Dear Brother

Questions

May 20, 2017

Dear Brother,

It's been two years since you left. I'm almost done with 11th grade. Exams were hectic. I hate exams. You put in all that effort for what? A letter? Or a number? They say exams are helpful for your future career but half of them don't even know what to do! Many choose careers to please their families or out of peer pressure. If you get good grades, you get into a section with a higher study standard, but you're too dumb to understand it! They go too fast and half of the time you don't even know what chapter you're on! By the time you catch up, BAM, you're onto the next concept. But you can't back out, otherwise you're a chicken! The teachers have high expectations of you, but you don't believe in yourself. It's extremely draining and I'm beat.

I received a confession from one of my classmates but I turned him down. I wasn't quite ready to be in a relationship and didn't even know his name!  Was it Zach, or Ross, or Kiran? I don't know. But he seemed quite sweet and I honestly felt bad for turning him down. But everything returned to normal.

I spent Christmas Eve with Mom and Dad. We watched a movie and all. And for the first time, I spent Christmas with my friends. Tracy, Rose, and I went out to eat and walked around town. The corner store had one of those inflatable tube men with a Christmas hat on top.

We had a class party for New Year's. We had fruit punch and some appetizers. There was also cake. At midnight we wished each other a happy New Year and went home. 

I'm rambling, but I don't know what else to say. I miss you so much, and it breaks my heart whenever I think about you. But it's gotten better, and now, I don't feel as bad. I'm moving on from you. But if I get to see you again, I will take that chance no matter what it takes. You didn't deserve it. Not you. You were the last person who deserved it.

I miss you.

Your sister,

Alice.

Lucy finished the second letter but still had a few chips in her bag. She quickly ate those chips and sipped her juice. 

"Well this was quite helpful, wasn't it?" she thought. "Being a teenager must suck. I don't need to worry about that though."

It was around 11 am when she entered the attic. She was still upset from yesterday, and today's letter brought more confusion than calm. Didn't Cameron abandon her? He's a jerk! Why isn't Alice angry? Thoughts flew around her mind till she couldn't take it anymore. She turned around and screamed into her bear. 

"Alice, what did you mean that 'he didn't deserve it'? He one hundred per cent deserved it! Whatever he did to deserve it? He left you. So he is a scum. Scum will always be scum!"

She continued insulting him for quite some time. After all her energy was drained and her mind went blank, she fell asleep on the bear, only to wake up an hour later. Insulting someone can be quite draining.

She reread the letter. New suspicions rose in her mind. What happened to Cameron? Why did he leave? Why didn't Alice send him the letter when she wrote it for him? What happened to Matt? Did they fall out? She powered up her detective mind. Experience comes from reading Nancy Drew books. Legit crime solving.

Alice and Cameron. Siblings. Alice, the younger sister, 11th grade. Cameron, the older brother, status unknown. Did they have a good relationship? Yes. Probably. Maybe? She didn't have siblings so she would never know. Do they love and care for each other? Alice sure does, but Cameron? Who knows? 

Alice and Cameron. A mystery. Where are they and what are they doing now?

She eyed the third letter and wondered if she should read it now. But she wasn't in the mood to do so. Letter no. 2 wasn't helpful and who knows what Letter no. 3 contains.

She packed it all up and headed downstairs. Her mom was watching a movie in the living room. 

"Mom, if people leave their families, are they scum?" she asked, wanting her mother's opinion.

"Well, it all depends on why they left, right?" her mother started. "Maybe they left to study, or they got married. Sometimes, family circumstances make a person live away from their family. Besides, women usually leave their families once they get married. That doesn't mean they're scum, right? It's a part of life. People come and go. Nothing stays the same forever."

"So, is Cameron a scum or not?" Lucy thought out loud.

"What is it, Lu?" 

"Nothing!"

She ran up the stairs and plopped on her bed. She grabbed her elephant and squeezed it tight. So many thoughts rushed through her mind. Did Cameron have a reason to leave his family? Or was he a scumbag? She needed answers, and there was only one place to get them.