Fractured from the Fall

Told You So

Lily stood on the front door step, with her fist poised, ready to knock, but she just couldn't bring herself to do it. She'd chickened out twice already, driving by the house and then looping back around. She'd been rehearsing what she was going to say for the past two days, in hopes that it would make this moment easier, but she still felt incredibly nervous.

Just then the door swung open.

"Well are you just going to stand on my porch all morning, or are you going to come in?" Violet said.

"I'll come in, I mean, if that's okay?" she hesitated to enter. It was the first time in her life she'd felt nervous to speak to her sister.

Violet turned and walked into the house leaving the door open, indicating for Lily to follow. She followed her sister to the kitchen. They stood on opposite sides of the island counter: two sisters who had grown up in the same house, but who had experienced the things that happened in it so differently.

"Where's Harper?" Lily asked, not wanting to have the conversation in front of her niece. She'd already done enough damage at the funeral.

"She's at school."

Lily nodded in understanding.

"I'd like to apologize to her if that's alright with you? She shouldn't have heard the things I said."

Violet just stared at her, unresponsive.

"I deserve that," she paused and took a deep breath. "I'd like to apologize to you as well. My behavior at the funeral was....well...it was shitty. I shouldn't have said anything to those girls, although I stand by the fact that they're bitches and they deserved it," she quickly added.

Lily paused waiting for her sister's response, but still nothing.

"Right well, that's not why I came here. I mainly wanted to apologize to you for what I said, about you and Grant. It was a terrible thing to say. It's not true. It's not how I feel. I was angry about my own shit and I took in out on you in the worst of ways and I'm so so sorry."

Again, Violet said nothing.

"Ok, I get it. You probably don't ever want to speak to me again and I deserve that, but I just wanted you to know how truly sorry I am. I'll go now."

Lily turned to leave. She'd made it almost to the foyer when she heard her sister's voice.

"You're right," Violet said, stopping Lily in her tracks. She was surprised to hear Violet speak, but she was even more surprised by what she had said.

Lily turned around to face her sister and walked back into the kitchen.

"I am?" Lily asked.

"Those girls are bitches."

Now it was Lily who was silent.

"And they deserved what you said, just maybe not at my husband's funeral, ya know?"

Lily could hardly believe it; Violet was trying to joke with her about what had happened.

"Not my finest moment," Lily cringed.

"I don't know. I think Grant would have enjoyed it. Lily Haliday finally makes her grand appearance back in Oakley by standing up for her sister and calling out bitches at her ex-boyfriend's funeral," she said as if reading a headline.

They both smiled, but their smiles quickly faded as they were returned to the reality that Grant was dead and gone.

"Do you think Grant forgave me, for what I did all those years ago?"