Ella & Evan - Quarantine Summer

Best friends, lovers, soul mates... twins. Ella and her brother Evan have been pursuing their hidden relationship for over half a year now, and in most ways it is going wonderfully. But in the summer of 2020 COVID-19 has thrown the world into confusion, and with University done for the summer - and their protective parents wanting them to be as safe as possible - the twins have been home for weeks now. With their lives on hold, and an uncertain future, freezing them in place can the young lovers handle the new constraints to their love?

* * * * *

-Rebecca-

"Are the kids up?" Scott asked me as he gathered his things in the kitchen before heading out to the car, and work.

I snorted loudly; the only answer necessary to his question. Naturally, he knew the odds of either of them being awake before 8:00 in the morning was almost zero since school was done and neither had jobs this summer. Well, assuming they didn't stay up all night partying I suppose.

Scott chuckled to himself, gathering up his keys and the travel mug of coffee I had made him. I was scrolling through the news on my tablet at the kitchen, reading about the state of the world. Not a lot of good news anywhere, from what I could see. Certainly not in late June of 2020, a truly cursed year - and it was only half over!

"So, no plans except work today?" I asked, casually. He wasn't fooled one bit. We'd been married almost 21 years by that summer, and he knew what I was really asking.

He smiled warmly and paused to face me, "Just straight to work, where I will respect social distancing with the small handful of people we still have on site. And after work I will come straight home, well other than my appointment to go hug strangers at the park for an hour." We've been much better at talking honestly with each other since Valentine's Day, but Scott's innate sarcastic streak hasn't diminished now that we are getting along so well again. Sadly.

With the long-suffering sigh of wives everywhere (even ones with shall we say less than conventional marriages), I gave a fake chuckle and said, "Very funny. If you get exposed to Covid-19 I'll buy a dog house for the back yard just for you to sleep in. You won't even get the garage."

Taking a sip of his coffee, Scott nodded, "Becky I know you're justifiably worried about this. And you're right to be, I am too. But BC has been trending in a positive direction since the middle of May, and now it's almost July."

I couldn't help but frown, "Yes, and the complacency is bothering me. I saw so many people without masks last time I went shopping. And the parks are just crammed with idiots as soon as the sun is out. I haven't been able to see my Mother in months, and they're all out there in big groups chatting like nothing has changed and complaining that the bars aren't open yet!"

Scott came over and hugged me, "I know honey. But most people are doing things to help limit the spread, and we are too. But I got to go now, but I promise I'm very careful when I'm at work. You know I have a big office to myself and I'm in there by myself, and I wear my mask when I'm in public."

He looked down and saw my tablet, then tapped the screen and said, "Maybe if you didn't spend so much time reading the worst news from places that aren't as lucky or careful as we've been here in Vancouver it'll help?"

I hated to admit it, but he had a point. When the novel coronavirus first was detected in Canada it was our hometown of Vancouver that got the first bad outbreak in February and March. It had been a frankly terrifying few weeks, and even when the city, province and country more or less got things back under control I still worried. My parents are older now, and my sister suffered from asthma growing up and I haven't been able to visit any of them for months and between them and my children I can't help but check the Covid news daily. Or several times a day. Yes, I know it's not good for my mood or my anxiety levels.

Closing the news app, I pulled up the book app to the sappy romance novel I was reading and leaned into Scott's embrace. "Ok ok, you win. I know you're careful and I know as a family we are very fortunate. You can control your work environment, I can work from home entirely, and the kids are back home for the summer."

"Exactly. Bye, Becky."

"Have a good day Scott," I replied and he left for work downtown.

I spent a bit of time tidying up before going to work, which for the past few months for me has simply meant I went to the home office we have in the basement. The room is cozy enough, but I do wish the room was on the second floor. The office has too much of a dungeon feel for me, I prefer having more natural light in the room when I'm working. Still, it's a nice enough room, and I have the space to have my work laptop setup in a semi-permanent fashion on the large desk with a large monitor and mouse and keyboard that Evan was kind enough to help me with.

Logging onto the laptop, then the VPN to work, I started in on the day, checking emails and having a short meeting over videoconference. I work for the municipality of West Vancouver, so I won't bore you with the details of my day-to-day work life. It's a typical office job for the government, and one I enjoy doing honestly. And having a job in these times that I can do remotely is, as I've said, a truly fortunate thing.

A few hours later I went back upstairs to have an early lunch and while in the kitchen heard what sounded like a large boar or maybe a wounded elk falling down the stairs. I smiled to myself as Evan, in shorts and a tshirt, his eyes half closed with sleep and hair tussled adorably, stumbled into the room and headed for the cabinet to grab a mug. For such an athletic young man he sure clomps down the steps like a marching band even when he's not half asleep.

"Hi Mom," he said, giving me a quick hug and kiss on the cheek. I beamed, as I do every time, in sheer joy at his thoughtfulness. Evan is maybe an inch over 6 feet tall, with thick brown hair and the sort of warm brown eyes that melted hearts since he was a baby. His small waist and broad shoulders hint at his love of sports growing up, and his kind disposition makes me so proud as his mother that I could burst. Now he's almost 20 years old, and every time I look at him I see the quiet, shy boy he used to be and the wonderful man he's becoming. And, very handsome. And no that's not just me talking as his mother!

"And good morning to you to, and here we are before noon!" I was happy to see him, and thrilled he and his sister were home for the summer, but that doesn't mean I can't make little digs about their indulgent lifestyles.

"I was up a little late last night, playing videogames with my buddies," he said. "Then we moved from Discord to Zoom to catch up and I lost track of time."

Honestly, I'm not sure what he meant but I know that Zoom is the videochatting app so I assume he had a call with his friends. "Sounds fun honey, I'm glad you're keeping in touch with your friends... remotely."

Much like his father, Evan was not fooled. "I know Mom, I'm not sneaking out to go party with dozens of people in some tiny enclosed space. We both keep our outside interactions limited to the outdoors and we're as safe as possible."

I hugged him again, tightly, feeling the firm muscles of his chest against my cheek as he wrapped me up in his strong arms. "Thank you Evan, I know you and Ella are both bored as heck being stuck at home this much but I truly appreciate you guys humouring me."

Honestly, both of my children take the pandemic quite seriously, something not everyone their age can say I'm afraid, but it's nice to reinforce their caution. Evan is a naturally serious young man, and while his sister can be more rebellious she is very much a budding engineer and is inclined to trust science and data and is extremely dedicated to doing her part for society even if she wishes she was out sunbathing with her friends at the beach. And thank God for that, Ella is stubborn as a mountain goat.

As I enjoyed my long hug the headstrong daughter in question appeared. She was also dressed like a university student with no plans or obligations for the day, in pajama pants and a halter top, although she was a bit more awake than her twin.

"Morning Mom," she said as she grabbed a glass and some orange juice from the fridge. A tiny bit reluctantly, I released Evan from the hug and let him get back to his coffee.

"Good barely-still-morning to you too Ella," I said, "any plans for you guys today?"

With a sigh Ella shrugged, "Not much, I ordered that package that they somehow sent to the distribution center instead of delivering here so I have to drive down to pick it up. Ev said he'd go with me this afternoon, something to do."

A flicker of unease, and I said, "Oh, ok I guess."

Before I could say anything else Ella nodded gave me a half smirk, "We know Mom, we will just be getting out of the house and driving around. No secret trips to a crowded underground coffee shop or anything."

Ok, having everyone teasing me about being worried about a global pandemic that's sickened millions was getting a bit stale. With a bit of honest annoyance I said, "Just because some shops are reopening is no reason to take chances! Unless you need to go somewhere maybe just hang around the house instead. I know it's boring and not how you imagined you'd spend your summer but it would make your dear old mother sleep easier at night."

Before Ella could reply I felt Evan reach around and give my shoulder a squeeze, saying, "We know Mom and we are very careful. El would kick my ass if I said we should go anywhere that wasn't taking things seriously or meeting with people in groups indoors." As he so often did, Evan smoothly stepped between his sister and I in order to head off a potential argument.

But I was being overly nervous, not about the pandemic as I'm very sure I was treating the situation with the correct amount of concern, but about my family's reaction to it. They were all very careful and I needed to trust them... it was just hard sometimes when you've spent a half hour looking at Twitter and seeing other places around the world spiraling into public health catastrophe!

With a sigh and a smile of thanks at Evan I said, "I know you both are careful, and I am very glad about it. Thanks, it helps me stay sane!"

"We won't be doing anything risky, we never do," Ella promised.

I let the topic drop and went back to my early lunch, which was mostly just a break away from the basement office. The kids finished their drinks and then, giving each other a wordless look, disappeared out of the kitchen.

Just before I got up I saw I had missed a message from Scott. Opening my iPad I saw that he said he'd be home for lunch, which was rare for him. He had sent it over 20 minutes ago, and I was just about to reply to his message to ask why when the front door opened.

Scott walked into the kitchen and smiled, "Hi again."

He was putting his stuff on the kitchen island, including his work bag. "Uh, hello back. Home for lunch? Is that why you parked in the driveway?" If he was leaving again soon it would explain why he didn't park in the garage.

"Yes," he said slowly. Curious, and something about his manner was off. I didn't get a chance to interrogate him because he said, "It turns out one of the workers in the office below our firm tested positive for Covid."

I gasped and felt a flush of fear in my stomach, so Scott quickly continued, "Not in our offices! The law firm on the other floor. No one that was in our office, and apparently they self-isolated as soon as they felt symptoms. But building management wanted to clean the stairwells, elevators and everything properly, just in case. The other partners and I felt that, even thought it's very unlikely anyone from our office would have been in any of the same spaces they were, we would close down and get the whole place deep cleaned."

"Oh god. Well, that isn't as bad as it could be," I was relieved. I've been to Scott's office plenty and know the other businesses don't use the same entrances or common areas. "And I'm glad you are just closing down for a bit and getting it cleaned just in case."

Scott nodded, "Absolutely, we wanted the staff to know we took it seriously. Most of them are working from home anyway. Guess I will be for a few days too!"

After the brief alarm, I was happy to know that Scott wasn't going to be at his office even if for a short time. "Well we can make my old sewing room into another office I suppose. I don't mind sharing the office with you, but I'm on calls a fair bit most days."

"Oh yeah I'll be fine on my laptop somewhere else, it's just for a few days." Scott opened the fridge and started rummaging, "Well, guess I can have the leftover turkey for sandwiches at least. Is Evan home? I wanted to ask him about something."

I stood up, it was about time for me to get back to work. "Yes the kids are still home." I was about to return to the basement when I remembered I needed to grab something from my bedroom. I climbed the stairs to the second floor where all the bedrooms are and started down the hallway. The bathroom door was open and I looked into Ella's bedroom out of curiosity but it was empty.

Not thinking much of it I took a few more steps towards the master bedroom when I looked into Evan's room through the wide-open door.

The first thing I saw was Ella's bare ass pointing at me. She was entirely naked, kneeling on her brother's bed. Evan was flat on his back, also nude, and he was just opening his eyes and turning his head to the doorway. I heard a sudden loud sucking sound as Ella enthusiastically worked her brother's large cock in her mouth.

I gasped in shock. Behind me I could hear the sound of someone climbing the stairs. Evan was now looking at me, his mouth opening to say something.

"Your Dad is home!" I hissed as quietly as I could while wishing I could yell, "He's coming up the stairs now!"

Better Than Breakfast

-Evan-

Summer was feeling strange, but naturally everything was strange in 2020. Even now it's hard for me to remember how, in January and through a lot of February, I was aware of a mysterious new disease but it felt like a distant concern, until it wasn't. Then school was shut down, Ella and I had to finish our courses remotely, amid a growing health concern and then a wave of protest over long-simmering racial injustice around the world. For a few months, every day felt brand new in a frankly scary way. Then, every day started to feel the exact same, like time had no meaning anymore.

But through it all, I had Ella with me every step. If one of us was nervous about the world or the health of our loved ones, we'd sit and hug on the couch and talk about it. If we were upset about politics or angry about injustice, we'd always have our twin there to help us deal. And then when mom started asking us to stay at home with her and dad more we naturally agreed, until finally in May we basically were home for good again. We settled back into what I though of as our "teenage routines" at home, because while there is good reason to think our dad is at least partially aware of our secret love he has never really said a thing about it so we don't either.

So now it's late June and we have been home for over a month now. The true panic of the first flash of pandemic is past and we are doing well, but life has changed in so many ways large and small. It's funny how I want to describe to you what it was like, but I guess I don't need to. Virtually anyone who would be reading my story probably went through something very similar in many ways.

I've been doing more writing while at home, but even that's been hard. We can't work, there is no school, we have nowhere to really go and few things to do... I can't believe it but somehow I'm bored with videogames and Netflix and any pastime I can feasibly do. Ella is clearly going bonkers with ennui, and I guess I am too, but we know how angry and disappointed in us mom would be if we broke her rules needlessly. And frankly I can't imagine how badly I'd feel if I selfishly went to hang out with a group of friends, got exposed to Covid, and then gave it to someone else.

Regardless, it's been dull and my sister and I are low-key worried about university next year and our future and then feeling guilty about being in such a comfortable and privileged position that I can be bored. I'm sure there are plenty of people working minimum wage jobs in grocery stores and food processing plants, scared to death of getting sick, trying to support their families because they can't afford to not work. Those people sure as hell wouldn't mind being 'bored' in my place. In our nice house with everything we could want, not having to work or worry about money.

And yet it's still so tedious!

June the 23rd was basically like almost every other day for weeks up to that point. I messed around playing video games until very late that night, tried to get some writing done, and had a nice make out session with Ella on the couch for a bit after mom and dad went to bed. The next day, Wednesday the 24th, seemed to promise basically the same thing.

Mom was having lunch when I went downstairs to get a drink. I remember giving her a nice hug, which she seems to like and naturally I love it too. Ella came in and mom asked about our plans for the day, and Ella made a joke about us going to pick up a package and then heading to some illegal, packed coffee shop.

"Just because some shops are reopening is no reason to take chances! Unless you need to go somewhere maybe just hang around the house instead. I know it's boring and not how you imagined you'd spend your summer but it would make your dear old mother sleep easier at night." Mom got pretty annoyed when we teased her about going out in public and doing dumb shit.

She was probably more irritated because I had made a joke about it too just minutes before (it's hard to not, gently teasing mom is always fun) so I felt like I should jump back in. "We know mom and we are very careful. El would kick my ass if I said we should go anywhere that wasn't taking things seriously or meeting with people in groups indoors." It's very true, El may joke about catching the 'rona but she's definitely more diligent about it than I am.

Mom was mollified, and while I finished my coffee everyone agreed to be careful and so on and so forth. I understand how it's harder for my mom, she works from home and has had her life more constrained by the situation than any of us - El and I may not have much to do but at least we can hang out in the backyard or go jogging. Mom has to sit in the basement and work longer hours because she's not at the office, which clearly makes her job more difficult.

As I was drinking my coffee and waking up I happened to notice Ella's thin halter top and her lack of a bra. We dressed properly at home again with dad around El hadn't fully reverted to her old sleepwear routine, and I was treated to her prominent nipples and some significant cleavage.

I looked up and Ella winked at me as she sipped her juice, then tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. She's been growing her hair longer the past year, and now it was past her shoulders. She had dyed it a lighter shade of brown, closer to mom's reddish-blonde hair, and going to a hairdresser to get her hair colour done again when the salons reopened had been one of the few "non essential" things that my mom hadn't frowned about. Probably because mom had desperately wanted a hair cut too.

As mom was muttering about the news - sadly someone had passed away from Covid that day, the third day in a row someone in BC died - Ella kept looking at me. We hadn't had much chance to be as intimate as we'd like to due to being back at home. We still snuck off for quickies on the regular but when we were at our apartment on campus we'd have sex at least once a day and often twice. The uncertainty when we had returned home, the confusion and anxiety of it all, had really thrown us off in a lot of ways, not least of which was our secret relationship.