Prologue
Nico closes the top on his last box, looking around at the room he and Reyna have called home for close to a year. He can hear the two sister murmuring to each other in the living room, surely saying their goodbyes. He's hesitant to break up the siblings, so he slips past out the side door. He stacks the final box among the rest in the U-Haul, then jumps from the back, pulling the door closed with him. It slams with a boom, and he flicks the lock. Hylla and Reyna come out of the house; the former's arm wrapped around the latter's shoulder. The older girl smiles at Nico, reaching out to ruffle his hair, as she always does.
"You take care of my baby sister out there in the Big Apple, huh, Neeks?"
"I'm older than him!" Reyna protests.
"I know, sis, but...he's scary."
"I can be scary," Reyna snarls.
Nico responds with a deep, rumbly growl, dark hair falling foreword to shadow his eyes. The girls take a step back.
"You win." Reyna mutters, sticking out her tongue.
"Of course I do." Nico replies.
"Well, I guess we better get going." Rey says, giving Hylla a sympathetic smile. The older girl opens her arms and Reyna gratefully falls into them.
"You too, Neeks."
The three of them hug for a while before eventually- reluctantly- letting go.
"Thanks for taking care of us this past year. We wouldn't have made it without ya." Nico says, motioning to Hylla's now-empty home.
"It was my pleasure." Hylla replies. "To think, the next time we talk, I'll be in Seattle and you'll be in New York! Holy, cow."
"Good luck, sis. You deserve this job. That company is gonna bow at your feet." Reyna grins, refusing to release the tears.
"And I hope you two find whatever you're looking for in New York. Lord knows you guys deserve it." Hylla plants a kiss on Reyna's hairline, squeezes Nico's shoulder warmly, and retrieves her duffle bag.
"Bye, you two. Love you both to bits."
"Love you, too." Nico and Reyna chorus, watching Hylla climb into her own U-Haul. They follow suit and soon, they're on the highway, driving away from L.A. toward a brand new adventure on the opposite coast. New York City.