Twin Senses

Jayce

My twin sister, Janelle, decided to drop by unannounced. As I opened the door, I was ambushed by her, her kids Gabrielle and Allen, and their dog, Bones.

Bones was the least of my worries, wagging his tail and giving me those puppy eyes. Meanwhile, Janelle was nearly squeezing the life out of me with one of her bear hugs.

Gabrielle and Allen were clinging to my legs, almost causing me to trip.

“Good Lord, Janie, what’s all this about?” I would have yelled if she wasn’t cutting off my air supply.

“I don’t know. I just had this twin feeling that something was wrong, but then something good happened! I had to bring the kids. Oh, and shh...” she pressed her finger to my lips. “Dmitri is sleeping.”

“You’re telling ~me~ to be quiet? You’re so loud the whole neighborhood can hear!” I whispered against her finger, irritated.

“Don’t make me slap you,” she whispered back. “I need to know what’s happening, right now.”

I rolled my eyes. “If you’d kindly stop trying to strangle me, I can tell you upstairs.”

She released me and darted up the stairs, waiting for me to follow. I didn’t bother asking her to remove her kids from my legs. They were clinging so tightly, I knew they wanted me to carry them up.

As quietly as I could, I made monster noises and dragged my feet up the stairs, the kids giggling and holding on tight. By the time I reached the top, I was out of breath.

“You two are going to age your uncle prematurely,” I gasped.

They giggled and released my legs, hopping onto my couch while their mom turned on ~SpongeBob~ for them. “You’re going to fry their brains with that show,” I commented.

She shot me a glare as the kids looked at her with worried eyes. She reassured them, “Don’t listen to your uncle, you two. He used to watch this when he was your age.”

“Until I realized it was garbage,” I retorted.

“And when was that exactly?” she asked, smirking. “If I remember correctly, you didn’t stop watching until you were fifteen.”

I felt my face heat up. The kids laughed as Janie threw her hands up in victory. “I win this round, bro!”

“Now that you’ve successfully embarrassed me in front of my niece and nephew, can you leave?” I asked.

She pouted and flopped down on the couch, crossing her arms. “No, you still need to tell me what happened today.”

I rolled my eyes again, but joined her on the couch. “Alright, fine.”

She giggled. I knew this was going to sound cheesy, but I started talking anyway.

“I passed this little family-owned bookstore on my way to work recently. I was out of good books to read, so I decided to check it out.

I was browsing for a while, then realized I needed to use the restroom.”

I wished I could have come up with a better way to discover Tuli was in the bathroom with a rapist.

“I came out when I heard noises from the women’s restroom. Something felt off. I was about to break down the door when it opened, and guess who came out?”

My sister gasped. “Oh my gosh, was it Tuli?”

Janelle knew me too well. I nodded.

“She crawled out on her hands and knees. There was a guy in there, doubled over. I’m pretty sure she kneed him in the balls. I helped her up and noticed her blouse was undone. She looked terrified. I knew right then. That jerk tried to rape her.

“I swear, Janelle, I beat the shit out of that asshole. I probably would have killed him if Tuli hadn’t stopped me.”

I fell silent for a moment. I was hesitant about telling her my confession, but I knew she wouldn’t let it go until I did.

“Jayce, you’ve crossed the line, haven’t you?” Her face lit up like a fireworks display. “Are you in love with her?”

Unable to find the words, I nodded.

She practically leapt off the couch. “I KNEW IT!”

I heard a coo and looked over to see a pair of blue eyes peeking out from under the hood of his car seat. “Janelle, you woke Dmitri up,” I grumbled as I got up and kneeled to get my nephew out of his car seat.

Dmitri giggled as I made a silly face and kissed his chubby cheek. “Your mommy is crazy, Dmitri,” I murmured as he grabbed a curl of my hair.

“His mommy is excited that she might get some nieces and nephews,” Janie shot back. When I gave her a look, she smirked. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m smart enough to know my twin brother wants a family of his own.”

I sat back down with Dmitri in my lap.

“Sometimes I wish you weren’t my twin. It’s annoying how easily you read my mind.”

“Well, you’re stuck with me. Now don’t change the subject. Did you confess?”

I laughed. “I feel like I practically threw myself at her. You know this,” I muttered, and she nodded in understanding, “but I couldn’t keep it in anymore. I don’t regret telling her. It’s like a weight has been lifted.”

“How did she respond?”

I shook my head, feeling embarrassed. “She said she feels the same. But she doesn’t think we should be together.”

She nibbled on her lip, a thoughtful look in her eyes. “Well, I’m all for you two getting together, but given the situation, I can see why she’s hesitant.”

“Yeah, and there’s not much I can do about it. I can’t exactly force her into a secret relationship. I already feel guilty for asking her to consider it.”

Janie gave me a knowing look. “Your reputation as a ladies’ man isn’t helping your case, is it?”

In response, I pulled off one of Dmitri’s tiny shoes and tossed it at her. She ducked, her laughter filling the room.

“Hey! I’m just trying to help you out. My advice? Don’t make any moves during school hours, but you could still show her who you really are when the sun goes down.”

I paused, mulling over her words. I didn’t expect Tuli to agree to a date, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t try to persuade her. That wouldn’t be the same as forcing her, right?

“Janelle, you’re a genius,” I declared, standing up to plant a kiss on her cheek.

“Oh, trust me,” she replied with a chuckle, “I’m well aware of my genius status.”

She patted her belly for emphasis, and I rolled my eyes. “You better let Derek know.”

She shot me a pointed look. “What kind of wife would I be if I didn’t?”

“Is that a rhetorical question?”

She retaliated by smacking the back of my head with Dmitri’s shoe. ~Should’ve seen that one coming.~

“Say what you want, but in the end, you’re going to be grateful for my brilliant ideas.”

Dmitri gurgled, as if he was agreeing with his mother. I leaned over to kiss his dark hair, completely unaware of just how right my sister would turn out to be.