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SEREIA RAINE CONKLIN, MY BEST FRIEND AND MY OLDER SISTER. My family adopted her when she was five, and since then, we've kind of been inseparable, like two peas in a pod. And While Sereia and I's bond formed by always being together, she and Steven found theirs through light bickering and teasing—occasional pranks, pillow fights, and all.
I've known her practically my whole life, so I've never really thought of her as my 'adoptive sister' because, in my mind, we were practically born in the same womb, like twins. We did everything together and shared everything as well. Although we were very close, we were also very different. While I favored the color yellow, she preferred purple. If my favorite fruit was blueberries, hers was strawberries. If I enjoyed the radiance of the sun, she'd prefer the obscurity of the moon.
But somehow, it just worked. It made things so much easier because we never fought over anything. We could walk in unison and celebrate our differences without it ever getting in the way. We never fought about anything, never screamed or shouted back and forth.
Shocking, right? Being stuck in the same house with your sibling and never actually arguing with them is a rare occurrence. It sounds ridiculous, but there was just nothing to disrupt our peace.
All my life, I've looked up to her. She was so different from me, but she was everything I would be okay with being, even if it were just for a day. She makes everyone smile and has the looks to do it. Not to mention how close she is to the fishers. I guarantee that wherever she goes, they'll follow. Her bright smile and contagious laugh led the boys wherever she went. She's always found it so easy to bond and be close with them as if it were more of a hobby than a job.
Not only did she find it so easy to fit in with the boys, but she also found comfort in sitting around with the oldest of us all, Carolynne. We always saw Carolynne as much cooler than we were simply because she was the oldest, and usually the calmest. And well, wherever Sera went, I went, making us a trio since we were the other three girls besides our parents.
And when everyone called her Sereia or Sera, Jeremiah called her Raine or Rainy. With Jeremiah, she was just herself—they were like the perfect brother and sister-duo from start to finish. They weren't much like her and Steven, but at the same time, they had the structure of friendship to be. While you could find her jumping around a room with Jere, you could also find her having a more calming conversation on the side with Conrad.
I never know what the two are talking about because I'm always watching from afar. Not up close, not included, just observing. They always seem so deep in conversation with each other, as if they understand each other effortlessly. I've never understood their dynamic, though. I've always caught looks between them, but mostly it feels like they're super close and completely avoiding each other.
Even when they seem like they're avoiding each other, they attract each other so easily. I couldn't help but notice. It was hard for me not to, even when no one else did. How could I not notice it? How could I not ponder on it? I just want to know what it feels like to be in that position. It sounds completely stupid and confusing, but I understand perfectly.
When you see me, you see a girl whose pink glasses cover her face just enough to take away from any grace she may have, and braces that are more of a disadvantage than an advantage. Someone who would trip over air in front of everyone and have to smile it off as though it's nothing when it's the most humiliating thing in the world.
I see it too. And I try to see it in Sereia too, my 'twin', but I can't. Sera says when she looks at me, she sees herself through a mirror but on the opposite side. But when I look through the mirror, I see an entirely different girl, on the same side. She lures everyone with her looks and smile, and if she tripped over air in front of everyone, about three to four people would rush to help her off the ground, and the sight of her falling would be a distant memory only seconds later under all of the "are you okay?"s.
Maybe I'm looking too deeply into the mirror, maybe I should take my glasses off to get a murkier look. Or maybe I should just accept it. Accept our differences and celebrate them.
We aren't the same. That's what keeps us close. That's the advantage of our friendship.
