Ch. 10

Sola sat at the vanity, casually running her fingertip along the rim of her glass, a sly smile on her face. "You're being awful particular all of a sudden. It's just a barbecue, you know."

Padmé poked her head out of the closet and gave an unamused laugh. "And you know, I told you twice now to get out because I don't need your commentary."

"Yes, but where's the fun in that, my little baby sister?" Sola said, swallowing down the last of her raspberry tea.

"You are forty, and I'm thirty-six. I am no longer your baby sister," Padmé said. She walked out dressed in high-waisted dark blue jean shorts and a flowing light pink tank top, giving herself a once-over in the floor-length mirror.

"You will always be my baby sister, and one ripe for teasing when she freaks out over what to wear to her own backyard cookout because her neighbor is going to be there. What is going on with the two of you anyway?" Sola spun around in the chair, giving Padmé a thumbs up in the mirror as she evaluated herself.

Padmé shook her head and marched back into the closet, choosing to ignore the loud sigh Sola let out. "Nothing, like I told you. You sound like mom. We're friends. Nothing more, nothing less. We went on a single hike, and that's all."

'That's all.' She could hardly take herself seriously, let alone try to convince someone else that what she was saying was the whole truth. How naïve of her. To think they could be friends. She had no way of knowing what he was thinking, but all she could think about was him. Especially as he had ramped up his antics regarding teasing, flirting, being around, in her way, in her space.

If she didn't know better, and her back didn't remind her every time she sat in an awkward position for too long, she'd have thought she traveled back in time and was in law school again. Sabé and Dormé called, one or the other, almost every day, if not both on the same day on a group call. For Sabé, after they'd vented about her clientele or the latest date with this unnamed woman she still wasn't ready to tell Padmé about, all questions were about Anakin. Most of all, wanting to know why she hadn't taken the hint after he said all he had in the driveway. For Dormé, when she wasn't begging Padmé to make a campaign decision, she wanted every detail about the 'super sexy soldier' across the street. Every little detail.

In the last week, he had provided material in abundance. He was bordering on torturous when she saw him mowing the lawn at 8 a.m. sharp because she threatened to file a noise complaint against him for anything earlier after the motorcycle incident. Then, she never knew if he'd be lurking around her house or yard at any given time of day. And he'd started returning to his daily dinners with her parents, and her by extension, forcing her to be extra kind in front of her mom, which he took full advantage of. For the sake of her sanity, she'd flagged it all as harmless. He was being who he always was now that she'd let her guard down and stopped, as he called it, spitting venom at him. The only thing he hadn't done was ask for or try to get even a moment of alone time with her, which is how she knew she was right. They were just friends. She was overthinking it and trying to overcomplicate things again instead of just letting them be.

Let it go, she thought to herself as she tied the strings at her neck to hold her bikini top in place and threw an oversized, sleeveless Def Leppard shirt on.

"Well, that's not what mom said, not according to how he looks at you," Sola said, raising an eyebrow at her outfit change. "You changed out of that for a giant black t-shirt that swallows you whole? Hiding much?"

"There wasn't room to wear my bathing suit under the other, in case I don't feel like changing," Padmé said matter-of-factly as she snatched the empty glass off the vanity and away from Sola. "And I don't care what mom thinks, all she does is remind me how handsome he is, how accomplished he's become, or my favorite, how awful my taste in men has been in the last 5 years. Honestly, he should pay her commission or something with how hard she's trying to sell him to me."

Sola pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. "But she doesn't need to be doing all of that because you already feel something. Or it wouldn't even bother you."

"I'm leaving, Sola." Padmé walked out of the room, shutting off the light as her sister started laughing, her footsteps quickly following. "You're just as delusional as your mother."

"Then you must be just as delusional as our mom and I, too, or maybe more so when you add in the denial," Sola said, running after her down the stairs. "Do you truly not see it? Or are you just afraid to admit it?" She grabbed the back of Padmé's shirt, stopping her in her tracks.

Padmé spun around, gripping the glass cup tight in her hand. "Sola. We are friends, okay? We talked about this, me and Anakin, and now me and you. Can't we all be on the same page for once? Is that too much to ask?" When her sister withdrew her hand holding her palm up in defeat, she twirled back around, continuing through the house with Sola questioning her all the way to the kitchen.

"Yeah, did you though? Talk about this? Because come on."

"Sola's only concerned about you, as am I," Jobal said, sliding between her daughters and giving Padmé a grin while she took the dirty dishes to the sink.

"Both of you are impossible. My job is important, and it doesn't make room for summer romances. I told Anakin I can't make any sort of promise to him, I have nothing to give, and we have too much baggage. Therefore, friends. See? Happy now?"

There was an audible 'Hmph' that came from both her mom and sister as she lifted both her shoulders, hands out, palms up in a dramatic shrug.

Looking out of the kitchen window, she saw Anakin with Ruwee standing side by side. They were loading fresh wooden pellets into the smoker as her dad adjusted the settings for the pork shoulder he'd been fixing for hours by now, with hours to go. She watched Anakin flipping through the manual, pointing out things as he leaned on her dad's shoulder. Undoubtedly, he had no clue what he was doing cooking. That much she was almost sure of, especially with the puzzled expression on his face, the crease in his brow. But his willingness to figure it out alongside her dad, who also had little clue… How exactly was it that he look at her? Was it in the intense way she couldn't handle without squirming, or were they subtle little — You're doing it again. She smacked her palm against the center of her forehead and shook her head. This was no time to get carried away.

Sola stifled a chuckle behind her, leaning over to whisper something in their mom's ear that caused Jobal to do the same. Padmé folded her arms across her chest and leaned back against the white marble countertop in front of the sink. "What now?"

"Nothing dear, just admiring how sweetly you look at your friends," Jobal said, causing her sister to lose her composure as Padmé rolled her eyes so hard they could've gotten stuck. This was going to be such a long day.

Padmé walked cautiously on the deck around the pool, hesitant to offer it up to anyone who wanted to join her. Only because she was certain someone would, and it wouldn't only be Ryoo or Pooja. Sola had run home to get them from Darred before he left town to meet a client for the new architectural build they had contracted him for. Now the girls were busy digging in the garage for their favorite pool toys with their grandma. She dropped her foot to skim over the surface of the water, the coolness of it contrasting the near 100º heat index sending goosebumps across her skin.

"Auntie catch!" Pooja yelled as she flung a soft frisbee her way. Padmé caught the toy between her hands, coming close to slipping off the rim of the pool as she did. Anakin's muffled chuckle came from the doorway as he came outside just in time to see her almost fumble herself into the water.

"What's so funny, Anakin?" She said, lowering her sunglasses on her nose to look at him.

"Just admiring your grace, senator."

Her lips formed a firm line as she quirked an eyebrow. "Were you now?"

He sauntered over, just beyond the end of the pool, shoving his hands in the pockets of his shorts. "Of course, you're practically a ballerina. Maintaining perfect balance like that, it's masterful. I think you missed your calling."

She stared at him and he returned the expression as she moved around the pool toward him. He broke, bursting out laughing just as she raised a finger to point at him.

"You're making fun of me!"

He held his hands out as she stormed up to him and smacked him with the soft frisbee she held in her hand.

"No, no! Never! I couldn't possibly be," he said between laughs as he grabbed at her wrists to stop the attack, walking her backwards as he did.

"Girls, help. Quick, help me!" Padmé cried, recruiting her nieces for her efforts. Anakin's eyes widened as the running footsteps came closer. Pooja and Ryoo joined in, pelting Anakin with other pool toys as they came around the deck until the four of them were all laughing and Anakin had fallen to his knees, both children climbing onto his back to hold him down.

After a handful of further whacks from a pool noodle, courtesy of Padmé, he crashed. "Okay, okay! I surrender, I give up. Please have mercy," he said, out of breath. Sola yelled for Pooja and Ryoo to get off of him so they did, standing to the side, still giggling. He stayed on all fours, his chest rising and falling heavily with an occasional laugh, still slipping out.

Padmé knelt down in front of him, tilting his chin up toward her. He flashed his stupid, perfect, beautiful smile at her, making her blush, but she maintained her serious expression. "You shouldn't mess with Naberrie women." As if a switch flipped, he lunged forward, scooping her up while he jumped to his feet and making her scream as he swung her around toward the pool. "Anakin Skywalker, you put me down!"

"Oh, you want me to put you down?"

"Right now!"

"Right now?"

"Yes!"

"Well, all right then!" He said, turning one last time.

Padmé realized her mistake just a moment too late when he let go and sent her falling into the deep end. There was nothing graceful about her limbs flailing in her failed effort to grab hold of air before crashing through the water's surface. Her hair was in disarray, soaking wet against her head, when she bobbed back to the surface. Dipping back underwater, Padme reappeared with her hair thrown back and sunglasses in hand. She coughed, wiping her face and rubbing her eyes before she put her glasses back on and grabbed the edge.

"I've never hated someone more than I do you right now," she said, splashing water at his feet.

He jumped back, looking down at her with a smirk on his face. "You're a terrible liar. But here, let me help you up," he said, leaning down to offer his hand.

Like she was going to let him help her do anything. "How courteous." Padmé reached up, grabbing his arm with both of hers. She kicked her foot off the side of the pool and pulled as hard as she could, pulling him headfirst into the water with her, his own yelp silenced under the water. She held her stomach, laughing hard as he came up, spitting water from his mouth and shaking his short wet curls from his forehead.

"I really should've seen that coming," Anakin said, splashing water at her face before she returned the favor.

"You never were very quick on your toes," she teased, swimming as fast as she could away from him toward the ladder.

"Only with you!" He reached out, grabbing her foot. "Aha, I got you." He pulled her quickly through the water, shifting his hands as she came closer. She yelped as he grabbed her waist, pressing her into his chest.

Distantly, Pooja and Ryoo were laughing, the water was splashing, and her parents were saying something about food. In front of her, though, he murmured, "I will never let you go" before wrapping his arms around her and twirling around. A smile stretched across her face, matching his as they floated back into the deeper end near the diving board. She gently ran her fingers through his now-soaked hair, toying with the ends of the curls as they flipped up in every direction. She wrapped her other arm around his neck to stay upright and he reached up, sliding his hand into hers. Their faces were so close together and there was a moment of pause, his smile faltering as she brushed the back of her hand against his cheek.

Sola coughed, breaking both of their attention as they glanced over, letting go of one another. "Mom said to remind you that there are no street clothes allowed in the pool. But feel free to come back and join her again," she said with a smug grin, eyeing Padmé until she looked the other way.

"Right, I'm so sorry," Anakin said, pulling himself up and out of the water. "I'll be right back, everyone." Before she could get a word in, his squeaking shoes were fading away as the gate lock clicked behind him.

"Don't even start," Padmé said, climbing up the ladder. She pointed at Sola until her sister shut her mouth again.

"I didn't say a word now, did I? And you should be proud of that fact." Sola pulled her oversized cover-up off and hung it on the back of the lounge chair. She sat down, pulling tanning lotion from her bag and covering herself from head to toe.

"I stopped you before you could. Don't even try to lie," Padmé said, helping Sola drag the chair into the sun. She stripped out of her sopping wet t-shirt and jean shorts, hooking them over the post of the deck, and dug through her sister's bag for the sunscreen.

"I never lie, Padmé," she said. "Pooja and Ryoo, get over here for sunscreen and floats."

"Is Uncle Ani coming back?" Ryoo said, looking up at Padmé. Sola wheezed out a laugh at the innocent question that made Padmé want to toss herself over the fence into the grass below.

Padmé blew up the other set of floaties for Pooja, slipping them onto her arms, while handing a small donut-shaped one to her older niece, avoiding the question all together.

"Please, please, can he?" Pooja said, tapping her hand.

Sola's grin grew wider by the minute as she lathered her daughters both in sunscreen. "Yeah, little sister, can Uncle Ani come back over?"

"His name is Anakin, and he is—"

"Anakin is what?" He asked, coming up behind her and draping his arms over her.

"Is on his way back right now. See? And here you are," Padmé said curtly, slipping out from under his arms.

Anakin's lip twitched as she looked him up and down. He stepped back to pull his shirt off, throwing it on the ground and exposing his sculpted upper body, well-defined abs, and the sharp v-cut leading to his short swim trunks. The bright blue shorts were covered in small pink birds wearing sunglasses in what looked to be pool floats, but she wasn't getting closer to be sure. The absurdity of them was the perfect distraction to keep her attention off the rest of him, because rather than staring, it drew a small laugh from her.

"And…" She covered her mouth with her palm. "Is wearing swim trunks with flamingos on them? What are those?"

He twisted around before looking back at her. "Don't you like them? Because you're staring awful hard if you don't…" This time, she swore she heard her mom laugh from fifty feet away and she was tired of all of them.

"Whatever Anakin, they're fine." She punched his arm on her way past before slipping back down the stairs in the water. Thank all the Gods she was getting away and into the pool because she felt a little… warm. And of course, Sola noticed, glancing between Anakin and Padmé, winking before she laid back in her chair and rested her arms behind her head.

One by one, Anakin tossed Pooja and Ryoo into the water, the girls screaming and laughing, drifting back to the shallow end as he threw their toys in afterwards. He pointed at Padmé relaxing in the corner, her legs floating toward the surface. She shook her head at him. "Don't you dare!"

"Oh, you know I am." He shook his short blonde curls loose before taking a running jump, tucking his knees into his chest as he crashed into the pool, causing giant waves and splashing everyone—including Sola, who sprung to her feet, cursing him and throwing a soft pool toy at his head. Both of her nieces squealed with joy as he came up, tossing them into the air again and swinging them around to make more waves.

Padmé couldn't help but watch, thankful for her own sunglasses, as he played with the kids until they'd had enough. He dove after toys they threw, volleyed a beach ball with them, and pretended to not be able to grab the Frisbee every time it whirled past him. He didn't have to spend time with them at all or do any of it, but he was. And it was one of the sweetest things she'd ever seen. He was a good man, just like her mother had said–repeatedly–and she suddenly found herself thinking about their calling him 'Uncle Ani.' Then her mind focused on the same question Sabé had asked: what the hell was she waiting for? She quickly brushed that thought back aside. She's the one that suggested they start over in the first place and here she was, sabotaging the entire plan.

From across the water, it felt like he was staring into her soul, even through the reflective lenses covering her eyes. He eyed her carefully, a devilish smile crossing his face. Dipping down, he swam toward her low in the water like a shark. "Oh, Paaaaaadmé," he called.

"You stay away from me!" She grinned despite herself at his ridiculous movements, pretending to get away each time he swam in a different direction.

He drifted closer until his arms caged her in, pressing her back against the wall, his nose almost brushing against hers. "I can't," he said in a low whisper.

Something about his words and the sincerity in his eyes made her feel a little dizzy, light-headed. The warm sun shining down on them, surrounded by her family, wrapped in his arms. She almost felt intoxicated, like she wasn't fully in charge of her own movements when she curled her arms around his neck. His chest pressed against hers when she tugged gently on his hair, her knee brushing against his hip. Just as she opened her mouth to say something—

Jobal's hands clapped together. "Okay, everyone out of the pool! Let's eat!"

After dinner, Sola had taken both girls home a bit early, both exhausted from the time in the sun and the meal. Just her, Anakin, and her parents remained, sitting for a while after eating, chatting about nothing in particular. Under the table, Anakin brushed his foot against hers or nudged her leg with his knee sporadically. She refused to return the gesture, which seemed to only amuse him further. Her mom cleared the table as the sun begun to set.

Jobal asked no one in particular to bring the last few bowls of food in the house to put away and she and Anakin both reached for the fruit salad at the exact same moment, trapping her hand under his much larger one. The contact with him caught her off guard, sending a warm tingle through her entire body, and that was the feeling she'd been avoiding. She made to yank her hand back when he grabbed it and stared at her a moment before letting her go, taking the bowl and going into the house. Damn it, Anakin.

Padmé decided she wouldn't be caught in the middle of any conversation in the confined space inside with her parents or Anakin. So, she opted to stay out on the deck. She sat on the railing, swinging her feet unconsciously as she looked up at the stars. What was she going to do? About him, about any of this.

The door creaked open behind her, causing her to nearly jump out of her skin while she had been uselessly daydreaming. Whipping her head around, she was relieved to see it was just her mom, her hands clasped together tightly.

"Thought you seemed to want some alone time, but there's a creme pie in the fridge if you're wanting me to bring you a piece."

"Great, thank you. I should've come in sooner I guess. I've just been caught up in my own head and didn't want to bring anyone else into it."

Jobal nodded, rocking back and forth on her toes. "Wouldn't have anything to do with what a good time it seemed like you were having today, would it?"

Padmé choked out something between a laugh and a sob before she buried her face in her hands.

Her mom rushed over, wrapping her arms around and hugging her tight. "Oh, Padmé. Come on now, what is it?"

Padmé pushed away, scooting over and smoothing her shirt back out. "It's fine. I don't know what that was, I'm sorry." She sat back, shaking her head and taking a deep breath. "Here, let's go inside, this is really—"

Jobal set a firm hand on her leg to stop her. "Dear…"

"No. I'm fine, really." She brushed her mom's hand off and slid off the railing. "Everything's perfectly fine, and what isn't is nothing I can't figure out or haven't before. On my own. I can handle it."

"I understand that. But you don't have to. What's going on? What are you so deathly afraid of?" Jobal beat her to the door, holding it shut as Padmé gripped the handle tightly. "Of your feelings or the implications of them? What is it?"

"Neither. I don't know, mom. Maybe both," she said. "I don't want to think about it honestly, if I follow my... feelings... they lead me somewhere I'll never be able to come back from, I don't know if I'm ready to do that yet."

"You don't know that, you're barricading yourself."

"I have to!" She sighed, hurrying off the deck and through the gate. "I can't do this, okay? I need... time."

Jobal ran a hand through her hair before tilting her head down. "Of course. I'll set you aside a slice, your father and I will be in the den if you feel like talking later. Be safe."

Padmé swallowed hard as her mom slipped back in the house and she walked down the drive. Why couldn't she ever let things be? If she could just turn off whatever part of her brain controlled that, everything would be so much easier. She pulled her phone out of her pocket, scrambling to find her AirPods so she could put a podcast on and walk until her legs gave out or she solved the world's problems, whichever came first. When she tapped the screen, dozens of emails, calls, and texts waited for her instead. Well, at least there wasn't any room in her brain to think about Anakin anymore. She put one earbud in her ear and started down the street. "Siri, call Dormé." There was one headline in her Apple News report she couldn't ignore, as much as she wished she hadn't read it at all. And her chief-of-staff was probably throwing things, screaming into a pillow, or on the third glass of wine by now because of it.

Breaking News: New Jersey Senator Bail Organa has officially announced his candidacy for President this evening via social media, more to come…