Prompt: Alexis sees his sister
A.N.- The writing on this one is...ehhh. Sorry it's short and not that good!
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I looked around the grocery store, searching the shelves for what I needed. I no longer worked here, but I could still remember where most things were.
I had stopped here on my way home from work. Jonas had the day off, so I'd driven myself. Micah had gotten dropped off at the apartment, so the two were just waiting on me. I'd decided to pick up some groceries since we were starting to run low on food.
After finally finding what I was looking for, I put it in the little hand basket I had. I turned to leave the aisle and heard someone let out a surprised noise.
Something hit me and I nearly fell over. I steadied myself against the shelf, grabbing the basket tightly so I wouldn't drop it.
"I'm very sorry," I said, looking up.
I stopped, staring, caught off guard. That face. I knew that face well.
"Alexis," she said, looking awkward and helpless. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to run into you."
"Calla," I said at last, my mind scrambling to make sense of this. I'd prepared myself to run into my father again since he was frequently at my work. But I'd never imagined running into my sister again.
"Yea. Hey. That's me," she said, clearing her throat. "Um, wow, this is awkward, okay, I'm sorry, I'll just..." She gestured like she was going to leave, but didn't move. She just eyed me, drinking in my appearance. "You've, um, you've lost a lot of weight."
"I can't really afford much food," I said. Part of me was burrowing down, hiding away, shoving out a default autopilot. I didn't want to be here. I didn't want to see her. I didn't want to be aware of what was happening. Just get through it, and move on.
There were so many questions I'd longed to ask Calla. But here she was in front of me, and I was terrified of the answers she'd give me.
Calla cringed a little at my words. "Where do you live?"
"In an apartment," I said. My voice was polite, but the rest of me was vacant.
"Do you, um, live alone?" she asked.
"No," I said.
She waited, then realized I wasn't going to add anything to that. I tried not to eye her too much, but I couldn't help myself.
She looked like my Calla, but she also looked completely different from my Calla. She still had short hair, clothes that said she wasn't professional and didn't care, and a vibe that said she wasn't afraid to speak. But she also looked much more mature. And part of her looked a lot quieter than I would've ever imagined she could be.
"Look at you," she said, and she looked a little choked up. She cleared her throat again. "You're so much taller."
"That happens," I said.
"Your hair is longer. Look how red it is," she said. "You're 22 now, right? You're getting so much older. My baby brother isn't a baby anymore."
"I'm not your baby brother," I said, hearing how sharp my voice had suddenly become. I composed myself back into an emotionless form. Don't let it bother me. It was years ago. It didn't matter anymore.
Calla gave me a shaky smile. "Yea, you're right, I'm sorry, Alexis."
"Excuse me, I have to get home," I said, back to my polite self.
"Wait!" She reached out, flinching before she could touch me. "Alexis, I'm...I was 17...I was scared..."
"So was I," I said. "It was seven years ago. I don't care anymore." I couldn't help myself, part of me missed being so open with my sister. "I live with my boyfriend now, and I'm happy."
"Lex," she said, looking torn. "Lex, I'm sorry."
I stopped, something hitting me at that moment. "You were watching me."
She dropped her head. "You used to work here. I'd come to check on you. I never meant for you to see me. I'm sorry for everything, Lex."
"Have a nice day," I said, walking away, forcing down the storm of emotions trying to explode out of me. Calla called my name, but she didn't chase after me and I didn't stop to talk to her. It was over. She'd watched me get thrown to the streets, and never helped me.
There were things I could never forgive people for. I was tired of letting my family and my past hurt me so much. It had changed me, but I didn't have to let it keep hurting me. So I blocked out my sister's voice, blocked out my feelings, and walked away.
