The Sisters: The Curse of Gabriel's Gardens

Starting Again

A day after the showdown, the death of Kyle Fletcher and his girlfriend was the number one event in all news media in Gabriel's Gardens. "Sudden" and "Unexpected" were among the most used words regarding the case. The people had trouble believing that a rich, successful, popular and handsome young man like Kyle would do something like that. But Alyssa Lafayette did a good job and nobody suspected a thing. The people believed that Kyle shot his girlfriend in affect and then, after realizing what he did, he jumped down from the roof.

Kyle's parents, who rarely visited Gardens, appeared on TV several times, but it could be clearly seen that their tears are faked. They took Kyle only as a descendant of their empire - that's why they raised him to be greedy, selfish and manipulative.

On the other hand, the Sanchez family was still in deep grief. A week ago, Alexis tried to visit them, but it didn't go well. The visit soon turned into a crying contest which only deepened their sorrow. They agreed that they'll meet again once the things sink in a little.

But they didn't sink in. They were still floating on the surface.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Anna bursted out crying. For a while, Diane had no idea what to do. She didn't remember seeing Anna cry. "Annie...?" she said cautiously. "What happened?"

"I'm sorry, Dee," Anna wailed. "I just couldn't take it any more. I also have feelings. And it's killing me inside how does Alexis act now. It's like she's avoiding me on purpose. Like... she doesn't like me anymore! Diane, maybe I lost a friend. I should probably stop being so clingy."

"It's okay," Diane said. "I'm sure Alexis still likes you. You said it yourself - she's going through hard times and maybe she just doesn't want her bad mood to affect us. Maybe she's avoiding you because she wants you to be happy, without having to deal with her problems. If that's not a sign of friendship..."

Anna smiled through tears. "Thank you, Dee."

Diane stood up. "I'll talk to her now. Expect the message about how did it go."

>><<

The girl found Alexis in her room, quietly sobbing. She was holding something in her hand. It was a stash of photos depicting her and Marlene. They knew each other since they were nine or ten. The pictures were taken in different eras - Alexis and Marlene as kids in the Starlandia theme park, as teenagers in front of the high school library, as young adults in front of the statue on the Angel Square.

For how long has Alexis been in love with her? Diane wondered. Since they were teens? Or it's a more recent thing? When did Alexis figure out that something's not exactly right with her attitude towards Marlene?

She had no idea. Actually, Diane has never been truly in love so far (the less with a girl), even though she had a reputation of a pretty tomboy highly popular among guys. She already experienced some tentative flirts, but it never grew up into anything more.

"Knock knock," she said. "Do I disturb?"

Alexis quickly tucked the photos under her blanket. "No. Come in," she replied. Her voice was completely numb and emotionless, except that it was a bit husky because of Alexis' crying. Diane entered the room and sat next to her. "I know you're going through hard times, Lex," she said, "but it's already time to move on. You can't be so devastated forever. I hate it. And so does Annie."

"I wish it was so easy," Alexis said. "Just move on. I did exactly what Alyssa told me - I was thinking about it. For a very long time. And no matter what I do, I'm always the guilty one. I panicked. If I was thinking clear back then, I could come up with hundreds of different solutions which cross my mind right now.