One Day

“That was kind of lame,” Izzie said, unlocking the door. “I thought it would be more… interesting?”

“Yeah, it was kind of a letdown, right? I’m glad we left early. I’d rather come home and finish that game with Donna.”

“Yeah, and now they don’t have to be alone tonight.” Izzie entered the house and made her way to the living room.

A piercing shriek echoed through the house, and Casey dashed inside after the girl. An unfamiliar boy was sitting in their living room, next to Ulysses.

Izzie immediately dashed over to her brother, her heart racing as she checked to make sure he was okay. Turning to the stranger, she narrowed her eyes and asked sharply, “Who are you?” Her tone was far from friendly, revealing her protective instincts.

The boy jumped up and took a few steps back. “Adrian. My name is Adrian. I’m Don’s friend.”

Izzie and Casey exchanged glances with raised eyebrows.

“And where exactly is Donna?” Izzie asked.

“In the shower.”

Izzie’s expression grew stern as she turned to Casey, her eyes expressing a mix of frustration and urgency.

“Oh boy,” Casey muttered under her breath. She had gotten the hint though, and went over to Ulysses as Izzie walked off to go find Sardonna.

Casey crossed her arms and studied the boy intently. He was tall, with a lean build, and looked to be around the same age as Sardonna. As she took in his features, she noticed the uncertainty in his eyes, which only fueled her suspicion.

The boy swallowed hard, his gaze flickering between her and Ulysses, clearly aware of the tension in the room.

Casey sat down next to Ulysses and nodded at the empty armchair across from her. “So Adrian. How do you know Donna?”

“We’re…” he paused. “Classmates.” His gaze shifted anxiously as he settled into his seat, as if he were desperately looking for a way out of the awkward situation.

Classmates.

Once upon a time, Casey had used that word to describe Izzie. Now they were living together, and thinking about getting married.

“Interesting… and you two have… been classmates for a long time?”

“Uh, not really. We just met in French class this year. We’ve only hung out a few times outside of school.”

“Are you two dating?” she asked bluntly, cutting straight to the point.

The boy’s face immediately started to redden, and Casey could see the embarrassment washing over him. It became clear to her that even if they weren’t officially dating yet, he definitely had some kind of feeling for Sardonna. Something within her switched on, and she shifted into her protective older sister mode.

“Alright Adrian, let’s talk,” she said, her lips curving up just slightly. She leaned forward, cracking her knuckles to intimidate him.

“Uhh… sure?” He rubbed his neck and let out an awkward chuckle.

*          *          *

Sardonna shrieked as Izzie opened the bathroom door and went inside. “Donna, who in the world is that boy outside?!” She sat down on the toilet seat and crossed her arms as she questioned her little sister.

“Jesus Izzie.” Sardonna wrapped herself with a towel and rolled her eyes. “That’s my friend, Adrian. Aren’t you and Casey supposed to be out at that convention or something?”

“We were, but thank god we came home early. You brought over a boy?! And then you hopped in the shower and left him with Uly?”

“Relax, sis. Uly spat out his food on me so I had to get cleaned up. Adrian said he was cool with watching him while I showered.” She froze as she was about to plug in the hair dryer. “Wait, did something happen to Uly?”

“No, but what were you thinking, bringing a boy home when me and Casey were not here?”

Sardonna raised an eyebrow. “What? You thought I was going to have sex with him with Uly here?” She smirked. “Am I not allowed to have friends over?”

“You are when we’re here.”

Sardonna put down her hair dryer and sat down on the edge of the tub. “He’s not my boyfriend, okay?”

“Yet, you’re comfortable enough to get in the shower while he’s outside…?” She narrowed her eyes at her sister. “What if he barges in? No one can protect you then.”

She didn’t reply for a few seconds as she held onto the towel wrapped around her. “I invited him over because his mother is a world-famous geneticist,” she said. She grabbed her hair brush and ran it through her wet hair, as if looking for something to do to avoid looking at Izzie. “She specializes in genetic disorders, and he was telling me that they’re doing some trials for Angelman...”

Izzie’s face immediately softened and she blinked a few times. “What?”

“I thought that if I became friends with him, he’d be able to help us get a spot in the trials.”

Izzie’s mouth fell slightly open in surprise. “Donna…”

“Yeah, yah, I know there’s no cure, and we’ve seen all the specialists around here already, but it can’t hurt right? What if his mother can help him?”

Izzie stared at her sister for a few moments as she took the words in. “If you weren’t naked right now, I would hug you,” she finally said.

“Ew, gross.”

She loved seeing Sardonna look out for Ulysses. It was a comforting reminder of the strong bond they shared, but it also stirred a protective instinct within her. She didn’t want her sister to become preoccupied with worries that were too heavy for her age. She wanted Sardonna to meet friends she truly enjoyed being with, not just people who could help her.

“Thank you for looking out for our brother,” she said. “But I don’t want you to feel like you always have to put him first. You should make friends with people you like, not just people who can help you.”

Izzie always felt a bit of regret when it came to Sardonna. Looking back on their childhood, she realized how much she had neglected her. Thaddeus had always received the best of everything – the best school supplies, the chance to participate in any extracurricular activities he wanted, and essentially all the resources he needed to thrive. It felt natural to give him more since he was older, and had greater responsibilities. Then when Ulysses was diagnosed, the focus shifted entirely to him. She devoted herself to catering to his needs, putting him above all else, and channeling every bit of their financial resources into his treatments. Sardonna never got much attention from her, and she was always left to fend for herself. Izzie always felt guilty about that which was why she let her get away with a lot of things.

“I know, but I want to. I’m not as smart as Thaddeus or as caring as you and Casey, but he’s my brother too, and I want to do something for him too. I want him to get better.” It wasn’t often that she spoke her feelings.

“Nonsense, you’re plenty smart and caring,” Izzie immediately said. “You’re just better at hiding it.”

Sardonna smiled.

“Screw it.” Izzie got up and went to hug her sister who groaned, but didn’t push her away. “You’ve grown up a lot, haven’t you?” She was proud of her little sister, but it saddened her a bit to see her grow up so fast.

“Do you mean my boobs are getting bigger?” she asked with a chuckle.

Izzie rolled her eyes. The girl was always sarcastic, and she had a feeling that she got her sarcasm from Casey. “Come on, get dressed and come out. I have a feeling Casey is out there grilling your boyfriend.”

“Friend. And good, now we can scare him into helping us.”

*          *          *

They went back into the living room a few minutes later, and saw Casey and Adrian sitting in front of the TV playing a video game together.

“I thought you said she was interrogating him?” Sardonna raised an eyebrow.

“That’s what I expected.” Izzie cleared her throat.

The two paused their game and turned to look at the girls.

“Oh hey, you’re back.” Casey set down her controller and she furrowed her eyebrows at Sardonna. “Donna, you invited a boy over without telling us?”

“Your sister is actually pretty cool once I answered all of her questions,” Adrian said with a smile, “Not as mean as you made her sound.”

Sardonna returned the smile. “Yeahhhh, that’s not the mean sister,” she said. “This one is.” She tilted her head towards Izzie.

“Oh…” A brief flicker of panic appeared in his eyes.

“So Adrian, do you want to stay for dinner?” Izzie asked flatly.

His eyes shifted from Izzie, to Casey, and then back to Sardonna. “Uh, no, I better get going. My parents are expecting me. Uh… maybe we can hang again another time?”

“Sure.”

“Cool, see ya at school.” He put his controller down and nearly dashed out the door with Izzie’s eyes following him the entire time.

“Yeah, so try not to scare off all of my friends next time, okay?” Sardonna went over to the sofa and picked up the controller.

“I got all of the information,” Casey said proudly. “He likes math and science, he wants to study biochemistry, and his parents are doctors so they’re well off. He is decently cute, and I brutally beat him twice already in this game, and he didn’t get angry or upset. I’d say he’s a 9/10 based on what I’ve gathered. Minus 1 point because he kept avoiding eye contact with me like he was up to no good.”

“Wow, you got all that in 15 minutes? You sure have a knack for these kinds of things.” Sardonna leaned back on the sofa and restarted the game. “Sucks he lost 1 point though. I mean, what reason did he have to act so suspiciously? It’s just a random grown woman asking him questions about his life?” Her eyes went to Izzie. “This is why I can’t tell you two when I have friends over.”

“Wait.” Izzie narrowed her eyes at Sardonna. “Are you telling me you’ve had friends over before? Male friends?” When Sardonna didn’t respond, Izzie’s gaze shifted to Casey, who subtly gestured for her to come over. She circled around the sofa and settled closely beside her sister, while Casey slid in closer on the other side. “Sar-don-na!”

Sardonna could only giggle and grip onto the controller as her two sisters sandwiched her on the sofa, trying to squeeze an answer out of her.