19. MARK
1848 Words
In my life, there’s one woman who has never disappointed me, and yet I cannot say that the reverse isn’t true. It’s my twin sister: Cora.
Besides, when I see her expression on entering my restaurant, I know that I did something wrong once again.
I go out to join her in the dining area, otherwise, she would be able to come and get me in the kitchen. And with all the dangerous objects lying around there, I’m afraid she’ll threaten my life.
“When did you think you would let me know?” she barks. “Mum had to tell me!”
“What are you talking about?”
“Don’t fool around with me. You know very well what I’m talking about!”
“I have some idea, but so much has happened lately.”
I don’t lie. Between the fiasco with Jenny, the night in police custody, and the apartment fire, that makes a lot of events in a short period. And I have indeed avoided my sister a bit in recent days. Her and the rest of my family.
Cora crosses her arms over her chest, clearly showing her displeasure.
“I don’t even understand that it didn’t occur to you that we could be worried. Do you know that you suck as a brother at times?”
“Only at times?”
My touch of humour doesn’t make her laugh. I sit down opposite her.
“I’m sorry, Cora. I’ve been quite busy.”
The glimmer of disappointment I see deep in her eyes breaks my heart. I understand that by keeping her at a distance, I’m hurting her. The truth is, it wasn’t intentional. In fact, it was. But not in the sense that she understands it.
“I needed to be alone to think.”
My twin’s big green eyes soften. She and I couldn’t be more different. With her long dark blond hair and her smile that never really leaves her, you can’t guess that she’s my sister. And yet, only ten minutes separate us. Despite everything she’s been through, her optimism makes her a unique person, whom everyone loves, as I’m the ugly duckling of the family. The one who accumulated adolescent nonsense, the one who didn’t do much with his life. Her accident changed our lives a lot, it made her pass to the rank of a saint, while I’m still regarded as the failed twin. It doesn’t matter that I was able to change, by the way. I love her even more. And this love, she gives it back to me.
“Oh Mark, I’m so sorry!” she said, grabbing my hand.
That’s Cora. Unable to hold a grudge for more than five minutes.
“It’s not your fault. Besides, I needed to paint the apartment again,” I joke.
Her eyes sparkle, she smiles at me.
“Who cares about the apartment? It’s just material. What kills me is what Jenny did to you. I’m too angry right now to find a clever way to repay her, but I’ll find something.”
“Cora…”
“What, you can’t let her get away with this. She laughed at you, she ridiculed you, humiliated you…”
“Oh, dear! Stop with synonyms!”
She stares at me with incomprehension.
“How do you keep calm? If Leo had done that to me, I would have wanted to break everything!”
“Yes, and that’s what I did. I went to break her new boyfriend’s nose and a few chairs in the process. What did it bring me? A night at the station, customers who no longer want to come, my apartment caught fire during my absence. Talk about a success!” I growl.
“Where do you live? Mom told me she didn’t know, and that you refused to come to their house. She assumes you’re sleeping with a friend. You know you could have come to the house!”
And see her cooing with Leo all day long? What a wonderful idea.
“I found a room in the centre. Perfect, I’m a five-minute walk from the cafe.”
My sister grimaces.
“Well, if you prefer to live surrounded by other guys who leave their socks and old boxes of pizzas lying around everywhere, that’s up to you.”
“If you want to know everything, my housemate isn’t a pearl of tidiness, but she leaves neither socks nor food residue lying around in the common areas.”
“She, like the person you live with is a woman?” Cora is surprised.
“You heard that right. I live with Loraine.”
“Loraine? Loraine Basso? The cop?”
While I thought she would be happy with this news, after all, I don’t remember meeting anyone who ever spoke badly to me about her, my sister scowls.
“What’s the matter? Don’t you like her?”
“Oh no, no… It’s just… she’s amazing as a choice.”
“How’s it amazing? She’s my housemate, not the girl I’m dating.”
“No, that’s not what I mean! Well, if... at least not quite like that but…”
“But what?”
She stares at me for a few moments. Suddenly, she shows a surprised expression, indicating that she understands that I have no idea what she wants to talk about.
“You know she’s in love with you, don’t you?”
I burst out laughing. A good big thunderous laugh as it doesn’t happen often. However, I don’t understand why Cora is as serious as a pope.
“Wait, you’re wrong, Loraine isn’t in love with me,” I said, still amused.
“Are you sure about that?”
She arched an eyebrow. I stop laughing.
“I… well, how could she be in love with me?”
Cora breathes out with despair.
“Don’t be modest, it doesn’t suit you.”
She then adds:
“You know very well that women like you. Well, Loraine is one of them.”
“I’m well aware that Loraine is one. But that doesn’t mean she’s falling for me. I think you’re wrong.”
“You’re even dumber than I thought. I thought I left you a few neurons in utero.”
“Your compliments touch me, you can’t know how much!” I said in an annoyed voice.
“Mark, Loraine has been in love with you for… for so long that I couldn’t tell you when it started. The whole village knows about it, except you. I even think Jenny knew it.”
If I wasn’t already seated, I think I would drop my a*s in my chair. Loraine in love with me?
“She always looks at you as if you were the centre of the world, the sun in her solar system. She’s awkward in your presence. Poor girl, how many times have we laughed at her clumsiness or her longing looks towards you.
“She’s not awkward around me,” I counter.
Okay, she scalded herself this morning with her coffee when I walked into the kitchen. I was shirtless, I assumed maybe I shocked her or maybe she didn’t expect me to be so comfortable with her. It’s also true that at times, I have the feeling that she’s staring at me but that she’s elsewhere as if she isn’t listening to me. Or sometimes she stutters a bit, but she does that to everyone, right?
“You should be careful, Mark. Loraine is a sensitive girl, and I wouldn’t want her to misinterpret you.”
“She doesn’t get any ideas at all. She knows I just broke up with Jenny. And believe me, since I’ve been living with her, not once has she hinted or done anything that would have made me think she expected more from me. Besides, the idea of moving in, it wasn’t even her who mentioned it. I suggested it to her when I heard she was looking for someone, and she didn’t seem excited at first. I’m not sure she’s got any thoughts on me. Besides, she asked me to help her find a guy.”
“Really? Did she ask you that?”
The way my sister asks me the question prompts me to go over the scene in my head. Did she ask for my help in finding a guy? Not exactly. But when I came up with the idea, she didn’t object to it either.
“Maybe not in those terms,” I admit. “But let’s say she’s working on it. We made a list.”
“A list of what? Potential guys?”
“No. Qualities that she looks for in a man.”
“And what does she want? A dark-haired, blue-eyed guy with tattooed arms? Oh my God! But don’t you match the description?” she laughs.
I give her an annoyed look.
“No, it’s not physical criteria, it’s much more thoughtful than that.”
“Look at that, he comes to her defence, how cute. So? What are the criteria?”
“That’s none of your business. It’s between her and me.”
“And her future boyfriend, I guess.”
“Yeah.”
Suddenly, the idea of someone else knowing about the list doesn’t appeal to me at all. It’s true, it’s kind of our little secret. And now, just by talking about it with my sister, I have the impression of betraying Loraine’s confidence. But I imagine that one day when she finds the right person, she’ll also tell him about the list. And certainly, from the point we added last night while watching a movie together:
I want a man who watches horror movies with me while eating candy.
Loraine’s face imprints on my mind. Is it true that she’s in love with me? I can’t believe it. And yet, if so, I realise that I don’t want her to suffer. I’m not emotionally available, nor am I the guy for her. I’ll have to take precautions. And the easiest way I can see right now is to keep my commitment: to help her find someone. I’ll have to do more than help her list a few qualities. Phase two must be launched: the active search for a suitor. In my close entourage, I don’t see many people who could correspond to the profile. Bartender Erik is intermittently single when he and his girlfriend break up, which usually happens at least once a month, especially when I need him for something important. But this isn’t a profile that would fit Loraine. She needs a stable guy. My few friends are almost all a couple: Jameson, Leo, Manon, or there’s something wrong. For example, my friend Marc is 1.60 m tall. I don’t mind it being said that it’s not the size that matters, but hey, Loraine must be at least eight inches taller than him! That’s why I end up asking my sister:
“You don’t have single friends by any chance?”
- Writer
