“Open your birthday gift.” I push the gift to her and scoop up one of the cats when it walks off too far. I don’t know if these things can swim, but I’m not going in that pond for either of them.
“It’snotmy birthday, Liam. You and Pri are very confused today.”
We’reconfused? I bite back my smile because it’s a dick move to laugh at her confusion, but she makes it too easy.
She looks over her shoulder and rolls her eyes at someone. When I follow her line of sight, my eyes land on Capri, who’s watching us carefully.
“I know she’s my best friend, but she doesn’t listen very well. She keeps asking if I’m okay, and I’ve told her hundreds of times I’mfine.” My mom looks at me for a response, and I glance at Capri before rolling my eyes.
“Tell me about it.”
My mom covers her mouth as she laughs, and I smile down at her. Not even a minute passes before Capri makes her way over to us, and my mom sits up, but she looks guilty.
“How’s it going over here?”
My mom glances at me and shakes her head, and I do the same before rolling my eyes again.
“We’refine, Pri. I don’t need a babysitter.” Her words are far from harsh but still laced with sarcasm.
“No?”
I glance up at Capri, and she raises her brows. “Liam sure does think so since he brought you here for your birthday.”
My mom's head snaps over to me, and I have to turn away from her so she can’t see me laugh.
I act like I’m clearing my throat before I look back over at my mom. “She doesn’t know what she’s talking about. It’s not even your birthday.” I shake my head and she agrees with a nod as she lays on her back with the cats on her stomach.
I bite back a smile as I glance up at Capri, and she laughs softly before walking off. I remind my mom to open her gift, and she doesn’t tell me it isn’t her birthday; she simply opens it instead.
“Is this a puzzle? I love puzzles!” She goes on about how she completed one with a thousand pieces the other day, and I’m not sure if I believe her, so I make sure to fact-check that with Pri later.
When she flips the box over, she stares at the picture the puzzle is supposed to make, and she runs her fingers along Shanti’s face. “Where did you get this?”
“I had it custom-made.”
She looks up at me with teary eyes, and I don’t know what changed in the last few seconds, but when her tears start falling, I take the puzzle and hide it behind my back.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. Forget about–”
“No, I’m not upset. Here, let me have it.”
I hesitate, but she urges me, so I give the puzzle back to her. I keep my eyes on her, and she keeps her gaze on the picture.
“She was so tiny.”
I look down at the puzzle box, and my chest tightens at the picture of us in the hospital the day Shanti was born. I’m sitting on the bed with Mom and she has Shanti in her arms, wrapped in a white blanket. She was so tiny, Mom had to tilt her so you could see her face. I remember her being the smallest in the NICU. I refused to even hold her because she was barely bigger than my hands, and I was convinced I would crush her.
“She’s getting so big, Liam.”
I wipe my mom's tears, and she holds my hand on her cheek. “She’s turning four soon, can you believe that?” Shanti would’ve been twelve this year, but I swallow the lump in my throat and smile at my mom.
“She said she wants a cat for her birthday. Do you think we’re going to be able to hide these from her until then?”
My mom smiles again as she looks down at the cats. When her brows furrow, I catch myself and realize I already told her I showed them to my sister.
“She’s a nosy kid.” She laughs softly. “She’ll find them. We can show her them and tell her it’s an early gift.” She nods to herself, proud of her idea, and I lean forward to plant a kiss on the top of her head.
We’re in the middle of the puzzle when my phone starts ringing and I don’t think of answering, but then I realize it’s Sage and she must be out of the hospital.
