“I’ve been selfish. Chris’s death devastated me, but I never took the time to consider how you all must have felt.” She pauses. “Still feel.” Looking at Candy again, she adds, “I know you loved him as much as I did.”
“We all loved him.” Her dad’s voice cracks as he says it. “We all love you, too.”
“I know.” Colette’s eyes begin to shimmer. Tears are imminent. “What I didn’t realize was how my reaction to his death impacted you all. I didn’t mean for you to focus your attention on me when you should have been mourning.”
“You were eighteen, Colette.” Her mom makes a good point. “We understood what it meant to lose a twin. The two of you…” Sonia starts to cry. “Were two peas in a pod.”
“We were.” Colette nods. “But it shouldn’t have been about me.”
“But it was,” Candy snaps bitterly.
“Knock it off, Candy. This is what you wanted, right?” Connie’s showing some balls. Finally. “You wanted her to see what it’s been like for the rest of us and she’s doing that.”
“What I’m trying to say is it should have been about all of us. I realized,” Colette turns to her parents, “the reason for the Funday Sundays was your way of keeping us together.”
Sonia nods. “We were worried. Death. Loss like ours can devastate a family. We needed a way to bond.”
“Funny, then, how you never want to participate in those family moments.”
“Jesus, Candy. Let it go,” Carla snaps. “We’re all here to heal. You hanging on to the bad shit isn’t what we need right now.”
Candy is staring at Carla. Her eyes start to flutter so fast, it reminds me of a hummingbird. “I––” She sniffles. “I’m just tired of it being about her. It should have always been about Chris.”
The room goes quiet. Well, except for the sniffling. I think they’re all crying. Looking over at Steve, I see him using his cloth handkerchief to wipe his eyes. Even he’s crying.
Shit. This is heavy.
“Okay, then.” Candy is like a dog with a goddamn bone. “Let’s talk about Dad’s affair.”
“No.” Sonia snaps. “That”—she points at Candy—“is not up for discussion.”
“But, Mom…”
“What happened between your father and me is none of your business, Candy.”
I’d love to high-five Sonia right now, but I stay put.
“You shouldn’t have told Colette about it. But you couldn’t help yourself. Could you?”
“Mom.” Colette steps into the fray. “I’m glad she told me. And you’re right, it’s none of our business. I’m just glad you two worked it out. Knowing the background and seeing how you two fought for your marriage.” Colette glances at me. “It’s a good lesson for all of us to learn. When something’s worth fighting for…” She takes a moment to look at each of her sisters. “You fight.”
I’d love to tell you that Colette’s words impacted Candy in a positive way, but it didn’t seem to work.
“Fucking bullshit,” Candy mumbles. “Always her way.” She stomps to the front door, pushes the screen door open, and leaves.
Reaching out, I wrap my arm around Colette’s waist and pull her in. “You okay?” I ask as the door shuts behind her.
“No.” She shakes her head. “Candy…”
“Give her time, Colly.” Steve pats Colette on the arm. “She’s been holding on to this anger for a long time. Give her time.”
As soon as the last of Colette’s family leaves, we turn to face each other.
“Can you believe my family saw your naked ass?”
Her question startles a snort out of me. “Just wait until one of our kids walks in on us.”
Colette makes a choking sound. “Excuse me?”
