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Yeah, that would do it.
“And are you… okay with it?”
She shrugged.“As long as you don't take my time with her away, I'm fine.”
Their time together?What about our time?I felt a little bit insulted.
“You're worried aboutmetakingyourtime together away but not her stealing me?Your aunt?”
She coughed and waved me off, taking a nonchalant sip of her drink and looking very grown-up.I wasn’t sure I liked it.
“You don't paint with me, or tie my laces, or pick me up from school, or braid my hair, or help me with my math homework, or get me out of school to go have a secret piece of pie… Oops.I wasn’t supposed to say that.”
I laughed and ruffled her hair.“I get it, you really like Juliette.”
She got serious for a moment, her eyes falling down to the table.
“I do,” she said quietly.“And I hope she stays around for a long time.”
“Bella, even though I don’t do a lot of those things with you, I hope you know?—”
“I really like you too, Auntie Lux.And I like it when you come get me out of school too for lunch and when you try to braid my hair, even though it doesn’t look as cool.”
The emotions were clogging my throat again, and I was at a loss for words.
“So don't mess it up, okay?”she finally added.
And all the heavy feelings were gone with a snap of her little fingers.
“I won’t,“I promised.“Now let's go find our girl, hm?”
She nodded and bounced off her chair, taking my hand as we walked back through the mall to the coffee shop where I knew she was waiting.
* * *
“You're gonna ruin it before you even start,” Bella said as we piled out of the car and back to our house.
Juliette had been noticeably quiet and angry at me since we met her in the café.Her brother was gone, but she was there with a matcha in her hand and a frown on her face, shooting daggers at me.Bella obviously didn’t miss that.
The worst part?Juliette would barely even talk to me.It was my first experience with her being actually mad at me.
“Oh, stop,” I whispered.“Go play in your room for a little bit, okay?Maybe try on your clothes and you can give us a fashion show later?”
She sent me a glance, but the promise of her very own fashion show was too enticing, and she happily skipped toward her room, her tiny arms carrying as many shopping bags as she could.I would take the rest in.
Once we were in the kitchen, I turned around and faced Juliette, who was staring at me with her arms crossed over her chest.
She’s cute when she’s angry.
And that is the wrong thing to be thinking right now.
“Well, Bella took it really?—”
“You know I hate my aunt, right?”
I rocked on the balls of my feet and shoved my hands in my pockets.“I don't think you hate anyone.”
Juliette frowned.“Fine, but you know I don't like her, right?”