Here's another update.
To all readers/reviewers: thanks for the support.
Excuse any errors that may appear.
Let's get this show on the road. :-)
"What?" Katherine and Rocky exclaimed at the same time.
Stacy rolled her eyes. "I'm her twin sister. Geez."
"Cait never mentioned having a twin," Rocky said, narrowing his eyes.
"Not all that shocking seeing as how we've never been all that close," Stacy said as she scanned the contents on the shelves. "Ohh. Definitely buying these."
"How do we know you're not really Cait?" Katherine asked slowly.
"I don't give a flying crap what you believe. Cait is an annoying wack job that happens to be locked up as we speak. I'm nothing nor have I ever been anything like her- thank goodness. I'd never go all squirrelly over some dumb-ass guy," Stacy said, scoffing. "Only my ditzy, stupid sister would."
Rocky studied her closely. She was a little shorter and her hair wasn't as long as Cait's and she looked as though her two favorite expressions were sour and smug, so, she was clearly telling the truth. Besides, this girl did seem different- not to mention the fact that she was wearing clothes Cait never would've worn. There was just something about her that didn't exactly scream 'Cait.'
"She's not Cait," he said to Katherine.
Stacy glared at them, then, her eyes widened a little. "Wait a second. You're him, aren't you? You're the guy- Rocky. Meaning Blondie here's the fiancee."
"Wife," Katherine corrected.
"Oh, so, you went on ahead and jumped that broom, huh? Nice," Stacy said, not sounding all that interested.
"How'd you know we were-" Rocky asked.
"Cait's friend Tess told me. Wow," Stacy said, laughing. "I was wondering when Bubbles would go completely bananas."
"Bubbles?" Katherine said, lifting an eyebrow.
"Her nickname. I gave it to her when we were kids. She was always an overly cheerful, bubbleheaded moron. The chasing butterflies type who loved rainbows and probably believed there really was a pot of gold at the end. I gotta get some smokes," Stacy said, then, turned and headed off. Rocky and Katherine looked at each other, then, followed her. Stacy looked over her shoulder and smirked. "Why follow me? Seeing as how I look like my lamebrained sister, I'd think I'd be the last person you'd wanna be around."
"You know... before she, well, lost it... Cait really wasn't that bad. Sure, she was kinda dense and even irritating, but, she wasn't a bad person in the beginning," Katherine said.
Stacy snorted. "I think I know my sister a little better than you do, Blondie."
"It's Kat," Katherine said, annoyance surging through her.
"Who cares? This isn't a freakin' cocktail party," Stacy said dully. "Anyhow, I grew up with Caitlin. A part of me still wishes we were separated at birth."
'Saying she's a little rough around the edges would be a total understatement,' Rocky thought, glancing at his wife.
"Growing up with someone doesn't necessarily mean you really know them," Katherine said.
"You a shrink or something?" Stacy said, smirking.
"Just stating a fact," Katherine shot back.
"Whatever," Stacy said flatly as she grabbed two packs of cigarettes. "I think I'm the one in the right here, Kit."
"Ka- oh, forget it," Katherine said.
"Cait had a lotta friends. Some of 'em actually didn't believe in magic lamps and flying carpets. I was starting to think that maybe there was hope for her after all. Even though she had a trillion, stupid, stuffed animals and her room was painted light blue- with the sun on the ceiling and flowers and bunnies on the walls. Ugh," Stacy said, curling her upper lip.
"Wow," Rocky said with a low whistle. That was a little much.
"And she and my parents actually called me weird just because I wanted my room to look a like a jail cell. Why not? Hell, that's how I felt at the time. My uncle bought me and Cait this horse and Cait wanted to name him Marshmallow. She had the stupidest names for every pet we ever had," Stacy said, rolling her eyes. Then, she looked at Katherine and Rocky and her eyes turned cold. "We're done here. You wanna talk Cait, go see her stupid friends or my parents. It'd be wise as hell not to try and find me. Believe that. "
"It's just...weird. Cait has a sister. Twin sister," Katherine said that evening. She and Rocky were having dinner in the kitchen.
"I know! I don't get why Cait never mentioned her," Rocky said as he moved his pasta around on his plate.
"I do. Stacy doesn't exactly seem like a topic anybody would wanna discuss," Katherine said before drinking some of her water. "Something's off about her. She seems... dangerous. I just kept hearing warning bells in my head, Rocky."
"Yeah. She wasn't exactly giving off warm and gooey vibes, was she?" he said, sighing. "She could be just as crazy as Cait- if not crazier."
"I think it's a different kind of crazy. I mean, Caitlin was really a danger to herself. Stacy seems like she'd be a danger to others," Katherine said, shaking her head. "The drama may not be over for us, Rocky."
"I don't wanna believe that," he said.
"Neither do I," she said softly.
"She didn't seem to care about us. Hopefully, that wasn't an act. But... we'll just have to keep our guards up anyway," Rocky said, nodding.
"Definitely," Katherine agreed.
Stacy knocked sharply on the door of Valerie and Rick Hinton's house. Valerie- a thirty-six-year-old blonde- was a close friend of Stacy's and Rick- a dark-haired, thirty-seven-year-old man- was Valerie's husband of six years. Stacy knocked again- in impatience. The door was opened by Valerie several moments later.
"Damn, Stace. You're acting like you're the cops or something. Get in here," she said, stepping aside.
"Sorry. Where's Rick?" Stacy asked as her friend closed and locked the door.
"At his brother's," Valerie replied as Stacy followed her to the den. "Want anything to drink?"
"Any Budweiser?" Stacy asked as she sat on the sofa.
"I'm sure Rick has a few left," Valerie said, then, exited the room. She returned with a bottle a minute later and handed it to Stacy. "There ya go."
"Thanks, Val," Stacy said.
"Sure. So, what've you been up to? I haven't heard from you in a few weeks," Valerie said as she sat on the sofa as well.
Stacy shrugged, then, downed some of the beer. "Not much. Had the "what do you plan to do with your life" argument with my mom, quit my job and dumped that jackass Cord. How 'bout you?"
"Same ol', same ol'. Your mom's still on your case, huh?" Valerie said with a smile.
"It's her favorite hobby. She can't accept the fact that I'm not going back to college. Hey, life- as sucky and crappy as it may be- is what really educates you. Any idiot knows that," Stacy said. "So, what's the word on the baby business?"
Valerie sighed. She and her husband had been trying to have a baby for quite some time. "I wish I was pregnant right now. I want a baby, Stacy- more than anything. I know that there are now a lotta ways to increase chances of conception, but... I don't wanna go through any procedures or craziness or anything. And adoption... . Hell, I just want a baby now."
"Actually... I can solve your problem. No procedures, no worries. Just let me handle it," Stacy said.
"How?" Valerie asked.
"Just trust me. You'll have to wait a little while, but... you'll definitely have a baby. Just leave it to me," Stacy said, smiling.