Rising Shards

Ko had been so busy with beam chasers and everything else going on that she couldn’t remember the last weekend she had to just lie down in her room and think. That sit and think time was almost immediately interrupted by her sister Kai, who arrived at the dorm in her usual thunderous manner.

”Damn, you look really sad,” Kai said.

”Wow, thanks,” Ko said.

Kai thankfully didn’t do the thing she’d been doing lately where she tried to jump over Ko’s bed the long way (usually resulting in her crashing onto Ko and the two fighting), but she definitely thought about making another attempt.

”You wanna talk about it?” Kai asked.

”So you can rag on me? No thanks,” Ko said.

”C’mon, I won’t go too hard,” Kai said. ”I gotta know how bad the situation is so I can tell coach at practice?”

”You don’t have to tell her anything,” Ko said.

”I do if you skip today,” Kai said.

”I’m not skipping practice today,” Ko said. She wasn’t actually sure if she would go, but she couldn’t just say that to Kai, she had to argue, it was her duty as her twin.

”Well, I’ll tell her why if you miss it,” Kai said. ”So you seriously dumped Lillia because of Roxana?”

”I just said I don’t want you to rag on me,” Ko said.

”I’m not!” Kai said. ”I guess I just don’t get what it is about Roxie that makes you go insane every time she comes back.”

”I dunno,” Ko rolled over, putting her back to her sister. ”You don’t understand.”

”I don’t understand any of your romance crap,” Kai said.

Roxana was almost indescribable. Out of the girls she’d been with, no one made Ko feel the same way Roxie did. The lows with Roxana were worth the dizzying highs, but...

”I couldn’t hurt Lillia,” Ko said.

”So you stopped yourself from hurting her by hurting her,” Kai said.

”It’s a little hurt now to stop a lot of hurt,” Ko said. ”We weren’t doing the greatest, but I made sure we were good.”

”I still think it’s stupid,” Kai said. ”But I think everything you do is stupid.”

”You could try to sound a little supportive,” Ko said. ”Even just slightly.”

”OK, fine, I do appreciate that you’re like. Trying not to hurt your current girlfriend, or your ex now, more than you would have, knowing how you get. It’s kinda growth, I guess?”

”That’s not very supportive,” Ko said.

”Grow a little more and I’ll be a little more supportive,” Kai said. ”You seriously couldn’t make it work with Lillia?”

”Guess not,” Ko said.

”Is Roxana really gonna go here?” Kai asked. ”Isn’t she an Echela?”

”She is,” Ko said. ”But a few Echela cadets are gonna be going here soon.”

And I just know the instant I see her again, I’ll fall right back into her spell. A melancholic mix of bitter sadness and fluttery excitement churned in Ko.

”Huh,” Kai said. ”I guess just try not to go full cluster this time.”

”That’s what I’m doing, have you listened to anything I’ve been saying?” Ko said. ”If I’m still with Lillia when Roxie gets here, I’m not going to be able to resist. If it’s just me and her, nobody else is pulled into that orbit.”

”Hopefully someday you can be with someone who you don’t need to have an entire drama plan in place for just to hang out,” Kai said. ”Never had to do that with Lillia.”

”Shut up,” Ko said. ”What do you want me to say? I made the best decision I could knowing how I am. I’m being mature.”

”I suppose,” Kai said. ”Just be careful, alright? And I may call you out a bunch, but you are still my sister, so I kinda care or whatever. So if you’re really out of it just tell me, alright?”

”Alright,” Ko said. ”Thanks.”

Kai stayed until it was time for practice. Ko decided on joining, so she stood up and stretched, feeling strangely lighter.