Page 19 of The Lost Kings

Gio

O ur big sister, Alex, was turning nineteen and we were celebrating it away from home.

We didn’t have to travel a ton anymore, not nearly as much as when we were little, but every now and then we’d still pack up and get on a plane. While our family typically ventured down to see my dad’s extended family, this time Presley and Carter’s families joined us.

“Mexico is my favorite place on the planet.” Presley sighed from the pool lounger she was sitting on. She was difficult to look at today, or if I were being more honest, it would be that she was difficult not to look at today.

She wore a two-piece bathing suit, similar to about a billion other times we’d gone swimming together, but there was something about how she looked now that was so different from how she used to that made things annoyingly confusing for me.

She had a bigger chest, and her stomach looked different.

I’d seen her abs a million times, never caring about them or the way her belly button dipped inward the slightest bit, which made water pool there when she’d get wet.

Her hair was another thing; it was long and usually braided; but here, in Mexico, for some reason she’d let it down as often as she wanted.

It was soaking wet, resting against her back while the sun baked her already tan skin. Her lips looked more pink than normal as well…and bigger. Her lashes were thicker and seemed to frame her eyes in a way that made her look like she was wearing that dark eyeliner stuff, but she wasn’t.

“Gio, stop standing in the middle of the walkway.” My dad gently smacked my back on his way past me.

He was carrying a tray of drinks over to my mom, Aunt Mallory and Presley’s mom, Rylie.

Aunt Mallory and Uncle Decker were here visiting with us for once.

They’d been hit or miss quite a bit over the years; there was a stretch of time they were back for good, then they started leaving again.

Glancing over at Carter, I saw her in a similar position as Presley and realized I didn’t notice anything about her that made me feel uncomfortable, which made me worried all over again.

Carter wasn’t my biological cousin; we weren’t blood-related at all, so if I wanted to look at her in that way, I could… I just never had the desire to.

“I’ve been here so often, it doesn’t really feel that special anymore,” Carter remarked while scrolling on her phone. She traveled more than any of us did, but I doubted she’d been to Mexico as frequently as I had.

I sat down next to Presley and shook my hair out, getting droplets on Pres and Carter’s phones. Carter shrieked and jumped up and ran for her towel.

“That was mean.” Presley laughed into her hand while shoving me with her foot. My eyes trailed up her leg and landed briefly on the way the green fabric on her bottoms hugged her hips. Since when did I care how her swimsuit fit her?

“She was being rude,” I muttered in defense. My gaze was on my best friend’s face, but it kept dipping lower to her bottom lip.

Suddenly it spread into a smile. “Where’s Kingston?”

Something in my chest deflated, but I ignored it and pointed over my shoulder with my thumb. “Getting food. ”

Presley slid off the lounger and stretched. “I’m gonna go find him, see if he wants to race in the pool.”

My voice felt funny, so I didn’t respond.

I watched as she walked past me and tried to stuff the feelings exploding in my chest back into whatever box they’d crawled out of.

Jealousy wasn’t completely uncommon for my brother and me to feel, especially when it came to Presley.

It’s just that we typically felt it around who got to be her partner on video games, or who sat next to her in the car.

This…whatever this was, it was new and it was terrifying.

Later that night, the lights around the pool were soft as I watched Presley and Carter swim with Kingston.

I had joined a few times throughout the day, and each time I felt that strange feeling return, I would push it away.

Only to see Presley get closer to King. When they’d laugh or joke together, my chest would feel tight all over again.

I’d been trying to work through it all day, but it hadn’t gotten any better.

“Let’s play something,” Carter suggested, getting out of the pool and wrapping up in a towel. Alex, and all the parents were inside somewhere, leaving just us kids out here. Kingston was on his phone on the lounger next to me, but he set it down right as Presley exited the pool.

“What do you want to play?”

Carter’s reddish-brown hair almost looked black from being wet and the dim lighting. She shrugged and then glanced at both me and King, then back at Presley.

“Actually, I have an idea.”

“What?” Presley asked, wringing out her hair. She’d also wrapped up in a white towel. The air was still warm enough that we weren’t cold, but I was grateful she covered up so I didn’t have to sort through all of my feelings over seeing her soft skin or counting her freckles.

Carter’s eyes nearly gleamed as she said, “Let’s play Truth or Dare.”

“That’s so lame,” Presley sighed.

She sat down next to me and continued to wring out the water from her hair.

“That’s only because you always chicken out.” Kingston mocked Presley.

He wasn’t wrong. Presley could do almost anything, but if we dared her to try something gross or to jump off of something really tall, she’d chicken out and get mad that she lost.

“It’s still lame, let’s think of something else.”

Carter sat down next to Kingston and pulled out her phone.

“Well, we can’t play anything that’s physical because you’ll beat all of us,” Carter complained, clearly talking about Pres.

She was scrolling through her phone again, which made me curious if she really wanted to play something or if she had other plans.

Kingston and I weren’t allowed to have social media yet, and I was fairly sure Presley wasn’t either.

We challenged each other on Duolingo on our phones and watched copious amounts of YouTube; otherwise, we didn’t have accounts anywhere because our dad was worried we’d accidentally leak where we lived or post where we were in real time and somehow get kidnapped.

Presley glanced over at me and gave me an expression that meant she was about to reply to Carter and it wouldn’t be good. “King and Gio are stronger than me; you’re the only person who wouldn’t win, Carter.”

Her cousin paused mid-type and slowly raised her eyes.

“I’m not nearly as weak as you guys think I am.”

Kingston sneered, “No one said you were weak, Carter.”

“Let’s just play Truth or pass then, Presley. If you pass, you lose.”

The two girls stared at one another, glaring until Presley’s jaw slid to the side and she gave in. “Fine. ”

Carter beamed, clapping her hands. “Perfect, okay, we go by age.”

King and I looked at each other right as the girls did.

“Who came first?” Carter waved between us.

It was Presley who smiled and pointed at me. “Gio did.”

We actually had no idea who had come first since our mom had never told us. We had a theory that she honestly didn’t know because of how stressful her labor was. She always told us she was just grateful we were okay, and that everything was sorted out later.

“Gio, you’ll go first then King and then me, and last will be Presley.”

I wasn’t particularly in the mood to play this game, but I also didn’t want to leave if Presley was still out here.

Which was another realization that something had shifted between us, and she wasn’t even aware that it had.

Kingston’s gaze kept lifting to Presley every few seconds, and even if he hadn’t told me, I had a feeling he had the same struggle.

“Okay, Gio, your question is: If you had to choose between saving Alex and Kingston, who would you save?”

My nose wrinkled at the stupid question. Presley looked nervous as she inspected me and glanced over at Kingston, then back at me. She hated anything that made me uncomfortable, as if I couldn’t handle it, but this one was easy.

“I’d give my life trying to save them both.”

Everyone made a booing sound before Carter moved to Kingston.

“Okay, if you had to choose between never being able to see or hear again, which would you choose?”

He made a sound that indicated he was thinking, which came out almost like a sigh. “I’d choose not to see.”

“Why?” Presley asked, screwing her nose up. “Wouldn’t you want to be able to see your loved ones and colors?”

He stared at her long enough that something in my gut shifted around. It was tied to that block of cement that had recently surfaced when it came to him and Presley.

“There are certain sounds I’ve grown accustomed to.

Someone can change their appearance, but I’m positive that I’d always know someone’s voice.

And then there’s laughter…someone’s laugh could pull me out of the darkest head space.

I wouldn’t have to see them—just hear that tinkling sound they made when they were happy.

It would be easier to be grateful for your life if you only had your hearing and not your sight. ”

He was talking about Presley.

A memory surfaced of him talking about her laugh like it was a tinkling bell.

I couldn’t control how soon everyone’s eyes were on me, but my face felt too hot and my chest was too tight.

“Carter, it’s your turn.” I cleared the knot from my throat, realizing they wanted me to ask her a question.

“Would you rather eat a moldy piece of bread covered in peanut butter or jelly?”

Her gasp was obnoxious. “Ewww that’s disgusting. Why would you ask me that?”

Her question was easy in comparison to what we’d been asked.

“Answer the question, Carter,” Presley teased.

With a sigh and an eye roll, she replied, “Peanut butter.”

Presley laughed and Kingston’s eyes found hers instantly, locking onto her as she tipped her head back.

I didn’t want him looking at her.

I didn’t want him falling for her.

He couldn’t.

Not when I was fairly certain I already had.

Something seemed to come over me as Pres continued to laugh, and Kingston continued to watch. I lunged forward and pushed my brother as hard as I could off the pool lounger, which forced him to fall back and into the pool.

“Gio!” Presley shrieked right as Carter stood and covered her mouth.

My fists were clenched as I watched my brother break the surface and gasp for air. “The fuck, Gio? ”

I didn’t respond. Our eyes locked, and he only held my stare for a moment before flicking his eyes over to Presley then back over to me. He knew, and while I hoped he’d shake his head or act outraged by the idea, he smiled instead.

It was a devious smile that told me he’d be getting me back, but it wouldn’t be by pushing me into a pool.

Something told me it would be worse.

“Psst.” A hiss echoed through the room and then something shoved my shoulder.

“Gio!”

I sat up and looked around the dark room, finding someone kneeling next to my bed.

“Presley?”

Her hand moved to my mouth, covering it. “Come on, let’s go.”

I moved the sheet off and slid out of bed. I was in a pair of basketball shorts, but my shirt was still off. The air was hot and humid. I glanced at Kingston’s bed, seeing he was still asleep.

“Where are we going?” I whispered back, but Presley merely grabbed my hand and pulled me with her as she moved over to Kingston’s side of the room. I ignored the fact that she was including my brother in whatever we were doing and focused on how warm her hand was in mine.

“Kingston,” she whispered, rousing my brother from sleep.

Once he was awake enough to sit up, she tugged his hand.

“Gemini is out!” she said excitedly, leading us out of our room and down the hall. The place we were staying had polished, wood floors that creaked ever so slightly whenever we stepped on them, but right at the end of the hall was a door that led out to a huge balcony.

Kingston was holding Presley’s other hand, and right as he saw me, he delivered that exact expression he’d given me when exiting the pool. Presley’s head tipped back as she stared at the sky. Her pajamas were cotton shorts and a thin tank top, which made that concrete block return to my gut.

Why did it feel so strange seeing her like this?

She was freshly fifteen and still had her braces. She’d always just been Presley…even though if I were to really remember and think back, she’d always been more than that to me.

“Right there, Gio!” She pointed up, and I stepped next to her until I saw where she was pointing.

Sure enough the complex system was there, the two twin heads at the narrow opening.

“You found it, Elvis.” I draped my arm over her shoulders and tugged her into my side.

Her smile was infectious as Kingston stepped closer to her.

“Show me, mi reina . I can’t find it.”

Yes, he could. He may be into plants, but we’d both been in the same astronomy class last year, and we’d both learned how to read maps.

Presley left my embrace and gently took his wrist until her hand hovered over his. “Look, right there.” Their heads were bent closer, as she leaned into him, trying to get him to see the right group of stars.

“Oh, I see it now.”

Idiot.

Presley let him go and then brought her hands together. “It’s so beautiful. I can’t believe we finally found it.”

“You found it, Elvis,” I said, tugging on the end of her braid.

She turned and smiled at me then reached for both of our hands and intertwined her fingers through ours.

“One day I want to come back here, when we’re grown-ups. I might even want to live here.”

Kingston and I followed her to the ground when she decided to lie on the balcony and stare up at the constellation. We never let her hands go while we lay next to her .

“What about your farm, Pres?”

She let out a heavy sigh. “I can have a farm here in Mexico, can’t I?”

Kingston broke the silence. “I think we’d miss you.”

“Can’t you guys follow me here?”

I smiled, turning my head. “Both of us?”

She tilted hers to match my gaze. “Yeah, can’t just have one of you.”

Kingston tugged her so she turned her face toward him. “We’ll always have the sky, Pres. Even if you choose Mexico and it doesn’t choose us. We’ll have the sky.”

“I can’t imagine a world without you two,” she whispered after the breeze skimmed over us in cool waves.

Glancing over at my brother, I suddenly wished I hadn’t looked. Pain that mirrored something in my chest stared back and suddenly us fighting over her felt stupid. I didn’t know what her future held, but I knew who controlled it.

Scotty would get to determine where she ended up, and deep down I already knew it wouldn’t be with either one of us.