Sisters

“...eight, nine, ten. Ready or not, here I come!” I yelled down the long hall. My voice bounced off of the old, wooden walls. My breath was shaky as I tiptoed along the ugly green carpet Sister Nancy said she’d replace before I turned 13.

I felt the wiry carpet crunch beneath my worn shoes. Around me stood five doors, two on either side and one down the hall. Beth and I called that hallway our kingdom. No one ever went that way, except to store an old, beat up chair or to gather more blankets when it was cold. But, from about April to October, it was just us, me and Beth.

From the corner of my eye, I saw a flash of white. Beth. She always wore this beautiful, white dress with pink flowers stitched into it. She told me her mother had sewn each one on individually and had pricked herself at least a million times with the needle. Every time she did, she’d suck on her finger for a few seconds, shake off her hand, and go back to sewing.

“Come out, come out, wherever you are!” I sang out, keeping my eyes wide open for another flash of white. A doorknob turned and I swung around.

Nothing.

A door creaked a tiny bit, just enough for someone to peak out, and slammed behind me. I swung around again.

Still, nothing.

My heart felt like a basketball dribbling inside my chest. I backed up against a wall so I could see both sides of the hallway clearly. She couldn’t have gone down the stairs, I would’ve heard her footsteps! I thought. 

I lifted myself off of the wall and started walking toward the door at the end of the hall. I reached out my hand to turn the knob.

“Gotcha! My turn again!”

My heart was in my stomach as I jumped up and felt Beth’s hand on my shoulder.

“Beth! You almost gave me a heart attack!”

“Oh, come on, Danny! How did you miss me?”

“Well it is pretty late, you know. I can barely see anything!” That was a lie. I could see just fine; I just couldn’t let Beth know that she was better at hide-and-seek than me.

“Shoot! You’re right. We better get to our room,” Beth said earnestly.

We locked hands and started walking back to our room we shared with four other girls; Sabrina, Alice, Mary, and Laura.

We were almost to our room when we heard footsteps behind us.

“What are you doing up?”

We turned around to see Sister Nancy’s long nose pointing at us. Her glasses were at the very edge, a hair away from falling off.

“Sister!” I started, “We were just-”

“Not another word, Danielle. It’s half past nine. You should have been in bed an hour ago. You have a big day tomorrow, you know.”

I looked down at her black, shiny shoes. “Yes, Sister.”

Her cold hand found my cheek, and it startled me. “Maybe tomorrow’s the day,” she whispered to me. A small smile crept across her lips, and her green eyes glinted in the candlelight.

I smiled, pressing my cheek against her palm. “Maybe.”

She nodded at me, turned around, and went on her way to check on the other girls’ rooms.

“She’s scary,” Beth said from behind me. She had her hands behind her back and her eyes were like white orbs.

“She’s not that bad! You know she loves all of us,” I looked at her. She gave a slight frown. “In her own way.”

“I guess,” she sighed.

“Well that’s why tomorrow is so important!” I exclaimed softly, as to not wake the other sleeping girls.

“This is the fourth time this month. What makes tomorrow different?” Beth asked, climbing into my bed. It was already small as it was, but Beth didn’t like sleeping alone.

“I don’t know,” I shrugged. “Sister Nancy says I just have to believe someone will take me home. If I pray hard enough, someone will come. I have a good feeling about it.”

“You say that everytime. And everytime you end up staying while someone else goes to a new home.”

“But, maybe this time will be different.”

“Maybe,” Beth said, her eyes already closed and her head resting on her hands. She looked like she was praying.

I got under the covers with her and took the small flashlight I found at the park out from under my mattress. I clicked it on. Beth’s face was white in the darkness. Her eyes were still closed, but she was smiling.

“Beth,” I whispered.

“Hmm?”

“What if they take us both?”

“What do you mean?”

“Tomorrow, what if they take us both? What if we go to a new home together? Then we can really be sisters.”

“That would be cool!” Beth whispered sharply. “Maybe we could get matching bicycles and clothes. Then people would think we’re twins!”

“Almost,” I giggled. “Your hair is bright red, though, and mine is brown. No one would believe we’re twins!”

“I still think they would,” she said, putting her hand on mine. “You’re my sister, anyway, Danny.”

“You’re mine, too.”

Before I heard her say anything back, I was already fast asleep.

The next morning I awoke with way too much space on my bed. The flashlight was still on, but very dim. I need new batteries, I thought.

I pulled the sheet over my head. The sun painted yellow lines across the wooden floor. I looked all around the room, but couldn’t find Beth. The other girls were still asleep, but not for long. I heard the Sisters downstairs scooting around in their shiny shoes and smelled the faint aroma of coffee.

“Beth?” I whispered. Sabrina stirred in the bed next to me. Other than the sound of their breathing, the room was silent. Maybe she’s downstairs already.

I went to my trunk at the edge of the bed. It was the only thing I brought with me when I first came to the home. I opened it up and dug all the way to the bottom to find my velvet, green dress with a white ribbon tied around the waist. I hadn’t worn it in so long, but it had always been my favorite. That day felt like the right day to finally wear it. I took out a pair of fresh, white socks, my black shoes, and started getting ready.

When I found myself downstairs, I looked everywhere for Beth: under the stairs, in the garden, sitting on our favorite couch, but nothing. I was about to ask Sister Nancy if she had seen Beth, but she stopped me before I could speak.

“Danielle, good morning! You’re the first one up. Come to the table, now, and have some breakfast. Big day!” She led me to the table and I sat in the same chair hopefully for the last time. I picked up my spoon. “Ah-ah,” began Sister Nancy. “Are we forgetting something?”

I put down the spoon gently. “Excuse me, Sister, I’m sorry.” I pressed my hands together and began to pray: “God is good, God is great, let us thank him for our food, Amen.”

“Thank you, dear. Now eat up. People should be arriving soon.”

About an hour later, the first people started to arrive. As usual, Sabrina and Mary seemed to be the more popular ones. What with their long, dark hair and how talkative they were, it was easy for them. I could never figure out why they hadn’t been chosen yet. Sister Nancy always said that God had a plan, even if we couldn’t see it.

More people started to arrive with their eager eyes and their hands staying locked with each other. It always felt like they were at a zoo and we were the pandas hoping to be held. They all seemed to have the same look in their eyes, too. It was a mix between eagerness and fear. I never understood the “fear” part. We were just little girls who wanted to be daughters.

I started to feel worried about Beth. Where was she? Today was the first day in almost two years that I hadn’t seen her. Surely, one of the other girls had seen her get ready or come downstairs.

I saw Sabrina heading toward the kitchen with an empty cup. “Hey Sabrina!” I called out.

She looked at me as if I had a dead bug on my face. “What do you want, weirdo?”

I looked around. “Don’t let Sister Nancy hear you talk like that,” I whispered.

She rolled her eyes. “Look, I’m trying to get more punch for that nice lady over there,” she gestured to the right where a tall, blonde woman stood. Her hair was pulled into an elegant updo and her heels had red on the bottom. She was beautiful.

“She’s pretty,” I said, still staring.

“Yes, she is, and she likes me. So if you don’t mind,” she said turning away. “I need to go. I don’t have time for your games.”

I raised my hand in protest, but dropped it. I didn’t want to get in the way of her. Sabrina had been in the home longer than I had.

As the day went on, more people shuttled in and out of the home. Just as Sabrina thought, that woman did like her. In fact, she loved her and spoke to Sister Nancy immediately about taking Sabrina home. Everything was all lined up for her and with one last wave, Sabrina was gone, leaving another empty bed.

I went into the drawing room to find some time to think. It had been almost a full day since I’d seen Beth. Where is she? Could she have gone home to another family? No, she wouldn’t do that and not tell me. What about the promise we made? About becoming real sisters? We made a promise. She wouldn’t break that.

While I was mixed up with my thoughts, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around slowly to find a man and woman looking down at me, their eyes filled with only eagerness, no fear.

“Hello,” the woman said. Her red, curly hair bouncing as she nodded. Her eyes were a rich green, almost like the color of my dress. “My name is Ana. This is my husband, Jacob.” She put her arm around her husband. He was taller than her, but not by much. His hair was black with the beginnings of white at the sides. He wore black rimmed glasses. He smiled back at me.

After a while, I truly liked them. They were funny, sweet, and very much in love. They touched each other any chance they got. I felt like I was part of them. It felt right.

A week later, I was packing my trunk with my last things. I had my princess snowglobe, silver comb, and gold necklace I had on the day I came to the home. It got too small years ago, but I still kept it. The only thing I didn’t have was Beth. I hadn’t seen her since the night before I met Ana and Jacob, who were now going to be Mom and Dad. I stayed up nights waiting for her to curl up in my bed. I wanted to ask Sister Nancy or any of the girls about her, but I was embarrassed. I didn’t want to upset them.

“Danielle!” Sister Nancy chimed from downstairs. “They’re here for you!”

“I’m coming!” I answered. I closed my trunk with a snap of the belt and looked around the room. I hadn’t forgotten anything, but something was still missing.

“Beth,” I whispered into the darkness. “I don’t know where you are, but I’m sorry I’m leaving. Maybe that’s why you’re not here. Maybe you’re hiding. Maybe you made friends with the older girls. I’m sorry.” I wiped away a tear quickly. This is not the time for tears.

I ran downstairs, my footsteps ringing throughout the house.

Sister Nancy met me at the foot of the stairs. She tilted her head with a smile. Her eyes were glossed with tears. She kneeled in front of me and took my hands.

“Danielle, I’m so happy for you. I have a wonderful feeling about this family. I don’t want you to worry. They’re been through so much loss, but they’re going to take such good care of you.”

“Loss?” I asked.

Sister Nancy paused. Just then, the front door opened with Ana and Jacob. They smiled ear to ear when they saw me.

“There’s our girl!” Ana said, and she opened her arms so big I thought she could fit the whole world in them. I ran over to her and melted into her arms. She smelled like lavender. Sheh kissed me on the cheek and I could feel her red lipstick stay there, but I didn’t mind. In fact, I wished I never had to wash that cheek again.

“You all ready?” she asked, her hands on my shoulders.

“Yes,” I nodded. “I am.”

Sister Nancy walked over, her hands crossed in front of her.

“Please take care of our Danielle. She was such a light in this house, and she has a wonderful imagination. She might be shy for a while, but you’ll see,” she looked at me. “She’s one of a kind.

“Try not to worry, Sister,” Jacob said. “We will take care of and love her. We’re so grateful to you for making our family complete again.”

Sister Nancy gave a slight bow.

We looked at each other. I wanted to tell her thank you for everything and that I’d never forget her. But I realized while I looked into her eyes, that she already knew. So instead, she took my hand one last time, squeezed it ever so slightly, and let go.

After two hours, I was finally at the doorstep of my new home. The tall, blue door was mythical. I had never seen anything like it. The walls of the house were a soft white, almost yellow. Plants grew from every crevice and crack. It was stunning, and I got to live there.

“This is your house?” I asked without taking my eyes off of the door.

“No,” responded Ana. I looked at her quickly and felt my cheeks get red. “This is your house, Danny.”

I smiled so big I thought my cheeks would crack. She opened the door. I looked at her again. “Go ahead,” she said. “Look around. We’ll get everything.” She ran her fingers through my hair, and went back to the car to get my bags.

I turned around and took one step in the house. The wooden floors didn’t creak.

As I walked through the massive house, every step I took echoed throughout like a sermon in a church. Art covered the walls, there were enough couches for everyone to have three for themselves, and photographs were on every shelf.

While I looked at all of the beautiful photographs, my eyes fell on one. It was an older picture, back before Jacob had glasses. There were three people in the photo: Ana, Jacob, and a little girl. I stared at the picture for what seemed like hours.

“Hey, you! I see you’ve been exploring,” Ana said from behind me.

I jumped. “I’m so sorry! I was just looking. You have such beautiful things,” I said, embarrassed. I looked down at the floor.

“Sweetheart, this is your house now. You can go anywhere you’d like in here. All of this now belongs to you, too. I know it might be hard to get used to, but it’ll happen, I promise.” She looked over at the photograph I had been looking at, and her eyes glazed. Her shoulders fell slightly, and her smile eased.

“That’s one of my favorite pictures,” she said. “This was taken about two years ago.” She lifted the photo off of the shelf and touched it with her fingers. “We miss her all the time.” She placed the photo back on the shelf, and I looked again. The little girl was very pretty. She wore a white dress with pink flowers.

I looked up at her.

“This is your sister, Danielle. She’d be your age now, too. That was her favorite dress. She’d wear it for days on end. I’d have to wait until she was asleep to wash it!” A slight laugh left her lips, sprinkled with tears.

“It’s a very pretty dress,” I told her. “What was her name?”

She put her hands on my shoulders. “Beth.”