That evening after Maghrib, Jâsim and James headed their separate ways. While the teen boy headed home for dinner, James locked up his car and then walked the short distance to his sister’s apartment complex. On arrival, his sister opened the door for him, welcoming him in with a smile.

The scent of clam chowder reached his nose as he entered the apartment, giving away what dinner would be. He followed her into the den where an animal documentary had been left playing.

“Dinner is almost ready,” she remarked as she sat down on the couch.

James seated himself beside her. “Is it just us two?”

“José is on evening duty this week,” she replied, answering the unspoken question.

James wanted to ask about her boyfriend and what was going on with them, too, but he knew it was better not to know. Nothing she’d tell him would satisfy him or please him, and the fact that she didn’t try to talk about him told José had been right; things weren’t going well.

He said nothing and turned his eyes on the nature documentary playing on the screen. Though he’d given up movies a long time ago, he would occasionally watch an educational documentary now and then, which his sister knew. It was probably why she had it on in the first place; because it was one of the only things he’d watch.

Some minutes later, his sister left the room and headed toward the kitchen. “It’s ready,” she called to him moments later. “Do you want to eat now?”

“Sure,” he called back. James left the couch he and Ashley had been sharing and joined her in the kitchen.

Ashley stood at the stove over a medium-sized pot, a ladle in one hand and the lid in the other. As he entered, she set the pot’s transparent glass lid on the nearest counter and went to a cabinet, removing two bowls.

After filling one, she handed it to her brother. “Here.”

James removed a spoon from the silverware drawer and sat down at the table while she filled her own. Then she grabbed her own spoon from the drawer and sat across from him.

A steady silence existed between them as they ate, but it wasn’t awkward or uncomfortable. Neither of them had ever been much for words. It was in the company of others they often found themselves speaking.

“Are things okay?” James ventured. Though she didn’t say a word, something in her eyes told him not everything was as it should be.

She shrugged. “Everything is fine, James.”

He didn’t think so, but his sister wasn’t someone he could push. The very opposite of him, Ashley could be rather headstrong and stubborn. He didn’t want to raise her ire by poking his nose where it was definitely not wanted.

“If you change your mind, I’m always willing to listen.”

She flashed a smile, warm and affectionate. “I know, Jay.”

He smiled at the sound of his childhood nickname. It was rare to hear now, but once in a while, it passed his sister’s lips when she felt particularly affectionate toward him. “Okay then.”

After they’d finished eating, there was still plenty of time before James needed to excuse himself for prayer, so he opted to stay for longer. Though she didn’t say so, his sister obviously desired company. “Want to play a game?”

Ashley lit up. “I’d love to.”

After the table had been cleared, dishes washed, and the leftovers refrigerated, they returned to Ashley’s den, where another animal show had started. James seated himself as Ashley went to her bookshelf and pulled out the boxes of board games she kept. She set two on the coffee table; the spelling game she preferred and a newer version of the trivia game he had.

“You can pick,” she said.

James of course selected the trivia game. Not only did he love the game, but it allowed him to reminisce of days they had all been together before his mother’s overdose and his father’s neglect had ripped the family apart.

Ashley’s lips twitched as she opened the box and started setting up the game. “I knew you were going to pick that.”

“Then why bother bringing the other one?” James asked with a grin.

“Just in case.” She flashed a smile. “And it will be my turn to pick the next game.”

After they’d set up the game, Ashley removed a card from the stack to ask him a question. “What modern-day country was called Cathay?”

“China,” he replied instantly.

“Of course you’d remember that,” she murmured as he moved his piece forward according to the number of spaces the correct answer gave him.

James chuckled, picking up a card. “What is cynophobia?”

His sister gave him a clueless look. “The good Lord knows.”

James laughed as he read the answer to her, “Fear of dogs.”

Ashley picked up another card. “From which country does Gouda cheese originate?”

James had no idea so he gave a wild guess. “Germany?”

His sister grinned as she looked down at the card. “Netherlands. Go back two spaces.”

James complied before reaching for the next card. “Ash, do you ever think of them?”

His sister didn’t need him to explain. Pain lurked in her eyes. “All the time. Do you think we’ll ever find them?”

James sighed softly. “I don’t know.” Then he looked down at the card to resume the game before the melancholy destroyed their fun. “What was the first toy to be advertised on television?”