Thanks to Jeleane for last minute editing help.
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Chapter 1: Beth's Awakening
Hannah had been feverish and pale for two days. Her uncharacteristically pallid skin contrasted so completely with her long raven hair and her light blue eyes seemed so impossibly lucent from her high temperatures that she could easily have played a seductive Hollywood vampire or a gothic temptress in a racy music video. She was the very image of frail, aching beauty.
Mom was reluctant to take Hannah to the clinic for fear of discovering, as so many others had, that her loved one had become afflicted by Redding's disease. Even today there are many unresolved questions about the illness and so few answers. In our hearts, we knew--even before receiving the shattering diagnosis--my older sister was in a long-term battle for her life. At times, the doctor informed us, Hannah would appear healthy but warned us against allowing this to engender false hope; over the lengthy course of the illness, she would need to take full advantage of these respites to recuperate her strength if she was to ultimately weather the intense, potentially fatal fevers.
Being unable to afford so much as a part-time private nurse, let alone a bed in an extended care facility, Mom and I agreed that she would look after Hannah during the day when I was at school, and me in the evenings and late into the night while she worked at her casino job.
It was hard to picture Hannah as anything other than lively, vivacious and carefree. Perhaps it was the three-year difference in our ages, or maybe our dissimilar personalities, but she and I had never experienced the intense dislike that can result from sisters living in close quarters. At the same time, we hadn't been particularly close. For as long as I can remember she had been the popular one, with tons of friends, no shortage of social engagements and guys coming out of the woodwork to try to catch her eye. Not me. I was shy, socially awkward, with only a handful of close friends. I don't think she knew how much I idolized her growing up.
Hannah was tall and lithe, with long, shapely legs that I would have killed for. Her skin would not have been out of place in a cosmetics ad but there would have been no need for airbrushing. She looked amazing in everything she wore. She could rock casual wear and killed in skimpy beachwear. To me, however, she looked best in attire that accentuated her femininity, especially A-line skirts and summer dresses that emphasized her delicate shoulders and long, slender neck.
As for me, if I was being extremely generous, I would have characterized myself as "not-quite Hannah:" a little shorter, with a slightly fuller figure that didn't look so good in absolutely everything; a hint of baby fat in my face and body; a smattering of infuriating freckles on my cheeks, nose and chest; and shoulder-length strawberry blonde hair that was not nearly as striking or dramatic as my sister's.
People would comment that we had the same full, generous lips. I would sometimes stand in front of the mirror trying to make them look
pouty
and
kissable
. Mostly I just made myself look silly.
* * *
For the first few weeks, Hannah was weak and listless, staying in bed most of the time. We watched some movies in her bedroom, although more often than not she would doze off part way through. Mostly, we talked and laughed. Who knew that she could so quickly pinpoint the location of my funny bone and be so merciless in exploiting it? Mom had said to put on a brave face when I was with my sister but sadness was always far from my mind when we were together.
Sometimes, in response to our conversations, she would put on a serious face and say, "Beth, you're so hard on yourself." Other times, she would get a far away look in her eyes and would apologize to me, saying that being there to care for her and keeping her company was ruining my social life.
"What social life?" I quipped in response.
When she became more insistent in expressing her regrets, I would turn the tables saying, "Don't be so hard on yourself. Hannah. Your company isn't that appalling."
* * *
At school, I gained a fair deal of attention to which I was completely unaccustomed. Everyone was curious about Hannah and those who knew her gave me cards, books and music to take to her. It was as if cliques and social barriers had never existed: Pretty, fragrant Cheerleaders took me in their soft arms and clung to me, although sometimes it seemed as if only when there was a large crowd was present to witness their grown-up compassion and dramatic reassurances. Even those girls with the reputation for being rude, stuck-up bitches would take my hand and gave it a squeeze.
The first day back, Ms. Petrie, the matronly school counsellor, called me out of class. She is a plump lady with a prodigious pair of breasts that she was famous for employing to cushion the heads of her "wounded doves," as she called students with problems of any sort.
In the counsellor's office reception area, where I briefly waited, I nodded my head to Sam, the school hard-ass, whose close-shaved blonde hair and even shorter temper were near legendary in the all girls' school. I'm sure she was there for some sort of disciplinary action, which was probably well deserved.