Postcards and Polaroids

I was sitting up in bed. Why hadn’t Kellin called me back? Was he okay? What was going on over there? Why wouldn’t he tell me?
I heard a light knock on the window. It was Celine. What was she doing here? What was going on? I quickly opened the window, letting her inside.
“What are you doing here?” I asked. She sat close to me on my bed.
“Kellin told me to come over.” She said softly. “And..” She giggled. “That he loves you, very much.” My face turned red. I smiled.
“What’s so funny about that?” I asked. She laughed some more.
“That’s icky.” I sighed. She was so precious, so innocent. I’m glad her life at home hadn’t corrupted that.
“You’re right.” I said, messing up her hair. “That is icky. Boys are icky.” She laughed some more, nodding.
“Yeah, boys are icky. Especially Kell.” She said. Kell. That was cute. I sighed.
“But, what if I loved Kellin too.” I said, she scrunched up her face, sticking out her tongue. “Ewwwwwww, that’s gross!” I laughed. She was so sweet.
“What do you think love is, Celine?” She looked at me. She was thinking.
“Love is when you want to hug and kiss each other a lot, and you cuddle with each other, and say goodnight to each other and kiss each other goodnight.” I smiled at her, and felt my cheeks turn red.
“Did you kiss my brother?” she asked. I was taken back. I forgot how mature Celine was for her age. She was good at picking up on things. She was definitely related to Kellin. I bit my lip, thinking about what I should actually tell her. Then, I nodded.
“Yes, I kissed your brother.” She laughed, scrunching up her face again.
“Ewww!” She yelled. She covered her face with her hands. “You kissed my brother! Yuck!”
“Have you ever kissed a boy?” I asked her. She quickly shook her head.
“No way!” She yelled. “I’ll never kiss a boy.” I nodded.
“That’s a good idea.” I said. “Cause then you may fall in love with him, and love is scary.” I couldn’t believe I was have this conversation with his little sister. I felt more like a parent.
“Love is scary?” She asked. I nodded.
“Very scary.” She was quiet. I could tell she was processing.
“Are you scared of my brother?” She asked. I was taken back. She never failed to impress me. I bit my lip. Before I could answer, there was a knock on the window. It was Kellin. My heart sped up, as my face burned. I quickly let him in.
“Where were you?” I asked. He looked at me, then to Celine. He moved close, whispering in my ear.
“We’ll talk when she falls asleep.” He softly said. I nodded. He put on his fake smile for Celine.
“So what are the girls talking about?” Kellin asked, leaning against the wall, sitting close to me on my bed. Celine giggled.
“We’re talking about love, Kell.” He smiled, and looked at me.
“You’re talking about love with my little sister?” He asked. I smiled.
“Jess said love is scary, is love scary, Kell?” Kellin sighed, staring straight into my eyes.
“Terrifying.” He said, without breaking the stare. I bit my lip.
Celine didn’t notice.
“But, why is it scary?” She asked. Kellin pulled her into his lap.
“Well, what if the other person doesn’t love you back?” He said. She thought about it for a little.
“Well, you can make them love you, can’t you?” She said. I smiled.
“It’s not that easy.” Kellin said. Celine scrunched up her face.
“But, what if you gave them your cookies, and shared your juice box, and held their hand on the way to the nurse, and you told them everything was gonna be okay? What about stuff like that?” I saw Kellin smile. He messed up her hair, and kissed her forehead.
“That could work, Celine.” I couldn’t help but be mesmerized by Kellin. His caring heart. His protectiveness over his sister. He was incredible.
“Are you in love, Cel?” Kellin asked. She scrunched up her face at him.
“No way.” She said. She looked up at him. “Are you?” He nodded.
“So did you have to give her your cookies?” She asked.
“No..” Kellin said. He looked up at me. “But I’ll always be there to hold her hand, and tell her everything is alright.”