Unhelpful Guide To Senior Year | ✓

9

"I always foun-found Aaliyah the better of us two," he says, his voice shaking like a leaf across of me and I squeezed his hand slightly to let him know I am there.

He steels himself and goes on, eyes not seeking mine but the words reach me nonetheless.

"Unlike my dull ones, her eyes looked like the softest shade of brown infused with green making you feel the beauty of a forest in her gaze. She was always ready to talk, always there for you and even at the age of 7, she managed to be stubborn," he let out a remorseful breathy laugh.

"I was more of the watching from the shadows boy. I was silent while she brought life wherever she went. Except her own and it will always be my fault," he looks down at the red marks on his hand when he says the last line and here is a pang in my chest.

In front of me is sitting Daniyal Amer. I used to think that he had innumerable friends and he was happy as could be.

Right now, all I see is a boy(who might be shirtless) with cuts on his arms as well as heart had guilt falling off of him in waves.

I feel like asking him to stop as all this pains me but it is good for him to let out all his feelings.

"One thing that made her perfect world. A-at birth, she was diagnosed with," he seems to not be able to continue and though I get a bit curious but instead squeeze his hand again to show he doesn't have to go on.

"She was diagnosed with epilepsy..." he ends the sentence with a sigh and there is a clear stream of tears on his face.

I felt heartbroken and speechless. One thing stuck out though.

"Then how is anything your fault Daniyal? You can't control the human body," I say the words he must've heard on replay but I still feel like saying.

He snorts and says, "I know, but you can control the circumstances," he says and I know there's more to the story.

He now takes off even the little attention he had to my presence and starts talking to the tree outside his window.

"You know, she didn't even want to do it, I was the one who forced her...I should not have. I mean, I was just 7 but I should've been more aware, I should have looked after her,"

He takes in a deep breathe and furiously wipes away his steady stream of tears and tousles his midnight hair a bit.

"You must be honestly so confused right now!" He says with a small forced chuckle and I cannot disagree.

"We used to live in Vancouver at that time. Uncle Mateen was celebrating his birthday and we had gone to his estate.
It was huge and the backyard was connected to small woods.
As always, I rushed in the backyard towards the treehouse he had built there," he says.

"As usual, Aaliyah followed me and I did ask her if she wanted to stay behind but Allah had made her as stubborn as a mule. Heavens forbid that she stays behind in anything. I know I should've tried harder to stop her, I should've stayed behind myself but I was 7 and I committed the biggest mistake of my life.
Halfway up the tree I looked behind to see Aaliyah suddenly loose grip and her arms spasming as she fell away from the tree, away from me," he says, voice completely breaking as his shoulders start to shake and I rush forward this time.

His skin has gone cold and I am very surprised that he isn't shivering. He is shaking. He was trembling with guilt and all I could do was hold him close, run a hand down his spine as I whisper into his ear softly.

"You know you have no control over it. It's fate. Maybe that's what it was meant to be. What could you have done about it? You were 7!"

The words sound hollow to my own ears but they seem to work on him.

He hugs back and rests his chin on my shoulder and nestles his head into my neck and slowly his tears start to drain.

I feel an involuntary shiver run down my spine but I ignore him as we sit there, wrapped in each other's arms as my words softly lull him into the calm.

I try to imagine being 7 and seeing your twin fall down to her end with nothing you can do about it, thinking it was caused out of the stubbornness of them both, but mainly yourself.

The ache started in my heart and slowly moved through my body as I hugged him closer and he leaned onto me for support.

You can't love away guilt. You can't love away depression, you can't love away what is fated.

But Laura Esther Marple never gave anything but her best.

If I can't make it go, I'll take the path with him. I'll help him. Because that's what we are supposed to do.

Not make things disappear instantly, because we can't. We are supposed to give ourselves a fighting chance.

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A/n: I know it was forever since I last updated but you know, school.

I changed Karma to Hylia, Goddess of Time. Sorry for any confusion.

I hope you liked this chapter and the backstory.

Very bad and sad news: Only one more chapter left :'((((

Hope u like the new cover!

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