Alex’s P.O.V:

Aerri walked into her room and shut the door. I was still sitting on the couch, processing things that the girl had just said.

Kids these days think of so many things at such a young age…

I sat in silence for a while, until it bugged me.

“How long are you going to stand there? She’s gone already.”, I said, in a loud whisper.

“Oh! So you knew?”, a teasing tone spoke. “Just come and sit here already.”, I said. Elisa came over and sat down next to me. “When did you come?”, I asked.

“When you ask? I guess around the time when you said you wanted to talk with the brat.”, Elisa answered with her index finger and thumb rubbing her chin. “So you were here since the beginning.”, I stated. “Yeah. Pretty much.”, she replied, staring at the ceiling while resting her head on the couch.

We sat in another brief silence. “Do you drink?”, she asked. “Why?”, I asked back. “How old are you?”, she asked. “28.”, I replied solemnly. “Same here.”, she replied. “Wanna have a drink?”, she asked. “Just one cup for now.”, I said.

Elisa walked over to the kitchen and came back with two cans of cold beer. “Here.”, she handed one of them to me. “Thanks.”, I said, taking the can.

She opened the can and gulped down the beer. I did the same.

“Just a short amount of time can change people so much, right?”, she asked, but it felt more like she was telling me. “Why? Shocked at your cute little sister’s maturity in the few months you hadn’t seen her?”, I asked, after taking a sip.

“Nah! She hasn’t changed much. She’s always been like this. Always so responsible. Always concerned about others unnecessarily. I wish she were more outgoing, but sadly she doesn’t take after me.”, Elisa sighed.

“Sometimes, just because we are siblings doesn’t mean we can be the same.”, I said. Elisa chuckled, but the chuckle had a hint of worry in it.

“Do you wish that things weren’t this way?”, I asked. “Nah! What she does with her life is none of my business. Her life is her very own. Whether she creates