What If

Chapter 17

Kiara was welcomed into Jeffrey's shed with the gentle sound of piano accompanying the soothing voices of English legends as Let it Be played through the radio. Kiara blinked; Jeffrey didn't often have music playing- usually, he worked in solitary silence. His radio acted as an alarm to wake him, but it didn't play for long before he'd turn it off again. The song livened up with guitars as Jeffrey emerged from behind his easel, greeting his sister with a smile. "Hey Kiara."

"The Beatles huh?"

"The church choir was singing it as we left," Jeffrey explained. "Besides, they're very wise if you listen closely to what they're saying."

"Mmm?"

Kiara headed to the couch across the room and sat down, Jeffrey following her lead. A hush fell between them as the song played on; when it ended, the room fell completely silent.

Kiara's eyebrows wriggled along with her thoughts. "So what is it that you need to 'let be'?"

"The fear," said Jeffrey, forcing himself to hold her gaze, "of judgement."

"Haters will hate, no matter what you do."

"I've just got to let it be," said Jeffrey. "You know what? I think that will be my new motto; let it be."

Jeffrey stood up. "You know what can't just be 'let be' though?" he asked, his eyes not straying from his sister's gaze. "The art exhibition; I think entries are due in pretty soon, but there's a little paperwork... Would you mind giving me a hand? My writing's never been the neatest in the world..."

A smile stretched across Kiara's lips in answer as she rose from her seat with a groan of effort- the baby in her belly was big now, and it wasn't as easy to move around as it once had been.

Jeffrey lifted his hands to stop her when she was halfway up. "Don't worry about moving," he said. "You stay there, I'll bring it all over to you."

Lowering herself back down into the plush couch cushions, Kiara let out the breath she'd been holding, grateful.

Jeffrey sprinted the few steps across the room to his messy workbench, littered with tools, and a stack of mismatched papers at one end. "Kassim bought it by the meeting today," he said, the form in question held between two fingers as he strode back to his sister.

Kiara glanced at the forms as he handed them over before looking up at her brother. She opened her mouth, about to speak, when his eyes widened.

"Pen!" he said, slapping his palm to his forehead as he spun on his heel, racing back over to the workbench to retrieve the item in question.

Kiara chuckled as her brother finally lowered himself onto the lounge beside her. "What?" he panted.

"You." She shifted the stack of papers on her lap and readjusted herself on the lounge so she was facing him more directly. "You get so fired up when it's something you're passionate about." She reached out, her fingers stretching to run along his face; she felt the prickle of his stubble and smiled before taking her hand away again. "I love that about you."

Looking down, Kiara picked up the papers and straightened them before glancing back up at her brother. "Right, now, this form..." She started scribbling the basic answers; his name, his age, but stopped at the section asking for information on his artwork. "Which one are you entering?" Her eyes traced a path round his shed.

"That one." Jeffrey pointed to the canvas on his easel.

His sister raised an eyebrow. "I don't have x-ray vision Jeffrey," she said. "You're going to have to give me more than that."