Page 113 of HER SISTER

"Just breathe."

I gave Mili a narrowed look, "Kind of hard to breathe when someone is about to pull a piece of glass out of your hand," I retorted, which easily earned a small chuckle from Mili.

And as she let go of my hand to rub her tired eyes, I couldn't help but laugh as well.

"It's too fucking late for all this," Mili laughed yet again to herself as she shook her head.

I chuckled as I remained seated on the bathroom counter, "Want me to roll you a blunt?" I joked with her.

Mili hummed as she stood between my legs, "You know I'd take you up on that if your hand wasn't fucked up right now," she said as she gently picked my hand back up.

But as she analyzed my hand, she managed to freeze slightly—

"Wait, who taught you how to roll up?" she suddenly asked me.

And I couldn't help but smile to myself, clearly amused by her sudden tone change.

"Ana I'm so serious right now," Mili said, clearly unamused by my growing smile.

A laugh fell from my lips, "It was just a joke, I wasn't actually planning on rolling up anything," I reassured her, clearly not wanting to press her nerves even more tonight.

Mili rolled her eyes, "You play too much," she sighed to herself.

I tilted my head, "And you need to stop calling me Ana," I countered back.

Mili's lips twitched up into a small smile, "I didn't realize it bothered you so much," she murmured as she suddenly met my stare.

I hummed as I looked between her eyes, "It makes my eye fucking twitch. Stop using that name for real," I said.

A beautiful laugh fell from Mili's lips, "Eye twitching is crazy," she said as an amused smile managed to stay stuck on her perfect lips.

I only narrowed my eyes at her even if her smile managed to make me want to smile, "Exactly so stop calling me that," I countered back as I remained as serious as possible.

Mili hummed to herself, "I can't," she determined as she focused back on the glass in my hand.

I furrowed my brows, "You can't?" I repeated her words back to her.

Mili hummed again as she grabbed the bottle of rubbing alcohol, "It's my way of trying to be your friend—you know, being cordial and all," she explained.

I blinked a few times, deeming that as valid on her part, "Okay... well as a friend that's cordial with you, I'm telling you to call me Ati," I said, hoping to somehow find a way around it.

Mili's lips twitched up into an amused smile as she met my stare again, "Does it really bother you that much?" she carefully asked me.

"So much," I said blankly.

And upon hearing my truthful statement, Mili suddenly said, "Then I won't call you Ana anymore."

I tilted my head at her, feeling as if that were a little too easy, "Really?" I whispered.

Mili hummed as she glanced between my eyes, "Of course," she didn't hesitate to say.

And before I could manage to blush at her truthful tone and precise stare, Mili managed to look back down to my hand yet again.

"Come on, we really need to get this out," Mili told me.

I pursed my lips, already hating the idea of the pain this was about to cause me.

"Okay," I whispered.

I felt my heart rate instantly pick up when Mili slid her arm around my waist before guiding me to lean into her.

Suddenly it feels really fucking warm in here.

"Just hold onto me, I'll handle the rest," Mili murmured in my ear.

I let out a deep breath, mostly because her actions alone left me breathless, but also because I was momentarily bracing myself for the pain.

And as soon as I nuzzled into the crook of her neck and allowed my free arm to rest around her torso—

Mili was pulling her arm away from my waist to pull the glass from my hand.

I squeezed my eyes shut as I focused on Mili's warm body and the smell of her familiar coconut hair product—

Clearly hoping to distract myself from the pain to come.

But it was extremely hard to miss the way my hand prickled with pain, not just from the glass being pulled from my hand, but the rubbing alcohol being poured over my open wound as well.

The prickling pain seemed to grow into a burning sensation from the rubbing alcohol alone, which easily made me tense up.

"I know baby, I know," Mili's soft voice echoed in my ears as I remained tensed against her, keeping my burning eyes squeezed shut as I anticipated when the pain would fade.

But it only seemed to remain entirely prominent, especially since Mili wanted to make sure the wound was properly cleaned.

"There we go," Mili suddenly said as she finished wrapping my hand that was now covered in ointment, "You're all done now," she added, and I couldn't help but bask in how beautifully soft her voice managed to be.

Even if we were done, I couldn't bring myself to pull back from her warm body or let go of my hold on her.

I wanted to stay here forever.

And I swear I would if it was offered to me.

A feeling of defeat managed to wash over me when Mili gently let my bandaged hand go, signaling that she was done.

That it was time for me to pull away.

However, when she managed to slide both of her arms around my waist and pull me into a deeper hug—I swear I almost lost it.

She was so warm, and her body fit so perfectly against mine.

Everything about her felt so beautifully familiar.

And suddenly I was forgetting about the game we had struck with one another.

Every competitive bone in my body fell paralyzed as she held me tightly to her body.

Seconds ticked into minutes—

And minutes morphed into a timeless void, clearly losing track of how long we managed to sit in a comfortable silence.

"You're making me tired," Mili murmured as she rested her head on my shoulder.

I hummed as I slid my hand up and down her back, basking in this intimate moment with her.

It was something I had quite literally dreamed about for days at a time.

And it was even better than I had dreamed it to be.

A soft sigh fell from my lips when Mili pulled back slightly to meet my tired eyes.

Suddenly, I really was tired—who knew she was the solution to my insomnia?

"Let's just call it even."

I tilted my head at her statement as I looked between her dark eyes.

"Even?" I repeated back to her.

Mili hummed, "No one has to win this game. Let's just leave it," she offered.

And I couldn't help but tilt my head a little more, clearly thinking her offer through, but even still I managed to say—

"Why not just give it to me? I definitely won," I said, knowing that if she was willing to call it even, she could at least award me the satisfaction of winning.

Mili lazily raised her brows, "I don't think so."

I narrowed my eyes at her, "You don't think so?" I repeated back to her in clarification.

Mili shrugged, "Clearly, I was winning—you couldn't keep your eyes off of me," she explained as she carefully held my stare.

I felt my brows shoot up, "I could say the same about you," I said defensively, and just like that I could feel my competitiveness flowing back into me by the second.

However, it managed to be overthrown by a fierce heat when Mili suddenly gripped my hips into place and said—

"Atiana."

Her voice held a warning tone while her dark eyes managed to remain locked on me with precision.

She didn't want to continue on with this, I could tell.

Which meant, I had some kind of leverage.

"Just let me have it, Milan," I said, knowing that she was making it harder than it really was.

I mean she's the one who doubted me in the first place.

"I offered a truce, nothing more," Mili reminded me as she continued to hold me in place, and it was clear by the way she purposefully leaned into me that she was trying to entice me to take the truce.

I unconsciously tightened my jaw when Mili leaned her face down further—easily leaving our faces inches apart.

And as her eyes scanned mine entirely, she managed to say, "Just take the truce baby."

And I won't lie, the majority of my body wanted to take it—especially with how close she was growing to me.

But my brain couldn't come to an agreement with what my body so desperately wanted.

"Let me win," I countered, keeping my voice in a soft whisper as I tilted my head up—easily leaving less space between our faces.

One move and my lips would easily graze hers.

I bit down on the inside of my cheek as soon as Mili massaged her thumbs into my hips, and I swear my face felt like it was practically burning off from my own blush.

"I'm only offering a truce, that's it," Mili reminded me, and it wasn't hard to pick up on how soft and raspy her voice had gotten.

Clearly, she wanted it as badly as me—except what set us apart was that I now had someone on my side helping me.

And having Desi on my team would definitely ensure that I win.

An innocent smile grew on my lips, "Then we don't have a deal."

Automatically, Mili sighed as she took a reluctant step back from me, which easily left my body concerningly cold.

A part of me instantly regretted my words, but I knew I didn't want a truce—

I wanted to win.

"Have it your way then," Mili said as she reached beside me for the first aid kit.

I hummed, "I will," I said, knowing without a doubt that I would win this entire game between us.

And I couldn't miss the way that Mili's lips twitched up into a smirk as she turned on her heel, "Goodnight, Ati," she called over her shoulder.

"Sleep tight," I called out as I slid down from the counter.