Almost fourteen, she was perfect—beautiful, intelligent, popular. Boys looked twice at her and girls her age wanted to be her. Where her classmates were into K-pop and anime, my mother was constantly entering Eliana in beauty pageants. Often comparing her two daughters, she called Eliana the lead character in a movie and me the sub-standard side whose name you forgot way before the credits began rolling. I always joked that she was preening Eliana for her debutante’s ball, something still in existence with the high society crowd and a feat she hadn’t bothered with me.
I didn’t care because I loved my sister. We fought, laughed, competed on silly things, and danced like typical sisters. Nothing or no one would change that. Given my affinity for history, we’d stolen a rule from the Three Musketeers. All for one and one for all. Simply put. No matter the ordeal, consequence, or issue, we had each other’s backs.
“So, the first day of our senior year, can you believe it?” Grace piped an hour later as we came together in a quick hug and then followed the flow of students into the large red brick building.
“Honestly, I can’t wait for it to be over.”
“So, you can go back to your father,” she pouted.
“You can always come to visit,” I consoled, linking my fingers with hers.
“Yeah, between my mother flaunting me to pedestrian gentlemen, my father’s obsession with Harvard, and my indecision of where I’d like to study—granted, as far away as possible would be nice—where would I find the time.” She groaned, reminding me that she came from extreme wealth, unlike me. Her way older than my parents had planned her life the second she walked out of the womb right down to the type of man she’d married. I wasn’t sure if that was liberating or shackling. I didn’t blame them though. As an only child, they’d waited a long time to have, they spoiled her rotten.
“Easy,” I retorted. “I can be your far away as possible option.”
She turned widening eyes on me. “Don’t tempt me, Lee, I just might take you up on that. Daddy’s driving me nuts and mummy’s—well, mummy.” Then she sighed. “Enough about me, how was your break?”
“It’s been happening again.”
“The dream?” she asked. I nodded. “This is like the fourth time, right?”
“More like the tenth.” I kicked an imaginary stone on the tiled floors. “I mean, it’s creepy right? Waking to those words and unable to remember anything else.”
“Have you spoken to anyone about it—”
“Yeah, like who?” I snapped, then let out a frustrated sigh. “I’m sorry, Grace, I’m being an ass.”
Laughing, she shoulder-bumped me. “What about that fortune-teller we saw at the shopping center? Maybe she can help.”
“You know I don’t believe in that hocus pocus nonsense. They’re just in it for the money,” I grumbled.
“Don’t be such a skeptic, Lee,” she scolded.
“Yes, mother hen,” I chuckled, earning a hard rib poke. “Ouch.” I rubbed the spot. “But seriously, though. Can someone really predict the future?”
“Well, whatever you believe, Aunty Bethany once told me that witchcraft and fortune-telling were real in the old days. People were hanged or burned for practicing all sorts of black magic.”
“And I thought I was the only one who believes in history, well real history,” I retorted. Aunty Bethany was Grace’s mom’s sister and a lovely person with an even sweeter personality. “Strange, Aunty Bethany would believe in those things.”
Grace lifted her shoulders in a slight shrug as we reached our lockers and the din in the hallway grew louder with new and old kids greeting their friends. “All I’m saying is that you should give it a try,” she shouted to be heard. “What do you have to lose? Not like you have any other options right now, do you? And it isn’t about predicting the future, she reads your dream or something like that.”
“I’ll think about it,” I replied, knowing I wouldn’t.
