Page 19 of HER SISTER

Just as I made it out of the apartment complex, I couldn't miss the tinted SUV waiting patiently for me.

I smiled slightly, wondering how long she had been waiting.

I looked over to the man who suddenly exited the driver's seat—clearly making an effort to open the car door for me.

I knew Mili and I definitely couldn't be seen outside of my apartment complex, especially with Mya right upstairs.

Anxiously, I walked toward the SUV, giving the man a smile as I slid into the backseat.

Almost immediately, I noticed Mili seated beside me, and to say she looked incredible would be the understatement of the year.

Thankfully, she had dressed casually like me—wearing a white graphic tee and baggy jeans with panda dunks.

Her dark hair was unparted and down with the top half pulled back out of her face.

The only thing different about this usual look was the thick black glasses she wore. They definitely complimented her face, which was covered in minimal makeup.

Mili suddenly tilted her head at my silence, and I couldn't even stop myself from saying, "You look really good."

My own rushed and unthought-out words were enough to make my face burn with shyness.

Meanwhile, Mili's lips seemingly twitched up, leaning into me and pressing a brief kiss to my temple.

"You look better," she murmured, easily sending a deep warmness through my body.

I turned my head slightly before looking up at her, which easily made our lips graze one another—sending shivers down my spine.

It was such an intimate act, yet it felt so normal with her.

Like this was all so typical for us.

"I think you win that title," I murmured, knowing she looked so good that even the sight of her made me blush.

Mili hummed, "Not possible," she countered my previous statement, pressing a soft kiss to my lips before pulling back fully.

I hummed to myself, feeling so warm—I thought I might explode, "So where are we going?" I questioned.

Mili's lips twitched up into a slight smile, "I'm taking you to this private dinner event."

I raised a brow at her, "Oh, a private dinner event?" I said, clearly teasing her.

Mili cocked her head to the side, "Is that up to your standards Ms. Cato?" she questioned teasingly.

I shrugged, "I suppose... I just wish I would've dressed differently," I said, and while I was joking, I was also being sort of serious.

"But you look so good," Mili practically whined out.

And just like that, I was blushing again.

"And besides, the dress code is casual—it's nothing crazy," she added, easily reassuring me further.

I nodded hesitantly, "Yeah, I just like to know where we're going in advance so I can dress accordingly—I mean, I would've texted you, but I couldn't ask Mya and I didn't really know how else to get your number.

In hindsight, I could've asked Mya without any issues, but what if she asks why and I have to—"

"Ati," Mili cut my embarrassing rambling short.

I think even uttering our complicated situation aloud was enough to send me back into the spiral I seemed to be in earlier.

Mili handed me her phone which was now displaying a blank contact, "Now you can text me next time," she said, easily making my lips twitch up into a soft smile.

Next time...

That was the only words that I managed to catch onto.

"Send a message so you'll have my number in your phone as well," Mili instructed as I finished filling the contact in.

And as soon as I sent a text from her phone to mine, I handed the phone back to her.

But almost as soon as she received it back, she gave me a tilted look, "You know I don't call you Ana," she pointed out in disapproval.

I laughed slightly, watching her edit the contact so it said Ati.

"So I can make yours Lani?" I questioned, clearly trying to press her nerves as I pulled my own phone out.

Mili gave me a narrowed look as I navigated to my messages to edit her contact, "We're back to this again?" she asked, her tone entirely deflated

I only smirked at her, "We were never off of it," I countered back.

Mili only shook her head at me, but it was clear that she was amused by my stubbornness to make the new nickname stick.

—

Soon we were pulling into a historic gallery—which almost looked like a preserved castle.

"I thought we were going to dinner?" I questioned as Mili and I walked toward the entrance among a few other people who were invested in their own conversations.

Mili only smirked slightly, "This is dinner," she said, easily making my brows raise.

I've never had dinner in a gallery... matter of fact, I never actually thought about doing something like this before.

"That's... this is really cool," I breathed out as we entered the gallery.

The tall arched ceilings loomed over us perfectly while tables were set up all around the room at an appropriate distance.

My brows furrowed, noticing the walls were bare and there wasn't an exhibit in sight.

"Mil—"

"Patience now," Mili cut me short, knowing exactly what I was about to say.

I sighed slightly, sitting down in the chair that she pulled out for me before she got seated in her own chair.

And within a few minutes, everyone else was seated at their tables and the lights were dimmed accordingly.

Seconds later, waitresses and waiters were all piling into the room with covered dishes.

The servers provided us champagne along with an appetizer—which was perfectly toasted croissants with a side of cinnamon butter.

As Mili and I grabbed the provided saucers to try the croissants, a small group of people entered the room with—

Instruments?

I looked to Mili, who only gave me an amused look, clearly enjoying my confusion.

As the group of people got settled and began playing soft classical music, another person entered the room—rolling out something covered by a white sheet.

And as soon as the man made it to the center of the room, he pulled the sheet back—revealing the beautiful portrait.

"Oh my god," I whispered, feeling entirely in awe of not just the beautiful music but the art piece too.

This is... one of the best experiences I've ever had.

It was so many different things combined into one, food, art, and music.

It was absolutely perfect.

"I'm going to go off on a limb and assume you like it," Mili said, her tone lowered and joking.

I only blinked a few times, processing the beautiful scene in front of me.

This is seriously insane.

I instinctively reached out for Mili's hand as if it were the most natural thing ever.

"I love it—thank you for taking me here," I said, meeting her eyes as I gently squeezed her hand.

Mili's lips twitched up slightly, "I couldn't imagine taking anyone else," she murmured, allowing her eyes to trace my face.

I felt my smile grow, easily forcing my cheeks to grow sore, "I couldn't imagine it either," I said, knowing the claim I felt over her.

Knowing that the idea of her here with someone else, not even just Alyssa—made me feel sick to my stomach.

Mili's smirk grew into a small smile as she grabbed her flute of champagne, "In that case, I can't wait to show you more of LA—this is only a small part of it," she said, and I couldn't help but feel slightly excited to see LA through her eyes.

I suddenly grabbed my own champagne flute with my free hand, "To more shared experiences," I said, keeping my voice lowered.

Mili hummed, gently clinking her glass with mine, "To many more," she said before we both took a small sip of the bubbly liquid.

It almost felt like we had just made a pact—like we were agreeing to do this over and over again.

And I surprisingly had no complaints with that.