Dancing on Eggshells

This is the probably the most miserable part of this book

Celeste is also a fan of Coffee and Caffeine and we agreed to have our coffee there. She drove us in her car. She has a small little car which is round shaped instead of that long sort of style. I know absolutely nothing about cars so I don't really know how to describe them. Whenever I see a car, I either think: that's a nice car, that's the most hideous car on planet Earth, that car is interesting, that car is unusual, Mini! That's the only car I like and have respect for, a Mini. It's honestly the most adorable and retro vehicle I've ever seen in this day of age.
Celeste is completely quiet in the car. I immediately feel comfortable in her car as I watch her drive. I notices how cautious she is as well as calm. Her sunglasses rest on her ears and nose and her hands grip tightly to the steering wheel. I'm honestly too nervous to say anything in case she loses this focused mindset.
We arrive at Coffee and Caffeine and sit at a table for two. The diner is basically empty besides for a old couple in the back and a businesswoman on her computer sitting behind us in what I'd say is the middle row. We order our drinks immediately . We both order cappuccinos and let the waiter leave to go and put our order for in process.
I begin staring at Celeste as the waiter leaves, it's time and she knows that. She sits with her hands lying on top of each other as well as squeezing each other. Her nails are still painted black but I can see that her nails are broken, they look as terrible as mine.
Has she been biting her nails?
"I heard you and Kayden are some sort of item now". She says, her hands fidgeting with each other.
"Who told you"? I ask, my voice completely neutral.
"I've seen the way you look each other in class. I've also seen you guys holding handing hands in the hallway, as well as him defending you on Wednesday".
"Yeah, he's absolutely amazing". I say.
She smiles.
"That's great, Keoria".
I don't smile, I just carry on staring at her. I came with her for answers, not to talk about my boyfriend. I look her in the eyes, her glorious hazel eyes. Her eyebrows could easily be a weapon, intimidation. I wonder if my eyebrows are that sharp, that graceful and strong.
"What book are you reading at the moment"? She asks.
One more question, I think to myself, one question and then you'll say something.
"The Glass Castle". I reply.
"Never heard of it".
"It's very good".
She nods and gestures her index finger at herself.
"Perhaps I should look it up".
It's time, I need to stop letting her stall. I have to do this.
"What book are you currently reading"?
Take a gun right now and shoot me like seventeen thousand times, it looks like Celeste isn't the only staller.
"A Lesley Pierce book".
"What's it called"?
"I forgot".
Go and say it, Keoria, stop being such a coward!
"You want to know, don't you"? She finally asks, a serious expression on her face.
I slowly nod.
She brings her arms onto the table and stretches them as if telling the facts of a situation requires her arms to be stretched. When she's done, her eyes meet mine.
"I'll tell you, I'll tell you the whole damn thing". She says, grit to her voice. At first , it feels like she's suddenly angry with. I then realize that she is perhaps angry at whatever story she's about to tell me.
"What story"? I ask, confused.
"Me, my whole story that led to this shit happening".

When Celeste was a child, she had two older siblings, a brother and sister. Her brother's name was David and he was three years older than Celeste. She also had an older sister five years her senior named Jasmine. From Celeste's perspective, she thought David was the most amazing boy on the planet. He was a straight A student, he was nurturing towards Celeste and always made the family laugh with his jokes. He always treated Celeste like a lady and helped her with whatever she needed. In first grade when Celeste was refusing to adapt to this cycle of doing homework everyday, he sat down with her every one of those days and helped her with all those childish and easy math sums that she battled with.
Celeste and David were inseparable.
Then there was Jasmine, the older sister that scared Celeste throughout her childhood.
Celeste knew that Jasmine was unusual from a young age (mostly because David had told her). The secret came out when Celeste was seven and David was ten, it started when Celeste asked where Jasmine went every Friday afternoon whilst David and Celeste came home.
"She goes to therapy". David told her as they did their homework at the dinner table.
Celeste wasn't completely sure what therapy was, but she had heard of the word. She hated asking David multiple questions as she hated feeling stupid in front of him. She wanted to be just like him.
"What does she do there"? Celeste asked.
"She talks to this man named Paul about her problems".
Celeste cringed.
"Why can't she just talk to Mom and Dad"? She asked.
"Because Jasmine has quite serious problems that Mom and Dad don't know how to handle".
She wanted so badly to ask another question, but she felt as if another question would show how stupid and empty headed she was, as if a ten year old and seven year old are supposed to have the same intelligence level. But she wanted to know more than the sun wanted to live for infinity.
"What problems does Jasmine have"?
"You know how aggressive she is, she still has imaginary friends and she terrifies every kid in her class".
Celeste had heard enough, she went back to doing her homework.
For the next few years, she kept her distance from Jasmine, scared that she'd hurt her. Celeste would jump whenever Jasmine walked into her bedroom. Celeste knew that Jasmine would  never come to say hello to her younger sister, she'd always come to terrorize her.
"Celly, how you doing"?
Celeste received a fright that day, she remembered it so clearly it was if it happened yesterday. It was October 1989, Celeste was eight, David was eleven and Jasmine was thirteen. Celeste had been reading a Famous Five book (a series she was absolutely obsessed with) on her bed and had suddenly been interrupted by her sister. Celeste just stared at Jasmine, hoping that she would leave.
Jasmine's wild and long blonde hair was loose and her skinny frame was only covered by a cherry red bra and loose pajama shorts.
"Why are you naked"? Celeste asked.
"I'm not naked!" Jasmine snapped.
"Then where are all your clothes"?
"In my closet".
"Then why don't 'ya wear 'em"?
"Because I don't want to".
This happened all the time, Jasmine would just walk around the house half naked and think it was okay despite having a father and brother in the house with her. That day, Jasmine forced her sister to touch her, and you know what sort of touch I mean. Jasmine didn't do it out of sexual desire but rather to spite her younger sister. Celeste never actually touched Jasmine that day, because she screamed for her parents instead when Jasmine sat on her bed and took her bra off.
After the situation occurred, Celeste's parents were to forced to tell their eight year old daughter the truth about their eldest's demons. Celeste's parent described to her simply that Jasmine had a condition in which she had no remorse towards other people and also saw things that weren't really there In the end, they told Celeste that Jasmine was a sociopath with severe hallucinations . She was diagnosed three years earlier that was the reason she went to go talk to the man Paul almost three times a week now. I had never heard of a child being diagnosed of a sociopath, it was almost terrifying to hear it. Jasmine was diagnosed when she ten and Celeste was five. Her parents also revealed that's why Jasmine was absent from their home for three months, because she was in the hospital to try treat her hallucinations and her aggressive behavior.
For the next few years, Jasmine attempted to harass her siblings at home. She stole their toys and possessions and would even physically fight them if she was bored.
Then something happened in April 1992.
Celeste was eleven, David was fourteen and Jasmine was sixteen. Jasmine had been begging her parents to let her take a driving test but they refused due to her illness. She begin begging when she turned sixteen in February, she begged every single day for two months until her parents threatened to ground her. She stopped the begging but she didn't stop the dream. That April, Celeste was woken up by Jasmine in the middle of the night. When she woke up, she wasn't in her bedroom but in the backseat of her parent's car. The worst part was that David was in the passenger seat right in front of her. She was terribly confused and began asking nervously why they were in the car and where her parents were. Loud music was playing, it didn't take Celeste long to recognize the song to be to be Sweet Dreams by the Eurythmics, a song she has refused to listen to for almost twenty four years now. That is where the trauma came in, her whole life changed as that song played.
"I'm bored so I decided to take a spin in the car". Jasmine answered.
"Then why are we here"? David asked.
"Because my voices are telling me that you're lonely".
Celeste was terrified at that stage, scared that her sister was taking orders from voices in her. Jasmine's voices sometimes became people which Celeste would now know as hallucinations. Surprisingly, the voices were much more powerful when they were in Jasmine's head . She knew that her sister had a unbelievable belief in those voices and would do whatever they said.
"Jasmine, we want to go home, now!" David yelled.
"No! They say I need to take you somewhere".
"Where"? Celeste asked hysterically.
Celeste never found out. One of the reasons she was so afraid at that moment was because her sister was driving like a lunatic, driving through all the traffic lights and stop signs. Celeste had every right to be afraid, because right after she asked her sister that question, the car crashed. The ambulance came ten minutes later and Celeste got out alive with a broken arm. The point to this story all led to the worst part of them all, because David died. Celeste didn't speak for three days in the hospital, she just stared at the walls and cried. After the tragedy occurred, Jasmine was charged as an adult for David's death. Things just got worse from there.
I began saying sorry over and over again as I felt so bad for Celeste at this point, I was surprised that she wasn't crying her eyes out. It now made sense why she was so screwed up.
Celeste fell into a deep depression and after six months of the accident, she was diagnosed with depression. She was given medications but they didn't work. She became more moody and aggressive at school, once even calling her teacher a bitch. Two months after she turned twelve, she overdosed on her medication. After she survived the attempt, she stayed in the hospital and was later on diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Jasmine was sentenced to sixty two years in prison and has been there since her was found guilty , she turned forty last week.
I now knew what Kayden meant, there are way too many crazy people living among us.