Damian waved his hand at Kenny and aimlessly wandered down the hall. He had called Lenn to tell him about the accident. Nicky would have to be replaced for the upcoming weekend's performances. Right now Damian didn't care if he never saw another stage. Auren never would have done the damn play if he hadn't talked her into it. And she and Kenny never would have had to deal with an attraction to each other.

 

With a heavy sigh, he sat down in a chair, closing his eyes. What the hell had he done to make everything go topsy‑turvy?

 

"You ok?" a soft voice asked. Damian opened his eyes to see a pretty girl sit down next to him. Struck by the fairy tale image of Snow White, Damian stared at her alabaster skin he was compelled to reach for; large, electric blue eyes that could jumpstart a dead car; thin, fine ebony hair framing her lovely face.

 

"I will be." he managed. Where had she come from? There had been no one in this corridor a moment ago.

 

"I didn't want to disturb you, but I think your brother is searching for you. I didn't tell him you were here."

 

"Thank you. I wanted to be alone." He smiled at her. She was an intern, according to her id badge.

 

"I figured. My name is Miriam."

 

"Damian." He shook her soft, cool hand.

 

"Who are you here to see?" she asked. Dazed from the day’s events, Damian didn’t realize how close she sat to him.

 

"My girlfriend's sister was in a car accident." he said flatly, not noticing the  flicker in her eyes. "I think my girlfriend and brother are having an affair and she found out. The sister, I mean. She

was his girlfriend."

 

"The trauma case brought in a while ago. I know who you mean. Her sister passed out?"

 

"Yep. That's my girlfriend." he said numbly, not caring a total stranger knew so much about his personal life.

 

"You don't sound too happy about that." she adjusted to be more comfortable.

 

"My life is just one big, giant mess these days." he smiled bitterly at her.

 

"I know what you mean." she gave him sweet, sympathetic smile and Damian was struck by a strange compulsion.

 

"Do you want some coffee?" he asked. Miriam was startled by the question.

 

"Sure."

 

"Come on," Damian stood and held out one hand to her. "I'll buy."

 

***

 

Auren was disturbed when she woke again and was alone. Crawling out of the bed, she stretched. Nicky. She had to find out about Nicky. The light outside the window said it was night. Stepping into the corridor she saw Kenny, curled uncomfortably on a waiting chair.

 

"Kenny, have you heard anything?" She woke him by shaking his shoulder.

 

"Huh‑Nick‑Auren. No, I fell asleep."

 

They hurried to the nurses station.

 

"She's in ICU. She came through surgery rather tentatively." the nurse told them. "If you'd like to wait I can page the doctor."

 

"Please do." Auren snapped, pacing the nurses station. Where was Damian?

 

***

 

Nicky lay in the hospital bed, Damian standing over her.

 

"I'm sorry, Nick. I should have said something to you as soon as I suspected there was something going on. I just didn't want to believe it. I couldn't believe it, you know? Now here you are half dead. I'm so sorry." He touched her hand lightly. The vibrant girl was pale and still

as a corpse.

 

"Damian." Miriam waved him out of the room. She had helped him sneak in for a moment to see her.

 

"According to her chart she's comatose. Ruptured spleen, broken shoulder, severe head trauma, broken leg. It doesn't look good." she told him. Damian glanced back at her. Nicky's beautiful face was a mass of bruises and cuts.

 

"I guess I should go see them." he said, half to himself. Three sets of footsteps were approaching.

 

They turned to see Auren, Kenny and a doctor approaching. Auren's eyes flicked to the pretty girl at Damian's side and back to him. The older brother focused on the doctor, not her.

 

"Well, looks like we're all together." The doctor launched into a lecture of what was wrong, but Damian didn't hear. Finally looking at Auren, he could see she was torn and frustrated. And grieving. What to do? He wondered. How could he forgive her for this? First that minor

skirmish with Bastian. . .now this. His own brother.

 

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have to make my rounds. I'll be back periodically to check on her. Remember, one visitor at a time, no more than ten minutes."

 

"Thank you." Kenny said as the doctor left. The four stood awkwardly. Miriam gently placed her hand on Damian's arm.

 

"I'll be right down the way at the nurses station if you need anything." she said softly. He nodded and she slipped away, under the distrustful eyes of Auren.

 

Auren moved over to Damian.

 

"Can we talk?" she asked softly. Damian shrugged. When she tried to take his hand, he pulled away from her. 

 

"Don't touch me." he snarled softly. Auren flinched. "I know about you and Kenny."

 

"Then you know there's nothing going on." she said.

 

"I know what I've suspected for weeks and the looks I've seen between you two and the

gut instinct I ignored. " he growled. Auren swallowed. "I couldn't believe that my girlfriend, the one I loved so much, would betray me with my own brother!"

 

"Damian, it wasn't like that!" Kenny interrupted.

 

Damian silenced him with one hand held up in warning.

 

"And you ‑ after swearing to Nicky you'd never cheat on her again, you who threatened him ‑ just stay away from me. Both of you." Damian walked away. Auren stood stiffly, not allowing her feelings to overwhelm her. Turning towards the glass window, she stared at her catatonic sister.

 

***

Nicky's eyes fluttered open. Blinking a few times, she recognized a hospital room. Turning her head to look around, blinding pain shot through her skull and she moaned. Opposite her was a big glass window. Through it she could see Auren curled up in a chair, asleep, her head resting on Damian ‑ no that was Kenny's ‑ shoulder. Then it flooded back. They were having an affair. That was why she raced out of the house. The glowing sun was the last thing she remembered,  then the screech of the brakes and the impact, and her Cougar went flying. Another impact, then nothing.

 

Gingerly, she moved her fingers, then hand. The left was throbbing with pain and she knew she had some sort of cast on. Legs ached, but they  were moving. Eyes. Her eyes felt funny, but she couldn't quite move her hand well enough to touch her face.

 

The movement increased her heart monitor and barely a moment later there was a nurse coming in with a smile.

 

"Well, good morning to you. How do we feel?"

"Like shit." Nicky murmured.

 

"And you will. Especially once those painkillers wear off."

 

"My sister."

 

"She's out there. I'll wake her in a moment. I need to take your vitals."

 

"I'm thirsty."

 

Nicky sat patiently while her blood pressure was taken and her heart listened to. Slipping an ice chip under her tongue, the nurse continued to monitor her vitals. Nick savored the cool liquid.

 

"You took a heavy beating, dear. The doctor will be here shortly."

 

"Yay. More prodding of the guinea pig." Nicky sighed.

 

"Your sister has been terribly worried about you. I could have sworn I was seeing double with the four of you."

 

"Four? Where's the other twin? There's only one out there!" Nicky demanded thickly, her head swimming. Slowly she closed her eyes to stop the twirling room.

 

"I don't know. He was here earlier, but I haven't seen him in a while."

 

Damian had to be told. She had to tell him about the affair.

 

Auren woke suddenly, sitting up in her chair. Kenny was startled awake and before he could react, Auren was on her feet and through the door. 

 

"Nick!"

 

Auren tried to hug her sister through the tubes she was connected to. Nicky remained motionless, her eyes half open.

 

"Nicky ‑ what you saw ‑ it's not what you think it was. It wasn't. I can explain all of it." Auren whispered.

 

Nicky just stared at her.

 

"I'm telling Damian. He needs to know."

 

"He already does. He left me." Auren said softly. Nicky swallowed, but couldn't really feel any misery for her sister. Kenny was in the doorway.

 

"Get him out of here, Auren." she said in a low voice.

"Nick ‑"

 

"You’re both hypocrites. I can't talk to either of you right now. I don't want to look at you." Nicky said coldly. Auren's heart sunk. She nodded.

 

"We're not done." she said, squeezing Nicky's hand.

 

Nicky didn't answer, staring at the ceiling. Auren backed out of the room, pulling Kenny with her.

 

***

 

Miriam snuggled closer to Damian. Ready to leave the hospital after she left the handsome twin with his girlfriend, he had called to her as she was leaving. Looking so sad and lost, Miriam had invited him back to her place for more coffee, hoping he would want more. He did.

 

Absently he played with the silky black hair. Neither spoke, not wanting to ruin the moment of content. Her long, manicured nails ran over his chest lightly as they lay together.

 

Chills ran through Damian. His mind was far, far away, making love to a beautiful blond whose nails dug into his back as she called his name. It was her silky hair laying across his chest.

 

The woman next to him moved slightly and Damian began to drown in self hatred as he realzied what he had just done.

 

***

 

Nicky was kept in the hospital for over a week. Her understudy went on in the play, but the remaining twins sailed through blindly, each torn. Damian didn't speak to or call Auren. Rarely home, he avoided his brother. Auren couldn't focus on anything to help Em with the paper.

 

"You guys have to get this shit settled." Em told Auren one night. Auren was watching The Princess Bride and crying into her margarita. Nadia, by now a full member of their group, nodded.

 

"He's settled it." Auren sniffled. "We're over. I've lost him and Nick."

 

The only visitors Nicky would accept were Em, Nadia and Damian.

 

"We just have to make them realize nothing happened between you two." Nadia murmured.

 

"They won't listen. Not after the thing with Alexander, and Kenny's affair."

 

"Well, you know what? I think the stress of Nick's accident and the play has everyone freaked out right now. Finals are in two weeks. Then we're home free and everything can get back to normal." Em reminded. Auren groaned.

 

"Don't remind me about finals."

 

"Speaking of, I'm supposed to pick up Nick's work in the morning for her." Em ran her hand through her short auburn hair. Piglet was nosing in her backpack looking for treats.

 

"Is she going to be let out soon?" Auren asked numbly.

 

"In a couple days, I think."

 

Auren nodded sadly.

 

***

 

The play ran three weeks. None of the twins went to the cast party closing night. Nicky made it to the final performance and watched from the best seat in the house.

 

Damian saw more and more of Miriam, spending increasing amounts of time at her apartment. Rarely speaking of his problems or life, he merely sought comfort in her arms, which she was only too happy to provide.

 

Staring out her window, Auren watched the rising sun. Unable to sleep, she had curled up in her window seat around midnight and spent most of the night staring out the window, reviewing the past nine months of her life.

 

The morning sun bounced off the ring on her hand. Sadly, Auren slipped it off her finger and studied the way the light's rays reflected back at her. There would be nothing more from Damian, she knew. Earlier that morning she had emailed her response to the University of Arcadia that she would be arriving in mid August.

 

Kenny spent his free time in the waiting room of the hospital, always waiting for a moment when he could slip into Nicky's room and see her,  but there was always someone around. He had flooded her room with flowers. Moved from ICU to a private room for recovery, he could

occasionally get a glimpse of her through the window in the door. It would appear she spent most of her time staring out the window.

 

The doctor left the room and Kenny made his move, slipping in. Nicky lay perfectly still, head turned towards the window, her eyes dull. 

 

"Nicky." he whispered. She didn't move. Had she not heard him?

 

"Nicky, baby," He moved in front of her. The eyes were so cold, he thought with a shudder. So Auren, not Nicky. Not his beautiful, vibrant, carefree Nicky.

 

"Go away." she said.

 

"No. Not until you hear me out. Nothing happened with Auren. You didn't see what you think you did. I swear to you." 

 

"Get out." tears were forming in her eyes.

 

"I didn't cheat on you, Nicky. Not this time. Just let me explain."

 

"Em told me everything."

 

"It was just character stuff. It wasn't real. We were determining that when you came in."

 

Tears leaked from Nicky's eyes.

 

"You wanted my sister. When you were with me, you were wanting my sister. Get out of my sight." 

 

"Nick, I won't leave until I make you understand."

 

"I'll call for the doctor. Just leave, Kenny. I don't want to see you ever again. There won't be a third time."

 

She closed her eyes. Kenny, holding back his own tears, brushed her hair back from her forehead and kissed her lightly.

 

"You're the one I love." he whispered, leaving the room before she saw him crying. The door shut behind him and he leaned against the wall, sobbing. Nicky lay still, staring out the window, tears steaming down her face.

 

***

 

"You were great this semester, Em. Thank you." Auren hugged her petite cousin.

 

"No prob. It was kind of fun, but you can have it back next fall." Em chuckled. She and Nadia sat on the floor near the fireplace. Nicky was sitting on the couch, a much larger Piglet curled up in her lap. Since her homecoming, Nicky had barely spoken a dozen words to her sister.

 

"Actually, that's what I wanted to talk to you guys about."

 

"What? You want me to do it again? You changing to theatre major?" Em laughed.

 

"No. But I am taking a leave of absence next fall. I'm handing the reins over to Nick."

 

"Leave of absence?" Em asked. "What are you going to do?"

 

"I've applied and been accepted on a full scholarship to the University of Arcadia in Ireland. I won their competition."

 

"You what?" Nicky asked. Auren's heart leapt to see a response in her. 

 

"I leave in early August."

 

"You ‑ you're leaving? For how long?" Em demanded.

 

"A semester for sure. After that, I don't know. There's not a whole lot left for me here, so I went ahead and accepted." Auren said softly. Em

just stared at her cousin. Nadia watched Nicky for a reaction. The younger sister seemed to be mulling it over.

 

"So I'll be handing the paper over to Nick, if you want it."

 

"I'll get back to you." Nicky replied coldly.

 

"When were you planning on telling us this?" Em demanded.

 

"I meant to let you before now. I told Damian a few weeks ago before‑before we broke up. I've had so much other stuff on my mind I just kind of forgot about it." Auren replied.

 

"How could you forget something like telling us you're leaving us for half a year?" Em demanded. Auren sighed.

 

"I just did, ok? Look, it's the middle of May. We've got most of the summer."

 

Em threw her hands up in the air. Nicky was silent. Auren left the room.