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</div></div><br/><br/>From an early age, Ever Kasala appreciated the rain. His parents regularly encouraged him, his brother and sister to play outside. Rain or shine, Ever was in his backyard digging, building, playing hide and seek, planting vegetables in the garden, or building sunflower teepees with Moon and Ladybug. Children in their neighborhood were either parked in front of their televisions watching Nickelodeon or Cartoon Network after school or playing XBox or Playstation for hours.<br/><br/><i>Not the <a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=https%3A%2F%2Fs-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com%2F564x%2F18%2Fd1%2F9f%2F18d19f25922c5ecbfe8760c5fe814996.jpg&amp;hash=e4f58532a4caf62872ab153525050edd" href="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/18/d1/9f/18d19f25922c5ecbfe8760c5fe814996.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc noopener" target="_blank">Kasala family.</a></i><br/><br/>Ever's family had no television in their house, and no video games. There were board games to play, no electronic or battery operated toys whatsoever. Saraya and Sorrel nudged their children to use their imaginations. So they built forts out of sheets and chairs, or if the kids were lucky, they made castles out of empty refrigerator boxes their father found on the side of the street. When Ever was younger, he spent unstructured time playing in the stream running along the edge of his parents' property, looking for frogs and salamanders and learning about their habitat.<br/><br/>It<i> always </i>rained in Seattle, and Ever was always seen wearing his raincoat and boots outside while he stomped around in the mud, slid down the slippery grass slope on his ass, or rescued earthworms from drowning in the rain puddles on the patio. Nature itself provided Ever with an endless variety of toys, and he never seemed to be bored or lacking from not participating in the instant gratification, over scheduled, rushed lifestyles of the other children who were part of his generation.<br/><i><br/>
What kid didn't like camping under the stars, or catching fireflies in a Mason jar on a warm July evening? </i><br/><br/>Some of Ever's fondest memories were of outdoor places and activities, like his favorite climbing tree or the secret hiding place he and his big brother built themselves. Or the memories of when he learned to turn cartwheels with his friends, and playing tag with his family dog,<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=https%3A%2F%2Fs-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com%2F564x%2F99%2Fd2%2Fb1%2F99d2b12aeb3e316136c2a64c74d9c1ca.jpg&amp;hash=078ec7a6f3d9f4dcfd26babda933d984" href="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/99/d2/b1/99d2b12aeb3e316136c2a64c74d9c1ca.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc noopener" target="_blank">Karma.</a>He could almost smell the lilacs that his mother planted in her garden, relishing the way the sun felt on his skin the first day it was warm enough to go outside without a jacket, or the way a freshly picked ear of corn from the garden tasted when his dad grilled it for a dinner together at their backyard picnic table.<br/><br/>It was a slice of life that he looked forward to experiencing when he returned home tomorrow. Moon was home for the summer after a successful spring semester in graduate school, and that usually meant some time to meditate and perform asanas with his Mom on a yoga mat in the sunroom at dawn, sharing a healthy breakfast at the family table afterwards while catching up on current events, helping his Dad with a few chores and offering his feedback on the recipes that Sorrel was submitting for a cookbook he was publishing in the fall. Ever planned on bringing his<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mashballgame.com%2Fhow-to-play%2F&amp;hash=8c73f4cad11871bd4df066f381c66dd9" href="http://www.mashballgame.com/how-to-play/" rel="nofollow ugc noopener" target="_blank">Mash Ball</a>set home with him this weekend, because it was a fun and interactive backyard game he knew his family would enjoy playing.<br/><br/>The game would go in the trunk of his Nissan Leaf along with a hamper of dirty linen, and his weekend bag that was already packed and ready to go for the trip tomorrow. He had intended to pack his car early, but the grocery shopping trip took precedence after he discovered that there was no food in the fridge for next week. It was sheer impulse for Ever to invite someone over that he didn't know well, but he wanted to know Magnus and Klaus better. A strange tingling sensation passed between Klaus and through Ever's hand as the remote for the Bose was passed over. It made his arm feel like it had fallen asleep, and as he walked back to the kitchen, Ever was wringing his hand to awaken the nerves.<br/><br/>As time passed, Ever emptied the reusable grocery bags, folding them up and putting them away in the cabinet while stocking his refrigerator. When the tea kettle on the stove began to boil, the shrill squeal of steam that erupted from the spout alerted him to start fixing tea for his guests. Ever peeked in the cabinet for three small porcelain cups, and collected some utensils for the tea from a drawer. He glanced at the twins through the pass-through window in the kitchen, and grinned as they answered his question.<i>Sort of</i>. Magnus requested honey, and Ever had four different varieties.<br/><br/>"Um, Magnus? I have blueberry honey, wildflower honey, clover honey and avocado honey. Do you have a preference? If you haven't tried avocado honey, it's delicious," Ever suggested.<br/><br/>He held up a jar of honey with a dark amber color, and continued to speak. "It feels smooth and silky on the tongue. It has a very bold flavor profile with somewhat of a burnt, smoky, molasses taste."<br/><br/>Ever sifted a few spoonfuls of powdered Matcha into a glass bowl, taking a small metal whisk from the utensil drawer and beating it with hot water from the tea kettle to give the<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=https%3A%2F%2Fs-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com%2F236x%2F31%2F5a%2Fec%2F315aec603dfbbcaf5e2c15eff6dba49c.jpg&amp;hash=d870847723b6704301ffabbb36ce1fa4" href="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/31/5a/ec/315aec603dfbbcaf5e2c15eff6dba49c.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc noopener" target="_blank">Usicha</a>a nice frothy texture. Klaus asked for the tea without any honey or milk at all, and his was poured into a cup first. He grabbed a silver charger from the counter, placing the cup of tea upon the tray along with the two other cups that he poured. Three spoons were added to the tray, along with the avocado honey, wildflower and blueberry honey. He carefully carried the tray into the living room and set it down on the coffee table between Klaus and Magnus.<br/><br/>"It's a pleasure having you both here. I think besides my Mom, Dad, brother and sister, you're my first guests," chuckled Ever.<br/><br/>Quite the conversation had started between the twins, and some of their remarks caused Ever to question the reason why he'd invited them to his duplex. Needing time to digest their topic of discussion, he turned and vanished back into the kitchen to clean up his mess, placing the bowl and utensils he used to make the Matcha into the sink so he could wash them later. When Ever returned, he sat down sideways on the chaise portion of the sofa so he could face the coffee table and the twins. He picked up his cup from the tray, canting his head slightly towards Klaus as he offered his two cents worth.<br/><br/><i>“Kind, but reckless,” Klaus interjected cheekily, his voice a low hum as his fingers drummed impatiently on Magnus' thigh, eager to begin the game.</i><br/><br/>"Reckless? What makes you say that?" Ever grinned, wondering what had provoked that judgment from Klaus.<br/><br/>Or was it Klaus? It might be Magnus.<br/><br/>Ever observed their strange banter while trying to guess who was who. The conversation swung back and forth like a game of mental tennis between the twins, until one of them asked a question meant for Ever to answer.<br/><br/><i>“Ever,” Magnus called, his beaming face tainted with concupiscence. “You wouldn't consider us dangerous, would you? Do we give off a foreboding aura? Does gazing upon our countenance send tremors running down your spine and inspire in you a feeling of deep, overwhelming anticipation?”</i><br/><br/>It was probably the lecherous gleam in his blue eyes that gave Magnus' identity away, and it caused Ever to sit there with the hot cup of Matcha tea frozen at his lips. Caught in a moment of blowing against the rim of his cup, it would be a rare moment that Ever would have a premonition of his own doom. For anyone else though, he would have foreseen something bad on the horizon long before this moment. He wasn't sure how to answer Magnus' question, but there was a nervous twitch of his lips into a brief, yet uncomfortable grin that didn't communicate the same sentiment in his olive eyes. Ever almost didn't acknowledge Magnus' question, allowing his shoulders to hunch up and down with a simple shrug and a short hoot of laughter.<br/><br/>"You are quite a comedian. Seriously, I have no idea of what we're talking about. If you were dangerous, I guess its too late isn't it? You're already here. I invited you in." Ever responded.<br/><br/>He didn't know why the weird conversation and Magnus' question made him feel uneasy, but it did. Ever wanted to change the topic to something more pleasant and less foreboding.<br/><br/>"I hope you enjoy your tea. Matcha is best enjoyed while its hot, because of the antioxidant properties." Ever suggested, gesturing towards the tray.<br/><br/>"The dark jar of honey is the avocado, Magnus. If you want to try it out. The medium-amber one is the blueberry honey, and the lighter one is the clover honey," replied Ever.<br/><br/>Hopefully that would steer the conversation away from the dark side. Ever sipped his cup, while listening to the music. Another property of the tea was to relax frazzled nerves, and Ever certainly needed it right now.<br/>