turning 18 years old isn't even that big of a deal. at least that's what brady thought when he woke up the morning of his 18th birthday. he didn't feel nor look different than he did previously. today would just be like any other day. the first thing he did in the morning was check his phone like he usually does every morning. he unlocked it to find messages from his friends who wished him happy birthday. he scrolled through all the names, but unfortunately, he couldn't find the name he wanted to see most. but in evangeline's defense, it was early morning and there was no way she was awake already.
brady stood up and opened his bedroom door as he rubbed his eyes, trying to rid any traces of sleep. when he stepped out of his room, he saw connor across the hall, also walking out of his room. the two twins wished each other happy birthday before they both walked down the stairs.
they froze at the bottom of the steps when they saw that the living room was decorated. different shades of red balloons were spread throughout the room and giant golden balloons in the number 18 were placed right next to the tv as tinsel foil streamers adorned the usually mundane white walls. brady and connor's mother walked into the living room and noticed them at the steps.
a smile lit up her face as she wished her sons happy birthday and engulfed them in a hug. she kissed both of their foreheads and informed them that she'd start making breakfast in a few minutes while their father was out buying their cake. brady and connor decided to wait on the couch and turned on the tv as background noise as they went on their phones.
that was when brady saw evangeline's post for him and connor on her spam account. he was quick to smile upon seeing the pictures that she posted and his smile only got bigger once he saw the final photo. the photo of the two of them in the car.
evangeline had borrowed dylan's car and started driving around the neighborhood with brady, xochitl, and dylan himself. but because she hated driving, wasn't the best at it and didn't even have her license yet, brady offered to switch places with her. from there, evangeline started blasting the poppiest pop music one could ever hear. brady wasn't into it at first, which made eva laugh and she continued to play the music, adding similar songs to the queue. as eva sang her lungs out with xochitl and her brother, brady eventually gave in and stopped being annoyed. at one point, he started singing too and it made evangeline laugh again. he loved the sound of her laughter. he loved it so much that he watched her in awe as she giggled and leaned into his shoulder. then, xochitl took the photo.
