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The smile on her mother’s face quickly disappeared, and she stretched to her full height. “What do you mean, Kira? Are you talking about you and Shelby, or you and me?”
“About the three of us, and to a lesser extent, Dad. He goes along with things, which is dangerous too.” Kira tilted her head to the side, her eyes trained on her mom’s surprised expression. “My whole life it’s always been about Shelby. At first, as a kid, I’d feel bad to make it about me, out of fear that her cancer might return. Then as a teenager, that carried over, because of all the things I had to give up to accommodate her schedule. Her preferences. Her friends.”
“Kira darling, I never meant—”
“No, you didn’t, Mom, but it happened. Take today, for instance. I come home after several months, do I get a moment for myself? No. Everyone is here, and Shelby was here, and I had to quickly be okay with the fact she’s engaged—without any of us even talking about my recent marriage.”
“But honey, you chose to get married far from us,” Doris said, a tear brimmed in her eyes. “How do you think it made us feel? Your father didn’t get to give you away on your special day.”
“I’m sorry about that,” Kira said, a twinge of guilt coming down on her. “What if I had a big wedding in New York and invited you? Would you have come? Or would you have made it all about me making it good with Shelby? Even though she was the one who cheated?” Kira asked. Like several times during her childhood, when she’d ended up apologizing for one of her sister’s mistakes.
Shelby ran her fingers down her face. “Damn.”
Kira touched her chest, willing her heart to stay in place. “I love you, Mom. But even though I was put on this earth literally to save Shelby, nowadays I need for you to see both sides. Sometimes I’ll be wrong, but sometimes I’ll be right.”
Her mother cleared her throat. “You were always so independent.”
“I had to be, Mom.”
“I thought…” Tears streamed down Doris’s face. She picked a piece of paper towel from the counter and tapped it on her face. Her eyes spoke of regret, her face flushed. “I… am sorry. Seems like I have a lot of making up to do.”
“Me too,” Shelby said, stepping forward. “I went along with it, and I enjoyed—enjoy—the attention. But it shouldn’t come at your expense, Kira. I need to be a better sister.”
Kira stared at the two women who had been so clueless for so long. A relief she hadn’t experienced in a long time swept over her, and she found herself shortening the gap between them. Yes, things would get better. She would not allow them to go back to the way they were—and from the looks of it, neither would they.
Maybe it was time for that group hug after all…
