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It's the first time that Jinx would be in charge of looking after her sister for a few hours, alone, her being the responsible one, the trusted adult. The role of big sister suited her very well, because she's quite committed to making the moment fun. Something about sisterhood.
Of course, the task comes with a lot of responsibility. Vander made sure to make it clear that she needed to behave and act according to her role when he left for a work trip that morning.
And responsibility screams lots of little games and competitions, loud music, junk food and overall mess. Accompanied by a number of movies that, in sequence, would surely pass her sister's bedtime. And why not put on a little show to improve the look of the room, just a few touch-ups here and there, Vander probably wouldn't even notice.
From where she stood – middle of the living room – Jinx checked the time. Four p.m.
In a few minutes, Isha would be home.
The bluenette reaches for the balloons she had bought, and lying on the sofa, she fills them with the balloon pump until the material expands, pink hearts and golden stars, she decides to put them close to the entrance door, building a spectacle scene.
The music is loud, resonating clearly from every corner of the house, Jinx turns on the galaxy projector lamp, activating the rotation, a sea of colored stars and moons, a cute galaxy spinning throughout the ceiling and walls, a nice decoration she thinks. The girl smiles at her work, eager to see her little sister's reaction. With some haste, she picks up the confetti cone and positions herself next to the door. Blue eyes staring expectantly at the door, just waiting for the handle to move.
A few more moments and the small silhouette appeared in the doorway, carrying a slightly confused face and her backpack.
'POW'
The shower of confetti floated over the girl, drawing a small laugh from her, the surprise instantly cheering her up.
“It's her! The most awaited, the Captain of the Fun Land!” Jinx says dramatically, taking the backpack from Isha, who's openly laughing. “Now that you're here, we can finally experience all the adventure that was planned to begin...” She checks the time again and looks at her sister with a naughty face. “RIGHT NOW!” The little girl jumps into her arms, super excited about what's to come. Good , she's in the mood, not everyday at school is easy for Isha, sometimes she comes home sad which, honestly, breaks Jinx's heart. But not today, fortunately.
“Before we start, put on your gear, Captain.” Jinx's long braids move uniquely as she spins around their home like a top, supporting the girl's weight with a single arm. She slips a doodled hat over Isha's head, then joins her in the endeavor of painting their faces, a camouflage, according to Isha’s words.
After a few minutes they're ready.
“Now, choose your fighter in this fearless snail race.” She presents the provisional track she has set up for the mechanical snails to run around.
Isha jumped out of her arms, her hazel eyes so happy and excited.
“Whoa!” Enthralled by the set-up before her eyes. She points to one of the snails, the one with the lilac shell, but an indecisive grimace comes upon her face giving space to doubt, sparse eyebrows furrowed, then after a few seconds pondering she points to the other with the light green shell.
“You sure?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Fine. Ready, set and… BEGIN!”
Their little games kept going as the hours passed, toying with dolls, cars, balls, living in their own little world. At some point they entertained themselves by playing blind man's buff but when Jinx stubbed her little toe on the corner of the sofa twice in a row, she had to suggest another game – and she did it holding her tears by the way – otherwise she wouldn't be able to walk for the rest of the day.
“Wait, I have an idea.” Jinx says leaving the living room for a minute.
She comes back quickly with a bunch of sheets and blankets and most importantly, Nick, the plush fox. “C'mon, Captain, let's build a fortress!”
For Isha, all the things Jinx suggests are so fun, she doesn't even question them. The little girl goes into the kitchen and with her sister's help brings chairs into the living room, positioning them at key points in front of the couch, creating a sort of hut with the sheets over the back of the seats. They grab some blankets and pillows to put inside their makeshift cabin, creating a comfortable cushioned bed on the floor, and Jinx smiles hearing the little sounds of excitement coming from Isha. They could live forever like this, enjoying these precious moments. Somehow, it’s like they’ve always known each other, always belonged together.
Most of the time, people come into someone's life unexpectedly and suddenly become important and irreplaceable parts of it, as was the case about eight months ago, when Vander told her he was considering adopting a little girl who lived in the only orphanage in town. His comment hadn't exactly surprised her, after all, Vander had sort of taken Jinx and Vi in after their biological parents had passed away. He welcomed them even when Mylo and Claggor were already part of his responsibility. After losing Vi too, more things changed, irrevocably, in the girl, and over time she learned to cope better, but coping better doesn't mean being unaffected by the absence that a loved one makes, in a way, growing up without the presence of her older sister seems a bit wrong to her, a twisted and painful betrayal, which isn't their fault, but Jinx feels what she feels, and it’ll always be that way.
Isha settles Nick inside the cabin, as if the stuffed animal needs his own space.
After life took so much from Jinx, she also gained a lot, it's just the way she sees it, Vander is an excellent father and has plenty of room in his heart, he's definitely a good person and she knew that he did and would always do his best to make up for the absence her first family left behind. Jinx allows him to try; a way of consoling him too, but that wound would always hurt, emotional scars are the hardest to deal with.
When her siblings also left the nest to live their own lives and dreams, she felt alone again, and she felt selfish for it. Unsolicited change really isn't her strong suit, but like everything in life, she’s had to understand and accept it. Despite this, Isha represents quite a change in her life, and even in her way of being. The little girl has been the most welcome change in her existence, and Jinx is grateful for it. Grateful to have changes that bring the best, while at the same time some things remain the same.
The music continues to play, while both girls now dance and jump around the mess they're making.
It takes a while, but the blue-haired girl finally notices the shrill sound of the doorbell struggling to echo over the racket she's set up in the house, and she signals towards the door, drawing Isha's attention.
“Someone is trying to break into our fortress." Jinx whispers, putting on a silly serious expression after hearing the doorbell ring once again. “Prepare to attack, Captain.” she instructs, taking a position close to the door. She peeks through the peephole and recognizes the figure outside.
A smile blossoms in her lips. Outside stands one of the things that fortunately remained the same in her life.
Ekko. His locs seem whiter, and his face has that pretty glow under the outside's lights, he looks a bit impatient because of how long is taking for the door to open.
Malevolently, she looks at Isha who is standing on the couch with the water gun in her hands. “On three.”
Jinx makes the number one with her finger, then two and in a flash three as she quickly opens the door, hoping to catch him off guard.
Jets of water are aimed at the “invader”, most of which don't even hit him.
Ekko chuckles, mostly unsurprised – of course they're being mischievous.
His friend has a painted face, a bunny tiara on her head and an absurd amount of decorations in her long braids. Isha doesn't seem to be in such a different situation, except that instead of a tiara, it's her infamous hat with lots of doodles in it.
“What’s this supposed to mean?!” He asks, trying to figure out what the hell they’re doing, his voice rising a few octaves in response to the loud sound.
“That you are officially captured!” Jinx answers – or rather yells, pulling him by the arm into the house.
“Listen–” She doesn’t even let him complete his thoughts, kicking the door behind them.
“We were about to play hide and seek! Wanna join us?” Sounding extremely excited, Jinx asks.
“Wow, that’s super, but your fa–”
“Can’t hide in the kitchen, though. Restricted area, ya know.”
“Great. What's happening here?!” He has to shout to be heard.
“We're having a little party!” She yells back.
His lip twitches at the corner. That much is clear.
“And you had to let the whole neighborhood know?!” He soon finds the remote, turning down the volume.
His ears thankful.
“Oh, here comes the party pooper.” Jinx snorts. Isha laughs, of course.
“I'm not a party pooper.”
“A party pooper never admits it.” She shoots him a fake dismissive look.
“Stop calling me that. I'm here to help.”
“Well, I don't remember inviting you, little man,” Jinx replies mischievously. “Did you invite him, Isha?” Her blue eyes wander to her younger sister, feigning doubt.
The little girl made a sign with her hands, ‘no’.
“See?”
Ekko rolls his eyes at her so vehemently he thinks he's never going to see again.
“It’s good to be this welcomed,” he responds. “Your dad told me to stop by. Said he couldn’t talk to you, I'm here out of concern,” Ekko explains going to the kitchen to fetch himself some water.
“When did you talk to Vander?” Jinx’s eyebrows furrow.
“Few minutes ago. He said he called you and got no answer. I wonder why.” He smiles, knowingly.
“Oh shit.” Eyes widening upon the realization. The whole point of that night is that everything has to run smoothly, so that can be other nights like this with Isha!
Vander needs to think everything's alright and under control. Especially because it is! She runs off looking for her cell phone, which now she can't even remember where the hell she last left it. Ekko, on the other hand, doesn't bother correcting her language, knowing fully well it wouldn't change. Instead he sighs and leaves the kitchen.
Isha doesn't seem to be paying much attention to them, her focus is on the mess she's making on that wall with her crayons now.
“Damn it, my phone!”
“What about it?!” Ekko asks.
“I don't know where it is!”
“Do you want me to call it?”
“Urgh! It's been in silent mode ever since I bought it!” A pause. “Help me.”
“Can't, I'm looking after Isha.” He's happy to refuse, joining the girl on the hard floor. “Whatcha drawing?” he questions, a soft smile on his lips.
‘Rainbow.’ Signalling, she answers.
“Wow, that looks so cool,” he says, engaging in the child's art. Isha picks up a crayon and hands it, inviting him to play with her too, which he promptly accepts. “Let’s see what I can do.”
“I found it!” He hears his friend's celebratory shout and laughs.
[...]
The wall, which had previously been an immaculate shade of white, was now full of colors, not only from the crayons, but also from the stickers Isha had insisted on putting up, as well as the non-toxic paint Jinx had bought for her a while ago. Ekko put more effort into his art than he had expected, drew several flowers and a fox, which is obviously Isha's favorite animal, balloons and finished by drawing Isha with her trusted hat, Jinx with the rabbit tiara and himself.
After calling Vander and assuring – lying according to Ekko – everything's fine, Jinx settles over the couch, her ears burning from the lecture she'd been given for the four missed calls. She made a point of leaving the phone nearby now.
“Ha, cute,” she says, analyzing the doodles scribbled onto the wall. It warms her heart seeing how much tenderness Ekko has for Isha, once he told her he’d like to have siblings too, she figures that maybe he feels solitary in that particular sense.
Isha turned to them, her hands gesturing what she wanted at that moment.
“Hungry? I can prepare something.” Ekko immediately makes himself available, getting up from the hard floor to go to the kitchen.
“Nonsense.” The hostess immediately denies it. “Who wants pizza?” Jinx stands on the sofa as she asks the question, excitedly.
Isha practically jumps at the idea, barely containing herself raising her arm in agreement.
“I guess the idea of eating something healthy never crosses your mind, does it?” the white-haired boy says, looking at what's available in the fridge.
“Move,” Jinx pushes him with the side of her hip. “As a good cook, I've already taken care of all that.” The girl begins to take out of the fridge everything she had bought for that night, amounts of junk food. Three boxes of pizza, cheese rolls, frozen french fries, lasagna with lots of cheese, nuggets and more. In fact, enough to cause food poisoning, vomiting, diarrhea and a diagnosis of high cholesterol, he thinks.
“Geez, I'm gonna miss you when you die at twenty-five.” Ekko helped her carry everything up to start the preparation, which basically boiled down to putting the oven on to bake, the microwave on to heat up and the electric fryer on. Yep, Jinx culinary skills could be summed up as this.
“Isha, why don’t you choose a movie for us, huh?” She suggests adjusting the temperature of the oven.
Isha immediately agrees, taking upon herself the important task of choosing the movies for the night; she jumps on the couch, bare feet now, something Vander usually doesn’t let her do, Jinx on the other hand. For whatever reason, Isha hates to wear shoes, she feels much freer running and jumping around with no shoes to get in the way. She also hates cucumber and carrots so every meal with her family she snugs it on her sister's plate in a way she thinks is discreet – not like Jinx eats them for her either. Controlling the remote she scrolls through the catalog of kids' movies, oblivious to the little mood of satisfaction and interest hovering in the kitchen.
Like a cat ready to jump its prey, Jinx hugs Ekko by his waist, tight and lovingly, inhaling his everlasting scent. The doe brown eyes widen slightly at the sudden approach, quickly he regains his balance, preventing the bowls and glasses he’s holding from falling and making a mess.
“What’s up with the sudden display of affection?” He asks, holding back a tender smile. She doesn't let go of him even when he moves to leave the dishes on the table.
“What do you mean, pretty boy?” Jinx rests her chin on his shoulder, as if she’s so accustomed to do so – she is. “I’m always affectionate,” she whispers in his ear. He knows.
“Oh yeah. You're the clingy one between us.” He turns to her, still not escaping the loop of her arms.
She arches an eyebrow, defiantly. “You speak as if it's a flaw.”
“At least one you must have,” the boy says amusedly, pushing a lock of blue hair behind her pierced ear.
Jinx looks extremely offended by his playful speech. “So you're telling me that you don't like it when I do this?” She squeezes him even tighter, hiding her face in the crook of his neck.
A half-laugh grunt escapes Ekko's throat from the strength of her grip. For someone petite, she sometimes surprises him with her strength. “No, I don't like it when you hug me like I'm your teddy bear,” he lies, and she knows it.
He is her teddy bear. And she's his too.
“And you don't like it when I do that either?” She leaves two kisses on his soft cheek.
“Hmh maybe I do. But… I don't think you've done enough for me to be sure.” His eyebrow raises, challenging her.
“Say no more.” Jinx dumps a flurry of kisses all over his cheeks and jaw, several 'mwah' echoing each time her lips touch his warm skin. She loves the warmth his body always emanates, it's so pleasant and inviting, especially since she lacks that natural heat. And added to the soft smell of his perfume, being in his presence is like being put to sleep listening to a soothing song after drinking a hot chocolate on a rainy day. Ekko is the very meaning of comfort for her.
He laughs audibly this time, warming her heart with that unique melody.
He holds his friend's face affectionately, returning the caress in the form of a kiss on her forehead, pleased to see her cheeks take on a soft, almost imperceptible shade of pink. And it pleases him to know that he's the only one to provoke such reactions, to be so close to her. The only one allowed.
Despite the warm atmosphere, they weren't completely oblivious to their surroundings, soon noticing a small figure a few steps away staring at them with curiosity and attention, that look that children have when faced with situations they don't know if they can be part of. But the answer comes next, through the older sister.
“What?” Jinx narrows her eyes in the girl's direction, looking at her with fake scorn. “Do you want kisses too?” Hazel eyes blink slowly, analyzing what to say, the shadow of a smile forming on her mouth, which still has baby teeth. Jinx doesn't wait for an answer, she just takes Isha in her arms and covers her with an onslaught of kisses on the cheek, forehead and nose, causing the girl to giggle with glee. Her favorite sound in the world.
She ends up laughing too, hugging Isha tightly. “What’ve you chosen, Captain?”
Isha signals quickly, the movie choice doesn’t surprise. ‘My Neighbor Totoro’. Her childish freckled face bearing lots of enthusiasm.
“Ha, nice, you’ve only watched it a hundred times. What’s one more, right?” Jinx replies, but doesn't try to convince her to watch something else, knowing how much that's her sister’s favorite movie. Settling comfortably inside the hut of sheets and blankets and pillows, in front of the TV, the two wait for Ekko to join so they can start watching.
“The food will be ready soon,” he says, sitting on the fluffy provisional seat, offering soda to them. He stares at the screen for a second, also not really surprised to see which one was chosen.
The three of them then began to eat, now in silence, blue, hazel and brown eyes captured by the cute animation that introduces the plot along with the melody of the song they already knew.
That good feeling of familiarity, the delicate and simplistic nature of moments like this is what makes everything so much more important, the ephemerality of ordinary things is held in the highest esteem by Jinx, perhaps the fragility of bonds, even the strongest ones, is what makes them so valuable. Irreplaceable.
[...]
The night stretches outside, the stars and moon taking the place of the sun in the sky, the birds have already stopped singing, deciding to snuggle up in some corner until the next morning. The low volume of the TV is the only thing preventing silence from reigning in the room, the fifth movie coming to an end, 101 Dalmatians. She watches Isha resting on her lap, her eyes already closed, wandering through the world of dreams, with no worries about tomorrow.
Jinx thinks she had lasted a long time awake, but now tiredness had won the battle. Knowing her sister as she did, if she woke her up Isha would be moody and whiny for the rest of night, there was no point in stressing her out now just to get her to sleep in bed.
Ekko takes the remote and turns off the screen before leaving the cabin, while Jinx takes care to tuck Isha in between the fluffy blankets, placing a pillow under her head, very gently so as not to wake the little one.
She observes her sister's face, peaceful, calm, the eyelashes, the button nose, the paint-smeared cheeks, the light brown hair that never, ever stays tidy for long, even the rhythm of Isha's breathing doesn't go unnoticed by her older sister, deep inhales and long exhales, definitely well asleep after a busy day, fondly, Jinx places Nick closer to the girl, as if he were the guardian of her dreams.
She wanted to protect her forever, put her in a bubble where no harm would ever come to her – can’t do that, though. She strokes the unruly hair and marks the girl's temple with a soft peck.
“Sweet dreams, little one,” she whispers, lovingly, hoping for her wish to reach that pure heart.
The light in the kitchen turns off too, then the sound of careful steps approaching again.
“Aren't you putting her to bed?” His voice is low, close to their pretend-to-be cabin.
“Nope.”
“Do you want some help with this mess?” He inhales deeply, massaging his nape, kinda tired.
“Don’t worry, I’ll see to it tomorrow.”
“Okay… you should go to sleep then.”
She notices how Ekko never complains about her somewhat irremediable way of being, how he actually enjoys being part of her silly endeavours, even if he doesn’t say so.
She loves them. Both of them.
“I wanna be a good older sister to her.” She tells him, still stroking the brown hair, carefully.
The phrase surprised him in a way. He didn't think she had any doubts about her role, she had never spoken about it before, a sentimental but also reclusive personality was something that made up Jinx. “You are the best,” he assures, and kneels down, looking at the back of her head, the long blue braids disheveled.
“How do you know, mister?” She stares back at him, amidst the dim light, bearing an uncertainty in her mesmerizing blue eyes.
“‘Cause of the way she smiles at you...” Ekko answers, sweetly. He stretches out his arm, caressing her azure bangs away from her pretty face. “You mean the world to this little girl.”
Sincerity pouring from his heart. The gentle look on his countenance always disarmed her, without fail; she couldn't remember a single time when Ekko had shown her anything other than kindness, affection and devotion. It's the kind of thing one gets used to and never wants to let go.
And yet she didn’t expect to hear such a thing, it surprises her in a way that makes her emotional, eyes watering a tad, making her stop looking at him, as if her heart couldn’t take that much… love.
“That’s nice… thanks.” Jinx tries to conceal it, but her broken voice reveals her emotion.
“Anytime,” he whispers back, his hand leaving her, a feeling of absence that she doesn't appreciate one bit.
Jinx crawls out of the small hut, letting Isha have her well-deserved rest. Her slender arms, drawn like magnets to his body, where they intertwine again, her head resting against his torso where she could easily have her own respite, listening to his heartbeats, she closes her eyes tightly. In reflex, he returns the hug, as if he were programmed to do so, everything in him responds to her.
The bluenette doesn’t say, but his words also mean the world to her.
“You should get some sleep, crybaby,” he advises again, always so concerned about her well-being.
“We should do this more often…” Confiding her wish to the one who could make it happen. “The three of us, it’s fun.”
“Whenever you want.”
“Ekko?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks. For being you.” For being part of my life.
“Um… no problem.” He's not sure how to answer this, so he just smooths her back, lovingly.
“It's late, sleep here today.”
“I don't know, Jinx. Vander's not here.”
“That's part of the fun.” When Ekko slept in her house he usually took the sofa, against her will of course, that thing was uncomfortable. “After all, he told you to stop by… Now your last stop will be my bedroom." She's just too good at persuasions.
Vander likes him a lot, and frankly, he wouldn't want to appear slack. But that part can probably be solved with a simple message, he thinks.
“Fine… it's a good opportunity for me to prove that you snore.” She pushes him lightly on the shoulder, standing up lazily.
“You're a liar,” Jinx scoffs, heading to her room, sleepy.
“We'll see.” Ekko follows her with a soft yawn.