The Shadow Anthology

Quin & Fiona

On their last day of freedom, Quin and Fiona were celebrating the joy in their lives. Quin had been married to Hope for two years now. The couple had been together since he was twenty and were now finally ready to have a baby. Meanwhile, Fiona and Ian had been together for three years and were prepared to announce the recent engagement. Before either party could tell the other, their partners convened in secret to organise a singular large gathering where all the news could be delivered to a bubbling crowd.

Both Quin and Fiona awoke in the morning with feelings of dread and guilt for not having told the other sooner or in private so they picked up their phones at the same time, but Fiona’s dexterity allowed her to draft and send a message before Quin could call her. His habit of cracking his knuckles had worsened over the years and left his bones too brittle to text, or even type a passcode, without flinching. He was now chagrined by having to clench his fists as he walked.

Fiona sat on a wobbling little chair by an oversized coffee table outside the locally famed cafe.

Whenever the sun was bright and neither sibling was busy, Quin and Fiona took to “Toffee Tea / Coffee". The establishment satisfied her pursuit of sugar and quenched his caffeinate cravings. It was a small and independent business which meant they knew the staff and management quite well. Quin's coffee awaited him, slowly cooling under the summer sun, while Fiona hastily drank her toffee tea and engulfed every biscuit the pair had been given.

Quin was late, as he so often was, after he fell asleep in the shower, as he so often did. He hurtled down the street as fast as his power walking would permit him. When he curved around a corner and into Fiona’s view, he portrayed a highly unsettling image. Her tea quivered with her, in its dainty little cup, as his clenched fists and stern face drew nearer. When he finally arrived and subsequently smiled, Fiona was put at ease and started to take in the more comical factors of his appearance.

The man was drenched in sweat. The prolific perspiration penetrated the underarms of his shirt and jacket. His face flowed and dripped into his coffee as a constant stream, cooling it and torturing the flavour. His red face looked like a tomato being interrogated. His hair was that of a dishevelled dog. The blue, bloodshot eyes he wore made him seem like a deranged psychopath. Fiona took all this in and burst into hysterics, almost overturning the table. Quin wasn’t one to embarrass easily so this gave him time to compose some of his more ridiculous features.

“I think someone’s out of shape!” She managed to wheeze as he sat down. “I ordered you a coffee, but it looks like you’ve already had a drop!” She cackled loudly at her own joke and then glanced up at her brother’s unamused face. “You spilled into your mug.” She tried to explain. “No?” He echoed her words back at her, shaking his head. “I asked you here because I wanted to talk about tonight.” Quin sat up straight. “I figured we should probably have a conversation beforehand; twin to twin.”

 “I completely agree.” Quin nodded his head to try and reinforce his affirmation. “I wanted to tell you before everyone else, even Nina. We’re pregnant! It’s about two months along now and no, we haven’t decided on names yet, but Fiona is definitely on the table if she’s a girl. We’ve known for a few weeks and I’ve been dying to tell you, but Hope wanted to wait a bit longer. I know you probably have a load of questions, so go ahead.” He straitened up in his chair and produced a broad smile.

Fiona sat there in stunned silence for second and then lifted up her petite cup with her wrong hand and imbibed loudly. She kept at this for quite some time, much to the irritation of the other patrons at the time. Quin made numerous comical expressions to try and coerce any words out of her still slurping mouth. Then he noticed the ring. Then he screamed in booming, echoing adulation, causing Fiona to spit out the large amount of tea that had just been circulating within her mouth. The splash lacerated her flawless face. A moment passed where Quin ran to get an abundance of tissues and Fiona was forced to clean herself up.