Why

Chapter 17

His voice came out raspy from not using it in months and he looked terribly sad. I stared at him in shock, both at what he said and the fact that he actually talked to me.

Without thinking I jumped out of my seat and ran over to him. I wrapped my arms around his frail body and started to cry when I heard the one voice that I thought I might never hear again. I pulled back from him. "You talked." He looked down at the ground with a sad expression on his face and distress filling his eyes. "I can't believe it." I sobbed into his shoulders. He didn't hug me back but I didn't care at this moment. "Why didn't you talk before?" I demanded to know.

"I was protecting you." He croaked out. Warmth filled my body at the sound of his voice and suddenly all of the holes that left me feeling sad and lonely were filled.

"Protecting from what?" How could he protect me by laying still for four months and not speaking to anyone? And I was actually getting sick of everyone thinking they had to protect me. I was eighteen now and I was being treated like a baby, even by my 16 year old brother.

"From h-her." I didn't miss how scared he sounded and I slowly backed back into my seat. I knew that he was talking about the black girl.

"I don't understand." I furrowed my brows and glared out of the window.

"If I don't talk, then she wouldn't hurt you." I could tell he was getting tired with using his voice more and more and actually moving but I pressed on anyways.

"Why are you talking now?" It didn't make sense. Why did he talk if he was protecting me and I still don't get how laying still is protecting me.

"Because you can see her too, which means she has been lying to me." He turned away. "It means I haven't really been doing anything." He looked disappointed and a pang in my heart sounded off at the sight of his sadness.

"How were you protecting me?" I asked still a little annoyed that he thinks I needed my baby brother to help me.

"I have to make you sad." I stared at him confused but he didn’t explain anymore.

"Why?"

"I don't know." He scrunched his face in concentration. "That's all she ever said." He looked everywhere but my face. "She never comes to me anymore."

"Then why do you keep listening to her when she isn't around?" He looked away with a scared expression concerning every part of his body as he went ridged with fear.

"She's always around." He whispered harshly. He directed his gaze to the window and I followed it to see he had a perfect view of the oak tree. But that wasn't what he was always looking at. Next to it was the black girl with the bloody dress and her hands to her sides. Her hair dangled in her face but I could still see her expression of hate, directed toward Jacob.

"She's mad at me." He whispered again while staring out of the window. Her hair was matted to her face and sticky form that blood that coated herself and her dress. She slowly coked her head to the side and slightly bared at her teeth while never breaking eye contact with Jacob.

"This doesn't make sense." I said more to myself.

In my vision I saw the girl in the brown dress get hung under the oak tree, but yet she only shows up in the mirror while this other girl was always under the tree. But why? Why did she hang out there when that wasn't even her death spot?

Jacob ignored my comment. "I'm sorry." He said to me.

I walked over and cupped his head in between my hands. "There was nothing you could do. I don't know why she lied to you because she wanted me depressed. That's not your fault." I sighed and realized that he almost succeeded in his attempt to make me sad. "It's my turn to protect you." I whispered.