Scribbled on the back, in Robert’s squiggly cursive, were the words:May 22. Prom night. On the bright side, this was the first time she’d slept in almost a week.
Frowning, I peeled the film apart. The photo showed Alice curled up on the upholstered sofa in my mom’s old bedroom, a small yellow device clutched to her chest. She was sleeping, her cheeks stained with dried tears and mascara, and her forehead pinched like she was having a bad dream.
Wearing my soccer hoodie.
A bear trap snapped shut in my chest. I thumbed the edge of the picture, staring at it for far, far too long.
“Something’s not adding up” may have been the understatement of the fucking century.
After carefully slipping the picture into my wallet, I turned my attention back to the open screen of the camcorder, where Robert had stuck a PLAY ME label. I ripped it off and did as I was instructed, my heart attempting to suffocate me by obstructing my airway.
The scene was instantly recognizable. Alice and Robert sitting side by side on a telltale burnt-orange couch, surrounded by a variety of plants within a custom-built, sheltered patio where they used to film their videos. Though I didn’t think I’d seen this one yet, just based on the raw footage.
I certainly didn’t remember editing it.
Or ever seeing Alice look so… deflated. On or off camera.
“Hello. Welcome to another episode of Gampy’s Gummies, where I eat edibles and answer a variety of questions, some of which you asked, and some of which are better than what you asked,” Robert started, shoving at the thick frame of his glasses. “Butfirst, we have some sad news to share. Dominic, our trusted camerakid, is no longer with us. He’s not dead; he’s just choosing to spend this time studying for his upcoming exams instead. It should be noted that he has not received a single grade lower than an A minus since the second grade.
“But don’t worry, because my lovely granddaughter, Alice, who, coincidentally enough, has not received a single grade higher than an A minus since she swapped her take-home math quiz with Dominic in the second grade, has no such concerns and will be with us for the full duration of the video.”
At this, Alice snorted a weak laugh, covering her face with her script. A smile pulled at my own lips. Robert remained stoically in character, though I could have sworn his shoulders relaxed when Alice laughed.
“Anyways, before Dominic left us, he did inform me that the channel has officially reached 189 subscribers, which means I’ll be culling the list again. I can’t deal with the demands of being a social media sweetheart on top of maintaining my New York Times crossword streak. Some of you are bots, and some of you are real people, but that’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make. Please don’t come back to watch these videos after you’ve been deleted.My views keep going up, and I’m rather irate over it. Now,without further ado, let’s get to the questions. Alice?”
Alice cleared her throat, but her voice still came out an octave quieter, less confident than I was used to from her. “Okay, our first question today is from Isnoozetolose22. ‘Hi, Robbie (can I call you Robbie?). I would start off by telling you I love the show, but I know how much you hate that. So I’ll just get to the point: I’m thinking of getting an African gray parrot. Good idea or bad?”
“Well, considering that Maxwell shit in my coffee this morning and I didn’t realize until my grandson—who’s visiting us for the first time in over four months—almost fell off his chair laughing, I would say bad idea. And do yourself a favor and skip the grandchildren while you’re at it.”
Another weak giggle from Alice.
“Next question, this one from Goosevomit. ‘Dear Gampy. I’m writing to you from Calgary and just wanted to say I’m your biggest fan! I’ve been culled from your subscriber list 3 times! My question for you is: can you drop the skincare routine?” Alice’s smile widened. “You do have great skin.”
And just as Robert started prattling on about the anti-aging benefits of “not being racist,” Alice’s attention drifted to something off camera, and what little joy there’d been in her eyes instantly disappeared.
She cleared her throat, tucked a loose piece of hair behind her ear, and fixed her eyes down on her notes. Her entire demeanor shifted into a shy, almost embarrassed sort of defensiveness I couldn’t reconcile with my memories of her.
Then Robert said, “Oh, look who’s back early. Hello, Dominic. Did you forget someth?—”
The footage cut off, the screen going pitch-black before lighting up again. This time, Robert was facing the camera alone. He was sporting the newer pair of glasses I’d seen on him today.
“Did you see it yet?” he asked the camera. “I’m guessing not, seeing as how you’re still here. Let’s try again, shall we? And this time, try to get your head out of your ass and actually pay attention.”
The original footage rolled again. I scanned the setting, the background, listening more carefully. But I still had no idea what he was talking about.
The video cut off at the same spot.
“Still haven’t caught on? Need it spoon-fed? Here.” With an angry scratch at his mustache, he held up a printed still shot of the video, capturing the moment when Alice was just about to tuck her hair behind her ear. “Corporate wants you to find the difference between this picture and this one.”
The second image was a twin copy of a picture that made my blood run cold. A pair of jade earrings, a diamond bracelet, and a vintage Rolex tucked inside the dashboard of my mom’s old Hyundai.
My shoulders tensed, an instant rush of fury tinting the edges of my vision an unnatural red. Her hand was right there, holding the dashboard open while she snapped the picture with the same Polaroid camera Mom had gifted her for her seventeenth birthday.
“News flash, Dumbass,” Robert snapped, shoving the images closer to the camera, forcing the lens to refocus. “They’re the same picture.”
What the fuck was he on about? The old man had lost it if he thought these two had anything…
And then I saw it.
