My Sister's House

A woman tracks down her runaway younger sister to find out why she left home.

My sister's house was a collage of thrift-shop items, tape-and-cardboard creations, and old stuff she'd stolen from our parent's garage when she'd run away from home. The kitchen smelled of patchouli and lemon. It was cold, so I stood in a patch of sunlight, letting the counter support me, and watched her prepare us tea.

 

Now that her attention was diverted, I was able to get a good look at her. Her hair was shorter now, cut in a knife-sharp line along the edge of her jaw. She'd put on weight, I thought--it was difficult to tell how much under her loose cotton T-shirt. It was a healthy weight, and it made me breathe a little easier. I wanted to put a hand on her shoulder, to tuck the loose strand of hair behind her ear, to ask, What happened to you? Instead, I wrapped my arms around myself.

 

Kenna handed me a mug that was clearly nicked from a Chinese restaurant. She stirred milk and sugar into her own tea without asking me if I wanted any. (I didn't.)

 

“You have a nice home,” I said. My voice was hoarse. I took a sip of the tea. It was strong, bitter, acidic. It gave me a little solid ground to stand on.

 

“Thank you.” Kenna half smiled, as if unsure if my words were a compliment or a punchline. Maybe she was right not to trust me. I'd messaged her a week ago through the contact form on her photography website. It had taken some convincing just to get her to believe it was really me. I wasn't trying to make her feel like a cornered animal, though. I just wanted… answers.

 

“I'm happy you replied to my message.”

 

Pink-manicured fingernails tapped the counter, quickly as a concert pianist's. “Me too.”

 

I tried to stick with neutral territory. “It's a nice website. I didn't know you were into that.”

 

“Thanks. It's something I picked up a while ago. I took a class at the adult high school, on the weekends. It kind of stuck.” Kenna stumbled over the words adult high school, as if she was embarrassed about that. She'd never been much for the classroom.

 

“Wow.”

 

We were silent again, and in that silence I heard a noise like an animal from one of the rooms. Kenna didn't comment on it.

 

Flicking her hand, follow me, Kenna showed me to the living room, like a morose realtor. It was all messy, lived-in: blankets draped over chair backs, an empty box of animal crackers on the coffee table, a tangle of cords nested in front of the TV. It was so different from the austere sterility of my apartment. I wondered what she'd think if she saw that.

 

“How are Mom and Dad?” Kenna asked.

 

Broken, I wanted to say, but that was unfair. “They're alright.” I shrugged. “Surviving.”

 

Kenna smiled and looked away, like she knew what lay at the end of that conversational path and didn't want to follow it any further. She'd lose all her breadcrumbs; there'd be no way back from confronting what she'd done to them. It had been two years, but I could see she still wasn't ready for that.

 

I heard that cry again from the bedroom. This time it was louder, and unmistakably human. My brain played a game of connect-the-dots and my eyebrows tried to behave themselves.

 

“Come here,” Kenna said, rolling her eyes. She walked me over to the bedroom and opened the door. The back corner was a little nursery, with a child swaddled in blankets in a pristine crib.

 

“I never wanted to leave,” Kenna said. She stuck her hands into her jean pockets and looked up at me. “But she's been worth every minute of it.”

Reviews

[emmajoy]

A strong touch of mystery here, the hard to take reunion between sisters, some kind of trouble between Kenna and her parents, the eventual discovery that at least partly explains a strain in family togetherness. But so sad that sisters, fairly near in age, couldnt have sat and chitter chatted, made things easier for a future perhaps. Think there are questions to ask, if it were possible. Open ended ending here! Interesting... perhaps is chapter 1?

[Alina K.]

Just some flash fiction. Thanks for your review!

[This Goode Life]

I feel like every knick-knack Kenna has collected has a story behind it. This story really drew me in with the tension.

I really like how the last paragraph left me wanting to read more.

[Alina K.]

Thank you for the review! :) That's very kind.

[Samuel Dickens]

Excellent writing--I could feel the tension between the sisters. "What happened with the parents that she's now estranged?" I asked myself, and then you neatly supplied an answer. Obviously, there's much more to know.

[Alina K.]

Thank you! I'm so happy to hear that.

[JeffT]

A really fine story that makes a real impact on your reader. It does leave me wanting to know more and starting to fill in precisely what happened, but that may be part of what makes it work: the reader gets fully engaged. But it could also for that very reason serve as the opening chapter of a novella or novel.

[Alina K.]

Thank you, that's really flattering. And that makes sense--I don't usually write short stories, so perhaps I'm used to leaving things a bit more open. Thanks for the review!

[Kerra]

Such an emotional read, this is very well written

[Alina K.]

Thank you so much!

[Kerra]

not a problem