Phoebe leaves McKinley and I in the kitchen. I feel a bit awkward, unsure of what to say. I grab a few things to cook lunch for four people.

McKinley sits on the kitchen counter, eating chips and watches me...

"So, McKinley. What do you do for a living?" I ask, feeling stupid for asking a damn 20-year-old what she doesn't for a living...

"College," Kinley says, and I nod my head.

"Are you and McKenna Vegetarian or Vegan? And are you both allergic to anything?" I ask before I start to cook something I have in mind.

Sheet-pan chicken and rainbow veggies.

"Ken says she's vegan, but she's a liar." McKinley says, "And I'm allergic to shellfish, and Ken's isn't allergic to anything." She says, putting away the chips.

"Good to know, thank you." I smile as she waves me off and goes into Phoebe's room.

I am setting the baking sheet up, taking the chicken out of the packaging and placing it on the pan. Once I lay everything out perfectly, I put the pan into the 400-degree oven and put a timer on for thirty minutes.

I clean up everything and wash my hands. Wondering why Phoebe is still inside our room... Ours. I love the sound of that.

I get to sleep next to her again. The last time we slept next to each other was when I was having a nightmare. It wasn't really a nightmare, more like flashbacks...

I knock on the door, opening it slowly just in case she is changing. But she is laying on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. "Are you okay?" I ask, closing the door behind me. I bend over, looking into her beautiful green eyes.

"Yeah-" She gives me a half-smile, not convincing me. I give her a 'are you sure,' look and she shakes her head. "No." She answers honestly, water filling in her eyes. My heart always breaks when she cries...

"Pheebs, it's okay." I lay next to her, pulling her into me. She snuggles her head into my shirt, wiping away the tears before they can fall down her face.

"I- I just don't know why I thought this was a good idea. Ya know-" Is, is she talking about us? "For the girls to come here while I am like this." Thank god, it's not about us... If there is even an 'us.' "Kenna is embarrassing me in front of you, and Kinley..."

"McKinley is pretty nice," I say, making her look at me.

"What?"

"McKinley and I had a short conversation in the kitchen while I was preparing lunch. She seems like a sweet girl." I say honestly, making her smile. Finally... "And don't worry, McKenna will come around. I'm a new person in your life, and maybe she doesn't trust me yet." Phoebe smiles big, showing hope in her eyes, but she doesn't say anything. Instead, she snuggles closer to me and closes her eyes.

We lay there until the alarm goes off, making Phoebe groan in annoyance.

"Sorry, baby. I have to get the food." I say, moving out of her hold and standing up. Phoebe looks at me strangely, but I have to hurry and get the food before it burns.

I rush to the kitchen, grab the oven mitts and pull the dish out. I place it on the stove, pulling off the aluminium foil. The aroma fills the house. This draws all the women out of their rooms- I watch as Phoebe gives McKenna a look, making her walk away and sit on the couch.

Phoebe gives me a hopeless look, but I reassure her by giving her a smile. McKinley sits next to her twin sister, and they make their own conversations. Phoebe limps over to me, asking if I need any help.

"Can you set the table for me?" I ask, and she nods her head. I don't want her on her ankle for a long time and if it has a hairline fracture like I believe it is- tonight we will be going to the hospital.

The table is set, and Phoebe calls the girls to their seats. Phoebe and I sit on one side of the table, while the twins sit on the other. Phoebe sits down, propping her foot up on my chair. I place everyone's plates in front of each other and put a pitcher of water in the middle of the table. I grab Phoebe and an ice pack and sit down, putting her foot on my lap. I place the ice on her ankle, and we all dig into our food.

"This is delicious, Noah," Phoebe says, smiling. "What do you girls think?" She is trying to start a conversation, so we aren't sitting in complete silence.

"Yeah, it's good." McKinley says, "I'm glad Pheebs got her a boyfriend who can cook. She can't cook for the life of her-" She laughs, making Phoebe put her hand over her chest.

"Hurtful." Phoebe laughs, making me entirely captivated by her. I could care less about anything, as long as Phoebe is smiling and laughing like she is now. I watch Phoebe, as her sisters go back and forth. I'm zoned out, almost forgetting to eat.

"So, Noah." I zone back in as I hear my name, I look at the twins wondering who called my name. "How long have you been a Doctor?" McKenna asks, making me slightly shocked.

"Well, I was an Army Medic for fourteen years, and then I decided to switch gears and become a Doctor in an actual hospital." Phoebe watches me as I speak, not eating her food.

"What do you specialise in?" McKinley asks, finishing off her food.

"I specialise in Trauma, but I want to go into Orthopedics," I answer and they nod their heads.

We all finish our lunch, and Phoebe and her sisters are in deep conversation. I tried hard not to, but I zoned out a while ago. They started talking about Australia, and I got completely lost. I look at Phoebe, seeing how much she misses her home country. When she talks about Australia, the smile on her face gets more prominent, and the light in her eyes gets brighter.

"So how did you two meet?" I hear McKinley ask, drawing me back into reality. I go to answer, but Phoebe quickly answers their question.

"He was my neighbour, and we bumped into each other one day and- and here we are." Phoebe nervously says, making the twins looks at us curiously.

"I don't believe it," McKenna says, making Phoebe move her leg off of my lap.

"We-"

"I mean, we actually did meet that way. But I was so focused on moving in that I knocked right into her. I mean, we collided so hard that she fell into the brick wall and busted her eyebrow open." I chuckle at the most awkward and horrible way to meet a woman. The twin girls look at Phoebe as she shows the small cut on her forehead.

"Phoebe was so stubborn and in such a hurry to get to her protest that I had to give her some first aid, right on that couch." I point at the long couch right behind us. "After I was done, we saw each other again outside my workplace, she was hard at work, and I told her to come into the hospital so I could make sure I didn't give her a concussion." I look at Phoebe, her eyes are filled with worry. She is not sure about what I am doing... Will I tell the truth, or will I lie- again.

"She agreed. So she became my patient. I gave her a CAT scan, and sadly, she did have a concussion. She was in the hospital overnight for observation. When we left, people were taking photos and videos of us. As you guys probably saw." The twins nod their heads, and Phoebe looks- she looks... I can't read her right now. I don't know what's going on in her head.

"After that, I started feeling something for her. I couldn't explain it." I look into Phoebe's eyes, I need to see that light shine again in her eyes... "I mean, she's absolutely gorgeous. Everything about her is beautiful."

We sit there, staring into each other's eyes and Phoebe grabs my face and kisses me hard on the lips. I grab onto her face, kissing her back. We stop, staring at each other, and we quickly remember her sisters are sitting right in front of us.

"Wow," McKinley says, making us separate. Phoebe is blushing, hiding her smile. I clear my throat, refusing to look at her sisters in the eyes.

"You're in love." McKenna whispers, making Phoebe and I stare right at her.

"What?" Phoebe and I say in unison, unsure of what she just said.

"I see the way you look at each other." McKenna stands up, giving us a small smile. "You're in love." She says, walking into her room. McKinley stands up, about to say something but she stays silent. She goes into the room after her sister, and they close the door. Leaving us alone to process everything she just said.

-

* If you liked this chapter, please consider giving it a vote and answering the questions below. *

-

Hello! How were your holidays? Are you excited to celebrate the new year?

Questions:

1. Do you think they are in love?

2. Do you think it's a little too soon for them to be in love? I mean, it's only been two weeks...

Also, I thought I'd share "Noah's" lunch recipe with you all! Enjoy! (It's so good!)

" https://www.purewow.com/recipes/keto-sheet-pan-chicken-rainbow-veggies

Thank you!!!

- Anna