Episode 3

Straight ahead there is a large archway into the kitchen: a kitchen from which a woman is approaching me.

“Alisha!” the woman cries. She swallows me into a hug, her extreme bustiness getting in the way a little, and then takes a step back to examine me. I return the favor. Her hair is blond, figure slim. For some absurd reason, I expected her to look similar to my mom. But apparently Dad has altered his taste in women along with his living standards. “It’s so nice to finally meet you!” I take a slight step back from her, fighting the urge to roll my eyes or pull a face. Dad would surely drag me straight back to the airport if I ever displayed such disrespect. “Hi,” I say instead.

And then she blurts, “God, you’ve got Andy’s eyes!” which is possibly the worst thing someone could ever say to me given that I’d much rather have my mom’s eyes. My mom wasn’t the one who walked out.

“Mine are darker,” I murmur in disdain.

Annie doesn’t push the subject any further and instead turns the conversation around in a completely different direction. “You’ll need to meet the rest of us. Krish, Chris, get down here!” she yells up the stairs before turning back to me. “Did Andy tell you about the get-together we’re having tonight?”

“Get-together?” I echo. A social gathering was certainly not on my Things to Do While in California list. Especially when it’s strangers who are doing the gathering. “Dad?” I glance sideways up at him, willing myself not to fire a death glare in his direction, and arch my brows.

“We’re sparking up the barbecue for the neighbors,” he explains. “No better way to kick off the summer than with a good old barbecue.” I really wish he’d stop talking.

Quite frankly, I hate both large groups of people and barbecues. “Awesome,” I say.

There’s a series of thuds as two boys come jogging down the staircase, their footsteps pounding against the oak as they jump down two steps at a time.

“Is that Alisha?” the eldest of the pair whispers to Annie as he reaches us, but I hear him anyway. He must be Krish. The younger one with the wide eyes must be Chris.

“Hey,” I say. My lips curl up into a beaming smile. From what I remember of my conversation in the car, Krish is fourteen. Despite being two years younger than me, he is about the same height. “What’s up?”

“Just hanging out,” Krish answers. He is so totally Annie’s child. His sparkling blue eyes and shaggy blond hair make this connection clear. “Do you want a drink or something?”

“I’m good, thanks,” I say. From his straightened posture and his attempt at good manners, he seems mature for his age. Perhaps we’ll get along well.

“Chris, are you going to say hi to Alisha?” Annie encourages.

Chris comes across as very reserved. He, too, has inherited Annie's flawless genes. “Hi,” he mumbles, not quite meeting my eyes.“Mom, can I go to Matt’s?”

“Of course, honey, just be back by seven,” Annie says. I wonder if she’s the type of mom who grounds you for dropping crumbs on the living room carpet or the type who doesn’t mind if you disappear for two days. “We’re having the barbecue, remember?”

Chris nods and then brushes past me, swinging open the front door and closing it again just as quickly without even a whisper of a good-bye to any of us.“Mom, do you want me to show her around?” Krish asks the second his brother is gone.

“That’d be great,” I answer for her. Krish’s company will surely be better than my dad’s or Annie’s or both of them combined. I don’t quite see the point in spending time with people I’d much rather be nowhere near. So for now I’ll stick to my new, wonderful stepbrothers. Surely they are finding this entire thing just as foreign as I am.

“That’s nice of you, Krish,” Ella says. She sounds grateful at the idea of not having to be the one to tell me where the bathroom is. “Let her see her room.”

Dad gives me a clipped nod and grins. “We’ll be in the kitchen if you need anything.”

I try to refrain from snorting as Krish takes my suitcase and begins hauling it up the staircase. Right now, the only things I need are tanned legs and fresh air, which I most certainly won’t get from lingering inside with my dad.As I turn to follow Krish upstairs, I hear my dad hiss, “Where’s Madhav?”

“I don’t know,” Annie says.

Their voices begin to fade as we all distance ourselves from each other, but not far enough that I can’t hear Dad reply with, “So you just let him leave?”

“Yes,” says Ella before we move out of hearing range.

“You’re right across from me,” Krish informs me as we reach the landing. “You’ve got the coolest room. The best view.”

“Sorry.” I laugh lightly and try to keep a smile on my face as he makes his way over to one of the five doors. But I can’t help but pause to glance down to the hall below, my eyes focusing on the back of Krish’s blond hair as she disappears through the archway into the kitchen.

I figure she’s the type who doesn’t mind if you disappear.

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