She sweeps into the room, in the arms of new husband, a vision of smiles and blue velvet. Her golden blonde hair shines under the lights, so different from the frizzy mess of curls I had grown to love throughout my life. As the couple stands in front of the wedding guests, they wait for the whispers to die down, before she smiles directly at me. I beam at her, so proud of how much she had grown up.
“I’ll keep this short.” She smiles as she speaks into the microphone. “I just want to thank everyone for coming, but now, I’d like to invite some people to say a few words. Of course, the first person I want to speak is my twin brother, Lance.” She turns, winking at me as she passes me the microphone. I stand, frozen. She hadn’t said anything about saying a speech… But as a thousand guests wait silently, I glance at my twin. So much had changed about her….yet so little…I can remember every detail about our life as if it was yesterday…and just like that, my mind flashed back.
The little girl laughed as the snake handler hands her the snake, chubby hands cradling it gently. Her blonde hair was cut so short she could be mistaken for a boy, but of course that didn’t matter to her. “Look Lance! I’m holding a snake!” She squealed in excitement, and the boy standing nearby couldn’t help but smile at her excited expression.
“After this, can we go visit the petting zoo?” The quiet, more reserved little boy tugged on his mother’s shirt, an innocent look on his face. His mother smiled down at him, nodding as she smoothed his dark blonde locks back. With the confirmation, he called to his sister, “Come on, Lexi! Mom says we can go feed the llamas.” The girl bounced up and down with excitement before taking off in the direction of the petting zoo. The boy stayed behind, obediently holding his mother’s hand like she had asked them to. His mother simply shook her head, and smiled softly to herself.
A crash and the wail of a siren bring me to my next destination. Suddenly, the loud surroundings became walls of white, the only sound coming from the beeping of the machines hooked to the girl lying motionless on the bed. The teenage boy sat next to her, clutching her hand. As her eyelids fluttered, she murmured…”Lance…”
“Thank god you’re awake!” Relief flitted across the boy’s face, and was promptly replaced by anger. “What were you thinking, Lexi? A motorcycle? You could have gotten killed!” His voice quivered and suddenly, he was shaking, tears streaking down his face. The girl said nothing, but shame was clearly written all over her face.
“I just…I just wanted to prove to you and mom that I’ve grown up…” She muttered.
“By going out on some motorcycle you wasted eight thousand dollars on? Even when you don’t even know how to drive?” Tears continued to roll down his face. “What if you died? What would I do without you?” He whispered softly, before he leaned over, and hugged his sister hard, surprising the girl, but neither let go.
Then, they were in their old house. Lexi stomped in, rage overriding any other emotions she had. Pure hatred made her green eyes flame as she strode up to her brother, slapping him so hard it made a *splat* sound, and left a perfect red outline of her hand. “How could you!” She screamed. “How dare you interfere with my life like that?” The boy groaned, clutching his face. The girl paid no heed that both his eyes were black, or that one of his hands was wrapped in a cast and hanging from a sling. “Life was perfect! Trey and I were getting along so well! And then you…you came and attacked him for no reason! What the heck was that for! Don’t even try to lay that ‘big brother’ stuff on me. I’m eighteen for goodness sake! I’m a legal adult! I can take care of myself! I hate you!” She whirled and ran off, but not before yelling, “And don’t speak to me, ever, EVER again!”
I watched her retreating form. It had only been three years since her accident, but she had already changed so much. Her little kid chubbiness had gone, and she had grown taller and curvier, and I wasn’t the only guy to notice that. And that was a very bad thing.
Almost two year had gone by without a word from her, before someone knocked on my dorm room at Harvard. Lexi stood there, fidgeting uncomfortable. I couldn’t help but stare at how much she had changed. She had grown out the blonde hair she had used to keep no longer than her ears. Basic makeup was applied to simply enhance her features, but was not caked on. She was wearing a knit dress, (yes, and a dress) and holding a box of my favorite chocolates. “I’m so sorry.” She muttered, embarrassed to be apologizing. “Truce?” She offered the chocolates to me, and I grinned at her, stepping back and inviting her in as a way of replying.
So standing in front of those wedding guests, my mind suddenly had an inspiration. I turned to grin at her.
“When we were eight, Lexi held a snake for the first time. A brown water snake, to be specific. We were so carefree then, so innocent… naïve, our worries solely on gold stars and stamps. At fifteen, she nearly got herself killed trying to prove to the world that she had grown up. At eighteen, I got in a fight with her at the time boyfriend, hating the fact that she was starting to change and grow up. I didn’t want anything to change, especially not my little twin sister. True, I’m only older than her by ten minutes, but I still felt like I needed to protect her. But standing here now, I can say that life has done you good. You came into this world a caterpillar, and blossomed into the butterfly you are now. I’ve argued with you, defended you, and stood by your side for twenty five years. Now here you are, marrying a wonderful man. If someone had told me a few years before that you would one day marry a successful man that you loved dearly, I would have laughed at them. But now, I finally see that in life, we’re all gonna have to face the reality of growing up. We can kick, scream, fight and cry the whole way, but it is what it is. That’s why, I stand here today, to say congratulations, and I love you so much. And of course, if he ever ends up breaking your heart, which I can guarantee he won’t, you come tell me.” Everyone laughs, but Lexi stands there with tears in her eyes as I embrace her.
“I love you too Lance.” She whispers. “Always have, always will.”
