𝑀𝐴𝐺𝑀𝐴 | 𝐉𝐀𝐈𝐌𝐄 𝐑𝐄𝐘𝐄𝐒

𝟕 | 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐅𝐄𝐋𝐓

・𝐑𝐄𝐈𝐍𝐀・

𝐇𝐄𝐍𝐑𝐘,

I hope you're doing well. I know you might not feel the same way, but I miss you. I really, really miss you.

You're graduating middle school this year, right? I'm graduating from university. I always hoped we could celebrate together . . . You'll be on my mind the entire time. I bet you'll have a lot of fun—and just wait 'til high school. I know you'll love it.

I guess I might as well give you an update of my life. Now that I think about it, though . . . nothing too crazy—finals and graduation is pretty much it. I'm excited to see how it goes after, though. I've got a couple decisions to make . . . but I'm sure it'll all work out in the end. 

You better be studying hard. And eating and sleeping well, too. Mom and Dad are probably taking better care of you than they did of me, but I want you to care for yourself, too, okay? Especially now that you're starting high school, I know it'll all get a lot harder. I just want you to remember that studying is important, but your well-being is way more important. I learned that the hard way.

I just want you to know I'm super proud of you, Henry. You're the best brother I could ever ask for. I'm sorry I can't be there for you, but I know you're doing amazing on your own. Hopefully, I can see you again soon. And though I know I keep telling you this, I miss you.

Love, Reina

Reina bit her lower lip as she drew a small heart beside her name. Her gaze drifted to the couple of tear splotches that had landed at the bottom of the page, though she didn't fret about it too much.

She had only recently started writing letters to her brother. She had been thinking about doing it for a long time, but it wasn't until last year—on his thirteenth birthday—that she actually sent one. Since then, she was averaging one every month. Whether or not he actually read them, she wasn't sure. His lack of response told her that he didn't—or that he hated her enough that he decided against sending a reply. She would rather the former.

And as sad as she was at the thought that he didn't read them, the process of writing made her feel a little better. When she was seventeen, leaving her mother and father was easy. Even before she had powers, they never treated her well. She had very quickly learned to care for herself. And any love they had for her went down the drain when her powers had taken over. 

The difficult part was her brother. Seeing Henry's big, watery eyes, hearing him plead for her to stay as her parents tossed suitcases at her—it was a sight that tormented her in her sleep to this day. So even though she received no replies, she was sure he knew that she still thought of him all the time.

Despite their eight-year age gap, they had been rather close before she was kicked out. She would help him with his homework, read him a book before bedtime, build Lego with him . . . He was just about the only good thing in her life for a long time. There were a few instances where she had considered running away, but he had always kept her grounded at home. She couldn't leave him by himself. He was too young. But then there came the point where she was left with no other option.

She pressed her lips together as she folded the paper in half and tucked it into an envelope. She quickly jotted down the name and address. She considered going to send it tonight, but figured tomorrow morning would be better.

Just as she went to grab her purse, her phone started ringing. She picked up her phone to see that Milagro was calling on Facetime.

She accepted the call. "Hey, Mili, what's up?"