6,000 Miles (Station 19)

Goodbye, Goodbye

Carina's POV:

I woke up to sunlight gently streaming in from behind the curtain and the sound of Adelina's sweet laugh. That sound has made me smile her whole life, no matter what; even today. I got up and wandered into the kitchen to see what she was laughing about and found her at the kitchen counter drinking coffee with Maya.

"Good morning beautiful," Maya smiled as she got up and poured me a cup of coffee.

"Thank you bella," I said, taking the mug from her and letting it's warmth send a slight shiver through my body. I took a slow sip and turned to my sister. "How did you sleep, bambina?"

She shrugged, then directed my attention to the paper bags on the counter. "Maya and I went for a run and got breakfast!" she smiled excitedly. I stepped closer and saw that they were from my favorite bakery. A smile spread across my face as I opened the bag and pulled out a chocolate croissant. Passing the bag over to Addie, I took a seat at the counter and felt Maya's arms wrap around my waist. Standing behind me, she kissed my cheek and rested her chin on my shoulder. I leaned back into her, getting as much comfort as I could before I had to start getting things ready for the memorial later.

We all chatted for a little while as we had pastries and coffee. When we had all finished and cleared our dishes, I could feel Adelina's questioning eyes on me. I sighed and walked over to her, leaning back against the counter. "Alright bambina," I said slowly, tucking her a stray hair back behind her ear. "We should get ready. We need to leave by 11." She nodded and quietly headed back to her room.

I should have done the same but I couldn't convince my legs to move; I was frozen. Maya looked up from the coffee pot she was washing and could see the struggle in my eyes. Quickly drying her hands, she came over and took my hands in hers as she stood in front of me. I looked at her helplessly, suddenly having no idea how I was going to be able to do any of the things that today had in store.

"Take your time my love," she said gently. "Everything can happen at your pace today. I know it's hard, but it's going to be okay."

"I can't.." I started, my voice breaking. I stopped before I fully started to cry.

"Just do what you can." Maya reached up and wiped a single tear from my cheek. "And anything you can't do, I will. Okay?"

I nodded as I took a deep shaky breath. "Yeah, okay" I replied. More trying to convince myself that I could do this than anything else.

Adelina's POV:

I stood in front of the mirror, analyzing the black dress that hung from my small frame. It looked off to me, not quite right, but is there really a right thing to wear to your brother's funeral?

I decided my outfit was fine enough and went to the bathroom to dry my hair and put on some make-up. I needed to cover the dark circles under my eyes: a dead giveaway that I hadn't slept. Once I looked more awake, I pulled the top half of my hair back into a small bun and tied a black ribbon around it.

When I had myself ready, I headed toward Carina's room and saw her standing in front of the mirror, holding a necklace in her hands. I walked in and as I got closer, I saw that it was our mom's necklace. She used to wear it every day. It's a simple gold chain with three small birthstones on it: one for me, Carina, and Andrea.

Coming up behind her, I carefully took the necklace and secured it around her neck. "Noi tre, sempre," I whispered as I smoothed her hair back down over her shoulders. The three of us, always. She turned around and tried to put a fake smile on her face.

"Don't" I told her.

She looked confused, so I continued. "Don't pretend you're okay for me. I know you're not because I'm not either. And that's okay. You don't have to be brave and strong for me. We can be sad together. Pretending everything's fine only ever makes it worse."