My Sisters And Me

by Lisa Dickenson

  ‘Wow, you really can sing!’ Gabbi said as Rae entered the living room, standing up from where the three of them were leaning over the laptop and applauding.

  ‘Well, I did tell you I was a professional,’ Rae grumbled. ‘Did you call them yet?’

  ‘I did. Sorry – I was being selfish. Unfortunately, Jared wasn’t there and I spoke to this other officer who’s a real stickler. He thinks I was speaking under duress and that I’m being held hostage. I told him that was ridiculous, but he said he was going to come by here himself this evening and check on me.’

  ‘Why don’t you just go home?’ Rae asked bluntly.

  ‘No, I can’t. I have people over at my house all the time – work people, cleaners, gardeners…’

  Rae rolled her eyes.

  ‘They can’t see me like this, Rae. Please, let me stay here just until I’m more presentable. Then I’ll be out of your hair.’

  ‘Fine. What are you all looking at?’

  ‘Ways to remove henna from your skin,’ Noelle answered. ‘Do we have any hydrogen peroxide?’

  ‘We’re not putting hydrogen peroxide on her face!’ Rae said, going over and peering at the screen. ‘What about that toothpaste-scrub one? That sounds safer.’

  ‘We tried that while you were upstairs. No change.’

  Emmy stood up. ‘I’m going to walk into town. I could do with some fresh air anyway before we crack on with the cleaning and decorating. I’ll pick up some baking soda and lemons for that other tip, and some thick concealer for you.’

  ‘Can you make sure it’s medium-coloured?’ Gabbi asked.

  Emmy picked up her bag. ‘I don’t think a slight mismatch in skin tone is your biggest worry right now.’

  ‘I’ll come too, if that’s okay?’ Rae asked.

  ‘Sure.’

  ‘Does anyone want anything else? Gabbi, do you want a hairpiece? Or a nose job?’

  ‘Ha ha,’ Gabbi replied, but with a tired smile. ‘Actually, if you see any of that colour-stripping shampoo stuff in the hair-dye aisle I’d really appreciate it. And some antiseptic cream. Thank you so much.’

  ‘No black eyeliner today?’ Emmy asked her sister as they turned out of their driveway and started a slow stroll into town, which was the best either of them could manage.

  ‘Not today. I think my skin’s had enough of ancient make-up. How are you feeling?’

  ‘A tiny bit less death-like. A lot worse than normal though. How about you?’

  ‘Still pretty rough.’

  ‘Sorry Finn didn’t make it down yesterday.’

  ‘Me too.’ They walked in silence for a while, Rae turning thoughts of Finn over in her head. She missed him too much. ‘So, what happened between you and Jared last night?’

  ‘We didn’t bone,’ Emmy answered. ‘But we might have kissed.’

  Rae did a small cheer so as not to rattle her head too much. ‘I knew you kids were meant to be together.’

  ‘We’re not meant to be together, it was just a kiss.’

  ‘A kiss?’

  ‘It was kissing – lots of kisses. I don’t know, we were drunk and all my favourite pop songs from the nineties were playing. We just got caught up in the moment.’ Emmy couldn’t help but downplay it. That was her way.

  ‘Is that all you want it to be? Just a silly moment of teenage-style fun?’

  Emmy made a non-committal ‘meh’ sound, and kept her gaze on the pavement. What did she want from Jared? Was this the start of something? Or closing a chapter in her life? What did she want?

  ‘I want happy memories,’ she said, and for now that was the best she could do.

  ‘Would you kiss him again?’

  ‘If he was okay with that.’

  ‘Would you start up a long-distance relationship?’

  ‘Probably not.’

  Rae nodded. ‘I’ve been thinking about our real lives this morning too. It’ll be nice to get back to normal in a couple of weeks.’

  Emmy looked at her sister, and a tiny bit of sadness sneaked in. She had thought she was the one dying to get back to normal. Now she wondered if any of them really wanted to be there. ‘Is it because of Finn?’

  ‘Just homesick, and under a hangover cloud,’ she smiled, shaking herself out of it. She didn’t want Emmy to think she didn’t want to be there with them.

  ‘Oi!’ came a shout from across the road. The sisters looked up. ‘Oi, you little…’

  They were level with Annette’s Newsagent’s when the lady herself flung open the door and started striding across the road towards them, giving zero effs about the oncoming traffic. Her frail, hunched-over body gave no sign of crumbling as she marched forcefully towards them. ‘Stop right there, you little madams!’

  Annette didn’t stop when she was in front of them; instead she kept going, forcing them back against the wall. Only then did she stop and sneer up at their faces, waving her fingers. ‘What did you do that for, hmm? Think it makes you big girls, breaking my shop window, do you?’

  ‘We didn’t break your window,’ said Emmy, holding her hands out like she was surrendering firearms. Out of the shop doorway stepped the two police officers who had visited their house that morning.

  ‘You would say that, but you’ve always been nasty little girls. I never had a problem like this before you came back. Angry I wouldn’t let you stuff your filthy little pockets with all my stock, were you?’

  Emmy was so shocked that she stopped taking it all in. All she could process was how often Annette said ‘little’, for someone so little herself.

  Some people were stopping and having a gawk, and the police did very little to move them along, instead ambling across the road themselves to see what the sisters had to say.

  ‘Hey, we had nothing to do with your window,’ Rae protested.

  ‘What about the mayor’s house?’ someone shouted out. ‘Where’s our mayor?’

  ‘I blame the mother,’ Annette sniffed to the spectators. ‘And the father. Hippies, you know… devil worshippers.’

  ‘They were not devil worshippers,’ Emmy said, louder than she intended, and bunched her fists up at her sides. The police stepped forward. And all of a sudden there was a thunderous growl as a Harley Davidson motorbike varoomed down the street, skidded, turned and then pulled up next to where they were standing.

  The rider stepped off, a huge bear of a man, and removed his helmet.

  ‘FINN!’ shouted Rae, joy shooting through her entire body. She leapt up into his arms, kissing his face all over the place.

  The police officers raised their eyebrows at each other; Annette could not have looked angrier.

  ‘Finn,’ Rae repeated, happy tears in her eyes, as he lowered her down. ‘You’re here. Why do you look like a Hells Angel?’

  ‘Because heaven’s no place for a broad like you,’ he boomed, then laughed his head off, waving at Emmy and holding on to his wife tightly. ‘Hello,’ he said, noticing the police for the first time. ‘What’s she done?’ he teased.

  ‘Is this an acquaintance of yours, Ms Lake?’ Police Officer One asked, looking thoroughly chuffed.

  ‘He’s my husband. And he doesn’t usually look like this, not that it would have anything to do with you if he did.’

  ‘It’s my Halloween costume!’ Finn said, his huge beam still on his face. ‘Just a day late.’

  Emmy was equally pleased to see him, especially for Rae’s sake – it was impossible not to smile at those two together.

  ‘Not the best timing, bear,’ Rae murmured to him. ‘I’m sort of under investigation for causing some trouble.’

  Finn stood up a little taller, and reached an arm over to Emmy to pull her protectively in towards him too. ‘What kind of trouble?’ he said, addressing the police officers.

  Police Officer One smiled politely. ‘We’re just investigating a few lines of inquiry following a party at your wife’s residence last night, sir.’ After gesturing to his colleague that they’d be on their way in a moment, he turned back
to Rae. ‘I shall see you in a little while, Ms Lake – I’ve promised the mayor I’ll pop over to see if there’s anything she needs.’

  ‘I can tell you now, she doesn’t need anything.’

  ‘With all due respect, Ms Lake, you also told me this morning that you did not know of the mayor’s whereabouts. And then she called me from your sister’s phone, from inside your house.’

  Hmm. ‘She came over later in the morning?’ Rae really wished she’d bothered to get her story straight with Gabbi beforehand. See, she wanted to shout, I’m a rubbish criminal – clearly I have no prior skills in this area. Knobs.

  Police Officer One just smiled, knowing she was lying, and off they went. Annette also crossed back over the road, cursing the sisters and saying they owed her a window. The rest of the rubberneckers ambled on with their days.

  Finally, Rae could sink into her husband; and the feel of his beard on her forehead, his large, warm chest and tummy breathing against her and his hand stroking her back brought more comfort than a thousand glasses of wine. And she loved wine.

  He held her, and she drained a handful of exhausted tears on him – swirled together with some happy and surprised ones. After a while she pulled away, inhaling deeply. ‘I needed that. I’m so happy to see you.’ She looked over at Emmy, who was leaning against the wall playing on her phone, giving them their reunion moment. ‘Emmy and I have to just pop to the shops really quickly, then I can meet you at home and tell you the whole story?’

  Emmy looked up. ‘I’ll get the stuff, you two go home.’

  ‘I did hire a second helmet,’ Finn said with hope. ‘In case you wanted a ride while I was down. Unless you want me to stick with you both and be a bodyguard against angry old ladies and smarmy coppers?’

  ‘I will be just fine,’ Emmy insisted. ‘Go.’ Rae was struggling, Emmy could see this. She’d seen this many times before, during their childhood. In the past, the pressures of always being the one to protect them all had often been the catalyst for Rae disappearing. Finn had come to her side at just the right time, when Rae could do with a little looking-after herself.

  Rae didn’t need too much coaxing, and she leapt on the back of the motorbike like she was in Grease 2. Her husband was here! She snuggled into his back, and Emmy watched them ride off into the non-sunset.

  Back at the house, the doorbell rang – a welcome interruption for Noelle, who was having her ear chewed off by Gabbi. Politicians sure like to talk about themselves, she thought, walking to the door. Behind it was Jenny, looking fresh and beautiful.

  ‘Hey you, did you forget something?’ Noelle cupped her face and kissed her – nothing dramatic, just the kiss of two past loves who had made peace with each other.

  Jenny stepped in the door. ‘Well, I don’t know where my Britney costume is, but aside from that I just thought we should have a talk about last night.’

  ‘Good idea.’ They bypassed Gabbi and went straight up to Noelle’s room, where they sat beside each other on the bed, a little giggly about the night before. But then Noelle grew serious. Jenny’s feelings were far from funny to her, and this time around it was important that they both fully appreciated what was in the other’s heart. Noelle resolved: no more telling Jenny what was best for her.

  ‘Listen,’ Noelle started, but Jenny interrupted her.

  ‘Me first, if I may. I had so much fun last night. It felt like all the resentment and heartache drifted away. Not exactly forgotten, but it’ll no longer make me sad, or angry at you. I can now think of you, one of the pillars of my life, in a way that makes me smile again. For that reason, I’m so glad you came back, and I’m so glad last night happened.’

  Tears popped over Noelle’s eye line – she couldn’t have wished for any more. ‘… But?’

  ‘But you know we’re not back together, right?’

  ‘I do.’

  ‘Is that okay with you? I just don’t know if I want long-distance, and I think we need more time to get reacquainted. Not just in the way we did on this bed.’ She patted the duvet.

  Noelle reached over and pulled Jenny into an embrace, touching her hair, and breathing her in. ‘Yes, I’m one hundred per cent committed to getting to know you again, and also one hundred per cent committed to not making any future commitments. This is a team effort, this time around, and we’ll just see what way the wind blows.’

  After spending what felt like yonks being indecisive in the pharmacy, Emmy emerged and almost ran smack into Jared’s chest.

  ‘Ooo Officer, hello again,’ she leered in a completely cringemaking-way without thinking, and then noticed his colleague standing beside him. Shame!

  Jared blushed a little, and the other police officer indicated he’d go on ahead.

  ‘I’m really sorry, that just came out, I think I might still be just a tiny bit tipsy,’ she stammered.

  Pushing up his sunglasses, Jared smiled at her and reached out a hand. She did the same, and both of them were in limbo with hovering hands, not knowing which page of the book they were both on. Then Jared rested a hand on her hip and kissed her cheek, while she play-punched his shoulder.

  They both pulled apart, sheepish.

  ‘I’m on patrol right now,’ he said. ‘But I guess we should talk?’

  They threw a left so that they moved away from the eyeline of the other officer, away from the main row of shops, and strolled side by side. It was hard to believe it was November already. The weeks had gone by in a blur, and late summer had turned to autumn, and now winter was already making its first presence known. Trees that had held copper leaves in abundance now had just one or two, which were fluttering in the cold wind; the rest of the branches bare and trembling.

  Jared spoke up first. ‘I just need to say that, on behalf of Jared-the-boy, I am honoured that last night happened. Jared-the-man was pretty chuffed too. But Jared-the-boy just had his life made.’

  Emmy felt her heart swell. ‘All the Emmys had a nice time too. A really nice time.’

  ‘So, what do you think?’

  ‘I think… I want to know what you want to be?’ Emmy sneaked in there so he’d have to be the one to reveal his feelings first.

  ‘I don’t know – you leave in a week. I did like the kissing, though.’

  ‘Good the kissing was!’ Oh, why did she have to lapse into her Yoda voice now? ‘Maybe we break down the problem and take it one step at a time?’

  ‘How efficient,’ he smiled. ‘We could start with how we should behave around each other while we work out the rest?’

  ‘Like – awkward, or back to normal or a bit kissy?’

  ‘Yes. Um,’ he glanced at his colleague, who had reappeared at the end of the road and was tapping his watch, ‘let’s go with a bit kissy, and see what happens?’

  ‘That sounds good,’ she said, relieved. ‘But maybe not too much in front of other people, until we have it figured out.’

  ‘Yes, brilliant, agreed. Good teamwork. Okay, I’d better go.’

  They high-fived and went in different directions. ‘I’m a Jedi,’ Emmy whispered to herself with happiness.

  After a bit of fresh air and a ride around, including a lovely long stop at the viewpoint high above the town, Rae returned to the house with a husband in tow. Emmy was walking back down the driveway at the same time, and she was relieved to see her older sister looking more at peace.

  Inside, Noelle had Gabbi sitting on a chair in the middle of the kitchen, her hair (what remained) tied back, a towel around her shoulders, and surrounded by little bowls of water, toilet tissue and what looked like gloopy icing.

  ‘Hiya,’ called Noelle as they walked in, and looked up from Gabbi’s face. ‘FINN!’

  Gabbi opened her eyes and smiled.

  Noelle dropped the cotton wool ball she was holding and skipped to Finn, embracing him without allowing her hands to touch him.

  ‘Finn came to visit!’ Rae beamed.

  Noelle stepped back and looked up at him, pleased. ‘Rae has been going abs
olutely loopy-loo without you.’

  ‘That’s not true, I don’t need him!’

  Finn planted a kiss on top of his wife’s head. ‘She really doesn’t, but I’m here anyway. How are you, Noelle? How’s the Jenny sitch?’

  ‘Very nice, thank you for asking. We had ourselves a little reunion last night.’

  ‘She is so smug about this,’ said Rae, before pointing at Gabbi. ‘What are you doing to my friend?’

  ‘I’m still your friend?’ Gabbi asked.

  ‘Well, your guess is as good as mine as to what happened last night, so I think we might need each other. Finn, meet Gabbi, more commonly known in these parts as Mayor Reynold.’

  Gabbi turned her face fully to smile at Finn, and a chunk of her skin fell to the floor.

  ‘Dammit,’ Noelle said.

  ‘Wow,’ Finn laughed. ‘Nice to meet you, Mrs Mayor.’

  ‘What is happening?’ asked Emmy.

  Noelle picked the skin up off the floor. ‘The henna wasn’t fading at all with anything we were doing, so I was looking at YouTube videos of Halloween make-up – you know the kind of thing where people add these huge realistic scars and things to their faces. So I thought it would be worth a try.’

  ‘Isn’t her nose enough of a huge gaping gash?’ Rae asked, coming closer.

  ‘Thank you,’ Gabbi replied.

  ‘I wasn’t going to do a scar, I was going to do a second skin, just using the same methodology. All you need is to glue loo roll on the face and then cover it with make-up. But we didn’t have any glue, apart from superglue, and I think the mayor has enough permanent features right now, right?’

  Finn was circling Gabbi, checking out her inscribing and trying to make out what it said underneath Noelle’s not-so-masterpiece.

  Noelle continued, ‘So we used cornflour and water. But it didn’t really work, I guess.’

  ‘Oh!’ Finn suddenly clicked and started giggling like a schoolboy.

  ‘Did you have any luck?’ Gabbi asked Rae and Emmy.

  Emmy reached into the plastic bag. ‘The pharmacy here is pretty small. They didn’t have the hair-dye stripper, so I got some blonde dye. I thought that might tone down some of the, you know, Goth, but you can’t hold me accountable if it goes a really strange colour. Then I picked up the antiseptic cream, a concealer – there was only one kind – and then I stopped and got the baking soda and lemon.’