my favourite seven year old in the world, and she knew it all too well.

"Stop pampering her so much, Sarah. You spoil her so much!" Drake scolded.

"Someone has to, right? And why didn't you tell me she was here, I'd have brought her something!"

"Exactly why I didn't, she's spoiled enough already."

"Sarah! Welcome home!" Dylan came from the kitchen and hugged me in a tight embrace.

"Dylan, stop acting like we meet once a year. You saw me at school yesterday," I said, laughing.

"That's not the Sarah I love, this is,", he teased me.

"You guys are so close, like a family," Aaron said, smiling at us.

"We're one crazy family, alright," I agreed.

"Hey, Aaron! Glad you're here. I finished my final paper for Physics. Do you mind looking at it?" Dylan asked.

"Sure, come on."

I turned and glared at Drake incredulously. "You let Aaron tutor Dylan? Why are you so jealous that the kids like me better?"

Drake let out a dry laugh. "I'm jealous because they hog on you so much, I don't even get to talk to you when you're here."

"No wonder you come and spend a lot of time at my place, ignoring Emily completely," I responded, sarcastically.

"So it's all fair, no complaints." He pulled me by my arm and sat me on the couch beside Daphne. "Duffy, you and Sarah will stay here and watch TV. Aaron, Dylan and I will get all the necessary things for tonight and be back. Get that?"

"Drake, you don't have to talk to her like she's a three year old deaf kid. I'll take care of everything, just go," I tried to reason with him.

"It's not Duffy I'm worried about," he muttered as he closed the door to his room.

"Duffy, does your brother really think I'm more childish than you?" I asked, not wanting to know the answer.

"Not really, Sarah. Drake says you're one of the most responsible girls he's ever known," Daphne said, beaming at me.