I had to prepare my parents for what was to come. I spoke to April, and told me she didn't just want to sneak up on our parents and show up at the house. The circumstances were extremely dangerous, and we both knew it. Katie was absolutely unpredictable.
But she was still in Maryland. And she was going to be for three more days.
April wanted me to tell our parents that she was alive. And that she was going to be coming home. She also did want me to tell them that Katie was a danger to her. And she would tell them what happened in detail - but she needed to make sure it was just her, me, and them. No one else.
I decided to do it on Saturday, the day after I spoke to April. And I was shaking all day- not from the coffee I drank. But from nerves. Would my parents believe me or not? Would they be angry at me? Considering I knew April had been alive for a little while now.
I decided I would do it at night. When my parents were as relaxed as they could possibly be- and when Kylie was out with her friends.
Ava knew that I was going to be telling my parents about April, and she had been quite sweet and supportive all day. I knew we were basically back together, even though we hadn't said it. Which was slightly driving me nuts. I knew we were going to have to talk about whether we were officially back together again. And I had to prepare myself- just in case the worst did happen.
My parents were in the kitchen Saturday night having tea. And I knew I was about to disturb them with life changing news. And I almost felt bad for a moment- but April wanted me to do this. I kept telling myself that.
I took a deep breath, and went into the kitchen. My mom was on one side of the counter and my dad was on the other- they were talking softly.
"Josephine, would you like some tea?" my mom asked me when I walked into the kitchen.
"No thanks." I said, leaning against the side of the counter that was in between the two of them.
"Would you like something else? I noticed you didn't eat dinner, are you hungry?" my mom asked me.
"No, I'm good." I said, "But thanks."
"Did you just come here to keep us company?" my dad chuckled, "Because that doesn't happen often."
"I need talk to you both." I said, "And it's serious."
My parents turned to me. I could see concern in both of their eyes.
"Is everything okay?" my dad asked me.
My heart was racing as I said it, but finally I said- "April is alive."
My dads eyes widened. My mom just stared at me. It seemed as though she almost didn't know how to react.
"Can you elaborate?" she said, finally.
"I saw her. I went to her apartment." I said, and I was getting nervous that my parents wouldn't believe me or something.
"How do you know where she lives?" my dad asked me. I could tell he wanted to believe me but he wasn't sure.
"Her old roommate Gabi. The one who was being accused at first. She knew where she was. She lives in an apartment down in Philly." I said, feeling shaky.
"And why is she there?" my mom asked.
"You're not going to believe me when I tell you." I said.
"Yes, we will. Because we already think we have idea about what could have happened, though we aren't positive at all." my dad said.
"Katie tried to kill her." I just came right out with it.
My parents look at each other in sheer horror. Their eyes said it all.
"Oh my god." my dad mumbled.
The one thing I noticed was that they didn't look...shocked. They looked horrified. But not shocked.
"What are you guys thinking?" I asked them.
"Josephine- listen. There are things that we have kept from you- all of you about your sister, Katie. And when your dad and I started really thinking about what could have happened to April, we thought she could have possibly had something to do with it. So we believe you." my mom said, putting her hand on mine.
"We want April home." my dad said, "Does she want to come home? Because we will take it from there and make sure she is safe."
"She does want to come home." I nodded. "And she wants to tell you the full story of what happened the night she went missing."
"We'll need that too...for police." my dad looked at my mom, who nodded.
My mom sighed, "How long have you known April was alive, Josephine?"
"In total a couple of months. And I saw her a few weeks ago." I said.
"I wish you had told us sooner." my mom said.
"I couldn't. It had to be on April's terms. She's terrified." I explained.
"I get it." my dad said. "I would just like to see her before she comes home. Do you think she would be willing to have us over her apartment?"
"I can ask her." I nodded.
"Please do so. I want to discuss her coming home where she feels safe. She may not here." my dad said.
I called the unknown number when I went up to my room. It picked up.
"Hey. Josie?" April's voice came through softly. "I can talk for a minute. I have to go to work very shortly."
"Okay. I'll keep it short. I told mom and dad about you. They believed me. But they want to see you at your apartment before you come home." I said.
"I'd rather do that as well to tell them what happened." April said, "Okay. How about tomorrow at one? I will text you my address. You, mom, and dad can come."
"Okay. I will tell them." I said, "I...can't wait to see you again."
"Me too, Josie." April said, "I gotta go to work. I love you, bye."
"Love you too." I said, and hung up.
I wondered in my head if April would be any different when she came home. She went through trauma. You could literally see it. She looked a lot different, that was for sure. She had to dye her hair blonde, wear colored contacts, and change her facial features too- which made me sad. And all because of Katie she had to do that.
I knew that this would put Katie in jail. Or at least, I hoped. But I had no remorse for her. What she did to April was unfathomable. She deserved time. Or to get major help. I knew it seemed like her life was on track. She graduated college, she was applying for grad school, and she had a serious boyfriend. But she took April's life away. Yes, she didn't succeed in killing her- but she still took her life away.
I laid in my bed, and tears rolled down my face thinking about how this would change my family forever. About how one of my siblings was coming home, but the other was most likely going to be going away for a long time. I mourned the family I had, because I knew things would never be the same.

A/N: Thank you so much for reading! I just wanted to let you know, I have another book out called "Without You"- it's a spin off of my first story, "What We Could Never Be". Go check it out if you want :)