Darlene, Hugh's sister

Mara was standing in her kitchen scooping a large amount of ice cream into a bowl. She planned to drown her sorrows in dairy, binge Downton Abbey, a show Hugh had despised, and wallow in her own misery for a few hours. She noticed a message on her phone and was surprised by the sender's identity.

Darlene was Hugh's younger sister. She had been doing volunteer work in Africa for the past few months. They had only met a few times, but Mara had found her to be really fun. She was pretty much the polar opposite of her brother. Mara had always got the impression Hugh was rather glad that she was out of the country.

Mara messaged her back, surprised at how candid she was being with Hugh's sister.

Mara had not made any effort with her outfit as she was not expecting company. She was wearing pyjama bottoms and an old t-shirt. She debated changing but knew it was just a social call from Darlene.

It was an hour or so before there was a knock on her apartment door. She opened the door to greet Darlene. Hugh's sister was a tall girl, just a little under six feet, she was slim and athletic, and her long red hair was tied up in a pony tail. Mara loved the Kaftan dress she was wearing, filled with vibrant colours that she must have bought while she was out in Africa. Darlene was holding a bag of plantain chips in one hand and a bottle of red wine in the other. Despite this, she still managed to pull Mara in for a tight hug.

“Don't just stand there. Let me in, girl.”

“It's good to see you, Darlene.”

Mara let her into her apartment.

“So what you been doing, girl?”

Mara gestured to the half-eaten bowl of ice cream on the coffee table.

“Mostly feeling sorry for myself.”

“Where do you keep your glasses?”

Mara had not felt up for drinking heavily tonight and had gone with ice cream as a safer option. She was not going to let Darlene drink alone, and the vintage she had brought round looked expensive. She produced two wine glasses and a bowl. Darlene poured a glass for both of them and emptied the chips into the bowl.

She offered them to Mara tried them cautiously but found herself liking them.

“I lived on these while I was out there.”

“What were you doing over there?

“I was doing childcare out in Ghana. It was really rewarding, and all of the kids were great.

Mara could never imagine Hugh doing any form of charity work. He scoffed, walking past homeless people. It just made her think about why she had been with him, to be honest. He had been caring and affectionate at first. The sex had been good to start with, and then it felt like he had fallen into a routine.

“You looked like you were anywhere but here for a moment,” Darlene said to her.

“Sorry. I was just thinking about Hugh for a moment.”

“Well, don't be, as I said, my brother's kind of an asshole. But what did he do this time?”

“I think he might have been cheating on me. There's this girl at his work, Elaine.”

“It wouldn't be the first time.”

Mara was a little surprised at Darlene's comment. She was still hoping she was being paranoid and that there was some reasonable explanation for his behaviour. She also realised she was just trying to convince herself so it hurt less.

“Really. I suppose you know your brother better than I do.”

Darlene got her phone out and started making a call. It rang for a moment before whoever it was picked up.

“Hey, Kathy. Yeah, only been back a week. I'm sat here with Hugh's latest girl. Do you want to tell her what he was like?”

Darlene passed Mara the phone.

“Umm.... hi?”

“We were together for a few months, and then I discovered he had been cheating on me. With my own sister, no less. Darlene's right, Hugh is a massive gaping asshole.”

“I'm sorry to hear that, Kathy. Thanks for sharing.”

Mara passed the phone back over. Darlene said her goodbyes and ended the call.

“Do you like have all of your brother's exes in your phone?”

“Only the ones I met. You are better off without him. It's the thrill of the chase with my brother, and after that he gets bored.”

Mara hated the realisation that Darlene was describing her relationship with her brother really accurately. She sighed and continued drinking her wine.

“Still, at the very least, you can take some joy in knowing he'll do the same with Elaine in a month or so.”

Mara laughed. “Small victories, I suppose.”

“So how bad was he?”

Mara held up one hand and wiggled her pinky finger. This made Darlene laugh.

“Well, he wasn't quite that bad, but I've had better.”

“So what now? Are you going to stay in and become a dried-up old spinster or get back out there?”

“I think I was kind of hoping he would come back and everything would be fine, but I think someone else, even if it is just a casual fling.

“Give me your phone.”

Mara was reluctant but handed her phone over to Darlene. She watched her tapping various buttons on the screen for several minutes before handing it back. She was amused to discover that Darlene had downloaded and set up a Hinge profile for her.

“Or I have a number for this guy. He's usually someone I hook up with when I get back into town, but I think you need him more.”