Diana Hargrove has gone through enough tragedy for three lifetimes, yet she still has an affirming smile on her face. She's lived and travelled all over the world, but the last straw that broke the camel's back, brought her back to her hometown, Cre...
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𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘺-𝘵𝘸𝘰 | 𝘌𝘮𝘪 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘪𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘳
A small part of my conscience wishes I could stay hidden under the blankets in my bedroom. No part of my body wanted to get dressed and go to a party tonight. I never want to go to parties, but this isn't just any party.
However, it's Emilia Russo's 18th birthday party.
Since it's Emi's birthday. That means it's also Jayden's birthday.
February 9th.
Every year while I was away, I'd buy two cupcakes and two candles. I'd pretend that I was with Emi and Jayden for their birthdays. The two of them always combined their birthdays. Neither ever seemed to mind, but I wanted to give them two separate birthday cupcakes each year.
Apparently since starting high school, Emi and Jayden's birthday has always been a huge party in their house. Jayden's hockey friends would be here, while Emi's mock trial and other friends would be here for her.
I've been sitting in Emi's car resting my head against the dashboard for a solid twenty minutes. I didn't want to get out of this car. Honestly, I didn't have the confidence and strength to pull myself out of this car.
We've been sitting in front of their house for a while now, and the party has already started.
Emi is truly the best friend in the world. She left her own birthday party to pick me up from my house.
I blocked out Emi from my brain. I didn't care that I might seem like a crazy person, but I needed to talk to my sister. "Devyn ... I'm really scared right now. You always told me that being brave is harder than being a coward. I never understood your older sister's wisdom, but I'm starting to understand it," I said out loud to Devyn.
I didn't try to trick myself into believing that Devyn would answer me, but I wanted to talk to her about this.
I took a deep breath and kept talking, "All I need is three seconds of undeniable bravery. If I can get through what I'm about to do, then I can get through anything."
I grabbed the booklet sitting on the passenger's seat, and felt my fingertips beginning to shake.
"Let's go," Emi sternly said. "It's time to put on your big girl pants and get out of the car."
"You're being bossy while I'm having a meltdown."
"You're going to tell my twin brother that you're in love with him. I have the right to be bossy right now, because there's a chance I might have to see the two of you making out. That's an image that will haunt me."
The same image of Jayden's mouth on mine materialized in my head. From the faint touch of his lips on Halloween night to the full blown taste of his tongue on New Year's Eve.
