Page 3 of Love Legacy

I notice her freeze in her tracks ever so slightly before continuing. “Aaron started his job at the law firm this week, so he’s a little busy. I figure between you and me, we could handle assembling the small furniture.”

I eye her carefully, feeling like there’s more to the story, but I don’t press. “It’s a shame Mom and Dad are in Austin. Otherwise, they’d probably insist on helping.”

Theia laughs. “Oh, definitely! You know Dad would make us stand back and ‘take notes on his techniques’ as he puts everything together for me.”

I put Basil down on the floor and he scurries off to hide in the bathroom. Theia and I start working on assembling her small furniture pieces, only stopping when the furniture delivery men come to the door. We move out of their way, hanging out in the kitchen as they bring in all the furniture in pieces and assemble them in the rooms Theia directed them to. Once they left, we resumed our work, and after a few hours, she had a fully assembled apartment. Sure, the walls were bare, and she could use some decorations, but functionally, her apartment was ready.

Seeing that it was later than we anticipated, Theia decided to order us some food from the Italian restaurant off campus to be delivered to her apartment. She was still in the shower when the food was dropped off, so I unpacked everything, leaving the food on the kitchen counter. Thankfully, we finished unpacking her moving boxes, so I pulled a couple reusable plates from the cabinet, rinsing them in the sink quickly before wiping them off. I fixed myself a plate, grabbing some of the napkins and utensils they included in the bag, before sitting down on the couch.

Theia eventually emerges from the bathroom, holding a towel under her dripping hair. “Hey, Sage, are there any boxes we haven’t unpacked?”

I scan the main living space of the apartment before shaking my head. “No, I don’t think so, why?”

“And you haven’t come across my blow dryer?” she asks. I shake my head again.

“Shit. Ugh, that means one of my old roommates probably has it. I needed my diffuser, now I wasted all this product,” she groans, gently squeezing some of the water out of her hair with her towel.

“Can’t you just let it air dry?”

Theia laughs as she starts braiding up her hair. “No, Sage, I can’t just ‘let it air dry.’ I mean, I could, but my curls would not come out right. The safest bet right now is just to braid it back until I get my hands on a new diffuser. I just wish I knew this before I got into the shower. I would’ve just put in a leave-in and could’ve been done like thirty minutes ago.”

I’ve always been envious of how Theia’s curls look, but when she tells me how labor-intensive it is to maintain them, I’m grateful I have short, wavy hair. Theia’s biracial, her dad is black but her mom is white. She takes after her dad mostly. She has his curl pattern but her mom’s light brown hair color. She has her mom’s blue-green eyes but her dad’s features. She’s lighterskinned, but I think most people would guess she’s black before they think she’s white. Theia’s absolutely stunning.

“Hey, just so you know, you need dish soap, a sponge, and some paper towels.” I take a bite of my pasta. “I left you a list of things I thought you might need in the kitchen.”

She circles the island, reading my note before fixing herself a plate. “I’ll make a run to Target tomorrow, kill two birds with one stone.” She takes a seat next to me, turning on the TV. We spend the rest of the night watchingBeaches & Bombshells, our favorite dating show, grabbing our pints of ice cream from the freezer to eat. At some point, Basil wedges his way in between us on the couch, stretching out so that his head was in my lap and his back legs were in Theia’s.

I’m not sure how many more nights like this we’ll get when classes start back up, but for now, I’ll take any sister bonding time I can get.

2

Naomi

“I’ll be fine, Granny Mae. I promise you that,” I say, balancing my phone between my shoulder and ear as I carry my suitcase down the hall to my new apartment. I knew she was worried about me, moving to a new state and university three years in. Sure, it was my first time on my own, but she, of all people, understood why I was getting away.

“Now, sweet pea, I love you. I understand you needed a fresh start, I just wish you had stayed closer to home. I would’ve helped you with tuition at the University of Georgia or Spelman.”

“Granny, I couldn’t ask you to do that. You’re already paying my rent up here; I can’t ask for rent and tuition.”

“You don’t have to ask me for anything! You’re my favorite grandbaby. It’s what grandmas do.”

“Granny Mae, I’m your only grandbaby,” I say, rolling my eyes, knowing full well that she can’t see me. “Hey, Granny, I have to go. I’m finally at my apartment.”

“Okay, honey. Make new friends and take a lot of pictures for me.”

“Alright, I will. Love you.” I hang up the phone, taking a deep breath.

12B.

I guess this is where I’ll be living for the next year. I turn to knock on the door, pausing for a moment. The apartment manager gave me keys when I signed the sublease earlier this week, but she warned me that my roommates had already been living in the apartment from the previous academic year. It felt weird barging into someone else’s space. The door flies open before I get the chance to knock, a smiling redhead standing in the door frame.

“Hi! You must be Naomi, right? I’m Maeve, one of your new roommates,” the woman says, holding her hand out.

I shake her hand. “Yes, ma’am, Naomi Williams.”

“Oh my god, I love your accent!” she says, grabbing the handle of my suitcase and dragging it into the entryway of the apartment. I follow her lead, stepping inside.

Looking around, this is exactly what I pictured a New York apartment to look like. Granted, we’re in the Hudson Valley and not actually in New York City, but this apartment captures that same aesthetic. Coming into the apartment, the wall to my right is exposed brown brick extending down to the far side. The wall at the end of the apartment is taken up by a large rectangular window, letting in a flood of natural light. To the left, the wall ofthe entryway opens up to the open concept floor plan, and the kitchen and living room are separated by a small breakfast bar.

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