Ch. 2: Word of the day? Spontaneity!

  "What's with you, Alia?" Esha asked, watching her older sister fretfully peeking past the curtain into the still night. “Is something bothering you?” The younger girl continued as she sipped the peculiar maroon-colored tea Alia had brewed with a slight scowl. "You're acting so weird, like weirder than normal."

  "How does one act weirder than normal, Esha? And How is it normal to be even a bit weird? Your question makes zero sense. Zip it and drink your tea," She replied absent-mindedly, still fixated on the dark vista beyond the window.

  Esha sank back into the sofa and scowled over her mug. She thought about asking how she could “zip it” and still drink her tea but thought better of it. Leave it to Alia to overanalyze the most basic of questions. She sipped the tea again with less of a grimace, once you got past the earthy taste it really wasn't all that bad.

  Esha had grown accustomed to Alia's cautious ways, but sometimes she wished her sister would just loosen up, enjoy life, and act her age. Alia was always so serious, like she was Esha’s mother rather than her older sister despite a mere three-year gap between them.

  At times Esha struggled to identify with their dynamic, but most of the time she was comforted by it. Esha was just eleven when their parents died, and Alia had stepped into the role of motherhood out of necessity; Esha was grateful, but sometimes she wished Alia could just be her sister, even for just a little while. Life was just beginning to get interesting for Esha, and she wanted to share all her thoughts and feelings with her sister like the other girls in town did, but it was hard to share those same feelings with someone who was essentially your mother. Lately, Esha had been trying to coax Alia into visiting the city more often. It was nearing the end of summer and the few friends she had she rarely got to see. None of them wanted to make the hours-long trek down to their cottage, and Alia was hesitant to leave the house without cause nor would she let Esha wander too far alone. Life was so excessively unfair sometimes.

  Esha often pondered, why Alia was content with staying at home alone all the time. Wasn't she lonely for some companionship? Didn't she want to maybe find a boyfriend, go on romantic dates, fall in love, and have a husband one day? Alia might not give it a second thought, but Esha knew her sister was absolutely gorgeous. She sometimes wished she had Alia's shiny dark chestnut hair and piercing honey-colored eyes. Not that her own wavy black hair and dark brown-eyed combination were unpleasant. In fact, Esha loved the way she was starting to look. The little girl Alia had so diligently looked after was fading and she was turning into a woman. And unlike Alia, she was determined to start making the most of it.

  Esha was determined to have at least one sister moment with Alia this summer. She mustered up the courage and said, "Alia, how about we go to town again tomorrow? There was a cute boy at the fruit stall that was definitely flirting with me...and we could go back to see the leather maker’s apprentice. He so has a crush on you. Please, please, please, can we? We never go anywhere. It'll be fun. We can get lunch at Riya’s Bakery and go to the falls afterward." Esha gazed at her sister hopefully.

  Alia shook her head, "there's no reason to go-"

  Esha cut her off, "We don't need a reason, Alia! Let's just go this once. At least we can get out of the house if nothing else. When was the last time we just went somewhere spontaneously? It would be nice to have some quality sister time away from home. It'll be good for us, you especially. You're always worrying about everything, let your hair down, sis.”

  Alia could find a hundred reasons they didn’t need to go into town but looking into her sister’s pleading eyes made Alia want to go. Everything else could wait.

  It had been a long while since she'd just gone out for adventure's sake. The Summer Harvest Festival will be starting tomorrow too. She gave a half smile; she hadn't been to a city festival for quite some time.

  This encouraged the girl to continue, "I can see by your smile that you are thinking about it. You do want to go, don’t you? Please? Come on, sis! Just say yes."

  Alia relented, "I suppose we are due for an outing, and I could use some new leather work boots. Yes. Why not? We could go to the Harvest Festival, or are you too old for such things?"

  Esha leapt out of the sofa, beaming. "Are you serious?! I love fairs! Festivals! All that delicious food and sweet treats. Can we leave early so we can spend as much time there as possible? Thank you, thank you, thank you Alia!" She repeated as she rushed Alia and pulled her into a bear hug, seemingly oblivious to her earlier stomach cramps.

  "My ribs! You're squeezing too tight, little one," Alia feigned as she took in just how much older her sister had truly gotten in the past year. No, no longer little one, Alia thought with a hint of sadness.

  Alia shook away the thought and just stared at her little sister with a smile. She loved seeing her younger sister so happy. She managed to pry herself free and gave Esha a peck on the head and a playful shove towards the bathroom. "Go get washed up and into bed if you want to leave at morning’s first light."

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  "Woo hoooooo," the girl hooted as she sped down the hall and into the washroom.

  Alia watched her go with an amused expression. As soon as the door closed, however, the worried feeling crept up her spine again. The smile faded and anxiety fell across her features once again. Myra's words of caution echoed in her head. Maybe tomorrow she will surprise Esha with a puppy. There was almost always someone looking to rehome a fresh litter of pups. And Esha’s birthday was in a couple of months. Yes. A puppy sounded like an excellent gift for a young woman.

  It was a chilly morning, foreshadowing the coming cold season. The two sisters had eaten a light breakfast for the long walk. Alia had insisted despite Esha's objections.

  "Can't we just go? I want to leave room for all that festival food," she'd said dreamily, as she reluctantly nibbled on a piece of toast.

  Alia shook her head and stood firm, "you need something in your stomach for the walk. You'll work up an appetite again, I'm sure of it. Now eat. The quicker you're done, the quicker we can leave."

  Alia wondered if she hadn't made an error in agreeing to go, because as soon as they left the cottage Esha went nearly into a run. She was bursting with energy, and Alia was having a slightly difficult time in keeping up with the younger girl.

  Sometimes she wondered why she was lacking in as much enthusiasm as Esha possessed. Maybe it was just a difference in their personalities? But deep down Alia knew it was probably because she had to grow up so quickly, almost overnight, since the death of their parents. Maybe it was a combination of the two? Regardless of what it was, Alia often felt much older than her twenty-one years.

  She heaved a small sigh and shrugged off her misgivings. This day was for Esha. It was going to be a good day. A day of fun, food, festivities, and nothing else. And as Alia breathed in the crisp morning air, she knew there was nothing at all wrong with that. So why did she have this nagging, guilty feeling deep inside her gut?

  "Hurry up, Alia! At this rate, it'll be night by the time we get to the fairgrounds and you'll wanna turn around and go right back home!" Esha was several yards up ahead, arms crossed and tapping her foot impatiently.

  Alia obligingly picked up her pace, trying to subdue her disquiet. Surely it was just her social anxiety or because she hadn't let herself relax and have fun in a long while.

  Of course, it was.

  She pulled her light jacket around her a little more tightly and stomped her booted feet a bit more than necessary in an effort to warm her shivering toes. She could see her breath appear like a light fog with every exhale. The season was definitely beginning to turn. Her mind wandered back to unfinished chores as she thought about what she would have to do to prepare the cottage for winter. Imagining ways to be productive eased her restless mind.

  Esha could clock that look from a mile away. It was how Alia appeared right before she dished out some heavy chores. Not today. "Stop it right now."

  Alia paused mid-step, startled. "Stop what?"

  "Stop thinking about working. I can see it all over your face. Today is sister fun day, got it?"

  "For your information, I was not thinking of chores, I was planning what we can do today, you know to optimize our–”

  Esha held up one hand, "Nope. Nuh-uh. No scheduled or planned fun today. We just do whatever catches our fancy, ok? Spontaneity is the word of the day. Besides, you never know what the day will bring. Planning stuff is dumb."

  "Not knowing what the day will bring is precisely why you should plan and ‘Planning stuff is dumb,’” Alia quoted almost offended by the remark, “I see. I shall remember to quote you on that. When you get older, you'll realize that sometimes you simply must pla-"

  "Yeah, yeah. I get it. Please spare me the lecture today, dear sister. Plan sometimes...but not for every little thing like you do."

  interrupted once again, Alia fetched a sigh, calmed her nerves, and didn't respond. Rather, she took in her surroundings. It was still early, just an hour or so after daybreak. Birds were beginning to chirp from the forest treetops and the sky was turning a faint pink with the rising rays of the sun. Looks as if the early morning cold would break, and it should indeed be a warm day after all. Luckily, she had planned ahead to bring a rucksack for her jacket and any purchases made during their outing. Planning stuff is dumb, indeed. She stifled a laugh, pleased with her little private joke, and shifted said rucksack into a more comfortable position on her back.

  They walked for quite a ways in contented silence. Until, "Alia, how long ago did mom and dad die? I am ashamed to say that I can’t keep track.”

  "I was fourteen so about seven years ago. Why?" She replied, curious. Esha never wanted to discuss their parents' death.

  "Because it's important, and I should keep better track of it. I miss them sometimes, but I can’t even remember their voices, and I only have vague memories of what they look like. It's slowly becoming like they never even existed. Is it horrible of me to feel that way?" Esha seemed genuinely guilt-ridden. Like it had been weighing heavily on her mind.

  Alia considered, "If it troubles you, we can talk about them, maybe some shared memories will help you remember them better... if only to ease your thoughts. And, no, I don't think it's wrong to move on from past tragedies and go on with life. You were only eleven, no one can fault you for not remembering. It's easier for younger children to adapt to big life changes," Alia said as she put an arm around Esha’s shoulder.

  Esha listened intently and melted into her sister’s arm. "Ok. I worry sometimes that I'm not a good daughter for forgetting. You would never forget stuff like that."

  "I can’t remember how they sounded either,” Alia said with heavy sadness. They walked in silence for a few moments.

  “I think mother and father would hate the idea of us grieving eternally. They would want us to live our lives to the fullest," Alia stopped talking, feeling odd saying these words. She wondered if she was being a hypocrite, she didn't exactly live to the fullest.

  Esha saw the self-realization on Alia’s face but only nodded in reply. "Alright." Then, trying to distract her sister from her own words, she exclaimed, "Hey look! I can see the town square already, Yay!" She sped up and Alia felt grateful that her sweet sister gave her an out.

  Alia followed quickly on Esha's heels. They were almost there indeed. The word of the day? Spontaneity! She squared her shoulders in determination and hurried to catch up with Esha.