Believable---Audrey and Grace---kids
Audrey looked up at her big sister from her place on the floor, the pieces of a vase shattered around her. She was doing her best to clean it up, hurriedly, before anyone noticed. Or at least that's what it looked like, to her older sister.
"I didn't break it," Audrey said, voice thick with worry as to what would happen. Audrey hated being in trouble with her family. She loathed when anyone was upset with her; it simply went against her general eagerness to make those around her happy.
Grace knelt down next to her, and kissed her little sister's cheek, and started to help her clean up the mess. "It's okay. I'm sure it was an accident. No big deal," she said, trying to reassure her. She knew she'd been hard on her little sister a lot lately; it'd been hard dealing with the changes in her body, and her social image, dancing, school...and the inquisitive, eccentric little sister grated her nerves more often than Grace felt she should. It was time to go back to being a big sister that Audrey could trust, and wasn't afraid of.
She dumped the broken shards in the trash with care and looked her little sister, rumpled from cleaning, over for cuts. Of course Audrey had started picking pieces up with her fingers, rather than sweeping them up. Grace sighed, never able to understand the girl that would let herself bleed rather than taking proper precaution. "Let's get you cleaned up, now that the vase is done."
Audrey shrugged a little. "I'm fine. I can deal with it..." The bravery was false, trying to hide the vulnerability that was there. The eagerness to have her relationship with her older sister repaired. To hopefully feel the affection she used to get. It'd been a long while since she remembered Grace telling her outright that she loved her.
To anyone but someone that knew Audrey well, the false bravery would have been believable. But for Grace, it broke her heart. She moved to her younger sister, wrapping her arms around the thin, boyish-shaped girl, and kissed her forehead. "I promise I'll take care of you, De. And I won't ever forget that promise."
Audrey relaxed in her arms, closing her eyes and let out a soft sigh. "I believe you."
"I love you, De," Grace said quietly.
"I love you too.