Robbie was sitting at the dining table, finishing up his Zoom meeting when Sissy walked in. She'd slipped by the laptop camera unseen and stood on the other side of the table, pouting at him. She'd finished work about an hour ago, and boredom had slowly trickled into her veins. Now, she wanted Robbie to be finished too. She wanted all of his attention.
Sissy lifted her dress and held it up between her teeth to keep her hands free. Robbie's eyes shot up from his laptop, and she felt her legs twitch as his gaze washed over her.
"Alright, guys. I think that's about everything." He started saying his goodbyes and closing out his affairs for the day. When he'd finally logged off and shut his laptop, Robbie sat back in his chair and watched her intently. Sissy wondered when her teasing little show was finished what Robbie would do. Comically, she imagined him standing in a grayscale world, stone-faced and applauding violently like Orson Wells or Shia Labeouf. The thought tickled her, and Sissy couldn't help but smile.
"What's so funny, baby girl?" She shook her head, but her smile was steadfast. "You like teasing me while I'm in a meeting?"
"Yeah," Sissy nodded and dropped her dress. She shifted her weight onto one leg, crossed her arms, and tilted her head, looking every bit of the brat she was. "What are you gonna' do about it?"
An amused grin spread over Robbie's face. It was the sort of grin a man might have if he were reading between the lines and liked what he saw. He stood up and rubbed the scruff on his chin. He hadn't been shaving much since they'd started working from home, and Sissy kind of liked it. Standing there in his jeans, faded tee-shirt, and five o'clock shadow, he looked like the bully he was behind closed doors.
"You seem to be in a mood today."
She stepped back away from Robbie, unable to contain her playful smile. Sensing he was about to strike, Sissy tried to turn and run. Robbie was around the other side of the table in a flash and caught her by the wrist before she could get far.
"Oh no you don't," He grunted as he pulled her back, bent, and hauled her up onto his shoulder, the way Sissy imagined a lumberjack carried a log. "You're not getting away that easily."
Robbie carried her to the bedroom, with her playfully hammering his back in mock protest. "You can't do this to me," she cried. "I have rights."
"Sure you do," Robbie answered. "You have a right to be a brat."
He kicked the bedroom door shut behind them and tossed Sissy on the bed. A surprised little laugh spilled from her lips as she flew through the air and tumbled down on the mattress. The laughter died as she caught eyes with Robbie, who stood menacingly at the foot of the bed.
"What are you going to do?" She asked in a powdered coquettish tone.
Robbie didn't answer at first. Instead, Sissy's eyes tracked his hand as it trailed down his body and rested on his belt buckle. "We're going to play a game."
"What game?"
Robbie began wrestling open his belt, then the fly of his faded denim jeans. "What game do you wanna' play? Teacher and student? Boss and secretary? Nurse and patient? What game sounds good to you?"
Sissy thought about it for a moment as Robbie took his jeans off. Then, he pulled off his tee-shirt and just stood there in his boxers, letting Sissy take him in, and a wave of nostalgia washed over her.
She thought Robbie looked a little like when they'd first met years ago. She'd bumped into him at the lake where he and a couple of other guys were swimming off of the pier. Sissy and her friends showed up hoping to mingle, and maybe a little more. The other girls were quick to strip down to their bra and panties to swim along with the guys, but Sissy stayed in her dress, afraid of the jabs about her boyish frame and square knees.
After a while, Robbie climbed up off the dock and sat with her. At first, Sissy was suspicious of him, but he didn't try to convince her to swim, or even talk her out of her clothes. Instead, they'd just talked and laughed, and he'd made her feel less worried about her body, and more grateful that Sissy had someone to talk to. And then there was his smell. Sissy couldn't forget that. He'd air-dried off the dock, and Robbie's masculine musk fresh out of the lake water would forever remind Sissy of the smell of summer.
"Hmm," she mused, putting a finger to her mouth. Sissy looked up as if the answer were an intangible thing dangling in the corner of the room. Then she looked back at Robbie and smiled.
"Brother and sister."
Robbie raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
Sissy nodded.