The Able Sisters

Chapter 56

Sable clutched onto her younger sister's hand as they waited at the bus stop in the early hours of the morning. The sun still had not risen, and the ground had been covered in a fresh blanket of snow.

"When do you think the bus will get here?" Mabel asked, as if she were a toddler again.

"Soon," Sable said, clutching her hand tighter. "Soon."

Sable was nervous as ever. She wasn't sure what to expect or how she would react when her sister got off that red bus in the early hours of the morning.

"Do you think she'll like the shop? Or the expanded house?" Mabel whispered.

"I don't know, Mabel. I don't know."

Their conversation was interrupted by the faint sound of tires in the distance. Sable held her breath. 

The snow was quietly falling, and the trees were illuminated with multi-colored lights when the red bus rolled toward the bus stop. It was reminiscent of the very night Label had left all those years ago.

The night was quiet except for the squeaking of tires. Mabel led out a little squeal beside her, though Sable was deathly silent, her eyes glued to the doors of the bus.

Sable heard the clacking of heels and glanced up. She froze. A hedgehog stepped out of the bus, though Sable barely recognized her. Label had done a lot of growing up in the past years. But through all the make-up and fancy outfits, Sable knew deep-down that this was her sister.

Label stepped out of the bus with her suitcases, thanking the driver. She clumsily grabbed her things and descended down the bus stop.

"I-I'm just going to set these here," she said, sounding as nervous as Sable felt.

She turned around to face her sisters, looking just as Sable had imagined her. She was as elegant and classy as any other city folk, yet Sable knew Label could never shake off her country roots.

Not sure how to respond, Sable stepped forward and wrapped her arms around her sister. Label seemed to be taken by surprise, but she embraced her sister all the same. Mabel patiently stood on the side, understanding this was more Sable's reunion with Label than anything else.

"I-I wanted..." But Sable could already hear the tears getting caught in Label's throat.

Sable laughed a little, but soon her eyes were filling with tears too. She had dreamt about this day for so long. It had been just a fantasy to her for so many years, but now her sister was finally standing in front of her again.

"Welcome home," Mabel said stepping in now.

Labelle turned around and grinned, giving a hug to her youngest sister.

"Look how big you are now! You were so small the last time I saw you!" Label exclaimed. 

Mabel laughed. "You don't look how I remember, but I guess you were younger too," Mabel said.

Label grinned.

"It's so good to have you back, Label, er, Labelle? Which one is it?" Sable asked.

"Labelle," she announced.

"Labelle," Sable repeated.

"It's a name I picked up in the city, but I feel like it represents the city life I left behind. Plus, I've used it for so many years now that Label feels foreign," Labelle admitted.

"Group hug!" Mabel announced, throwing her arms around Labelle again. Sable joined and all of them were wrapped in a tight embrace.

Sable was still a little teary. This is what our parents would have wanted, she thought as they stood in the cold, embracing each other.