The Able Sisters

Chapter 53

Labelle returned home after a long day of work. She had spent two hours after her shift had ended assisting Gracie. Labelle had restocked the store and carried boxes to and from the basement.

Now, as she walked up to her apartment door, her shoulders sagged and her feet hurt. She was beginning to hate her job more and more every day, and today was indicative of that.

Labelle twisted the key into her door and paused, seeing that her mailbox looked slightly open. She froze and opened the lid, finding a letter inside.

That's odd, she thought as she reached for it. She had just paid rent. She shrugged, guessing it was an advertisement. As she turned the letter over to look at the address, she shrieked and dropped the letter to the floor.

A nearby resident in the hallway shot her an odd look. Labelle smiled weakly and collected the letter, rushing into her apartment.

She glanced at the envelope one last time to make sure she had read the address correctly. She sat down, her claws trembling. Yes. It was correct. It was the familiar childhood address.

Labelle moved a claw to rip the letter, but she froze. Even if this was a letter from her sisters, she had no right to believe that the letter would be kind in any way.

She kept it at the table and poured herself a warm cup of tea. She continued to glance at the pale, square envelope, wondering what it held inside.

Why had they just replied now? Had they not been getting her letters before? She took a sip of tea, letting the warm liquid trickle down her throat. She felt warm inside and gathered the courage to tear the letter open.

As she pulled the sheet of paper out, she could already see the faint letters peeking through. She took a deep breath before slowly unfolding the letter. She glanced away, not wanting to look, but she knew she had to read it. She had always been expecting some sort of response, hadn't she?

Dear Label, or Labelle, (whichever you prefer to be called),

This is Sable replying to you right now, but I want you to know that Mabel is also assisting me in writing this letter. We are expressing both of our thoughts in this.

Labelle froze. She glanced at the handwriting, realizing it did resemble her sister's. She supposed she had no idea what Mabel's looked like since she had left before her sister could even write a letter.

Mabel wants to apologize for not replying to your letters. She did receive every one of them, but she felt it would be inappropriate to reply, especially because she knew of the grudge I held. She did not tell me that you had been sending letters until tonight, and it was only once she showed the letters to me that I began to deeply consider the relationship we had so long ago.

We both humbly accept your apology, me more so than Mabel, I suppose. Mabel still loves you very much, even if her memories of you are faint. She tells me that when she thinks of you though, she feels all warm and happy.

I have to admit that I've also been holding a grudge against you for many years, and I'd like to apologize for that. I know you blame yourself for never reaching out, for never sharing bells, but not once did I ever write a letter to you or come after you, which I should have done. So I am sorry, Label, for treating you poorly. I'm sorry I didn't listen to your more when you decided to leave. Maybe we could've prevented this altogether.

Don't be too hard on yourself for not caring for Mabel. It was a big feat, but I had help from those in the village. She is loved by many. I think we were all too distraught over our parents' deaths to really think clearly.

Mabel and I are saddened to hear things are not going too well for you in the city. We'd love if you talked to us about it some more. (Yes, send a response! We want more letters from you!) You should visit home sometime, maybe even come home...if you're up to it. But tell us about your situation some more.

We love you, Label. Even if I was angry with you, I don't think I ever stopped loving you. Please write back soon.

Love,

Sable and Mabel

Tears filled Labelle's eyes. She didn't deserve that letter at all. She had been expecting a letter telling her to leave them alone, that it was good she was sending her last letter. She had not expected something like this.

What did she do to deserve such a loving family? She was touched, yet she still felt guilty. And what was Sable apologizing for anyway? It wasn't her responsibility to look after Labelle.

Labelle choked on her tears for a little while longer before she could finally get ahold of herself. She grinned a bit, thinking about going home. She wondered if everything was the same as had been left. Was the river still full of colorful fish? Did the fruit still taste as sweet?

She sighed, remembering she had to reply and tell them about the city. Was Labelle really able to give up her city life that she had worked so hard to achieve? 

She thought to herself. She took another sip of tea and glanced at the letter. She thought of how much joy it had brought her to read it. Her family still loved her. Her family wanted to see her and hear from her.

Here, she had no one. Gracie had never been a friend, just someone Labelle had hopelessly looked up to until she realized Gracie could never be a role model for anyone. There was Harriet, but their visits were slim. Other than that, Labelle had never really formed any relationships with anyone in the city. She was more alone than ever.

She nodded. It was time to leave this place if she could. She had enough money to always take a bus for a day, but she knew she couldn't keep working for Gracie forever. It would be nice to be in nature again, surrounded by the people she loved.

Labelle knew she should probably wait a bit to let the letter to sink in, but she was too excited. She immediately grabbed the nearest sheet of paper and began to write to her sisters, excited to tell them everything that had happened to her in the last twenty years.