The morning light streamed into the room.
The curtains weren't even closed properly, but I didn't care enough to move my arm and close them. I was still exhausted and wanted to stay in bed forever.
I looked up at the clock and found that it was 8:40 am. I found my way to the bathroom and splashed some water on my face. I brushed my teeth quickly and headed for my closet. I searched for clothes to wear and grabbed some random ones to put on. Once dressed I made my way towards the kitchen, where I found Sisi sitting at the island quietly eating cereal. When I walked into the kitchen, Sisi greeted me with a smile as she ate her breakfast.
"Good morning, sleepyhead," she said with her mouth full of food.
I nodded in reply.
I grabbed some toast out of the bread box and ate it.
she had no idea what happened last night.
"I'm off, don't wanna miss class," she said.
"Alright, bye, Sis," I replied and hugged her goodbye, after which we hugged each other briefly. She smiled and waved at me as she left.
I sat over the table chewing slowly, thinking about nothing in particular.
Aunt mai came in a few minutes later and sat across from me. She looked tired and angry.
"Morning" I gave her a slight smile as I swallowed my bite.
"Hi, sweetie." She answered, "I've got work today." She rubbed her temples lightly, massaging her temples gently. "I've been having trouble sleeping lately." She muttered quietly and I nodded in agreement.
She placed her elbows on the table and rested her head in her hands. I could see she was upset and sad. I felt bad for her, and it saddened me that it was affecting her. We sat together for a bit, not saying a word. Eventually, I decided to break the silence, although there wasn't anything that needed to be said anyway.
"Do I have a brother"?
just immediately uncle Chitra walked into the kitchen.
I jumped a little as his sudden appearance startled me.
"Omg! Uncle Chitra!!! You scared me!!" I shrieked as I clutched my chest.
I had almost forgotten he was coming home today. Aunt mai looked up from her cereal and scowled at him.
"You're late," she said sternly.
"Sorry, sorry," he apologized. "I overslept."
He sat down at the table and poured himself a cup of coffee.
Aunt mai glanced at me as if asking me what I meant by my question earlier.
"I want to know if I have a brother?" I asked again, this time with a more serious look.
I noticed him tense at my question. A few seconds of awkward silence passed between everyone at the table. Then Aunt mai spoke.
"Yes, you do." She replied softly, avoiding eye contact with me as she continued eating.
I furrowed my eyebrows slightly.
"Is he a nice person?", I asked curiously.
"Of course, he's very nice," she replied with a shrug. "He looks exactly like you do when you were younger." I noticed the sadness in her tone and decided not to push her further on the subject.
"Where is he?", I asked her.
"We can discuss it later, Ariya. Right now, you need to eat your breakfast.
"So, you haven't told her, huh? My uncle chimed in.
"Tell me what?"
"About what happened last night," Uncle Chitra answered.
He kept glancing at me and then staring at his hands, obviously feeling embarrassed about something.
"What did happen last night?", I asked.
"Your mum had a...moment. I'll explain later." Aunt mai assured me.
I pretended like I didn't hear or see all the commotion last night. I wanted them to say something. Uncle Chitra knew already, aunt Mai must have called him last night. Why wouldn't they tell me? Wasn't it obvious?
They didn't tell me!
This couldn't continue. They were my family, why are they keeping it from me? Is there something I don't know?
Something I'm missing here? Something I should know?
"Why won't anyone tell me what's going on?!", I yelled angrily.
"Ariya, I don't think now is the time to" Aunt mai began once again.
"Don't worry," Chitra cut her off. "We will." He said, placing both of his hands on the table.
After that, he leaned back in his chair, seemingly deep in thought.
"Are you okay Ariya? Are you hurt? Are you tired?" Uncle Chitra asked. He stared at me intently while he spoke.
"No, I'm fine," I replied.
"Okay, good. Now, let's talk about what happened last night."
"What happened last night?" I repeated.
"Well, you remember how you were talking to Sibyl yesterday?"
"Yeah..."
"Well, she told me that you saw her last night."
"Last night? I talked to Sibyl last night?" I asked, confused.
Uncle Chitra nodded.
"We know you heard everything, and you saw your mum too"
I paused. What did Sibyl mean when she said I talked to her?
"She said you heard what we talked about, and we wanted to make sure you understand why you're not allowed to mention any of this to anyone else."
"But...how can she explain things like that to me? I don even understand what she said," I explained.
"That's okay." Said Aunt mai, sounding sympathetic. "You never understood what we talk about."
"But...why does Sibyl know so much and I don't?"
"You just need to accept that you have a special gift, Ariya."
"But...why can't I understand?"
"It's a little hard to explain," replied Aunt mai. "but you will someday." She then looked directly into my eyes. "Just give yourself time."
I nodded and continued eating. There was no use arguing with her right now.
The least I could do was try to understand since I had asked questions before that hadn't gone anywhere.
We were still at the table when uncle Chitra's Lil cousin stormed in.
He looked weird.
his hair was messy and his clothes were all wrinkled.
His face was pale. He seemed anxious and nervous, and it made sense now. His eyes widened when he saw Uncle Chitra. It almost frightened me to look at him.
"Hello uncle," he greeted,
I looked beside him and noticed some bags by his side.
"What are you doing here?", uncle asked him.
"I have to deliver something to you," Ray replied. He picked up one of the bags and held it out to him. "Here you go."
Uncle Chitra took the bag but hesitated before pulling it open.
"Are those groceries?" Aunt mai asked.
Ray nodded.
Aunt mai stood up from her seat and went to take a closer look inside the grocery bag. "What is all of this?" She asked as she looked at the different items.
Ray glanced behind him towards the fridge, trying to avoid eye contact with any of us while he answered, "
Uncle Chitra took out all the groceries leaving a picture left in the bag.
As soon as he picked it up, he looked up and met Ray's eyes.
My eyes widened as I realized what it was.
"What is this?" Aunt mai demanded in a quiet voice, her body language changing.
I looked up at Ray, and he looked away from me quickly.
"I don't know..", Ray said in a hushed voice, "I didn't know it would be like that...." He whispered to himself.
"Who gave this to you?"
Uncle Chitra narrowed his eyebrows slightly at Ray's remark.
"Sibyl..," he replied curtly.
Aunt mai remained silent as she examined the picture and observed it.
Her expression didn't change at all and neither did mine.
Uncle Chitra placed it on the table and walked toward the fridge..
His movements were calm but somehow intimidating.
Aunt mai didn't utter a single word. Her gaze was focused on the object and she looked unblinking.
"How did Sibyl know where to find this?" Uncle Chitra asked in a cold voice. He sounded distant, and I noticed his hands shaking slightly as he opened the refrigerator.
It was a picture of Sibyl, my mum, uncle Chitra, aunt mai, and an older woman. sitting in a row with the same smile on each of their faces.
I recognized it immediately
"She told me", said Ray. "She found it on my doorstep a couple of weeks ago, saying you guys used to live together..".
Chitra closed the fridge door, still refusing to meet anyone's eyes.
He turned around and began walking away without another word.
My memories started returning to me. The night I lost control. Mum told me I wasn't normal. The blood. Everything.
My eyes filled with tears which I tried to wipe away furiously. But they came back full force, and my vision became blurry.
I blinked rapidly several times trying to hold them back.
My breaths grew heavier and heavier. I felt dizzy and disoriented. I suddenly felt an incredible pain shooting through my head.
I collapsed onto the kitchen floor. The last thing I remembered seeing was Uncle Chitra standing over me, holding my head in his lap. As my vision faded to black, I thought I heard him calling out my name.
But then everything went dark.
When I opened my eyes again, I realized I was no longer in the kitchen. Instead, I was lying on a comfortable bed. I slowly sat up and looked to my left where there was a mirror on the wall, revealing my reflection.
"Hey," someone said.
I turned around to find Sibyl standing at the foot of the bed. Her expression softened upon hearing the sound of my voice.
"How long have I been out for?", I asked as I ran a hand through my messy curls.
"Four days," Sibyl replied as she sat down next to me and smiled at me.
She looked exhausted as if she hadn't slept properly for at least five nights straight.
"Have you been getting enough sleep?", I asked.
"I've only had three hours of sleep a night," Sibyl replied, giving me a sad smile.
There was silence between us.
"Did you bring me here?" I finally asked her.
"Yes, I'm sorry Ariya" Sibyl replied"
I thought the best solution was for you to stay with me. That was until you saw that photo. I didn't want you to see that picture, or to find out who that person is."
I felt the sudden urge to get up and run away as soon as possible. Not only did Sibyl show me a picture that was meant for me but she also said it was for me. And I didn'T want it to be.
My stomach twisted uncomfortably. The idea of meeting someone who knew my parents terrified me. How was it possible that I already know them?
I thought the more I thought about it, the crazier it got. My mind couldn't process any more facts or pieces of information at once. It felt like a jigsaw puzzle in my head was starting to fall apart.
I tried to focus on something else instead. Anything other than my thoughts that weren't making any sense.
"Where am I?", I asked Sibyl.
"In my place," Sibyl replied.
"Your place?" I asked again.
"Yep," she answered. "We're gonna spend the rest of the day here. We have seen much of each other for quite a while."
"So you've been living here the whole time?" I asked.
"Yup," said Sibyl, smiling again.
I shook my head.
"Do I know you? Am I related to you somewhere?", I asked her.
" well, I'm your mum's elder sister" Sibyl replied.
"let me not bother you, I'll call everyone tomorrow"
"I think it's time for you to know the truth".
she said.