A Sister's Secret

by Cydney Rax

  Truth caused pain.

  Elyse wondered if she could do her Sister Day assignment for the first time ever and confront someone.

  She wondered if doing so would change her life, or if this devastating secret would be hers until the day she died.

  CHAPTER 13

  Sudden Intervention

  On that same Sunday, but late in the afternoon, Shade and Alita decided to meet up at Morning Glory. The restaurant served a jazz brunch every fourth Sunday. Shade picked up Alita from her apartment. She looked ravishing and felt relaxed. Her eyes sparkled with happiness. She seemed like a brand-new woman.

  When they arrived, the first thing Alita did was look for Burgundy’s car. She didn’t see it.

  Good, she thought, and they made their way inside. Shade and Alita found a nice booth and they sat next to each other on the same row. They stared at the menu and then at each other.

  Their elbows touched. Alita sighed and said, “I don’t know why the hell we looking at the menu. It’s the same old stuff. You know what I like, Shade. Order for me.”

  “I’ll do that, sweetie.”

  Alita spotted Burgundy first.

  “Oh, hell, I knew it was a bad idea to come here,” Alita said in a panic. “Why’d you want to come here?”

  “I come here for the food, not for Burgundy.”

  “That’s fine, but shit, my sister is the last person I want to see right now. And she’s so busy sometimes she don’t even make it in to this joint. Especially on a Sunday. But of course, today she’s gotta be all up in the Morning Glory. I swear I do not have the luck of the damned Irish.”

  Shade chuckled as he watched her. “You’re so cute when you’re trying to be mad. Relax!”

  “You relax.”

  “Oh, trust me. I am very relaxed.”

  “Oh, really? Wonder why?” Alita let off a big grin, and they both chuckled and touched hands briefly. Feeling his skin felt good to Alita. She wanted to hold onto him longer.

  But she froze up again and let him go.

  “She’s so damned nosy,” she ranted. “Just like a Reeves sister. Always gotta be up in somebody’s business.”

  “You sound insane,” Shade told her.

  “She makes me act crazy.”

  Alita realized she was talking so loudly, Burgundy might recognize her voice. She tried to duck in her seat and shield her face behind the large menu. But soon Burgundy was standing by their booth.

  “I don’t believe this,” she said with a shocked look on her face. “No wonder you had to leave the bookstore early today,” she told Shade. “You had more important things to do,” she said, then rolled her eyes at Alita.

  “Hey, Sis,” Alita finally said.

  Burgundy stood there, noticing how her sister and Shade were looking as cozy as an old married couple. Their elbows touched. Burgundy wanted to look under the table to see if their knees were touching too. She peered closely at Alita’s hand. No engagement ring. Then she saw Shade grab Alita’s right hand and hold it close inside of his big hand.

  “Well, it seems like you two are truly hitting it off,” she said in a chirpy voice.

  “She’s amazing,” he said.

  Alita wanted to chop him in the ribs but decided not to make a scene. “He’s cool. He’s my buddy.”

  Shade said, “I’m more than that, don’t you think?”

  “I don’t know what to think,” Burgundy murmured.

  “I wasn’t talking to you,” he said to her. “I was talking to your sister. I said I think I’m much more than your buddy, Alita.”

  “Yeah, okay, all right. You’re more than just my buddy. You’ve scored some major points lately. Damn. I can’t believe this shit. Not again.”

  Burgundy got weak in the knees. She wanted to pass out. She knew the look of lovers when she saw it.

  Those two have done the do. I know they have. I can’t believe it. What a bunch of sluts!

  Unable to think of anything more to say, she abruptly left them alone and returned to the business office.

  Alita finally spoke. “She knows, Shade.”

  He shrugged. “She’d have found out eventually.”

  “I know, but still. I’m a hypocrite. I like to tell her stuff, but at the same time I don’t want her to know everything. She’ll try to run my life. Give me advice I didn’t ask for.” Alita laughed. “In some ways she is like me, but not in everything.”

  “Be you. Do you. I like you.” He kissed the tip of her nose. His words sounded so corny, but hearing them felt so good. Alita loved being with Shade, but it also scared her. When would the rug be pulled from underneath her? She wasn’t ready to free-fall just yet.

  “Anyway,” she said, trying to act nonchalant, “you order for me. I’ll be right back. I need to go check on Burgundy. She looked like she was about to have a damned heart attack. I swear that girl had ‘hater’ written all on her forehead.”

  He laughed. “See you in a bit.”

  Alita excused herself. She went through the double doors that led to the kitchen. That was where she bumped into Elyse. The girl looked as sick as a dog, like she was about to pass out any minute.

  “You look like shit. What are you doing here? On a Sunday too? Where are Natalia and Sid?”

  “Office.”

  “Oh, okay. How you doing, Elyse?”

  Elyse’s eyes flashed with anger. She sighed and shrugged. She was struggling to wash some dirty dishes. Beads of sweat scattered across her forehead.

  “You don’t look good at all. It’s too damned hot in this kitchen. I’ma have to get on Nate about how hot he keeps it—” Before she could get the words out of her mouth, Elyse’s mouth widened. She lurched forward. She tried to reach the sink, but she spewed a mouthful of vomit that spilled on the floor. She kept retching over and over again.

  “This child is sick. Someone go find my sister.”

  After a while they were able to bring Elyse into the business office.

  “What’s wrong with Elyse?” Alita asked Burgundy. “I don’t like her working here. This is not a good atmosphere for her. She probably is so stressed from being around all these people that it makes her nervous. She needs to go see a doctor, because it looks like she’s losing weight, and she ain’t that big in the first damned place.”

  “I know. You’re right. But I haven’t had time to take Elyse to the doctor.”

  “That’s a damned shame,” Alita said. “Hell, I have a day off coming up this week. I will take her. Give me the info. Doctor name, number, address. I’ll make the appointment.”

  “You’re a lifesaver.”

  Alita unfolded her fist. “Give me some cash, though, for the co-pay. Better add in some gas money while you’re at it. And toll road fees.”

  Burgundy sighed aloud but went into her purse and fished out for Alita all the cash that she could find. “Let me know what the doctor says.”

  “I will. You know I’ll do that.”

  * * *

  A couple of days later, Alita sat in the tiny examination room. Elyse was perched on the examining table. The doctor stood before her.

  “Hey there, Elyse.”

  Her thin shoulders jerked in shaky motion, trembling like she was cold.

  Once the doctor finished up Elyse’s exam, she left the room for blood and urine tests. The doctor sat in his chair. He typed in data in a tablet that he was holding and quickly reviewed the young lady’s medical records.

  “Alita, I’m hoping you know the answer to this, and it’s fine if you don’t. But . . . does Elyse grind her teeth at night?” he asked.

  “Huh? Hell if I know. Why do you ask?”

  “I examined everything. I noticed that her top and bottom teeth are not aligned properly. I’m guessing she’s been grinding her teeth. Have her gums been sore, or is there some other kind of pain that she’s having in her mouth?”

  “Sorry, doc. I dunno.”

  “It may be something she is subconsciously doing while she’s asleep.
”

  “Very possible. I can find out.”

  “Please do. She needs to go see a dentist right away. I know it may not sound very critical, but teeth grinding can lead to other serious problems, like muscular pain, headaches, cracked and broken teeth.”

  Alita gasped. “All that? Are you serious?”

  Elyse returned to the room and sat on a chair next to Alita. After waiting a few seconds, she quietly got up and sat on Alita’s lap. She buried her face against Alita’s chest.

  Momentarily stunned, Alita said to the doctor, “Um, I-I had no idea this was going on with Elyse’s teeth. And it sounds real, real bad.”

  “I don’t want to frighten you,” the doctor said. “But please get some x-rays done and see what the dentist recommends.”

  Alita patted Elyse’s back, whispering words of comfort. Elyse slumped on Alita’s lap. She did not connect with the physician, and she never made any eye contact with him or any of the nursing staff from when the women first arrived at the medical office.

  Alita’s heart was moved by the young girl’s need for comfort, but at the same time it embarrassed her how Elyse was so childlike. She wanted her to be normal, be grown, but she wasn’t completely sure how to fix things.

  Alita cleared her throat, which was clogged with pain. “Thanks for letting me know, doc. We’ll make an appointment for her as soon as possible.” Alita was ready to leave. She despised hearing bad news, especially when it involved young people. It made her feel powerless and defeated.

  Alita snatched up her purse and made Elyse stand up.

  “Anything else?” Alita asked.

  “As a matter of fact, there is.” He paused. “I think that she has agoraphobia.”

  “Agora what? What is that?”

  “Look at her,” the doctor said quietly but respectfully. Alita stared at Elyse and tried to see what the man was talking about.

  “I’m looking. That’s how she always is. She’s kind of odd. She talks like a kid and acts like one too.”

  Elyse shot Alita a hateful look that made her feel uneasy. Alita changed her description, saying, “Put it like this. I think my baby sister is a late bloomer. She’s very shy. And she misses our mother.” She explained that Elyse had fallen into a depression after their mother passed. Almost immediately they had noticed a major shift in Elyse’s personality. Prior to that, the girl had been introverted, but it was never this extreme.

  “I’m sorry to hear that. But agoraphobia is an anxiety disorder in which a person suffers from panic attacks, exhibits various fears. Fear of open spaces. I’ve noticed how she froze up whenever the door opened or closed. And I saw how you all did not take an elevator to reach this floor, not that that means anything, but now that I’ve observed Elyse, it all makes sense.”

  “Well, you nailed it doctor, because that’s exactly how she be acting.” Alita rolled her eyes. “She’s too old for this. This girl will be twenty years old on her next birthday.”

  “Does she find it hard to tell you how she feels, what she’s thinking?”

  “Yes! All of that. I can barely get her to put three words in one sentence. She’s a one-word person if I ever saw one. Drives me crazy.”

  “We’ll let you know the lab results as soon as we have them.”

  “Thanks, doctor. I appreciate that.”

  Alita told him goodbye. She and Elyse exited the building and soon Alita was driving north on the I-45, back to the Woodlands.

  When Elyse saw the direction that they were headed, she pointed frantically to her stomach.

  “What Elyse? Hell, I’m not a mind reader, and I don’t do sign language either.”

  “Hungry,” Elyse said. “I want food.”

  “Okay, I could eat too,” Alita said. “What you have a taste for? You want to go to Morning Glory?”

  Elyse grabbed the door handle of Alita’s car. The car was a late-model sedan and was falling apart. The seat cushions were ripped, the steering wheel needed to be replaced, and the muffler made loud noises.

  Gripping the handle, Elyse rattled it and pushed her shoulder against the door.

  “Girl, what you doing?”

  Elyse unlatched her seat belt, then opened the passenger door. The door was heavy, and she struggled to keep it steady.

  “Elyse, are you crazy? Shut the damned door.”

  Elyse cracked the door open a little wider. She twisted her petite body around to face it. She imagined herself jumping. Pictured herself falling out and landing on the road. And if she was lucky maybe a car would run over her since they were driving in the middle lane. Any car out there could do the job. It would be over real quick. And her nightmare would end.

  Alita held the steering wheel with one hand. She leaned over and snatched Elyse’s left arm. Elyse jerked back.

  The sound of cars whizzing by filled Alita’s ears. She glanced in the rearview mirror; an eighteen-wheeler zoomed behind them. Elyse saw the truck too. She opened her door wider.

  “What the fuck you doing, little girl?” Alita was yelling by now. Her heart raced. Her mind felt confused. “All I wanted to do was take you to the doctor. I didn’t sign up for all this extra drama. Why you trying to kill yourself?”

  Alita wanted to slow down, but the cars behind her and on the side of them zoomed by at seventy miles per hour. Elyse rocked back and forth in her seat like she was bracing herself for the jump.

  “Baby girl, please don’t do this. Please. I love you, Elyse, can you get that through your thick head?”

  Elyse shot a doubtful look at Alita. She turned toward her, but the door was still ajar.

  “You love? Love me?” she asked.

  “Yes, dummy. What do you think? Oh, my God. Why don’t you know how much your family cares about you?”

  If they love me, why they not save me? Why they can’t see me, really see me? Why they not know everything not like it looks?

  Elyse suddenly burst into tears. She covered her face with both of her hands, forgetting all about the swinging door.

  “Girl, are you nuts? If you don’t close that door I may push you out on the ground myself. Damn!”

  Elyse ignored Alita. She wept and released all the pain and confusion and anger that had bubbled up inside of her for years. She wanted her mother. She wished she could find her father. She yearned for protection. She wanted an ending to every injustice she’d suffered.

  Alita managed to pull over on the shoulder of the freeway. She got out of the car and ran to shut the door. Then she kicked it to make sure it remained closed.

  She got back in the car and secured the locks. “Hell, if this is what I’ll be going through, I need to get B to buy me a new car. If I’m the chauffeur and the fucking psychiatrist, I’m going to need way more than gas money and a free breakfast every now and then.”

  Elyse stopped crying and burst out laughing.

  Alita was shocked. “You laughing?”

  Elyse nodded. “You very funny. And crazy.”

  Alita started hooting and hollering. “Oh, my God. You have been paying attention, haven’t you, Elyse.”

  Elyse nodded.

  “Baby sis spoke two sentences in a row. It’s a miracle. Somebody call TMZ. Somebody call The Shade Room please.”

  Elyse chuckled again until her laugh simmered down. Her stomach growled. And she felt light-headed. She angrily spoke. “Hungry, Lita. No breakfast. No Morning Glory.”

  “Okay, all right,” Alita smiled. “We’ll go wherever you want to go. Any place you want.”

  Elyse paused. “I want . . . go live with you. Can I?”

  “What?”

  Elyse nodded. “Please? I not trouble.”

  Alita wanted to laugh.

  “Define trouble”, she said.

  “I not trouble, Lita.”

  “You’re not trouble? Ha! I got a watch, I got a clock, but I don’t have time for this shit.”

  “You love me?” Elyse asked.

  “Of course I do, silly. More than you can ev
er imagine.” Alita bit her bottom lip; her eyes filled with tears. “It’s just that . . . I’m not in the position to handle all of this craziness. Trying to deal with Leno, and these recruiters that call me, and me having to work three jobs. I finally hooked up with a decent boyfriend, and I got bills.” Just the thought of everything she was up against made Alita feel like she could barely breathe.

  “You never see me,” Elyse pleaded. “I be invisible. I be quiet. Please, Lita.”

  “Awww, sweetie. Let me think about it.”

  Elyse pouted. Her eyes clouded with fresh tears. She was sick of crying. What good did it do anyway?

  Finding no answer, she quietly grabbed the door handle.

  “Oh, hell no,” Alita began to shout. “If you think you gonna try and manipulate me by threatening to kill yourself every time you don’t get your way, then think again. Don’t do this to me. I can’t take it. I won’t have it!”

  Alita yelled so loud that Elyse snatched back her hand.

  She cowered in her seat and made her body resemble a tiny ball. She leaned her head against the door and wished herself to sleep.

  Wished herself back into the deep, black hole that was her life.

  CHAPTER 14

  Who Put You in Charge

  The November Sister Day fell on the Saturday before Thanksgiving. When the ladies gathered at the nail salon for their fill-ins, no one complained about Coco being late. She was now twenty weeks pregnant. Coco waddled into the place, out of breath and fanning her face with an Essence magazine.

  “Sorry, y’all,” Coco said and made a whooshing noise when she collapsed on her seat.

  Alita shrugged and shook her head as if she was used to Coco’s pathetic ways.

  Burgundy spoke up. “No apologies needed.”

  Alita didn’t waste any time. “We still in the last Sister Day Assignment, right? Okay. I have been wondering about something . . . and I’ll try to sound nice while saying it.”

  “What, Alita, what?” Coco said, assuming that she was the topic of Alita’s complaint.

  “It’s not about you this time, Dark Skin, so chill.” Alita looked annoyed. “My question is for Miss Queen B.”

  Burgundy turned and faced Alita. “Go ahead, Sis. What’s on your mind?”