Grin broadening, Rose watched Mike deftly reach for the glasses. It made her happy that he felt so at home there - to her, afterall, he was an extension of her odd little family. Not to mention, she had to stand on her tip toes to reach what Mike so effortlessly got. She liked, too, that it was so natural - she didn’t have to ask. He simply knew her habits, her circumstances, and what to do. “I’m fairly certain it would’ve taken superhuman efforts to walk past these donuts freshed baked,” she acknowledged with a laugh. “I don’t know what they put in them, but it probably isn’t completely legal…and is very definitely an addictive substance.” She chuckled. “Not to mention, a finals staple.” Her laugh brightened when he compared them to hers. “Aha! So that’s why you keep coming back,” she teased. “I knew you weren’t in it for my fashion sense,” she joked, glancing down at her outfit with a rueful grin.
“All I can remember about Spanish right now, is that ‘gracias’ means ‘hello,’” she joked. Rose shook her head. “You can say that, again. My savior!”
Rose wasn’t exactly blind to his reluctance to talk about his family. Over the years of their acquaintance, he’d been rather deft in dodging those kinds of questions and Rose didn’t want to press what was clearly an uncomfortable subject, but you couldn’t not ask about an ailing father whose condition was so bad it had recalled his scattered offspring to the region. Besides, whatever she didn’t know about his family, Rose knew they mattered to him a great deal. That much, at least, she could understand without it ever having to be spoken at all. She knew the look well enough. But she also knew the look of pain. She listened intently, nodding when he finished and cracking a supportive smile. “That’s good news!” Touching his arm warmly, she added, “And I bet it’ll be nice for the entire family to be finally be reunited.” With a final warm smile, she let the subject drop. He didn’t need to say when he didn’t want to talk about something. She could see it written on his face easily enough, by now, and she couldn’t blame him? Who wanted to dwell on a loved one’s pain?
Notwithstanding, there was a part of Rose that couldn’t help that nagging curiosity - what was it like to grow up with an intact family? What was it like to get to worry about failing health and, worse, what was the looming horror of their mortality? Though, to some degree, Rose envied him that, she contented herself with the knowledge that she had at least been spared that worry, at least.
“Cass is super excited,” gushed Rose. Unlike her companion, she loved talking about her family. “You know she’d object to me saying so, but she is seriously already the most amazing teacher. Those kids adore her…not that I can blame them.” She smirked. “And she loves their wonderment, I think. You know, everything is new to a child.” Rose shrugged. She wanted to sound bright and optimistic. It was silly of her - ridiculous, even - to worry like she did. What could possibly go wrong? It was Cass, afterall, one of the most capable young women Rose had ever met - certainly one of the people Rose trusted most in the world. She had planned every detail, put in place a contingency for any possibility…And she was happy. What kind of a person, little less sister, could begrudge her that?
“And I think it’s good for her to get away, a little,” she admitted, a little more quietly. No one knew better than Cass just how neurotic Rose could be. Who had nightmares just from sleeping in a tiny apartment alone? And who spent restless nights lying awake, fearing the worst, when their sibling was literally on a fieldtrip with a gaggle of children? But, all her life, Cass had been there to sooth those terrors…until she wasn’t. (And, she always seemed to be reminding herself at the worst possible moments, the last time a sister had slipped out for an innocuous reason, she’d never returned.) “I’m not sure I’m always the best person to live with.”
Running her fingers through her hair, Rose was glad to change the subject a bit. “Sarah’s…” Rose bit her lip, searching for the words. “Well, I’m not sure. Truth be told, I’m not sure how great things are. I think her job’s really getting to her. I mean, she doesn’t talk about it much, but…I think something is broiling that’s really got her stirred up.” Rose shrugged. “Last night, she actually asked us to move back to Boston. I mean, maybe it just annoyed her that she had to call us separately,” laughed Rose, but somehow it never reached her eyes. She shook her head. “But she was so serious about it. I mean,” she glanced up at him, frowning. “Sarah’s not really…an impulsive kind of person and it makes no sense to move before I’ve even finished the year. I mean, it’s my final year. That’s a weird thing to ask someone…right?”
She’d discussed it with Cass, of course. Discussed and discussed, but somehow they couldn’t seem to reach a conclusion that suited everyone. And, anyway, Cass hadn’t been there to bounce it off of, naturally, last night, and while they’d talked about it, somehow she wanted to look someone in the eyes and hear them say it was unreasonable. But if Sarah needed someone…Nothing could be more important than that. She was fortunate in her friends, too. She didn’t know anyone more reasonable than Mike and, besides, he was definitely more neutral than Cass. “What do you think?”
