Chapter 12- Cleo's POV
I stare, open-mouthed, at the two girls in front of me. Kim looks terrified and her eyes are welling up with tears as Casey sits behind her, dark hair falling around her tan face. The girl has pretty brown eyes and dark freckles that are scattered across her cheeks. Casey is Puerto Rican, a rarity here in Australia, and she is more than a little heavy but her weight sits in all the right places. I've often seen Kim studying the other girl's curves, blaming it on jealousy rather than … this.
"What … Kim, you …" I stutter, not knowing what to say. Casey pulls her shirt back over her head and whispers something about needing to go before slipping out of the room. Kim hasn't moved.
Slowly, I walk to her bed. My little sister's cheeks are as red as tomatoes and I can't help but feel bad for her as I see a few tears spill onto them. "Oh, Kimmy," I say gently, pushing back some of her hair. "Why didn't you tell me?"
Breaking our eye contact, Kim looks around and opens her mouth before closing it again, as if trying to figure out something to say. Before any words come out, though, her face crumbles and she begins to cry, hiding her head in her hands and drawing up her knees. I stare at her, unable to do anything for fear, as if she's a foreign object.
Get a hold of yourself, I think. She needs you right now- stop acting like she's an alien and comfort your baby sister.
Shaking my head, I put one hand on her back and scoot closer, holding Kim next to me as I try to get her to stop crying. I can't give her a full hug, though; my six-months-along baby bump is forbidding it.
"Kimmy, it's okay. You're okay," I say softly as she cries. Finally I hear the girl hiccup to a stop.
"I … I wanted to tell you," she whispers, voice trembling, "and I was gonna a little while ago. But then, with the baby, I didn't think it was the right time …"
I sigh. I have been pretty preoccupied lately. "But Kim, even after this baby is born, you can always talk to me. You're my little sister. I'll always be there for you."
She nods, still not looking at me. I wonder what else I've missed from my sister recently. I didn't even notice her haircut until a few weeks ago.
"How … how long have you known?" I ask tentatively.
Kim stiffens, but then says softly, "A long time. I used to think … I used to think I just idolized some girls. Or was really close friends with them or something … but then I met Casey at the beginning of high school, and I wanted us just to be friends but the more time we spent together the harder it was to deny that I … I loved her. And then, one day, we were playing truth or dare and …" at this point Kim dissolves, again, into tears. I rub her back and wait for her to continue.
Finally, after a deep breath, Kim keeps going. "And she asked me who I liked. It was just the two of us, and so I took a chance and told her. 'But I don't want this to change things between us,' I said. But then Casey leaned closer and responded, 'I do,' and then she kissed me. And then we just … I don't know."
I stare at Kim. Her story is so … I don't know. But it makes me want to cry from happiness. I jump a little when I feel the baby kick.
"What?" Kim asks, looking up at me finally.
"Oh, nothing. Just the baby is kicking," I explain. Kim looks scared. "Want to feel it?"
Slowly, Kim puts her hands over my stomach. I figure she's worried about hurting the baby, but I smile at her.
"Hey. Kimmy, you're okay. Okay?" I ask after a minute.
She stares at me.
"Okay."
