Page 4

three

Olive

The smell of incense, rich and spicy, hits me the moment I walk into Violet’s apartment on the Lower East Side.

I don’t believe any of it personally, but I keep that to myself. Luna is sweet, and she means well.

She’s also probably the only person I know who could pull off teal hair.

“Liv!” Violet chimes, stepping out of her home office.

“Hey, Vi!” I reply, kicking off my boots by the door. “Where’s Luna?”

“Your aura,” Luna gasps, walking into the room and rendering my question pointless. “Why is your aura turning gray again, Liv? You’ve been so much more blue lately.”

I sigh and look down to the floor. “Just another hard day. I’ve had a lot of good days lately, but Corinne couldn’t pull me out of my own head today.”

Violet wraps her arms around me sympathetically. “Tomorrow will be better then.”

I look at her in exasperation. “You can’t know that, Vi.”

She lets out a deep breath. “You’re right. I can’t know that. But I can remain optimistic that my baby sister will start having more good days.”

“I’m twenty-three. I’m not your baby sister.”

“You’re a decade younger than me,” Violet laughs. “You’re always going to be my baby sister.”

I roll my eyes and breathe out a laugh as Luna takes my coat from me, hanging it in their closet. Vi and I walk into the living room while Luna disappears from view. I flop into the plush, oversized chair that I’ve dubbed as mine to use when I visit.

“So, uh… how have you been?” Vi asks.

“Can you stop acting like you need to walk on eggshells around me?” I sigh. “I’m not going to break.”

“I know, Liv. I just can’t help but worry about you. Mom, Dad, and Harvey do, too.”

“I know things were rough for a while,” I admit, fidgeting with my hands and avoiding eye contact, “but I’m doing a lot better. Being back in the studio seems to really be helping me.”

Before Violet can reply, Luna struts back into the room, crystal pouch in hand.

Should’ve expected that, honestly.

“Here, Liv,” she says, placing the pouch directly into my hand. “Blue quartz, fluorite, lapis lazuli, moonstone, and rainbow obsidian. These will remove your negative energies and help your emotional healing.”

“Right,” I say warily. “Thank you, Luna.”

She smiles brightly as she plops down on the sofa next to my sister.

There’s an awkward silence now, so I take a sip of my coffee to give myself something to do.

“Did you get your favorite caramel latte?” Vi smiles.

“Of course,” I grin. “Grab one every time I leave Corinne’s office.” I think back on my visit today, remembering the unnamed cute guy I spoke to. “I think I also got hit on while I was waiting for it.”

“What?!” they reply in unison, eyes focused on me with rapt attention.

“Yeah…” I say awkwardly. “Corinne wanted me to connect with people. One suggestion was to flirt with a cute guy at the coffee shop. Well, there happened to be a cute guy there, so I made myself go up to talk to him.”

“You made the first move?!” Violet shrieks since that is so unlike me.

“Vi, I was awkward as fuck. I asked him if he was a Stars fan.”

“What’s wrong with that?” Luna asks.

“He was wearing a Stars shirt!”

Violet throws her head back and laughs. “And he still hit on you after that?”

“Yeah. Said he knows he hasn’t seen me before because he’d remember a face like mine. Said Liv was a pretty name for a pretty girl. And refused to tell him his name, saying he’d tell me the next time he sees me.”

“Oh my goodness, this is like the beginning of a romcom!” Violet yells happily. “This is so cute!”

“You know I’ll probably never see him again, right? This city has eight million people.”

“I think the universe has other plans,” Luna assures. “I feel like you were meant to run into him today.”

“I know literally nothing about him, Lu. He was there with his friend. Neither told me who they were and only said they worked in ‘entertainment.’ Not a lot to go on.”

“Entertainment, huh?” Violet cocks her eyebrow. “Is he like a porn star or something?”

I choke on my coffee. “I have no idea, but a porn star is not what I need. More like the exact opposite. But he sure had the look that would work for that.”

Violet and Luna glance at each other, unreadable expressions on their faces. They’re doing that thing they always do, speaking to each other with only their eyes.

I fucking hate that.

“Something you’d like to share with the class?” I chide.

“It’s just cute,” Vi says gently. “I haven’t heard you express any interest in a man in six years. It’s nice to see.”

I purse my lips.

She’s right. After everything I’ve gone through, I choose to ignore men aside from my dad and brother. I’ve glanced at some, sure, but it’s not been deeper than that.

But that guy today. What was it about him that had me so captivated?

The cocky side grin?

The gentle eyes?

The calming presence?

I’m not sure. But I don’t think I’d be mad about running into him again…

I love Tuesday mornings.

Tuesday is the only day I’m working at the studio right now, and I absolutely adore my student.

Dancing is finally making me feel like my old self again, and I really missed the version of me I lost six years ago. It’s nice to see her again.

After I shower and dry my hair, I pull it up into a tight ballet bun, making sure it will stay in place through the lesson. Now dressed in a pair of black tights, a long-sleeve black leotard, a sheer black skirt, and pink legwarmers, I’m almost ready to go.

I shrug on my jacket and slip into a pair of boots before grabbing my pointe shoes and tossing them into my bag.

Before I go, I step in front of my bedroom mirror and take a few deep breaths to relax.

“I am courageous. I am loved. I am not my trauma.”

And then I’m out the door.