It had been nearly a week, but Luan didn't know that. Time had lost all meaning for her. She watched day turn into night and night into day, but that was all she knew. What did it matter if it was 12 noon or 12 midnight? It was all the same. She was vaguely aware that it was Halloween because Lola and Lana had been talking about it at dinner the night before, but she didn't care. She wouldn't even have cared if it was April Fool's Day.

She walked to school through the chill morning. The sun was high and bright, but its warmth didn't reach her. At school, some kids wore costumes, and paper bats, skeletons, and black crape hung here and there.

The day alternately dragged and went by very quickly. She didn't want to be here, and she didn't want to be at home. She didn't want to be anywhere.

When the final bell rang, she gathered her books and went out a side door. She paused when she saw Lincoln ahead, his hands in his pockets and his gaze downcast. He looked so miserable.

That brought a fresh rush of tears. Why couldn't she stop fucking crying?

She waited until he was out of sight before continuing on. At home, the atmosphere was dark and oppressive. She sighed and went upstairs. She sat her books on her dresser and then went to the bathroom. She avoided looking at herself in the mirror.

Luna wasn't home yet, so she was alone. Though it didn't matter who was there. Without Lincoln, she was desolate.

She was thinking of trying to take a nap when Lisa appeared in the doorway. "Can I have moment, please?"

Luan sighed. The last thing she wanted to do was socialize. "What is it?"

"I found something that might be of interest to you."

"Alright," she said. She got up and followed Lisa to her room. Lisa sat in a chair and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"What did you find?" Luan asked.

"My conscious." Lisa drew a deep breath. "Luan...I'm the one who sent you those letters."

Luan's jaw dropped. "You?"

Lisa nodded. "Me."

"But...why?"

Lisa sighed and looked down at her lap. "Two months ago, I watched as two of my sisters fell in love with my brother. I was never particularly uncomfortable with the idea, even in the beginning. In fact, I thought...I thought it was sweet. After you and Lincoln committed to one another and the dust settled, so to speak, I found myself wondering why. Incestuous relationships are far more common than one might think, but they are still statistically rare. In the name of science, I sat down and attempted to answer my question. I listed all of Lincoln's good qualities and observed them closely. I realized what a sweet, gentle person he is. Lincoln is a rare breed. Along the way, I fell in love with him."

Luan rubbed her forehead.

"I became jealous of what you shared. I envied it so much, Luan. I spent over a month resenting you because you're so lucky to have him. I wanted that for myself. I wanted Lincoln to look at me the way he looked at you. I wanted him to hold my hand the way he held yours. I wanted to be loved. I wanted someone to hold me and make me feel the way you felt. And I wanted that person to be our brother."

Lisa sighed and looked up. Her eyes were red. Tears trickled down her cheeks.

"But I knew deep down that I could never be as beautiful or bubbly as you. I'm plain and dull. I thought...I thought that maybe I could steal him from you under the right circumstances. I knew I would never be able to take him fair and square. Some women might be able to lure a man away from a happy relationship, but I couldn't. So I decided I had to break you up, and then. When the time was right, I would present my shoulder for him to cry on. I would listen to him. I would be there for him. I would try to make him love me. I was so caught up in my own emotions that I failed to realize how strongly this would affect him, and you. I'm a lot of things, Luan, but I am not heartless. It's been nearly two weeks, and neither one of you has stopped crying, neither one has made progress toward even the basest adjustment. I assumed it would take time, but seeing you, and especially Lincoln, in this amount of pain...I can't do it."

Luan fell against the doorjamb, her knees having given out.

"I'll understand if you no longer wish to speak to me. What I did was wrong and I apologize. I hope, however, that at some point you can find it in your heart to forgive me."

"Lisa..."

"I know," Lisa said, hanging her head. "I'm ashamed of my behavior. I'm scum. I'm a self-centered bitch. And I deserve to have my ass whipped until Lynn goes to college, then on major school holidays. The pain of that, I imagine, would never compare to the pain I've put you and Lincoln through."

Luan went to her sister and knelt. She took her hands in hers and looked into her eyes. "I forgive you."

Lisa broke down, and Luan held her. "I'm sorry," Lisa said, "I'm so sorry. I just want to be loved."

"I love you, Lisa. Lincoln loves you. We all love you. And one day, you'll meet a man who will fall totally in love with you."

"Who could love me?" Lisa asked. "Look at me. I'm ugly, I'm cold, I'm analytical. I'm selfish."

"You're beautiful, intelligent, and, no, you aren't selfish. You've done so much for all of us. You made a mistake. You're human." Luan stroked her sister's cheek and kissed her forehead.

Lisa snuggled closer to her sister like the little girl everyone forgot she was. "I don't see beauty when I look in the mirror. I see dull dishwater."

"Do you know what I see when I look in the mirror?"

"What?"

"I see Sandy from Spongebob Squarepants."

That shocked a chuckle from Lisa.

"I'm serious," Luan said. "I have an overbite and it will always be that way. These are my adult teeth. I'm going to have chipmunk teeth until the day I die. I'm not beautiful. But that's okay, because you don't have to be beautiful to feel beautiful, and one day, Lisa, you'll have someone who makes you feel like the most beautiful woman on the face of the earth."

Lisa didn't speak for a long time. "I'm sorry. I really am."

"Shhh."

"Please don't tell the others."

"I won't," Luan promised and hugged her sister.

Lisa sighed. "Luan?"

"Yes?"

"You should go to Lincoln. Immediately."

Luan smiled. "Lisa...you read my mind."