Better

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I S A A C
R I V A S ;

"So, the Velazquez family is current under extreme danger yet in complete lead of everything we own right now. We work with them, but what seems to be the most vulnerable case here is their daughter, Aricela Velazquez." My boss said, directing me to the screen with all her information.

Seeing a picture of her, a description, her recent purchases, outings, everything.

And to keep it professional, she was pretty, very pretty and very young, only being eighteen years old, her birthday was just last week.

I was nineteen years old, already trusted enough with my bosses, my family was in the business, of course. And hers was too, this is a generational thing, not everyone and anyone can join and become like us.

—

I drive off to Aricela, her location was in a sketchy parking lot, where I knew my sister Sarah was already at. Sarah was my best friend, my sister, and most importantly my twin. She has always been there, through the motions of adjusting to this rapid life, and most importantly, the coming of age and the responsibility we now hold.

When I arrived I saw the both of them together, already laughing. Sarah's greatest super power was helping people get comfortable, and they looked like they hit it off really well. The clouds were forming, it look gray out here, with pine trees, it almost felt like twilight, in a way.

I got down to introduce myself, feeling nervous, for some reason, aside from the power the Velazquez family had.

"And that's my brother Isaac! He's going to take care of us. You know our families work together, we won't hurt you. Anyways, are you hungry? I know we are!" Sarah said, treating this like a norm, while I looked back at Aricela from the rear view mirror, seeing her wide-eyed as they both got into my SUV.

"Actually I kinda am, are we going to stop somewhere?" She asked, she had a nice voice, it was as monotone as it was soft, and her hair was long, wavy, with thick eyebrows and high cheekbones.

"Yeah, we're actually leaving to our actual home which is out of state from here. Your siblings are being transported too, so they'll probably be home before us. They're taking a more narrow and safer route." Sarah explained, a flash of relief shined on Aricela's face, her siblings were safe.

"Okay so we can pick up some Chik-Fil-A?" I said, which the girls nodded to. The ride was silent, other than Sarah's playlist that played, she sat in the front with me, and from our twin senses, I could figure that she was nervous for Aricela, a new life with us.

—

After eating, we stopped by a gas station for snacks, which I would pay for of course, I would only want Aricela and Sarah to be comfortable.

The bright lights among us on the afternoon, the sun was setting, and our drive was beginning, I had a pack of mint gum in my hands, chips, and some gummy candy, approaching the energy drink aisle, I saw Aricela, infront of the candy display choosing what she wanted.

"Hey, you know, get whatever you want, it's on me. Look, Sarah is over there going ham on the chips and the large drink, go ahead." I said, pointing at my sister who had her hands full, Aricela nodded.
"Thank you, do you need gas? I have money." She offered, I shook my head.

"I already filled up the tank, but seriously, take something, it's a long drive and we won't stop until maybe 4 am when it's time to eat breakfast." I said, indicating the long drive, she smiled and took a small pack of the same gummy worms I had.

Next she went to get two huge bottles of water for herself, and most importantly, a electrolyte drink. And now I could tell, this girl was probably interested in health and wellness, or knew a few things.

The tiles were sticky, and Aricelas water was only 1.00, each were .50 cents, and she got gummy worms and hot chips. And my sister who had a large .69 cent soda, hot chips, gummy worms, pop rocks, gum, and three hot pickles.

"Okay. I think we're ready. Aricela let me get you a pack of gum, you'll need it!" Sarah said as she got from the counter below the register another pack of gum. Sarah was slurping away her drink, and Aricela just stood behind me, looking at the total of the snacks and gas price.

"Are you sure you don't want me to pay? I have enough." She offered again, I smiled and shook my head, as I put my card into the card reader, and got my receipt from the guy at the register.

—

We finally all got into the SUV again, now getting comfier for the drive, th, the sky was becoming a dark blue instead of the gray clouds, some droplets of rain fell.

"So, Aricela, we're going to talk about this once we get home and stuff but we know you go to university. Right now you're enrolled in the same private university we're in, our classes are small and compact, safe. And your siblings are as well now enrolled in a private school. What's your major?" Sarah asked, and let her know about the school plans our family made for Aricela's family.

"I'm majoring in Neuroscience, you?" Aricela said, which resulted in both me and Sarah giving eachother a wide eye, she was smart.

"I'm in for Computer Science, and Isaac is in for Engineering." Sarah said, "Nice. Good majors and good money." Aricela said, and for the rest of the ride, it was just music and jokes.