ɢʀᴇᴇɴᴠɪʟʟᴇ ʜɪɢʜ ꜱᴄʜᴏᴏʟ ꜱᴇʀɪᴇꜱ: 𝙼𝚄𝚁𝙳𝙴𝚁 𝙸𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙲𝙰𝚂𝙴

˗ˏˋ༻ʚ28ɞ༺ˎˊ˗

˗ˏˋ༻ʚDelphine's POVɞ༺ˎˊ˗

I tried to study for my test by staring at the stacks of textbooks and notebooks on the dining table, but it wasn't helping. Kim had uploaded the test schedule on the group chat, and several of my classmates weren't happy with the arrangements. Having subjects like Math, History, and Government in one day may irritate anyone, so I wasn't surprised by their response.

I sighed and flipped to the second page of the Government textbook in front of me. It would appear that I was studying, but I wasn't. I found it difficult to do, no matter how hard I tried. Footsteps from the stairway drew my attention, and they provided the much-needed distraction while I closed the textbook and turned sideways.

"Sis Debby,"

My sister, in a pretty black jumpsuit, turned to me with a small smile. "Hey."

She hardly got down after that incident and didn't go to work, but she was still generous to Romeo, according to what I heard. "Where are you going? Work?"

"I wish," she scoffed bitterly as she strolled to the dining area and pulled out a chair. "I'm . . . heading to the station."

"S-station?" It wasn't my intention to stutter. "Why?"

Debby sat on the chair but didn't answer immediately. I could tell why. She didn't want me involved. "The police called; they have some information for me."

"Can I come?"

"No,"

"Sis Debby . . ."

"No." She concluded angrily. I exhaled and balled my fingers under the table. Debby must have noticed and reached out to take both my hands. "I don't want you to come because I can't. It's not fair for me to let you see that monster again."

"But we're going there to see the police, not him. Besides," I paused to glance at my sister. Debby was not feeble. Debby, however, was soft when compared to Danielle and me. There was only so much she could take. She was going to cry and blame herself, and I did not want that for her. "I can't let you go all by yourself."

My sister closed her eyes momentarily. Regret? Guilt? I was uncertain. "Why are you always like this, Delphine? You're making me feel even more guilty." She finally opened her eyes and met mine. "It's been eating me up that I'd been too blinded by love to see what you and Danielle had been telling me all these years. Although he had previously cheated on me, I had forgiven him in the hopes that he would change his ways, but then he . . . you . . ."

Debby couldn't continue as she covered her face in her palms. Cheated? That was probably related to the big fight Danielle spoke to me about.

"I can't do this," Debby sucked in air. "Why must you act strong and act like what he did to you was okay?" She reached for my cheeks, my heart cutting. "It's eating me up to see you acting like this. Covering up your emotions. I'm the older one, not you. I'm meant to do the covering up, not you. Especially when you went through that."

I wasn't covering up to make my sister feel incompetent, so it hurt she was thinking this way. "I know how much you love Uncle Trust, sister. Even though he's out of the picture, I can't make you feel much worse with my emotions."

"Your emotions are valid, Delphine." Debby pulled the chair closer; her eyes welled up with tears. She reached for my cheeks for the second time and cupped both sides. "I wasn't sad or feeling worse because I'd lost Trust, but because I'd placed you in an unsecured environment because of my selfish reasons. I was so blinded in love with him that I wasn't able to see what was in front of me this whole time."