Letting out a deep breath, Nick finally relaxed as he sat 36,000 feet in the air. The past week had been stressful. Trinity added to the normal workload stress.
Somehow rumors got out about the incident with the girl. It was true she was only sixteen. Nick's knowledge didn't include the identity of the accused. Most of campus believed it was Kirk, a senior who had always been a jerk. The guy was handsome and knew it. Nick couldn't imagine why the narcissistic sonofabitch chose the young girl over a willing participant. Oddly, Trinity had fallen into the 'she must have been asking for it' camp.
Nick shut his eyes and didn't want to think about it. Aunt Liz had given him an extra hug to pass along when she dropped him off at the airport. He was almost late to her house because Trinity didn't want to let go of him. She was still pissed at him for not going south with her to party.
When he woke the plane was lowering as it approached Newark. He didn't have long before his flight to Portland. Once on the ground, he grabbed a hot pretzel while he waited. He had already texted his mother that he completed the first leg. She liked to know when he was safe. Trinity texted a picture of a huge drink. He wondered how she got served since she wasn't legal either.
His excitement built as they started boarding the flight to Portland. The plane was small but Nick had traveled in similar ones plenty of times before. Wide awake, he wished it was daylight as they flew up the coast. Once they landed it took forever to taxi and exit the plane. As he stepped outside, the cold air hit him first, but it didn't matter because across the street both Sophie and Abbie were waiting for him. He hugged his twin first before switching to his little sister.
When he pulled back, he took them both in. "Abs, you've grown. Look at you." How did his kid sister have breasts? Sophie smirked like she read his mind. "I expected Dad."
"Surprise!"
"It's great. I missed you. And home."
They piled in the car with Sophie behind the wheel. Talking animatedly Abbie caught him up on the life of a soon to be fourteen-year-old. As the car approached the causeway, Nick rolled down the window.
"It smells like low tide." Abbie pinched her nose.
"It smells like home. I've missed it."
They had hardly parked when a flash came running down the porch steps. Nick readily accepted his mother's embrace. "We've missed you."
"Me too." He didn't let go until he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned. "Hi Dad."
"Nicky." The two men hug quickly.
"Come on in. You must be cold." Megan led the way.
In the kitchen, with a plate of food in front of him, the whole family gathered around. He took a bite of his mother's chicken dish. It had always been one of his favorites.
"Thanks Mom."
"So Nick, my sister called to tell me about a girl."
Rolling his eyes, he shrugged. "She's nice, although she's mad at me."
"Why?" Abbie asked.
"Because I wanted to come home instead of going to Fort Lauderdale."
Sophie frowned. "You would hate it."
Megan nodded. "Lots of drinking."
"And wet tee shirt contests. Nicky, you would have been miserable."
"Dad! Stop teasing!"
"He had to come home for his birthday. Sophie can't celebrate alone."
"Abbie, I agree and that's what I told her. Plus, I missed you."
He looked from his parents to his twin. "What's going on with Rick?"
"He's selling The Landing," Sophie answered.
"I guess we need jobs."
Megan shook her head. "Not according to Jen. The new owner doesn't want to change a thing."
"Who's our new boss?"
Peter shook his head. "No one knows. Private investors. They're hiring a manager and Rick will do the training."
Nick smiled. "Soph, that's great."
Everyone looked at Sophie. "Nick, I have my internship. I wasn't planning to work with you."
He frowned. "Is Ivy?"
Sophie nodded. "She worked tonight."
At least it would be two of them. He felt better as he continued eating. Long after his plate was cleaned, Megan yawned.
Peter stood. "It's late. Abbie, you need to get ready for bed. Don't stay up too late."
Abbie complained up the stairs that she was old enough to stay up as late as she wanted. Nick laughed. "What happened to our baby sister?"
"She's almost in high school and her boobs are almost as big as mine."
"They must be Brenner genes. Aunt Liz and Lauren got them."
Sophie hit him. "You're a perv looking at boobs."
"Not looking. They hug me like grandma."
Sophie laughed. "I was teasing you. How are Trinity's?"
"Leave me alone. Aunt Liz gave me an earful." Sophie held her belly and laughed. "Seriously, what's Rick saying about the owner."
"Nothing. Kristi said it's the best kept secret around."
"Weird." Nick's frown was followed by a yawn. "I'm beat."
When Nick woke, it was almost noon. Peter teased, "I thought you came home to see us."
"I did, but I've been studying, and we had a fire alarm in the middle of Thursday night." Instead of standing outside, he had to go from room to room clearing each one. He found a few drunks sound asleep. Once he had to wake up a nude girl. It was awkward for both of them.
He had a text from Ben. "I'm going to get coffee."
"Enjoy!" Peter laughed.
"I will." He smiled. After crossing the street, he walked into the Probst house. The puppy ran to greet him, even she had grown.
Ben rounded the corner. "Hey Nicko."
"I'm so glad to be home."
"Nicholas, come say hello."
Ben rolled his eyes, and Nick smiled. He rounded the corner into the kitchen. Kristi smiled and hugged him. "A sight for sore eyes."
Ivy frown. "Gee Mom, you greeted him better than me."
"Not true, sweetheart. I missed you and your brother."
"I was home two weeks ago."
Kristi said, "Ben comes home all the time but not to see us."
Ivy chuckled, drawing Nick's attention. "Hey, Ivy. So, new boss?"
"Yeah. It's a mystery. It's killing Mom."
Both boys laughed as Nick followed Ben out the door. Once outside, he turned to his friend. "Who can it be?"
"Someone with money."
Nick thought for a moment. "It could be anyone, even my grandfather."
Ben shook his head. "Nope. My mother asked him."
"Where's Keira?"
Ben shrugged. "Sleeping in. I'll see her later. The coffeehouse is tonight. We should go."
"Sounds good. Will the new owner keep having coffeehouse?"
"I hope so. Rick said things won't change."
Nick frowned. "Everything changes. Have you seen my sister?"
"I saw Sophie yesterday."
"I meant Abbie."
"Oh yeah, I have. She's growing up. Kev's sisters too."
"I heard he's not coming home."
Ben shook his head. "Summer is coming."
Nick nodded. "If I had it to do over. I might not have gone so far away."
"You could have been in Boston with Sophie."
"Or at Bowdoin with you. I want to go to grad school in Portland. It was good enough for my dad."
Ben hit his back. "Good plan. Are you ready for coffee?"
"You know it." The bell over the door sounded like home.
Rick looked up and smiled. "Look what the cat brought in. I feel like I go back in time when I see you. Just like your dad."
"Did you really sell?"
Rick nodded. "I'm too old to be on my feet all day. Don't worry the new owner will keep all my staff."
"This place won't be the same."
Rick smiled. "I'll be around. Just sitting out there." Nick laughed. "Here, on the house." Rick handed him a to-go cup.
"Thanks." After his taste, he smiled. "Now I'm home."
Later the group of five walked up to hear Mike play. Ben and Keira held hands while Sophie looped her arm around his.
Ivy copied her on his other arm. "You've got two girls. Ben only has one."
Nick laughed. "Two sisters." The minute he said the words they didn't feel right. Ivy was a friend. "My sister and her best friend. I can't believe Soph is deserting us this summer.'
"I know, but we'll have fun. Hopefully. What if the new boss isn't fun?"
Keira said, "Ivy, it'll be fine. Rick's doing the hiring."
"Where did you hear that?" Nick asked.
Keira paused. "I don't know. The grapevine. It might have been Sam. Who knows?"
There weren't the only ones talking about the changes. Rick stood in front of the crowd. "I prefer to be back there, but that's changing. I have accepted an offer to sell The Landing to investors who want to keep it just like I've been running it. That means the coffee won't change. They'll hire a manager to keep it going. I hope you all continue to support the business. Mike, take it away."
As he played Brown-Eyed Girl, Nick's eyes met Ivy's brown eyes. He smiled to reassure her. Trinity's eyes were blue, but he liked the depth in Ivy's pool of chocolate. His own girlfriend lacked depth. Her posts were more shallow than a tide pool. All day he got snaps of her sunbathing and drinking.
Another notification flashed, and Sophie grabbed his phone. It was a selfie of Trinity and her best friend with colorful drinks. Both wore short tight dresses. Visions of a short skirt came to mind.
"Which one?" Sophie whispered. He pointed to Trinity and watched as she showed Keira and Ivy.
Nick grabbed his phone and put it in his pocket. With Trinity out of sight and mind, he enjoyed the music.
Thanks for reading and voting ⭐️