Glenda’s scream did nothing to deter Belinda. If anything, it only made her grip tighter in the hopes that the comforting gesture would make her sister realize that she had nothing to fear. She did catch a few scratches and errant slaps to the face, unfortunately, as Glenda fought her way to freedom, but it wasn’t worse than some of the blows she had been dealt in childhood. Reluctantly, she began to loosen her hold before the strikes became harsher and more intentional. “I wanted to surprise yo–” Belinda’s tone had been bright and cheery before the shove, which really wasn’t called for in her opinion, but that didn’t make it any more surprising; one did not grow up with a sister like Glenda and expect her to have the nice, “normal” reactions that others would. But she loved her twin nonetheless. Belinda took as little issue with nudity as a human possibly could. Did it matter to her that they shared identical bodies? No, not that that made it more acceptable for her to see Glenda naked. She had long ago adopted an unusual level of comfort in being undressed and frequently indulged in it. Often, while the twins were still living together, Belinda would strip on the spot to change clothes, or get out of the shower and walk around naked while she dried of, or go to the bathroom with the door open so she could continue talking to Glenda. She didn’t understand why her sister didn’t – more like refused to – show the same level of comfort in return.
“I just wanted to see you first thing,” she said, her voice still hopeful, as though Glenda would suddenly change her mind and allow her to stay. It seemed that in the months she had been gone, in this regard, her sister had not changed. The curtain was shut in her face and, shortly thereafter, she was screamed at to leave the room. With a pout that looked definitively like an down-turned smile, Belinda turned toward the bathroom door and left, shutting it behind her. On the other side awaited a particularly anxious looking capybara. ‘Is she coming out soon?’ She was still trying to adjust herself to having something – someone, rather – that was privy to all her thoughts. It was odd to have a conversation that didn’t require any explanation of feelings or past events; Belinda need only think it and it was already in the mind of her familiar. “I think… she seems grumpy today.” ‘Grumpy’ was the word that Belinda used to excuse her sister’s harsh behavior, as though all her meanness was a result of a bad night of rest; it never had anything to do with the fact that Belinda had antagonized her into such a state. ‘Does she always yell?’ The words sounded so innocent, and somewhat pleading, when spoke in Mayara’s childlike voice. “Not always. She can be really fun sometimes.” Her mood had returned to one of partly-sunny at the memory of the few happy moments the twins had shared; the unfortunate fact that the two fought more than they got along was completely lost on Belinda. No matter how many times Glenda succeeded in hurting her feelings, she always managed to cheer herself up a few moments later. Perhaps that was one of the things that “annoyed the shit” out of her sister.
Belinda had taken a seat on the edge of the spare bed, brushing Mayara’s fur, while she waited for Glenda to come out of the shower. When the door cracked open and her twin stepped out, she jumped up, once again nearly tackling Glenda with a hug. That was okay now that she was out of the shower, right?