Justin got off the shuttle bus that went to LaGuardia and waited near his sister’s gate. She knew her way around the city enough by now to get to his loft on her own. But he was feeling a bit anxious to see her. She had just turned 24 at the end of August and was about a year older than Nathan, but their age gap had kept them from having a close relationship as kids. They didn’t start to get to really know each other until the summer after her second year of college. She had gotten an internship at the New York Hall of Science Museum and all of them, even his father from what he had heard, had been proud. She had responded to a Craig’s List ad and had gotten a sublet in Harlem in order to have an easy commute and save money. Craig had offered to rent a studio that she could have to herself, but she had distanced herself from their father since their parents had divorced. Yes, she hadn’t been close to Justin when all that shit went down, but she had been old enough to stay disgusted with her father for disowning his own son. She probably should have taken him up on the offer though because, unfortunately, the woman she had moved in with was absolutely psychotic. She had paid for May when she moved in at the beginning of that month and gave the woman her money for June with her month’s notice. She became so wary of her that she packed her bags in the middle of the night only after two weeks of living there, had taken the subway down to his apartment at the time in Park Slope, then knocked on his door at 2 am and asked Justin if she could stay with him for the remainder of her almost four month stay. He had let her in and she tossed everything in the corner and proclaimed that she would never use a website named after her father again.

Justin remembers that summer being a rather celibate one. Yet he also remembers it as the summer when he had finally gotten to know his younger sister. He learned how fucking brilliant she was, for one thing. They were a bit more on the same level now that they were both adults too, so they had more to talk about now. Justin had always felt pretty confident in his looks and he knew that he easily attracted both men and women, but Molly was drop dead gorgeous. He had developed late case of overprotective older brother syndrome during her stay since she had attracted catcallers from left and right and he had neighbors asking him if his sister was single. He remembers being so worried that he signed her up for self-defense classes and she had just laughed at him and told him not to waste his money. Although, he had put his muscle memory to use from when he was in the Pink Posse and he made sure she knew how to throw a punch and knock someone’s feet out from under them if the need may arise. He may have also given her pepper spray. The self-defense lessons may not have come in handy that summer but they at least helped her a little bit the following one. Despite being a bit too nervous, Molly had taken it all in stride and, when Justin was free from work and wasn’t staying over with someone and Molly wasn’t at her internship, researching, or going out with people her own age, they would see plays, go to museums, go out to eat, cook, watch movies, and just talk. If someone had told his younger self that Molly would become one of his closest friends, he probably wouldn’t believe them, but that is what had happened. He talked to her at least once a week and had just seen her at Thanksgiving, but he was missing her.

A flight attendant announced that Molly’s flight was arriving and soon after the passengers started to come through the door, down the ramp, and to the baggage carousel. He saw the loose strawberry blonde curls in the crowd. He called out her name and she turned around with a big smile on her face. She ran over and gave him a big hug. When he tried to let go, she whispered,

“Justin! Don’t let go yet! I had to sit by that guy over there the whole trip up here and he is a creep! Those forty-five minutes felt like a lifetime. Maybe he will think you are my boyfriend and feel bad.”

“Don’t be disgusting.” he had said to her as he slowly pulled himself away.

Justin looked over to who she was talking about and...yeah, he was pretty gross. Justin winced in sympathy and grabbed her bag so they could leave.

“Thanks for paying for my ticket. Flights two days before Christmas are a bit too much for a teacher’s salary, even when said tickets are paid for two months in advance. I will pay you back soon.”

“Don’t worry about it, because you know I won’t take it. I am glad to do it.”

“I know, and thanks. Even though I will just hide money under your pillow next time I’m here.”

Justin snorted and raised his hand up to get one of the passing cabs.

“The bus would be cheaper, Jester.”

“I rarely take cabs and, like we established, money isn’t a problem anyway, Mollusk. Besides, it will be faster. We have to meet Mom and Tucker at Penn Station in a few hours anyway. I want you to get settled first.”

Usually it was easy to get a cab at the airport but with so many flights coming in for Christmas, he was having a harder time.

“Should I flash some leg?”

“Molly, you’re wearing jeans.”

“I just have to roll one of my pants’ legs up. It would work, trust me.”

Luckily it hadn’t come to that because one pulled over for them soon after. He got her bag into the trunk and they piled in.

Molly had talked about how her month had been and what she had been up to. She seemed to have something on her mind though and Justin planned to question her about it as soon as they got back. The ride took longer than normal since they got stuck in traffic on the Queensboro Bridge, but they got home with about two hours to spare before they needed to get on the train to meet their mother.

Molly got the air mattress out of the closet and turned on the automatic pump to blow it up so the noise wouldn’t bother the neighbors later. After, she sat on the couch, turned on the TV, and got quiet.

“You seem off.”

Molly stared at him, then blinked. “Why do you stay that?”

“I can’t pinpoint it, you just do.”

Molly sighed, then blurted out,

“I think I am going through a quarter-life crisis.”

Justin raised an eyebrow her and motioned for her to go on.

“I am aware that I got really lucky when it came to getting my job. If Janice Barker hadn’t dropped dead from an aneurysm while grading pop quizzes the second week of school, I probably would have been a substitute for at least another year or two before finding a full-time job. What were the odds that she would teach my subject? Her demise was my gain, and for that, I am grateful.”

“How have I never realized how demented you are?”

“I will come off as more sympathetic in a minute, I promise.”

Justin waited for her to continue.

“I like kids. I do. I like every single one of my students and I enjoy doing what I do enough. I recognize that it is an important job and that in one way or another, I have the ability to shape the lives of these kids. But I don’t think I can explain why mixing baking soda and vinegar together does what it does one more time. It is so simple and boring. I was afraid this would happen. The thought almost made me go into teaching middle school and high school students instead. But Justin, teenagers are such fucking shitheads. I should know. My brother moved in with his older lover when he was 17 and I dyed my hair turquoise and let my friend pierce my belly button with a hot sewing needle at an even younger age than that. They drive people crazy.”

Justin remembered when his mother called him in such a state when that had happened. From what he could make out of his mother’s stressful call, his 16 year old sister had walked through the front door in a cutoff shirt, blue hair, and smelled like marijuana. He had felt a strange combination horrified and amused. He also felt guilty about being so distant from her. He is sure a rebellious punk rock Molly would have been interesting to witness.

“I don’t think I want to be a teacher. I don’t think I ever did really. I want to help find the cures to diseases. I got my bachelor’s degree to start doing that but then went into something I turned out not to be passionate about. Why did I do that?”

“Molly, I’m sorry you feel that way. But you don’t have to freak out about it. You are 24. You are still really young and you can still go get your doctorate. You are my sister and obviously that makes you really fucking smart. I wouldn’t be surprised if you found a vaccine for Ebola or a cure for some type of cancer.”

“Tucker will be upset. He thinks that I wanted to follow in his footsteps.”

“Tucker’s not so bad. He won’t be offended. And if he is, remind him that he is not the one who has to live your life.”

“Dad will be upset. He worried that I might try to aim too high and fail if I went to grad school to study medicine. He would have never said that about you if were in my place.”

“If I were a straight son in your place. Dad’s a prick, I don’t know what else I can say.”

Molly was silent then looked at Justin.

“He’s been asking about you lately, you know. When I bother to pick up the phone.”

That reveal had perked Justin’s interest.

“What has he been asking? If I still like co-”

“No, I think he has given up on you ever not liking that. He called last week to check up on me. Then he asked me if I knew how you were doing and if you were happy. He sounded sad. And drunk.”

“What did you tell him?”

“That you were a big success and if he wanted to know any more then he would have to get in contact with you himself. I don’t talk to him much, but he’s been weird. He’s living alone since Madison left him last year. He asked me to come spend Christmas with him. If he hadn’t pulled what he did with you, I would have felt sorry for him.”

“Molly, you don’t have to keep him out of your life because he kicked me out of his. I’ve told you that. I do know that he always loved you.”

“I don’t want any man in my life who would do what he did to his son. The only way that I would even consider making up with him is if he at least attempted to make up with you.”

There was no point in arguing with her. It was something Molly had always felt, even when back when they had barely seen or spoken to each other.

“So, big brother, how have you been? Any exciting news?”

“Well, we are having the New Year’s Eve Showing at the gallery.”

“Yeah, no shit. I will still be in until January 2nd, as if you didn’t remember. Go on.”

“Nathan wrote a jingle for Arm & Hammer. He’s getting a good paycheck for it.”

“I’m sure it’s lovely. Anything else?”

“Brian Kinney is going to be at Emmett’s for Christmas dinner.”

....

He really wishes Molly would pick her jaw up off the floor.

“Hot Brian?”

“What?”

“I always referred to him as Hot Brian to mom. I think it made her uncomfortable.”

“Then yes, ‘Hot Brian’ is coming to dinner. And yes, before you fucking ask, he is still hot.”

“Good thing Nathan isn’t into Christmas.”

“He’s coming too.”

Molly put a hand on his shoulder and put on her most sympathetic face. When Justin looked at her, she couldn’t hold it anymore and broke into a fit of laughter.

“It is going to be so awkward for you! ...I’m sorry, it isn’t funny. Nathan knows, right?”

“Yeah, I told him. He took it better than I expected.”

“Well, that’s good. Don’t get me wrong, I like him. But he is the type to go into drama queen mode over little things, let alone something like this. He is just so different from you, Justin.”

Justin sighed. His sister and his mother both liked Nathan as a person. Hell, when Molly came, she and Nathan would go bar hopping without him if Justin didn’t feel like going or had something else planned. But she and his mom always threw out hints implying that they didn’t see how Nathan and Justin had ended up together in the first place, let alone understand how it could be that they were approaching being together for two years this coming February.

“So you’ve said. But Brian is coming with his partner and his daughter so it will be less awkward.”

“For Nathan, maybe.”

“Eric and Lily are both very nice.”

“Obviously I am missing some of the story. And you are going to tell me it tonight. But what time do we need to meet mom?”

Justin looked at the clock. “We should probably leave now.”

After he and Molly got their coats on, they headed out the door.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Look at you two! You have both grown, I’m sure of it!”

“Mom, we have both been grown for a while.”

“Oh, my babies…”

Ever since Jennifer and Tucker had moved up to Connecticut about two and a half years ago to be closer to her parents, she had felt conflicted about it. She didn’t regret it, by any means. Her father had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and, while her mother was still very active and capable at the age of 76, she didn’t want her facing the challenge of her husband’s slow mental deterioration. But she missed her kids. She was actually physically closer to Justin now, but she was still a couple of hours away and only saw him once every other month or so. Molly had only been a little over an hour away when Jennifer was in Pittsburgh, since Molly just lived in Morgantown. But now her youngest was so far away and she only got to see her for holidays. She missed them so much.

“Hey, mom? Why don’t we get your bags to your room and go get dinner? Come on, the hotel is only a block away.”

Justin took her suitcase and shook hands with Tucker. They got to the hotel and checked in then came back downstairs to join her kids again.

Tucker turned to Justin and asked, “What did you have in mind for dinner?”

“There’s an Indian place about seven blocks down that is really good. If you want, we can go there.”

They decided to walk and he was glad that his mother directed her attention to Molly for the most part on the way there. He knew he needed tell his mother that Brian would be at Emmett’s. She started out despising Brian and surprisingly ended up loving the man. She had been almost as heartbroken as he was when they had broken up for good. He knew it couldn’t be a surprise to her though. It wouldn’t upset him if his mother reacted positively upon seeing Brian again, but he didn’t want any surprises getting her too excited about it in front of Nathan. That would just be an extra blow to his current boyfriend and he wanted to make Christmas as easy as he could for him. He wanted it to be easy for both of them.