Hi dear Guest reviewer! Thank you so much for that awesomely kind comment! I might even throw in a couple more, if inspiration doesn't desert me...!
Here's a long one to apologize for slowing down on the updates these days... It's hard to keep the pace, working on two stories. This one was supposed to be so short... Not that I'm complaining at all! I'm having a lot of fun writing it too, so, if you have fun reading, it's more than worth it.
CHAPTER EIGHT
He clears his throat and comes in to put the cups on the coffee table.
"I hate to interrupt, but we really can't be late, lasses…"
Sujin gives him one of her mischievous remorseless grin: "Oh, we were about done, dear."
The inescapable pulsing in my nether regions would strongly disagree. I'm more aroused than I thought possible by what we just did and I don't know if I'll be able to disregard it for long.
Now, the water has turned tepid, but we quickly wash off anyway. Murphy is in a blissful daze and tries to help, however, we'd rather gently push him away. I think both my sister and I silently agree that if we let any of them anywhere near us right now, they'll definitely be late.
"Ye want to come with us?"
We're sipping on our coffees while getting dressed when Connor asked.
"To church? Umm. We're not really…" I trail. I don't want to offend them, but we were raised by atheists and rather agnostic ourselves.
"Aye, we figured." Murphy says as he glances at my new t-shirt with an upside down five-points star on it. Yeah, satanic shirt is all I have left. "But have ye ever attended a mass?"
"I guess we haven't." Sujin shrugs at me.
Although, I don't think it would be appropriate, seeing as I'm so turned on I can't think about anything else.
"Then it'd be another new experience!"
I squint at Connor suspiciously: "You're not going to try and save our souls or something, do you?"
"Nah, we already did that last night." Connor shrugs, pretending to be serious.
Sujin chokes on her coffee. "Is that what it was?"
"Sure. Don't ye feel enlightened this morning?" He's beaming like the cheeky bastard he is.
My sister and I roll our eyes with perfect synchronicity.
"No, this morning we'd rather bestow some culture upon ye ladies." Murphy's silly grin always gets to me.
"Then we can go for a late breakfast." Connor adds and that seals it.
"If you lure us with food right now, I guess we'll go anywhere."
For confirmation, I glance at Sujin who shrugs 'Why not'.
"The only thing is," Connor adds and lets the tip of his finger trail along her collarbone, making her shiver, "ye need to cover those precious little shoulders of yers to come in…" He said that in a distinctly regretful way. Especially when he sees her wrapping them in a thin shawl.
"And ye might want to change that shirt too," Murphy adds in his soft voice, a little bashful.
I realize themselves have donned a clean pair of spotless jeans, still with plain shirts, but a little less faded. And they're now picking up their rosaries from the nails by the door. Sometimes, they move in a perfect simultaneity that makes me wonder if they're not choreographed figments of my imagination. Like, someone must have drawn them on paper and brought them to life.
"Well, since I had packed for a few days at a beach, not a cultural tour, my only alternative right now is a swimsuit." I cringe.
"Damn, if it were up to me, that'd be the mandatory uniform for everyone!" Murphy exclaims.
"But I guess we can find something for ye around here. There." Connor helpfully points out a blue button-down shirt, folded in a corner. "That's from when Murphy tried to look like he belonged to places where he didn't."
"Will ye fuck off…"
"Oh I won't! Ye looked fucking ridiculous!"
"I don't know," Sujin interrupts before their squabble could escalate, "I think you'd both look dashing in a suit…"
"Don't hold yer breath." I hear mutter.
I pick up the pale blue shirt, having trouble picturing him in it. But it smells just like him, and I can't wait to put it on.
"We need to leave soon though, girls."
"Could you give us just a second? You can go wait downstairs and we'll be right behind you, promise." I plead.
Because, as soon as they're out the door, I can finally use the fricking bathroom. Sujin thanks me, and I know she'll be next. She puts on some make-up while nonchalantly inquiring:
"So… Where's the skank?"
I can't believe she's asking after what happened this morning.
"Um… Her status has been updated to ex-skank, apparently."
"Oh. Nice. Wait, is she the one that gave him a black eye?"
"She threw a glass at his face!" I'm still pissed about that.
"That bitch! We should pay her a visit…" Her perfect reaction, exactly the same as mine, is enough to make me chuckle.
Now, there are so many things I'd like to discuss with her, but we don't want to make the boys wait. We exchange a knowing smile as we make our way down.
"Who would have thought, huh?" she ventures dreamily.
"You," I answer, "the minute we got here!"
We laugh, wondering if we're still drunk or just in a permanent state of tipsiness from now on.
When we join them, they're both puffing on their cigarettes, which deliciously highlights their cheekbones, especially with their sunglasses on. They look so similar right now, I could never tell which I prefer.
However, Connor immediately walks up to me, grabs my nape and pulls me into a breathtaking kiss. His tongue twirls with mine, pushing me backward until I'm left flushed and dizzy.
"Ní comórtas é, Connor!" Murphy hisses.
He's pulled down his shades, making a show of rolling his eyes. It makes me wonder what they've been talking about without us… It's almost like Connor knows I've told Sujin about his brother being a better kisser. Which I might take back now.
Then, Murphy gives me a quick once-over before thinking of putting his dark glasses back on. His shirt is obviously way too big for me, reaching my thighs, and I don't think you can guess I'm wearing shorts underneath, so I don't know how it's better than my t-shirt. But I can see in his small smile that he likes me in it though, and it warms me up inside. Yeah, butterflies exploding everywhere.
Connor wraps his arm around my shoulders to pull me away and on the road to the church. Sujin grabs Murphy's hand, and he brings hers to his lips while following us. It feels so strangely familiar and simple to walk with them like that. Should I be weirded out? Because I'm not.
Connor smells like soap and I want to snuggle into the crook of his neck. I can hear my sister laughing at something Murphy said. The early sun is warming us up and life feels good…
Now I must admit that church is beautiful.
However, it can't be more than ten minutes into the service and I'm bored out of my mind. Especially since we have slept so little. I can't stop yawning, which is making Sujin yawn, which is making me yawn again, and we're caught in a loop that's not getting any better.
The only thing that is keeping me awake is watching the boys kneeling in prayer. With their rosaries in hand, their heads bowed, their serious expression. They're hotter than ever. And, yeah, if any of this is true, I'm definitely going to hell for what I'm thinking right now.
When everyone begins to walk up the aisle to eat the Host, my stomach loudly gurgle. And I remember that we may have forgotten to get supper last night, since we were full of car snacks.
"I'm starving too," Sujin whispers in my ear, and we giggle like silly kids.
"I don't think we're supposed to go up there since we're not even baptized…" I lament.
Connor gives us both a chaste kiss on the side of the head in turn as he passes by us. "We'll be right back, girls."
And Murphy gives us his adorable half smile that I still can't process without fawning.
Everyone seems to know them here also. When we came in, we got attention from every last row. Just like in the bar, there is a kind of fearful respect and appreciation whenever they walk up to someone. And I realize we really don't know them. Or at least, we don't know them like these people do.
When they kneel in front of the priest, I can watch the devotion in Murphy's eyes, and his tongue slightly come out to receive the Host. It makes me bite my lips with lust. Then Connor does the same and I need to take a deep breath. Sujin elbows me in the ribs with a lascivious grin. If God truly existed, we would have both been struck by lightning right now.
I have to look away when they come back because they truly take this seriously and I can't be flirty right now without being insensitive. Though, when the priest resumes his chanting, the twins hear my stomach grumble again. Connor leans into my ear: "Are ye hungry lass?"
Sujin looks at him over my shoulder to whisper back: "And not just for food…"
I blush crimson.
And mercifully, both boys give us a saucy smile.
"We can leave whenever ye want, ye know."
"We wouldn't want to keep you from…your Catholic duties, I guess." I answer.
The look on both Sujin's and my face, however, is eloquent enough. They let out a chuckle and gesture for us to shift and exit the row.
The priest is now in the middle of his sermon, so I can't believe this is okay. We get a few sideways glances, though no one dares to stare.
"We know what he's going to say anyway."
"Aye, we discussed it with him the other day."
"Just wait for us up front." Murphy gestures for us to go on.
So, I frown in confusion, but they leave us again to walk back up the aisle. I should be making my way to the door, though I'm transfixed. In their relaxed confident stride, they walk up to the altar, get around the priest, and reach the huge wooden statue of the Christ. There, they both lean in and lay a kiss on his feet.
Again, this should mean nothing to me. But as they do, I feel spellbound. The depth of their faith and reverence is so obvious and pure, I can finally understand why everyone seems so captivated by them. Despite their dark clothes, tattooed skin, and their devilish smiles when they look at us, they suddenly feel like true angels among us.
Then, as we walk out, they hide their rosaries back inside their shirt, put their sunglasses back on, and finally light up their cigarettes in unison. Connor hands me one, and: "Let's go eat then!"
God yes! I'm going to get a huge continental breakfast with extra pancakes on the side. I start salivating just thinking about it.
The waitress is a large grumpy older lady that only brightens up when she notices the twins.
"The usual for you, my dears? Oh my God! You two ladies are twins too! That's so cute! That would make for such a lovely double wedding! And the babies! Oh God, they would be adorable…" she fusses, and all four of us cringe.
When she leaves us alone, Murphy clears his throat and shifts uncomfortably in his chair.
"Well that was awkward…" I joke to relieve some of the tension that's brewing.
"That's Jodie for ye though, good-natured and always a tiny bit invasive." Connor winces.
"Is she that forward with all the girls you bring here?" Oh, Sujin, that's a low blow, even for you.
"First time she mentions babes, I believe." Connor skillfully dodges the bullet.
"One day she'll get to be right, I guess."
"Doubt that…" Murphy mumbles.
"Why? Don't you want kids someday?" Will you fricking drop it Sujin?
"Ye picture me with a kid? I can barely cook an egg without burning it." Now isn't that endearing. He's already wondering how he'd feed them.
"Don't sell yourself short, Murphy," Sujins coos. "You have plenty of other qualities."
"Oh, I know that!" And his cocky smirk confirms he does. "Just none suitable for children." He winks.
"Now I think I would make a great dad!" Connor's always humble too. And I immediately picture him with a couple of tow-haired brats hanging on his arms. "But a terrible husband probably."
"Why is that?" I ask with my delicious cup of poorly made coffee already pouring some more strength into my veins.
"I think the words girls usually use are 'too immature' and 'impossible to be around'…"
"Ye're forgetting the lovely 'if ye weren't enough, I have to suffer yer brother as well'!" Murphy giggles.
Sujin and I scoff. "I'm sorry, that's not funny…"
"Don't worry, never met a girl that I'd want to put up with for the rest of ma life either."
"Yeah, finding people is hard," Sujin sighs. "They always end up being disappointing."
"At least with us, ye get what ye see. Nothing more, nothing less!" Connor states, and I realize that's exactly why I like them. They're just so unapologetically themselves, when I've tried my whole life to figure out who I should be.
"And, at least, we're not alone. So I guess we care a little less if we don't find anyone in the end," Murphy admits.
That's the closest any of them came to show some open affection toward the other.
"I get that." I answer. And Sujin squeezes my hand.
"As long as our good looks allow us to have fun from time to time!" Connor adds with a wink and a playful grin.
"Yeah, you two shouldn't have any problem with that for a while…"
Jodie brings our plates over. And Sujin reaches for the first before saying in a loud over-the-top girlish voice: "Here, sugar-pops, you need to eat!"
She places the food before Murphy, and he throws her a frightened look before catching up: "Why, thank ye, honeybun, good thing I have ye ta take care of me."
Connor promptly mimics them: "And here for ye, pumpkin, wouldn't want ye to starve."
So, I gleefully follow suit: "What would I do without you, sweetie-darling?"
The waitress leaves us with a huge dreamy smile on her face and we burst in a fit of laughter.
Then, silence falls when we finally attack our food. We've all cleared at least half our plate before Connor asks, I guess still playing with the silly names:
"So, macushlas, what ye want to do this afternoon?"
I truly, sincerely don't want to be the killjoy, but I feel I have to wonder out loud: "Weren't we supposed to go to the junkyard with your friend Troy?"
"Right!" he suddenly remembers. "Sorry, I'll call him when we're done."
The quiet that follows resembles in nothing the previous one. It's now full of things unsaid, so, I feel the need to awkwardly joke: "Thanks, cutie-pie!"
"Ye're welcome baby doll."
So, when we're about finished, he gets up to make his call. Sujin and Murphy are debating best delivery food, since apparently neither of them can cook. I make my way to the bathroom.
And, on my way back, I spy our Jodie at the register, so I take the opportunity to go and take care of the note. Then, I get back to our table where Sujin is watching Murphy stuff his face with leftover bread with a mean twinkle in her eye.
As I sit, I can see her foot under the table, sneaking right up inside his leg. When she reaches his crotch, he jumps and chokes on his toast.
"Damn woman, will ye stop! I'm trying to eat!"
"Oh, but Muffin, we would make such beautiful babies!" she mocks.
"Not like that…" he quips back. "I'm going to need to teach ye a thing or two about the birds and the bees, lassie."
We both laugh stupidly while Connor finally comes back:
"Hey, have ye paid the bill?"
"You're welcome, butter-cake" I retort before noticing his frown.
"Why the fuck would ye do that for?" And it's the coldest tone he's ever used with any of us. I straighten up on my seat:
"Hum. I thought I'd thank you for helping with the car and letting us stay over, all that…"
"Ye thanked us plenty last night," he states.
"Well, I don't consider sex as a reward, Connor." He opens his mouth, but I'm aggravated enough to interrupt: "I just meant to say 'thank you'; sorry if I robbed you of your fragile masculinity…"
"Oh come on, Min!" Sujin deftly cuts in. "That's called chivalry, be thankful it's not dead." Then she turns: "And you, sweetheart! We're at the turn of a century, women make money now, grow up!"
"Aye, grow up, brother!" Now it's Murphy's turn to pompously chime in. "Let these independent ladies dote on us like they want. And if they don't use sex as a reward, I certainly will." He winks while standing to put his arm around me.
Perceptive enough to feel the slight tension still in the air, though, he takes advantage of it to guide me toward the door. Sujin grabs Connor's hand behind us and drags him too. When we pass the waitress, I wave her goodbye; however, her frown deepens as she stares at us until we're out.
Only when we're in the street do I realize that we've switched partners since we came in. So much for the lovely couples' perfect picture we manufactured in there.
"So, what did Troy say, by the way?" I ask.
But Connor's tone is still a little strained: "He's joining us there. Let's go."
I grit my teeth, but thankfully, Murphy's arm around me, with his hand hanging not-so-innocently above my breast, is starting to distract me.
I get why Connor is pissed. It's not just an old-fashioned macho tantrum. When he stared into my eyes, he saw it there: the little part of me that paid because I feel like they're living with practically nothing. I don't pity them; they seem happy enough. But Sujin and I have nice jobs, a big apartment with walls and everything, and we can go on vacation when we feel like it.
Despite all we have in common, we still don't belong to the same world. Sooner or later, it'd start to show. I guess that's why we shouldn't stay here long enough for it to become a problem. This was never meant to last anyway. Like all good things.
And my arm snuggles tight around Murphy's waist as we get down in the subway.
*I think 'macushlas' means 'my pulse' (in Irish), which is adorable.