𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡, obx

14 ... your sister, lani

Dear, Rafe.

It's your sister, Nalani. I need to talk to you about something but I'm kinda scared of you, so I'm writing this. I hope you don't mind and I hope you don't read it and like...burn it or something. I even used one of dad's fancy pens to write it.

One time, when I was nine and a half, you had one of your 'episodes,' (as Rose likes to call them.) and you left the house for a week and a half. You made me sleep in your bed the night you came back and you even read Percy Jackson with me. (The Titan's Curse is still the best book, it will never be The Last Olympian. I don't care what you say about the war being fun :( )

I asked you, just before we were about to fall asleep, why you came back. (I think it was around the same time I heard Ward talking about how he wanted to send me to that weird boarding school, Kitty Hawk or something.) I hated him as much as you did, so why did you come back?

You told me that sometimes you got trapped in a cave and you couldn't find your way out, like in that one episode in the freaky zombie show you made me watch. You had to slither your way out like they did and you got scared, just like that woman did. (I STILL HATE HER!! I don't care about her character development!!!!)

You said that just like they used a match to get out, you did too. Except I was your match. When you got stuck in your deep, dark caves, you would think of me and it would help guide you out. You'd think about me scared and alone in the house, not having anyone to defend for me and it would convince you to come back.

You was once like me. Scared, alone and not having anyone to defend for you. You didn't want me to feel like that, so you stayed for me.

I think it's the same right now. You are stuck in a cave somewhere far away, and I haven't found it yet. I need to find it and throw you the matches so you can get out. I'm sorry I haven't done that yet, I'm just a tinsy bit scared of the person inside of it.

I know it's not really you, it's like a different version of you when you get mad. I'm sorry I made you so mad you thought you had to kill me, it wasn't what I meant to do. I just wanted my friends to be happy, because that's what makes me happy.

It hurts a lot to know they aren't happy and neither are you. It's like if your happy, I'm happy.

I hope I find your cave soon, like super soon. It's my birthday in like four months and you always buy me the best gifts.

Anyways, I'm gonna tell you things that are happening in my life. I already told Oscar but I used to tell you everything, so it feels weird.

Disney are bringing out a TV show version of Percy Jackson, which is pretty cool. I hope they don't butcher it like they did the movies because it was SO inaccurate to the books, I still can't believe you like that crap.  I also hope the casting is age accurate because when a 16 year old is playing a twelve year old who is meant to be itty bitty, it doesn't really make you understand a lot. Logan Lerman is a good actor, but he was just WAY too old.

I don't really care if they are book accurate. It would be cool, but I don't care. They did it with the movies so they should do something different with the TV show. I hope it isn't rushed, neither. In the movies we were like twenty minutes in and he had already been chosen for a quest.

And also where was the "YOU HAVE BEEN CLAIMED BY POSEIDON BLA BLA BLA???" like he just woke up and boom! I'm the son of a huge, major god that is probably gonna lead to my demise!

It was the worst book to movie adaptation, I think.

I'm going into 8th grade which means I'm nearly in high school. I'm not friends with Piper anymore, because Oscar nearly beat up Austen, so I won't have any friends. I don't think this whole situation will help my case anymore, either. I only have one year left until high school and I'm gonna try so hard to get Dad to put me in the school on the cut. I know he will never agree, but it's worth a try. People might make fun of me but I don't care much because I'll be with my best friend.

I've decided when I get older, I think I wanna be a therapist or something. Me and Oscar looked it up and it takes a WHOLE bunch of work, but I don't mind. I wanna help people feel better, people like you.

I don't have much else to say. I haven't been doing much, because everyone is really sad, so there's not much to actually talk about.

And if you've even read this far, or read it at all, I want you to know I understand a little bit. Do you know what the invisible string theory is? I'm gonna explain it anyways, it's the belief that people have invisible strings going through them, that is unbreakable, that connects them to someone they love.

I think we have one, like a brother and sister one. Except it's not whole anymore. The world pulled on the end too much and it frayed everywhere, so now we are kinda lost. I guess. It's hard to explain.

But because we have the string, we feel the same things all the time. Like twin telepathy but we aren't actually twins.

What I'm trying to say is that I understand...some of it. I don't agree with your murderous intents, that's for sure, but I get what you were trying to do. You just wanted Ward to see you instead of focusing on someone else, I understand that because I feel it too. I just think you went the wrong way about it.

I hope you can forgive me for not helping you, I promise I'm trying. I still love you.

From, your sister, Lani.

vada's vows ,

hii!! i know this isn't the usual chapter but i really wanted to get one out before new years and if you follow me on tiktok (and know about my laptop's intents) my wifi hasnt been on my side lately :(

i just wanted to say that i am super grateful for this book, and all its reads and everything. never in my life did i think i would get a book over 5k reads- let alone 6x that. it genuinely makes me  feel so warm inside.

thank you all so much for every read, comment and vote. please, continue being amazing in the new year. i couldn't be more thankful :(