𝙁𝙊𝙍𝙀𝙑𝙀𝙍 𝘼𝙉𝘿 𝘼𝙇𝙒𝘼𝙔𝙎, conrad fisher ²

002. the moment i knew

I lean up against him as Steven pulls out a lovely dress shirt and pants to wear for his graduation too, if Susannah couldn't make it there. She'd be there somehow, and even though we didn't know that at the time, she did. 

𓆩*𓆪

"Stella? This is for you," Belly taps me on the shoulder with a basket. I look to Steven who already had one sitting in front of him. 

"Oh thanks Belly," I smile at my sister before scanning over the basket. The first thing i notice is an envelope labelled, 'My Stella." And i knew there could only be one person this could've been from, which made me tear up instantly. 

"Oh my god, they're from Susannah," Belly says. 

"She must have planned it before. Classic Beck," Mum replies.

"I wish she could've been here," Steven says, squeezing my hand.

"She is here, i know it," I say blinking the tears away so i don't ruin my makeup. But i couldn't help but think about how Conrad, and how he should've been here. I hoped he'd surprise me and burst through our front door with that huge loving smile he wore when he was with us, and today would've felt like a million little tiny stars had just aligned. It would've filled my heart with so much joy and made not just me, but Steven happy too.

"Conrad and Jeremiah, too," Steven says, a whisper tone in his voice. 

"They were busy," Mum scolds him, after seeing my face drop

"Yeah sure," I scoff, putting the letter back in the basket and leaning back in my chair. 

I play with Susannah's necklace i had around my neck. The crystal necklace she gave me just before she passed, i saw her the week before and i was thankful i did, nothing could've have prepared me for that phone call from Conrad the week after. 

"You should read this," Steven says, trying to hand our mother Susannah's letter she wrote to him. I couldn't bring myself to open mine. 

"Later. We should go," Mum waves him off and lets out a thankful gasp when she finds our tickets in her bag and holds them to her chest, "Found them. Come on."

𓆩*𓆪

I sat next to my best friend Florence, a girl i had met this school year in my senior Bio class. And we'd become close friends, and we found out we were both attending Stanford together next year, so i was glad i had someone in college. 

Steven was just welcomed on stage, and i watched on proudly as he said his valedictorian speech he had worked so hard on the past few weeks. I look back to see my parents and Belly sitting several rows behind, with two empty seats next to them. I frown before turning my attention back to Steven, pushing the thought of the two Fisher boys out of my head. 

"They say that everything happens for a reason. Now who 'they' are, exactly, is unclear. Maybe a theologian coined it," Steven starts off, letting his eyes scan around the auditorium, "Or, i don't know, whoever configured the simulation we're clearly living in. Maybe it was Rihanna," Steven finds me in the crowd while quoting something i had said when i read his first draft of his speech last week. I didn't know he'd put that in, but it made everyone laugh.