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Jade and I made it back to the cabin with minimal conversation. I think we both just felt lost in thought. I was proud of Jade for at least vocalizing her concerns to me, but it still seemed like we were both on two very different pages. 

I understood where she was coming from, probably better than anyone. Bruce was this force in my life that destroyed everything, and I let it happen. I never stood up for myself, and I found a way to justify every single bad thing that happened. The rigid dichotomy between the justifications for the actions of a terrible person and the forgiveness that came along with it was something that I would never be able to fully understand. 

When I pulled into the cabin, I glanced at Jade for a moment. 

"I'm going to be honest with you," I admitted to her. "I don't agree with what you're doing. I want you to be happy and loved, and you deserve it because you've been so nice to me and my twin. He likes you a lot, Jade; he deserves the truth, and while I don't understand it, I still respect your decisions." 

I stopped for a moment to fumble all of the words together. I didn't really know where I was going with this. 

"Kyle makes me nervous, and if he's friends with Bruce, I can't help but worry for—for your safety." 

Jade gave me a kind, genuine smile. 

"Nina, I think you're a wonderful, strong, and talented person. I would never do something to put you in danger, which is why I'm not going to pursue anything with Kyle. I think I was just reminiscing over all the beautiful times we had together, but those are obviously long gone. I just...don't want to see him get to the point where he's beyond help." 

He's way past that point, I thought to myself, but I would never tell Jade that. 

"I just want us all to have a good time, as it's our last day up here," I replied. "Can we talk about this later?" 

She nodded in agreement, and we began to unpack the groceries. 

As I unlocked the cabin with the key that Nyle gave me, I noticed that the boys had not yet arrived. I was genuinely worried about Nathan. His attitude was shifting over the past few days, and I had no idea where it was coming from. He seemed more aggressive and agitated, and I missed the sweet boy that teased me on the first day of school—the boy that brought me to the beach when I had a nightmare—the boy that protected his little sister in the halls. He was slipping away, and it broke my heart. 

Jade unpacked the food as I rummaged through the cabinets for bowls and supplies. I opened the top cupboard to find the alcohol stash. Something clicked in my brain, and it made me pause for a minute. 

"Hey Jade?" 

I knew she was listening but she continued to pull stuff from the fridge. 

"Remember when Kyle was really drunk last night and he was saying all of those terrible things?" I reminded her although I knew it was still vivid in her mind. "He was about to drive off, and Nyle was able to stop him from doing so just by reminding him that he was drunk." 

At this, I had Jade's full attention. 

"Do you think it was an emotional trigger of some kind?" I continued. 

Jade looked to the floor. 

"I know it was," she mumbled. "That's why I thought he could still be helped." 

She must have noticed my confusion because she gestured to the table for us to sit. She sighed as she played with her fingers. 

"Things weren't always like this," she reluctantly began. "I know you feel like you're out of the loop all the time, and that no one trusts you. It's really just because Sarah changed everybody and shut us all down." 

I swallowed in nervousness. Was I finally going to learn about Sarah's past? 

"They used to be different—the whole family. The Williams' were the stars of the town. Nyle and Kyle were inseparable, and they were so sweet to their younger sister, Sarah. The three of them were golden children. Mrs. Williams was such a doting mother, and she spoiled them all so much." 

Jade smiled at the memory, and my heart ached for her. 

"Mr. Williams was just as fabulous, he took so much time off work while they were growing up to be at home with them. They were truly the dream family." 

She paused for a moment, and I took the gap as an opportunity to jump in with my first question. 

"How did you meet them?" 

She laughed with sorrow emanating from her very being. 

"It's actually a cute story—my mom took me to the neighborhood park when I was a little kid, and the whole Williams family was there as well. I remember seeing a young boy, who turned out to be Kyle, at the top of the slide. As I rushed down, the same boy was at the bottom of the slide! I didn't realize they were two separate people, as I had never met twins before. And so, I started screaming out loud that there was a child that had teleported on the playground." 

Jade was so happy sharing the memory, and it sounded almost like another lifetime. It pained me knowing that this family was so shattered now. How could it have gotten to that point?

"Anyway, from that moment on, our parents became friends, and I started hanging out at their house. I became best friends with Sarah, and we were two peas in a pod. As we grew up, however, Sarah became depressed. No one saw it coming—she had wonderful parents, a great academic record, two loving brothers, and...me." 

Jade was getting choked up. 

"None of us noticed it at first, and we all blame ourselves. Her parents got busier with their careers, and as the kids got older, they were home significantly less often. Nyle had ventured into music and athletics in high school, so he spent much of his time practicing or going out with the team." 

Jade paused to collect herself. She probably hadn't talked about this in a long while—maybe ever.

"Around the same time, Kyle and I became infatuated with each other, and we began dating. Consequently, we went out a lot. Sarah was slipping under all of our radars. Unlike the rest of us, she wasn't as outgoing, and she depended on us for a lot of her social interactions. We didn't—we just didn't see it." 

Jade's story became less coherent as she continued to explain while she cried harder. 

"Sarah started disappearing—staying out later than all of us, and no one knew what she was doing. Her room always smelled like pot and beer; she constantly had guys in and out." 

I wasn't liking where this was headed. 

"One day, she got really, really, drunk and left the house," she sobbed. "And none of us noticed." 

Oh god. This was so horrible. 

"She never came back. It was on the news later that night, and everything fell apart. Kyle cheated on me and ran away from home, Nyle shut everyone out, and the once loving parents became resentful of their two sons. Ms. Williams still blames her boys today for not paying attention. I never went back to their house after that day." 

"That single moment uprooted all of our lives," a deep voice from behind me whispered. "I loved her more than anything."  

I spun to see the broken shell of Nyle. I didn't hear him come in, and I had no idea how long he was standing there. Dripping in sweat, Nathan stood next to him, looking just as devastated. 

I rushed over to give Nyle the biggest, tightest, hug. He didn't deserve that pain. Kyle wasn't a bad person, he was just numb and dead inside.

Nyle sobbed into my neck, and my essence was breaking for him.

No wonder he was so closed off, he lost the person he loved most in the world.