Page 112 of Chaos

She’s right. He does regret it the next morning.

She’s wrong. He doesn’t regret what he said, only how he said it.

There’s something decidedly,specifically unnerving about walking into your home and finding someone who looks exactly like you lounging on the sofa.

Well, notexactly. Minus the red hair and all the piercings. While I wear sweaty workout clothes, my almost mirror-image is pristine in a pretty, pink tennis dress. And as my face settles in a frown, the one that’s only slightly different blossoms with a smile, so bright and so sweet that the handful of other people in the living room smile too.

Frozen with shock in the doorway of the A-frame, I demand answers harsher than I mean to. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Jesus, Lot.” Laughing quietly, the neater, nicer version of me stands. “Two years apart and your favorite sister can’t even get a hug?”

I slip my backpack off my shoulders, letting it hit the ground with a thud. “Eliza is my favorite sister.”

Grace snorts. “Yeah, mine too.”

Briefly, my gaze drifts over each member of our audience before returning to the girl advancing on me. “Liar.”

“Yeah,” she easily concedes right as she wraps her arms around me. “You too.”

I only hesitate momentarily before returning the hug. As my twin goes lax against me, I tuck my chin against her neck, sighing, not fighting the affection nor the content sensation that nestles behind my ribcage. “I thought you weren’t coming until Thursday.”

I can only make it the day before the wedding,she’d claimed.

Dirty little liar.

“Thought I’d surprise you.” Grace pulls back, hazel eyes roving over my dishevelled self. “Did you run here?”

“She does that,” Yasmin pipes up, and we turn to her in unison. “Woah. That’s kind of freaky.”

I crook a brow, and judging by the look on my roommates’ faces, Grace does too. “What’s freaky?”

It’s Theo who answers. “Y’all really look alike.”

“We’re twins, dipshit.”

“Lottie.” Backhanding me on the chest, Grace sighs. “That wasn’t nice.”

“I’m sorry,” I drawl. “When, exactly, have I ever given you the impression that Iamnice?”

From where he’s sprawled on the sofa, Adam quips, “I’m gonna go with never.”

“Hey.” Eyes narrowed, Grace stabs a finger in his direction. “Watch it.”

Holding up his hands innocently, he mouths an apology, but I’m not paying him any attention—I’m freaking gazing at mytwin, my nails digging into my palms as I resist the urge to rub at the sudden ache in my chest.

Before I can think myself out of it, I yank her into another hug, squeezing her tightly. “Missed you, Gracie.”

“See. Youcanbe nice.” One hand rubbing soothing circles near the nape of my neck, the other pats gently. “Missed you more.”

We separate again and I cross my arms over my chest, my nose twitching with an itch. “Yeah, probably.”

Grace socks me on the bicep, but she’s laughing, tossing an arm across my shoulders, dragging me towards the kitchen. “We made dinner while we were waiting for you.”

“Yeah?” I peer into the various pots and bowls scattered across the counters. “Whatcha make?”

“Chilli.”

I jolt as a deep timbre rumbles closer than I expected. And again when I turn to Finn right as he slides past me, the side of his arm brushing my chest.

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