The Fall of the Aftons

109: Michael Afton

About three months passed since one of the Emily twins died. Michael wasn't sure which one was dead. Henry always said that Sammy was the one who died, but his father always said that Charlotte was the one who died. But neither of the claims made since. Especially considering that Michael had gone to the court trial with his siblings, William, and Henry's sisters when Missus Emily had asked for full custody of Sammy--but Charlotte was often at the Aftons' house, usually when Henry was busy and couldn't watch her. So he could never figure out which twin was the dead one since both of them were very clearly alive.

With a heavy sigh, Michael knocked on Charlie's bedroom door. "Charlie, come on out here," he called. "It's time to go to your brother's funeral."

Why there were having the funeral three months after whichever twin's death, Michael could never figure out. It probably had to do with Missus Emily's sudden want for full custody of Sammy and how whichever twin's death temporarily ruined Henry.

"I'm not going!" she shouted back. "I not feel good."

He sighed again, opening Charlotte's bedroom door. He slowly walked in, closing the door behind him, and made his way over to the little girl.

She was on her side, laying in her bed, still clothed in her jim-jams.

She had been told over two hours ago to get dressed.

"Oh, Charlie," he mumbled sadly.

"I don't want to go," she told him, her voice soft and crackly.

"Why not?" he asked as he took a seat on the edge of her bed.

"I-I... I hate this feeling, him being gone. It feels like someone stomped on my heart and it hurts."

Michael laughed softly. "I know how that feels."

Intrigued, the little girl sat up, staring at him with wide eyes. "How?"

"I never told you?"

She shook her head.

He chuckled, then took a short deep breath. "Before my father adopted me, I had a twin. I don't remember anything about them--not even if they were a girl or a boy. But I do remember how it felt to know that he or she was..." He trailed off, looking away from Charlie. "I remember how it felt to know that he or she was gone. To know that my twin had been stripped away from me. To know that they would never come back to me and that we'd never see each other again. And, I'll be honest, even though I don't remember anything about my twin, it still hurts now to know that he or she is still gone. I'll probably always hurt because of it."

Tears started to fall down Charlotte's usually red cheeks. "I don't... I don't want him to be gone. We were always together. Nothing could keep us separated." She pulled her blanket up to her chin, starting to sob quietly. "And now the one thing that could separate us forever has happened. And he's gone."

Michael frowned, lifting the little girl onto his lap.

She rested her head on his shoulder, crying quietly. 

Michael started to rub her back in a caring manner. "I know it hurts, kiddo. I'm so sorry that you have to experience this pain. It's never fun to grieve over somebody's loss."

Charlie continued to cry for about thirty minutes before she started to settle down. Once she had calmed down, Michael managed to convince her to go to the funeral.

"Mikey?" she asked softly as Michael tied her tiny shoes.

"Yes, Charlie?"

"Do you think that I'll forget everything about Sammy like you forgot everything about your twin?" She sounded worried but sad as she spoke. Poor girl.

"I highly doubt that you'll forget anything about your brother. I've seen how much you care about him. He means too much to you for you to forget anything about him," he assured her sincerely, a sad smile on his face.

"Then why don't you remember anything about your twin? Did you hate them?"

"What? No! No, I didn't hate my twin." He laughed a little bit. "I... I lost a lot of my memories in the Bite. I don't remember a lot about my childhood because of that. And, if I remember correctly, I was only two years old when I lost my twin. There wasn't a whole lot for me to remember, and a lot of time has passed since then."

"A-Are you sure that I won't forget him?" she asked nervously.

"I'm positive."