Apex

03 | birds of a feather

I met my sister's scrutinizing gaze evenly. "You spend five hours at the dance studio every day. I wonder if you call yourself passionate or obsessive?"

"It's a fine line, and I've always walked it well," Rowena retorted, straightening her shoulders. My sister stood at an impressive height of 5'9", and had a disciplined yet graceful air about her acquired from years of ballet. Almost everyone who met the two of us for the first time assumed that she was the older sister despite being a full two years younger.

"Of course, you have," I said as I went to stand in front of the full-length mirror. In the spotless glass, I adjusted the black lace of my bralette, smoothing its edges over the side of my ribcage. Years ago, before I received any professional help, my parents had removed the mirror from my room. 

I caught Rowena rolling her eyes in the reflection.

"Do you have plans tonight?"

I adjusted my belt, pushing the metal pin into the last punch hole and threading the lengthy excess through the loops on my faded Levi jeans. "I'm meeting Maud at the marina."

"It's about time," Rowena remarked. She crossed the room to sit cross-legged on my white duvet and tossed a wave of blonde hair over her shoulder. "You can't avoid people forever."

"I wasn't planning on it," I grumbled, shooting her a reproachful look as I turned around.

One of the many things that I loved about Rowena was that she never treated me like I was broken. She'd stood by my side through my darkest days, and wasn't afraid to call me out on my bullshit. Admittedly, her bluntness sometimes felt like a slap in the face.

"So," Rowena said, drawing out the word as she scrolled through her Instagram feed. "Does this mean you're on Maud's side?"

"I'm not on anyone's side," I stated plainly. Before returning to Friday Island for the summer, I'd decided that my top priority was to steer clear of any and all drama. But unfortunately, there were just too many variables for that to be realistic, and adapting to my environment was the only viable option.

Extending an olive branch to Maud via text had been in my best interest, and keeping up appearances should keep the gossip to a minimum. A perceived rift between us would only attract unwanted attention, and once there was blood in the water, there was no keeping the sharks away.

"Maud drew a line in the sand back in January, and it's still there," Rowena argued, and I barely resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I already detested how petty this conversation was. "You left before your so-called wolf pack tore itself apart, but you're not off the hook. Sydney Atwood can get away with being Switzerland, but are you really going to leave Dakota to fend for himself?"

It didn't take a genius to figure out that Rowena wasn't a fan of Maud Hamilton. I always assumed it was due to an innocent crush she had on Syd, but now I wasn't so sure. If I had to guess now, I would say my little sister was trying to protect me from anyone and anything she perceieved to be a threat to my recovery. Regardless, this was the kind of harmless yet draining drama that threatened to give me a migraine. Getting involved wasn't worth it.

"He's not fending for himself, Rowena," I insisted as I pulled on a navy jumper. I didn't want to shiver like Sphynx cat at the marina. "All of his new Hollywood friends are on the island, and let's not forget about his army of 2 million Instagram followers."

"Fine. What do I know, anyway?" Rowena questioned, her voice clad with sarcasm. She fell back onto the duvet, her blonde hair fanning out around her head like rays of sunlight. The evening light spilling through the windows gave her pale skin an added porcelain glow.