"No fussing," Elena promised. If she were someone else, she would have hugged her sister. But she was still bad with affection, and awkward, and not sure how the other would respond.

Ridiculous. They were sisters and sometimes they were strangers, too.

"If I visit, can we gossip about boys? Mom said you need a social life."

Their mother hadn't said that exactly, but paraphrasing was good for the soul.