See you in L.A. next week... I love you.

She ran her fingers over the grooves of his perfectly printed words on the post-it that he’d left next to her coffee cup that morning, headed back to the dreadful Los Angeles. She left it on the counter as a reminder of his love for her. It was a nice way to enjoy the first cup of coffee in the morning while he was away.

She glanced up at the clock on the wall. The airport was at least a twenty minute drive for her with no traffic and she was already running late. With one last sip of coffee and a glance at the bright piece of paper, she rushed out of the apartment. Thankfully, she made it to the airport only a few minutes behind.

Walking through the crowds, there was a feeling of regret and emptiness. There should’ve been luggage bags in her hand, instead only her purse hung from her shoulder. A boarding pass to direct her to the appropriate gate, but she bypassed the ticket counter. In her head, last night’s phone calls echo. They taunt her.

“I’m sorry Justin, but Sechs wants these changes done immediately. I have to be in the office,” she pled, nervously chewing on her lip hoping that he wouldn’t ask too many questions.

“I just don’t fucking understand why he needs those changes when the damn cards don’t go out til November. Are you going to just come up afterwards?” he furiously rubbed his forehead in frustration on his end of the telephone. This was not what he needed to hear the night before his girlfriend was supposed to visit. It was the opportunity he’d been waiting for to convince her to move.

“I think I should stick around the office. Knowing Sechs, he’ll have a thousand more revisions to make,” she fumbled through her explanations. She could feel the sweat breaking out on her forehead, and her voice was beginning to crack. Her throat quickly going dry.

“Whatever, Ny. I guess I’ll see at the kickoff, goodnight,” he knew it was childish but he didn’t her the chance to reply before he ended the call.

Coming to a stop at the arrival gate, a mixture of excitement and nerves set in. On the tip of her toes, she strained watching the faces pass her by. One by one, the passengers spilled into the terminal. Finally, the crowd parted and revealed the face she was waiting on.

“Nola!!” Nyla beamed. Her better half, Nola dropped her bags, embracing her sister. “It’s been too long.”

“Finally, my twin returns to me!” Nyla pulled away. “I can’t wait to catch up. Those few lines in an email do nothing for me. How’s Bryce?”

“He’s great, he says ‘hello’. Oh Ny, I would say we have a lot to catch up on.” She smirked at Nyla. “Let’s go… show me what this town has to offer.”

Nyla grasped her twin sister’s hand and for first time she felt, in a long time, that everything was right in the world. And if it weren’t right, it would be. Ever since they were little girls running around with matching pigtails and polka dot dresses, Nola was her peace. Nola was her protector, and Nola was her rock. It never matter what decisions Nyla made, right or wrong,

Once they left the airport, the twins hit the ground running. Nola expected a mini-tour of San Francisco, but Nyla had other thoughts. Together, they scoped out every nook of the city, and as time passed, Nola became more concerned and confused. Nyla wouldn’t touch the topic of Nola’s visit; maybe she had changed her mind. Nola could only hope so. But, there was a part of her deep down that knew that Nyla’s mind was set.

She wanted to make sure there wasn’t a different choice to be made. But each time she asked, Nyla seemed to not care about what she was going to do, it meant nothing to her. To her, she wasn’t throwing a piece of herself away. She wasn’t giving something a chance to begin before she was ending it. She wasn’t allowing herself to feel.

As they both sat on the patio at Nyla’s favorite French bistro-style restaurant, Passion Café, they sat in silence. Anytime Nyla had come to this restaurant with Justin, they had to sit inside, along the back wall, never out front where everyone could see them. She was happy he wasn’t here and she was able to enjoy the scenery with her sister.

Nyla ordered her normal Napoleon Lasagna, and the waitress chuckled when her sister ordered Justin’s normal Le Filet De Boeuf, but with a salad and not the fries. “Your guest changes, but not the order!” The waitress joked before leaving to place their order.

“Where is Justin?” Nola asked, breaking the silence between them.

“Los Angeles, I think.”

“What do you mean, I think?  Shouldn’t he be here?” Nola questioned.

“No. He is busy with his album and setting up the tour.” She dazed herself off, attempting to avoid her sister’s questions.

“Is he going to be here when I leave?”

Nyla nodded her head with a no.

Questioning Nyla’s motives, Nola asks “You don’t think he should be here, Ny? How are you guys doing?”

“We’re fine. He is just super busy right now.” She nearly snapped back in response. “Can we talk about something else?”

Nyla and Nola were alike in so many ways, they shared a womb together after all, but there are times like these when Nola wondered where Nyla had picked her morality. They’d been raised in a Catholic home, going to Catholic all-girl school, and being raised in the church. Where had things changed?

After attending and graduating from the same college, with the same degree, Nyla took a marketing job in San Francisco. Working under Andrew Sechs, Nyla’s job was about creating promotional campaigns that encouraged and supported the importance of family and life. It was a job that Nyla had never thought existed, but when she had gone in for her interview and had seen the sample pro-life material all over the hallway walls, she’d fallen in love with the idea. And so, she pled her case to her interviewer. She no longer wanted the executive assistant job, she wanted the pro-life account. It was something she believed in, and she knew she could be great. There was a great deal of stress that went along with the job, but she was reasonably happy there.

Whereas Nyla’s life had become a fairytale, Nola’s hadn’t been as simple. Nola decided to move to New York City, and work for Sacs Fifth Ave. Marrying Bryce, a stock broker and the love her of life just shy of two years, was the best decision she had made in her life. She was content in her simple life. Gradually, she was making her way up the marketing department at Saks. Together with Bryce, they’ve had to overcome heartbreaking events that have only made their love stronger. And now, after seven years married, they were learning to be content with their dealt cards. They’ve had to learn to count their blessings, instead of their pain.

Nola and Nyla hadn’t seen one another in almost two years, not since Nyla had rushed to New York City when Bryce had called her. It had been the absolute most terrifying experience that Nyla had ever gone through – sitting in an airplane for hours not knowing if her sister would be alive when she stepped onto the tarmac.

“Ny, it’s Bryce. I tried calling your office, but they told me you left early. I hate to do this over voicemail, but hun, you need to get to New York immediately. I’m at the hospital, with Nola. I came home, and she was bleeding everywhere and she had passed out. She’s in surgery now, but Ny, she needs you here. I need you here,” and the message ended. She never bothered calling him back, instead she did a U-turn in the busy San Francisco streets and headed straight for the airport.

“Ny, he won’t love me anymore! I’m empty, and I’ll never give him what he has wanted for so long!” Nola cried into her sister’s shoulder. Nyla shared the hospital bed with her, holding her tightly and soothing her pain away.

“Nola, if you really believe that, then you don’t know Bryce! You know he will always love you, and if anything, he will love you more now. He almost lost you, sweetie. I doubt he cares if you never give him that. He’s been given a second chance to love you. We all have,” Nyla spoke softly, silent tears running down her own face. She knew how much both Bryce and Nola had been planning recently, wanting the time to be perfect. They were ready to be parents, and they’d been trying. But now, well now, they would never have that. Unless, they adopted. But, it just isn’t the same.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Nola asked one last time, nervously tapping her foot on the chair. The cold plastic seats did nothing to soothe the chills that the ridiculously cold air conditioning had given her. There was no one else in the lobby.

“This isn’t up for discussion, Nola. There is no other option.” Nyla said firmly closing the magazine. She’d flipped through it looking for her work; it was a habit she’d picked up over time. Seeing one of her ads always gave her chills.

Nola shook her head not knowing what to say to someone she spent her entire life knowing, but in this moment, she didn’t recognize.

“Don’t judge me Nola,” Nyla rolled her eyes, having seen Nola’s silent head shake.

“I’ll never have this, Ny” She mumbled. “So, it’s hard to not judge.”

Nyla looked away from her sister, her words weighing on her heart. Staring off into the distance, neither spoke until Nyla’s name was called. One glance at each other and they stood from their seats, holding hands down the long, white, cold hallway.