Not bothering to knock, she used her key and walked in.Dropping her bag by the front door, she heard footsteps behind her.
“Pixie, what are you doing home?” Brian’s deep voice soundedconfused.
Poppy and Pixie resembled each other quite a bit. Both hadthe same rounded figure, even though Pixie had two inches on Poppy in height.The sisters also shared the same hair color, cut and length, except Pixie’scurls tended to be better behaved than her own. Poppy and Pixie always jokedabout the humidity of Florida, using levels in their “hairdicator”. Poppy likedto think she was normally at stage “fluffy” when Pixie referred to it as“fuzzy”.
Turning around to make a face at Brian, she teased, “Brian,you can’t even tell the woman you love from her sister. Tsk-tsk.”
Brian stood before her red-faced, wearing only his boxers.Poppy had to admit that he was attractive. Plain, but still attractive. Hisdark-blond hair always seemed to be combed perfectly and he had a nice smile.Standing at five foot ten, he was well-built, which Poppy knew came from usingthe gym at the local health club. Scanning Brian up and down, Poppy noticedeven his boxers were boring.
“Pixie said I could come over and stay for a bit. It’s along story that deals with a man wearing a wifebeater, and a barrel of gas.Enough about me though.” With one hand propped on her hip, she gestured to himwith the other. “What are you doing home? Pix said you went in to work today.”
Brian ran a hand through his blond hair, which of coursefell back into place perfectly, then smiled uncomfortably.
“I haven’t been sleeping well, so I took a half day to comehome and catch up on some z’s.” He hefted her bag from the floor. “Let me takethis to the guest room and get some clothes on.”
Pixie took the bag from him, nodding her head in thedirection of the master bedroom he’d come from. “No no no, if you came home tosleep, then go back to bed. I’ll just read or watch TV until Pixie gets off.”
“I can keep you company, seriously.” Brian snagged his phoneoff the kitchen counter as Poppy ushered him back to his room.
“I’m a big girl, Brian. Seriously. You are tired anyways.Plus, I didn’t mean to bother you. Do what you planned on doing today and getsome sleep.” Poppy detoured to the guest room to drop off her stuff aftermaking sure he had followed her advice.
As she walked back by the master bedroom, she heard Brian onthe phone.
“Yeah, Poppy just got here.”
He must be calling Pixie for her. Poppy proceeded to getcomfortable on their big and relaxing couch. Stroking the empty space next toher, she thought, Hell, yeah, I need one of these. Smiling at thethought of fitting this gigantic couch into her tiny one-bedroom apartment, shekicked up her feet and lay back. As she drifted off to sleep, she wondered whenPixie would be home.
A few hours later, Poppy jolted awake to the feeling ofsomeone tickling her feet.
“Goddammit, Pix!” Poppy kicked out a foot and caught Pixieon the leg. She giggled as she avoided another hit.
“Hey, at first I was just trying to move your legs over.Then I figured your lazy ass needed to be woken up.” Pixie laughed, ploppingdown on the couch next to Poppy, and pushed her hair back off her face with atired sigh.
“What are you doing home so early?” Poppy glanced at theclock on the DVR. “I thought you’d be longer.”
“There was a news alert saying a press conference isscheduled for six o’clock today so I wanted to get home in case the roads gotbad again.” She punched Pixie lightly on the shoulder. “Plus, Brian called meand said that you came home and caught him in his boxers. He was worried abouthis virtue.”
Leering at her sister, Poppy cackled dramatically, “I wantyour boring boyfriend…and your fluffy couch too.”
Pixie giggled at Poppy’s witch impression and then reachedover to take her hand. “I’ve missed you this week, Pops. I was worried aboutyou alone at your apartment.”
“Awww shucks, sis, so nice of you to care about little ol’me. I worried about me too after witnessing the idiocy that the entire state’sseemed to subscribe to recently. On a serious note though, I missed you too.”
“C’mon now, let’s figure out what’s for dinner before weglue ourselves to the TV.”
The sisters worked together seamlessly in the kitchen. Spinningaround each other to get to the fridge and the sink, they fell right into theroutine they’d perfected when they were younger. Soon the smells of Mexicanfood roused a groggy Brian from the bedroom. This time he happened to bewearing clothes.
“Hey, that smells really good,” Brian greeted them, kissingthe top of Pixie’s head. He stole a slice of avocado off a plate as he watchedthem finish up.
Swatting his hand away, Pixie chastised, “Stop sneakingfood. I was lucky they had this at the store today. That place was almost bare.You wouldn’t believe how crazy people are acting. Shelves were cleared throughthe entire store.” She moved the plate and lined it up with the rest of thefajita mixings Poppy had already arranged.
Poppy set some dishes down on the counter. “C’mon, guys, thenews is about to cut to the press conference,” she said, motioning for everyoneto make up their plates.
The three of them filled plates and shuffled to the livingroom to eat on the couch.
The President cleared his throat before speaking. “My fellowAmericans, we appreciate your patience during this last week. I know many ofyou have questions and I will do my best to answer them. We have met with thealiens’ leaders and have new information for you. They are called PhaetonWarriors. This race is highly advanced and was able to clearly communicate thereason they have come here. First, I want to assure you that they are not hereto do us harm. The State Department has deemed them not a threat, and inactuality, we have discussed how they can help our country. They have not onlybeen willing but eager to come up with ideas for our future that will impactnot
