Twist of Fate

by Sheri L. Brown

  “I told Aunt Regina today that I wasn’t planning on being Catholic,” Claire told Skylar as they watched the game.

  “Wow,” Skylar said, “how’d she take it?”

  “She was surprisingly supportive… if she were disappointed she didn’t let it show.”

  “I’m happy for you, Claire,” Skylar said as she turned toward her sister and smiled, “I know it was a big deal when you were younger to follow in Zia’s footsteps, but I think you need to get out and explore. The world is a big place….”

  “She told me Dad’s side of the family were witches.”

  Skylar laughed, “Seriously? Witches, huh?”

  Silence fell between them as they turned their attention toward the game. Claire knew by Skylar’s reaction that there was more to the story than what she was letting on. She made a mental note to talk about it later that night.

  “Hey, Claire, happy birthday,” Ryan said as he hustled to the edge of the court after scoring the game-winning point.

  “Thanks, Ryan, I’m glad you could come to my party,” Claire smiled, feeling her face turn red.

  “Do you mind if I join you?”

  Claire’s heart began to beat a little faster.

  “Hey, Ryan,” Skylar said, cool as a cucumber, “I was just getting up, why don’t you take my spot on the blanket next to Claire… oh, and I’ll take your racquet.”

  Skylar hopped up, fixed her ponytail and grabbed Ryan’s racquet. She smiled at them both and winked at her sister.

  “Now, don’t you two do anything I wouldn’t do.”

  “Well, that leaves us wide open, Skye,” Claire joked.

  “So,” Ryan asked with a smile, “do you have any big plans for summer?”

  “No, not really, I’m just wanting to finish out the school year, you know, waiting to see where I get accepted into school next year. What are you doing?”

  “I got early admissions into a couple of places mainly because of my baseball playing… you know, they recruit heavily for that, but I haven’t made any decisions yet.”

  “Oh, that’s cool, I didn’t even know you played baseball.”

  “Well,” Ryan said, “I’m not surprised, I don’t talk about it until I’m into the season and pre-season just started a couple of weeks ago….”

  Ryan jokingly patted Claire on her leg as a small gesture of forgiveness, “So, don’t feel bad about not knowing, I love to play and try to not make a big deal of it. Do you play sports?”

  Claire ignored his question, more intrigued by Ryan getting accepted into school and playing baseball.

  “What position do you play?” Claire asked.

  “I’m a pitcher, but I sometimes play first base. I’d really like it if you would come to one of my games sometime.”

  “That sounds like fun… I’d like to,” Claire responded, trying to be relaxed as she could.

  “Great, I’ll give you a copy of our schedule on Monday at school and you can see what works for you.”

  “So, where did you get accepted for early admissions?” Claire asked.

  “Vanderbilt and South Carolina, so far.”

  Claire jumped up, “Oh my God, that’s awesome! Vanderbilt is my first choice… maybe we’ll end up there together!”

  The expression on Ryan’s face shifted slightly, but Claire didn’t notice.

  “Skylar! Ryan might be going to Vanderbilt! For baseball!”

  Claire dropped back on the blanket and looked at Ryan who was now smiling. He couldn’t help thinking she was adorable, so full of energy and there was something else he couldn’t quite put his finger on… but he liked it. Baseball and his studies came first, girls second. He didn’t have to the heart to tell her, but he decided he didn’t have to. Baseball season precluded him from dating and he wasn’t going to think past the season into the summer. Whatever was going to happen with Claire, he decided, he’d ride the wave.

  “So, Claire, when do you think you’ll hear something?” Ryan asked.

  “I’m hoping any day now.”

  “Do you have an idea of your major?”

  “Um, well, I like liberal arts… anthropology, language, maybe writing, oh, and I speak Italian.”

  “Hey, that’s really cool, I’ve never met anyone who spoke Italian.”

  “Yeah, well, my Great-Aunt, my mom’s Aunt Regina, she’s Italian and I’ve always had this connection with her and wanted to learn the language. It came easy for me, so I’m thinking I want to study language and culture, maybe be a translator or something someday. I don’t know….”

  Ryan smiled at Claire. He couldn’t help but notice her dark blonde hair with a little strawberry blonde woven through. She had small freckles on her cheeks, green eyes and the most amazing smile he had ever seen. Her hair was pulled back and her lips shined with just a hint of color. He usually dated girls who were a little more flashy, with make-up and heels and here was Claire, barefoot with a pink glow on her skin, looking amazing. Baseball was the love of his life, but he couldn’t help but take notice of Claire’s natural beauty.

  “I think that’s awesome, Claire, it’s so interesting to know what you want for yourself,” Ryan said.

  “Really?” Claire replied, “I feel like I sound so indecisive.”

  “No, not at all. Can I ask you something personal, Claire?”

  Claire paused and pursed her lips, “Ah, sure….”

  “Where did you get those green eyes? I’ve never seen anything like it before.”

  Claire couldn’t help but giggle, she thought Ryan was going to ask her something about her bra size or if she was ever with a boy… that was personal. Eye color… not so much.

  “I don’t know,” She answered, still giggling.

  “Is that a stupid question?” Ryan asked.

  “No, not at all,” Claire felt herself relax completely as she talked, “I just thought you were going to ask me something really personal. Let’s see, my Dad’s side of the family is Scottish and Irish and my Mom’s side of the family is Italian and Jewish, so I don’t know, both sides of the family have green eyes.”

  “Well, they’re really cool, I mean, really pretty, that’s all.”

  “Thank you, Ryan, you’re really sweet.”

  “Claire! Bring everybody up to the deck for your birthday cake! You have a lot of candles to blow out this year!” Sarah shouted from the back door.

  Ryan got up first and held his hand out to Claire to pull her off the ground. The minute their hands touched they both felt something and could read it on each other’s faces. Time stood still. There was chemistry between them and each took note, looking onto each other’s eyes for a few seconds. Ryan was smitten for the first time in his life and Claire was sure she knew Ryan before… from a past life.

  “…Happy, birthdaaaay to you….” Everyone sang.

  “Now make a wish!” Sarah exclaimed.

  Claire thought about it for a moment and as she blew out the candles, she wished she’d be going to Vanderbilt with Ryan in the fall.

  The days were getting longer, but darkness came just after seven o’clock. Safire and Sadie helped Sarah with the clean-up, happily wishing Claire a chore-free end to her birthday party. Claire said goodbye to each of her guests and thanked them for coming. Aunt Regina was one of the last to leave and offered Claire a big hug before she headed out the door to her car.

  “You’ll be alright driving in the dark, Zia?”

  “Oh, I’ll be fine, Mia Cara, you go out and have a good time with your friends.”

  Claire kissed Regina on each cheek and hugged her Aunt tightly before heading upstairs to change.

  “Hey, Mom,” Claire bounded into the kitchen in a new dress Sarah bought her last week, “can Skylar and I go out with some friends for a while?”

  “Where are you going and who are you going with?” Sarah asked.

  “Um, same old crowd. We’re going to the bowling alley, I guess. Can I take your car?”

  “Be safe and yes. Be back b
y midnight, okay? No texting and driving… and no drinking.”

  Claire gave her mother a look. She didn’t hang out with kids who drank, unless there was a big party like graduation, and was always really careful to never drive and text.

  “Mom….”

  “I know, I know, you’ll be good, but I just had to say something.”

  Claire and Skylar met their friends, picked their teams and put on their bowling shoes. Just as Claire got up to get her ball she felt a pair of strong hands grab her around her waist from behind.

  “Good luck, birthday girl, sorry I’m late,” Ryan whispered in her ear.

  Claire recognized his voice immediately and stood still, relishing in the moment his hands stayed on her body. She could feel chills rising up through her center and let out a quiet moan, hoping only he had heard it. She leaned back into his body and decided not to move.

  “All right, birthday girl, it’s time to bowl, save the PDA for later,” Skylar shouted.

  “Get a hotel room, you two!” Someone else chimed in.

  Ryan stepped back and turned toward the crowd, “Whose team am I on?”

  Skylar looked at her sister and realized she had never seen her so happy. Sure, Claire had gone on dates with boys before, but wasn’t ever interested in them enough to date long-term. Ryan had her number.

  “Hey, Claire, do you want to take a walk outside?” Ryan asked sheepishly as another game was starting without them.

  “Sure. Everyone is so into the game they won’t even notice we’re gone.”

  Ryan grabbed Claire by the hand and led her outside, making sure he opened the door for her on the way out. She felt his hand cradle the small of her back as he escorted her into the cool night.

  “So,” Ryan spoke as they headed toward his truck, “you never did answer me about playing sports….”

  Claire hopped in the truck and waited to answer after Ryan got behind the wheel.

  “I’m not really a jock, actually, I’m more of a bookworm.”

  “Wow, I never dated a girl who didn’t play sports.”

  Claire was mildly irritated, but decided she wouldn’t let it show. Who was this guy, anyway, presuming I’d date him in the first place?

  “Well,” Claire said as she straightened her posture, “I don’t make it a habit to date jocks, so I guess we’re even….”

  Ryan put his hand through his hair and turned to look at Claire. He had the bluest eyes she’d ever seen and despite the momentary awkwardness between them, she could see right through him. He looked nervous and distinctively less arrogant than the jocks she knew.

  She interrupted him as he started to speak, “Well, who says I’d want to date you anyway? I mean, it’s great you’re a good enough baseball player to go to a great college, but is being a jock what you think it’s all about? There’s a whole world out there Ryan, beyond sports, that is.”

  “Oh my God, Claire,” Ryan said as he put his hand on her thigh, “I didn’t mean it like that, really. I know it sounds stupid, but girls who also play sports are usually impressed with me being good at baseball. You’re just different, that’s all.”

  “I am different. Who cares if you’re a fancy-shmancy jock if you’re not a nice guy?”

  She looked at his big, strong hand on her thigh and didn’t budge. She felt butterflies in her stomach. She couldn’t decide if she wanted to kiss him or get out of his truck and never see him again.

  Claire wasn’t sure where her sense of nerviness was coming from, she was usually a little more reserved in how she spoke to people. But the nerve of this guy making her feel less-than for not liking sports was too much. It was though Skylar was channeling through her in the moment. She could feel the adrenaline flowing through her veins and she liked the fact that she let Ryan know he was not going to indoctrinate her into his girlie fan club.

  “Hey, Claire, I think you’re really pretty and really cool,” Ryan said apologetically, “I’ve never met anyone like you before. You seem so sure of yourself… of who you are and what you want. I didn’t mean to make you think I… I don’t know. I’m sorry, the way my words came out sounded terrible. ”

  Claire swallowed hard. Her small-town life passed before her eyes. She never thought of herself as being particularly sure of anything. She was just doing what everybody else was doing, even though in her hearts of hearts she knew she was different. She decided to forgive him, but not without warning.

  “Hey, Ryan,” Claire said as she took a deep breath to compose herself before she deliberately lightened the mood, “I dance, well, mostly I Zumba, does that count as me being a jock? And I like to mountain bike….”

  Claire looked at him and smiled.

  “You’re adorable, Claire, has anyone ever told you that before?”

  “Well, yes, once or twice, but it’s still nice to hear.”

  “Can I kiss you?”

  “As long as you understand I am not, nor will I ever be, part of the Ryan White fan club.”

  “I understand, Claire Sinclair.”

  Claire had never met a boy who was so respectful and sweet. She was sure his passing insult was a combination of awkwardness and not seeing things outside the box. There was no way she could turn him down. Her little heart chakra lit up as he took her face in his hand and pressed his lips on hers. Her intuition told her this was just the beginning of something grand.

  Chapter Four

  Claire and Skylar busted through the door laughing at exactly midnight. The lights were out and it seemed their parents had decided to not wait up for them. They ran into the kitchen, grabbed some chips and fresh water bottles and headed up to their room. They had shared a bedroom their entire lives and had grown accustomed to their collective quarters. At one point, Earl remodeled the basement and included another bedroom and bath for Claire, but she chose to stay with Skylar insisting on making the new bedroom into a man-cave for Earl. It went over big with both Earl and Sarah and they often retreated into the space calling it their ‘kid-free’ zone.

  They sat on their respective beds and opened the bag of chips.

  “So, Clairebear, what’s happening with Ryan? I noticed you ducked out from a couple of games tonight at the same time he did….”

  Claire sighed a heavy, but satisfied sigh, “We went out to his truck to talk. I don’t think I’ve ever felt this way before, Skye, I feel like I’ve always known him, the way I’ve always known you or Zia. It’s amazing.”

  “So, you two just talked tonight?”

  “Yeah, I mean, we kissed, too.”

  Skylar smiled and said, “Oh, yeah… you kissed, too? Like it’s an ‘oh, by the way we kissed, too’ kind of thing? You don’t make out with just anyone. It’s a really big deal.”

  Claire smiled, “It is a really big deal. We really made out and he’s an AMAZING kisser. He touched my cheeks and then moved his big, strong hands down to the back of my neck while he kissed me, kind of like in the movies, but not like he’s a player. It was so real, he looked into my eyes and I feel like he feels the same way about me.”

  “That’s so romantic, Claire, I feel a little jelly.”

  “Listen, Skylar, you’re so beautiful and amazing in so many ways, I know someday you’ll find the right guy.”

  “Or girl….”

  Claire laughed, “Yeah, or the right girl!”

  Claire heard the silence fall around her and waited for Skylar to speak. If her sister were gay, of all the people in the world, she’d have no problem admitting it to herself or coming out to anyone for that matter. It’s just who she was—completely unabashed about being strong and sure of herself.

  “Claire, I’m serious,” Skylar whispered.

  “Why are you whispering?”

  “I… I don’t know. I just blurted that out, my timing is terrible. I don’t want to steal your thunder and your great birthday night with Ryan.”

  “Steal my thunder? I can’t believe we have been sharing a room our whole lives and I don’t find out t
ill the night of my eighteenth birthday that you think you might be gay? It’s a big deal, not that you’re gay, but that you didn’t tell me.”

  “Hey,” Skylar got up out of bed, “I’m going to grab a beer out of the fridge, do you want one?”

  Claire hesitated, reacting only to Skylar’s certitude in ‘grabbing a beer’ from their Dad, as though she did it every day.

  “I do, I think a beer sounds good, actually.”

  Skylar disappeared and came back a few minutes later. She twisted off the bottle caps and set them down on the bed stand before handing a bottle to Claire. They held up their bottles and toasted each other.

  Claire said cheerfully, “Happy birthday, to my best friend and soul mate.”

  They each took a swig and put their bottles down.

  “Look, Claire, I want you to know that I kind of always knew I was gay… or at least different… but, I don’t know, the more I see you react over boys, the more I realize I’m not that.”

  Claire took another sip of her beer and looked her sister in the eyes, “You know I love you no matter what. Besides, being a lesbian is pretty hip these days. If anyone was going to be gay, it might as well be you… the trendsetter for open-mindedness that you are.”

  Skylar smiled, “I love how this is no big deal to you.”

  “I don’t think it’ll be a big deal for Mom and Dad, either. It’s a part of who you are, what’s not to love and embrace?”

  “Well, don’t say anything, Claire, I’m still trying to figure things out.”