Page 177

Sometimes, people couldn't just help themselves.

****

IT STARTED AS A FAIRLYordinary Sunday morning for the Joneses. While the continued absence of Acheron in their household was hard to miss and had long cast an unshakable pall over the whole family, everyone still did their best to find a reason to smile. Their family was no stranger to hardships, and no matter how things would eventually turn out between Acheron and Pippi they all knew they would be able to survive it.

What mattered was that they were together, and together they were unbeatable.

"Are you really going to wearthatto church?" Rue asked with a wrinkle of her nose.

Pippi rechecked her appearance on the mirror with a frown. "What's wrong with it?" She just had on her usual loose blouse and slacks, and they seemed imminently presentable to her.

It screams 'I'm so heartbroken I don't care how I look anymore',Pippi's youngest sister thought. But because even she knew it was just too soon to say such a thing, she cleared her throat and tried to be diplomatic instead. "We're going to the beach after, remember?"

Oh. Right.A strained smile flitted over Pippi's lips at the thought of being surrounded with azure skies, clear waters, and soft white sand. Isla de Flores' postcard-perfect beaches might be a balm for the soul for others, but right now the mere thought of immersing in herself with such beauty made Pippi felt sick.

The mood she was in, she wanted her surroundings to reflect the emptiness in her, wanted to just curl up in a ball under the covers and pretend that everything was still okay between her and Acheron.

Having this huge, incomprehensible distance between them hurt so much that her mind had deliberately shied away from counting the days that had passed since she last saw him. Maybe, if a part of her had expected things to go downhill this soon and this drastically - maybe losing him wouldn't hurt as much.

But because the sudden change in Acheron's attitude had completely blindsided her, Pippi found herself lost and grasping for an explanation -anyexplanation was fine. Anything, that is, except what was right under her nose, demanding to be acknowledged.

Could he have really left her just like that, like nothing they shared meant a thing to him?

And all because he had spent one second too long in Amelia's company and realized the other woman was and would always be the love of her life?

Why, Acheron? Why?

Why act like he could give Pippi his heart when he had never gotten it back in the first place?

Just the thought of it was near enough to cripple her, and Pippi unconsciously reached for the bedpost, fearing she would fall if she didn't hold on to it for dear life. She turned to Rue, her gaze just a little blurred, and her voice just a little hoarse as she asked clumsily, "Do you think Mom would m-mind if I skipped..."

Rue quickly turned away and lowered her head as she began rummaging through her bag like she was looking for something. "I don't think she'd mind at all," she mumbled. "But it would make everyone worry." While speaking, she kept her gaze fixed on her bag the whole time, knowing that if she ever saw Pippi's tears start to fall, it would be the end of her, too.

"I...see."

Rue heard Pippi's voice crack, and she bit her lip hard.I can't cry. I mustn't. I can't ever cry when I know Pippi's hurting more.

Her head still down, she blindly groped for her sister's hand and giving it a tight, hard squeeze, she said fiercely, "You'll get through this, Pi. But we have to do it together."

"I absolutely agree," a voice that wasn't Pippi murmured, "especially since it's my hand you're holding and not Pi's."

Rue looked up at that, and that was when she saw herself holding Vik's hand and Pippi doing her best not to laugh.

"What - how?"

"You tell me," Vik said dryly. "I just came back to get my phone when you suddenly grabbed my—-" She didn't bother finishing her sentence, with Pippi and Rue having already lost the battle to keep a straight face. The sound of their giggles was infectious, and soon Vik had joined in the laughter as well.

Rue was right, Pippi thought as she followed her sisters down the stairs. At the end of the day, she still had her family, and together they could get past anything.

Together.

A simple word, a powerful word, and as the day unfolded, it also became a word Pippi would find herself clinging to as her life came crashing down.

****

PIPPI'S FIRST INKLINGthat something was wrong came as soon as she and the rest of the family stepped out of front door, and they saw Mrs. Mullan from across the street watching them from her living room window.

"Morning, Mrs. M," Mynt chirped with a wave.