The rest of lunch was spent with Diego telling us what he did while he was gone. He had stayed a week with a friend before getting on a flight back to Bulgaria. He’d been there until a few weeks ago when another friend set him up with the job he had Downtown. We went for a walk after eating, and then went back to the office. Diego decided that he would start spending more time with us, thankfully. Six months was too long to be away for.

I had this weird feeling like my goosebumps on the back of my neck during our walk like we were being followed and I constantly checked over my shoulder. It was lunch time for many people Downtown so there were a lot of people on the sidewalks, none of which I recognized.

I was more than happy when we got back to Plan’d to part ways because as soon as we got into the car, the feeling evaporated and I breathed a silent sigh of relief.

When we got home, Zayne was in the living room flipping through channels with nothing interesting going on. Austin walked in about an hour later with a large, heavy-looking overnight bag. When I asked him what was in it, he just replied, “It’s a secret” and went upstairs to his room.

“Don’t mind him. It’s for his trip. He disappears every now and then for camping and stuff. He likes being outdoors. I figure it’s his way to destress, so I don’t bug him about it,” Zayne said before he skipped the bullshit and asked me how seeing Diego went.

“I had this whole plan in my head to make him feel bad for leaving us,” I admitted. “But by the time I saw him, I realized it made no sense. I’d be trying to make him feel bad to trying to heal in his own way. What kind of sister would that make me?”

After hearing him talk and watching his brave smile, I understood why he left. It had nothing to do with anyone else. He needed to grieve and start healing and not everyone did so in the same way. Diego was just as torn up about our situation as we were. He wasn’t selfish for leaving. From what I heard, he wouldn’t have been of much use to himself or anyone else if he had stuck around.

“You know what I like about you?” Zayne asked, pulling me into a hug. “You might be stubborn as shit, but it doesn’t take you long to open up and put yourself if someone else’s shoes. You were dead set on being pissed at Diego mere hours ago, but you’re back from seeing him and you’ve already learned that while you had every right to be mad at him, he had to do what he thought was best for himself.”

I was no longer upset. I didn’t get a chance to squeeze in how I felt about him taking off, but I didn’t need to. I could see how much he felt he owed us an explanation and launched into it the second we all got our food at the restaurant.

One of the worst things to watch was how he behaved around Cris. He was concerned and treating him like a child instead of a high school aged teenager, but I had a feeling Cris could tell Diego just didn’t know how to behave around him. There were so many questions in Diego’s eyes when he looked at his silent little brother, and even as he drove us back to Plan’d, he would continuously look in the rearview mirror to check on Cris.

I understood the feeling of helplessness that must have come over him when he learned Cris’ muteness was selective. Especially knowing that he was around Leanne and me, was seeing a therapist every other week, and still chose not to speak. But I knew he was doing better.

While the short conversation I’d overheard between Leanne and Diego still bothered me to some extent, it wasn’t enough that I wanted to risk ruining the day, so I didn’t bring it up. But I did fall asleep with their voices replaying in my head.

I slammed my hand down on my alarm and got up, greeted by the bright sun. I groaned and shifted on my bed, so I wasn’t being blinded by it. I slept with my windows locked last night but the curtains were pulled apart.

I felt so much lighter waking up, unlike how I’d been feeling for weeks. Maybe seeing Diego lifted some weight from my shoulders. I’d woken up to my alarm, showered and gotten dressed without feeling as if I was chained to a boulder I had to drag along simultaneously.

“Ready for school?” I asked Cris when I had skipped down to the kitchen to make myself something to eat. I knew I needed to eat something, but my appetite was not quite back yet. An omelet and coffee were all I could stomach.

Cris nodded and brought his now empty bowl to wash it in the sink. He didn’t look as nervous to be going to school, most likely because he got an extra day to mentally prepare.

I returned to my room to grab my things after eating. On our way out, we greeted Zayne and Leanne who were just getting up. I was slightly offended that they were surprised to see me up and ready for school, but at the same time, I understood where they were coming from. I hadn’t been waking up on time for weeks.

“Do you want me to walk you to the office?” I asked Cris as we got out of the car. He nodded. I knew he only wanted me to accompany him because he was finally starting sophomore year almost three months late.

We looked so much alike walking towards the administrative building together in our uniform and matching shoes. Handling the matter of his admission and return quickly, Cris was assigned a tutor who was a perky looking Hispanic sophomore who knew Cris from freshman year. She was beautiful with dark hair and straight bangs. Although, Cris looked a little pissed as I said my good-bye and left to go the senior section of the school.

I straightened my blazer on the way to my locker. When I was almost there, a girl with shoulder length red hair was leaning against my locker and scrolling away on her phone. I had seen her before. I knew it. Leah? When she spotted me, I knew I was right. Her cold glare was frighteningly recognizable. Out of anxiety, self-preservation, or both, I turned around and went straight for the other hallway. I did not want to get involved with her. I hoped her leaning against my locker was merely coincidence, but my morning had been going much too smoothly.

“-so stupid.”

I stopped so suddenly I nearly tripped over my own sneakers. I knew that voice, but I couldn’t see who it belonged to. It sounded near and far away, muffled but clear. It was like a radio chipping in and out without the static. With all the shuffling and the buzz of talking students surrounding me, I couldn’t believe I heard it to begin with.

“I can’t believe… and you know what… tiring.”

I looked around again, my eyes moving over Leah who was slowly approaching me with a curious look on her face. I didn’t care about her right then. I knew I heard Natalia’s voice, but slowly I was beginning to believe it was just another hallucination. I’d slept so peacefully. Why was I having an episode now?

“Nina, right?” Leah asked, pointing her phone at me.

“Y-Yeah,” I said. I’d paused for too long trying to make sense of my hallucination, and now she was right in front of me. If she knew I had tried to get away from her, she didn’t show it.

“To her house… brother… Zayne and another guy.”

I whipped around frantically. It sounded like Natalia’s voice. Please. Not now. This needed to stop. I was hearing her voice, but she was nowhere to be seen. Leah was looking at me like I was crazy. Maybe I was. Leah’s lips were moving, but I couldn’t hear anything but Natalia’s voice as if she was right next to me.