"Rae? You okay?" Rachel asked, knocking on the door to her younger sister's room.
Raelyn nodded, and motioned for Rachel to come in. The two girls sat on Raelyn's bed, hugging each other. It was the day after their father, Wyatt's, funeral.
"Maybe we should go check on Rhia." Raelyn suggested.
Rachel shrugged. "I wouldn't know what to say."
Their youngest sister, Rhianna, had never been close to them. She'd left San Francisco right after high school, and didn't come back until she'd found out that her father was sick. Even then, despite Raelyn's best efforts - and a few half-hearted attempts from Rachel - she was even more distant than ever.
Raelyn got up, and dragged her older sister across the hall.
"Rhi? Honey?" she called, knocking on Rhianna's closed door.
Rhianna opened the door. Her long, light brown hair was pulled back into a simple ponytail. Rachel was amazed again at how much her youngest sister looked like their mother, Elaine, who'd died when Rhianna was only a few weeks old.
Rhianna stepped aside to let her older sisters in, then flopped down unceremoniously on the bed. Raelyn sat down beside her, and Rachel stood uncomfortably off to the side.
"Honey, how are you?" Raelyn asked gently.
"Never better." Rhianna replied sarcastically.
"She's just worried about you, Rhia, you don't have to be so caustic." Rachel chided.
"Sorry, sis; thanks for your concern." Rhianna snapped. "I never asked to be worried about."
"See? I told you she wouldn't want us here." Rachel said to Raelyn.
"Can't the two of you get along just this once, damnit?" Raelyn demanded. She got up and stalked out of the room, leaving Rachel and Rhia to stare at eaach other. After a few minutes, they went to find their sister.
Raelyn was in the living room, crying and clutching a picture of the girls and their father. Rachel and Rhianna immediately forgot their animosity and rushed to comfort their sister.
"It's okay, sweetie." Rachel said, putting her arms around Raelyn. Rhia sat on Rae's other side, and put her head on her sister's shoulder.
"I just miss him so much." Raelyn cried. "And what happens now? You both know the reason we all moved back here was to take care of him. So what now, do we just all leave? Go back to the way it was before, when we only saw each other a few times a year?"
Rhianna and Rachel exchanged guilty looks. "No, honey, of course not." Rhia said, although she wasn't sure.
"You don't know that." Raelyn sobbed.
Rhianna tried to think of something to say, but she couldn't come up with anything that would comfort her older sister. Rae is probably right, she realized. After things had settled down a bit, Rhia would probably go back east. After all, why would she stay? There wasn't anything for her here, and Rachel obviously didn't want her. Rhianna sighed, thinking of how upset her oldest sister had been at her return.
"That isn't going to happen." Rachel said firmly, giving Rhianna a warning glance.
"Rachel's right." Rhianna jumped in. "Sweetie, we're going to get through this."
Raelyn nodded. She didn't completely believe her sisters, but still there was something comforting about what they were saying.
"Come on, honey." Rachel said. "It's getting late. Let's go see what we've got for dinner, okay?"
Raelyn got up, drying her eyes on a tissue from the box on the coffee table, and followed her sister into the kitchen. Rhianna stayed behind, and picked up the photograph that Raelyn had been looking at.
It was of Wyatt, Rachel, Raelyn, and Rhianna, when Rhia was around five, and her sisters were eight and ten. The girls had been best friends back then, inseperable. For a long time they'd done everything together, then, around the time Rhia went into high school, it changed. She and Rachel started fighting more and more, until Rhia couldn't take it and bailed right after graduation. She'd reflected on that time often, but she couldn't figure out exactly what went wrong. What happened, to make her relationship with her sister change so dramatically?
I guess I'll never know, Rhia thought. Sighing, she put the picture down and went into the kitchen to join her sisters in pretending to be the happy family they were in reality far from.
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A/N: I know this chapter could've been better, but you get the idea, right? Some of you may have noticed that I changed the middle sister's name from Robyn to Raelyn. I just like the name Rae better, and yeah. Review and let me know what you think of the story this far.
Raelyn nodded, and motioned for Rachel to come in. The two girls sat on Raelyn's bed, hugging each other. It was the day after their father, Wyatt's, funeral.
"Maybe we should go check on Rhia." Raelyn suggested.
Rachel shrugged. "I wouldn't know what to say."
Their youngest sister, Rhianna, had never been close to them. She'd left San Francisco right after high school, and didn't come back until she'd found out that her father was sick. Even then, despite Raelyn's best efforts - and a few half-hearted attempts from Rachel - she was even more distant than ever.
Raelyn got up, and dragged her older sister across the hall.
"Rhi? Honey?" she called, knocking on Rhianna's closed door.
Rhianna opened the door. Her long, light brown hair was pulled back into a simple ponytail. Rachel was amazed again at how much her youngest sister looked like their mother, Elaine, who'd died when Rhianna was only a few weeks old.
Rhianna stepped aside to let her older sisters in, then flopped down unceremoniously on the bed. Raelyn sat down beside her, and Rachel stood uncomfortably off to the side.
"Honey, how are you?" Raelyn asked gently.
"Never better." Rhianna replied sarcastically.
"She's just worried about you, Rhia, you don't have to be so caustic." Rachel chided.
"Sorry, sis; thanks for your concern." Rhianna snapped. "I never asked to be worried about."
"See? I told you she wouldn't want us here." Rachel said to Raelyn.
"Can't the two of you get along just this once, damnit?" Raelyn demanded. She got up and stalked out of the room, leaving Rachel and Rhia to stare at eaach other. After a few minutes, they went to find their sister.
Raelyn was in the living room, crying and clutching a picture of the girls and their father. Rachel and Rhianna immediately forgot their animosity and rushed to comfort their sister.
"It's okay, sweetie." Rachel said, putting her arms around Raelyn. Rhia sat on Rae's other side, and put her head on her sister's shoulder.
"I just miss him so much." Raelyn cried. "And what happens now? You both know the reason we all moved back here was to take care of him. So what now, do we just all leave? Go back to the way it was before, when we only saw each other a few times a year?"
Rhianna and Rachel exchanged guilty looks. "No, honey, of course not." Rhia said, although she wasn't sure.
"You don't know that." Raelyn sobbed.
Rhianna tried to think of something to say, but she couldn't come up with anything that would comfort her older sister. Rae is probably right, she realized. After things had settled down a bit, Rhia would probably go back east. After all, why would she stay? There wasn't anything for her here, and Rachel obviously didn't want her. Rhianna sighed, thinking of how upset her oldest sister had been at her return.
"That isn't going to happen." Rachel said firmly, giving Rhianna a warning glance.
"Rachel's right." Rhianna jumped in. "Sweetie, we're going to get through this."
Raelyn nodded. She didn't completely believe her sisters, but still there was something comforting about what they were saying.
"Come on, honey." Rachel said. "It's getting late. Let's go see what we've got for dinner, okay?"
Raelyn got up, drying her eyes on a tissue from the box on the coffee table, and followed her sister into the kitchen. Rhianna stayed behind, and picked up the photograph that Raelyn had been looking at.
It was of Wyatt, Rachel, Raelyn, and Rhianna, when Rhia was around five, and her sisters were eight and ten. The girls had been best friends back then, inseperable. For a long time they'd done everything together, then, around the time Rhia went into high school, it changed. She and Rachel started fighting more and more, until Rhia couldn't take it and bailed right after graduation. She'd reflected on that time often, but she couldn't figure out exactly what went wrong. What happened, to make her relationship with her sister change so dramatically?
I guess I'll never know, Rhia thought. Sighing, she put the picture down and went into the kitchen to join her sisters in pretending to be the happy family they were in reality far from.
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A/N: I know this chapter could've been better, but you get the idea, right? Some of you may have noticed that I changed the middle sister's name from Robyn to Raelyn. I just like the name Rae better, and yeah. Review and let me know what you think of the story this far.