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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐆𝐇𝐎𝐒𝐓𝐒

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"Vi! It's time for school, let's go!" Sunshine called up the staircase, her voice echoing through the hallway from her spot by the front door. 

After a moment, Violet appeared, hesitating midway down the steps, her expression stubborn. "I'm gonna hang with Tate today. Go without me."

Sunshine's gaze flickered over to Tate, who was just descending the stairs behind Violet. Her irritation flared up as she turned back to her sister. 

"You've skipped all week. I can't keep covering for you and I'm fucking tired of picking up your shit so you don't fall behind." The words spilled out with a sharpness that surprised even her. Lately, she'd been on edge, and this small situation was just the latest to trigger her.

Violet let out a heavy sigh, her frustration palpable. "Fine. Whatever." She turned on her heel, storming back up the steps, leaving Tate standing midway.

"You're a bad influence," Sunshine pointed at Tate, the accusation half-hearted but laced with playful irritation.

"I really don't think it's a good idea for her to go to school today," he replied, hopping down the last few steps to approach her.

Sunshine frowned, crossing her arms defiantly. "Why?"

"School sucks. Kids suck. She's better here," he replied, his voice steady as he looked down at her, as if trying to assert his opinion with some kind of authority.

Sunshine's eyes widened, anger bubbling up inside her. "Who gives a shit? Kids have been assholes since the beginning of time. That's not gonna change. But what will change is a truancy officer showing up here, and me getting blamed for it because I'm the one supposed to make sure she's there every day." 

"What's up with you?" Tate asked, confusion knitting his brows together. "Why are you being mean?"

Sunshine closed her eyes, taking a deep breath to steady herself. "She needs to go to school, Tate." When she opened her eyes, they were steely, filled with determination. "What were you two even planning, anyway?"

Ah, there it was—the jealousy creeping in, unsettling and unwelcome. She knew logically that they were strictly friends, but the chaotic whirlwind of her emotions clouded her judgment.

"Oh, I see," Tate said slowly, a knowing smile creeping onto his face, as if a light bulb had just flickered on in his head. "You're jealous."

"No, the fuck I'm not." Sunshine spat, but his smile only widened, and he stepped forward, pulling her into an embrace that caught her off guard. She struggled for a moment, but the warmth of his body seeped into her, and she melted against him, the tension in her shoulders easing slightly.

"I love you, remember?" Tate murmured, lifting his head to look at her, sincerity in his eyes.

"I'm not jealous," Sunshine grumbled against the soft fabric of his sweater, though her heart fluttered in her chest, both comforted and conflicted.

"Am I interrupting something?" Violet interjected, a teasing smirk spreading across her face as Sunshine pulled away from Tate to see her sister standing there, ready for school with her bag slung over one shoulder and a stylish hat perched on her head.

Sunshine exhaled sharply, caught between embarrassment and amusement as she made awkward eye contact with Tate.

"So, what, are you guys dating now?" Violet asked, strolling down the remaining steps with her arms crossed.

Tate hadn't officially asked her to be his girlfriend, but she didn't want to be the one to bring it up. She turned to look at him, Violet's expectant gaze shifted to him as well.

Tate glanced between the two sisters before settling on Sunshine. "I mean... yeah? Aren't we?"

Sunshine blinked. "You never asked."

"Am I supposed to ask? I thought it was obvious." His genuine confusion made her chuckle softly, and she shook her head, a smile breaking through her earlier frustration.

"Boys are so dumb," Violet observed, shaking her head as if she were a wise sage. "This is why I like girls."

"Lucky you," Sunshine teased, stepping back and opening the front door, her mood feeling lighter. "See you later, Tate."

She waved at him as Violet stepped through the threshold, Sunshine following closely behind before shutting the door with a soft click.

"I'm surprised," Violet remarked, glancing sideways at her sister as they walked across the front yard, the grass still damp from the morning sprinklers.

"What?" Sunshine asked, curiosity piqued.

"Well, I knew about Tate. He wouldn't shut up about you," Violet explained, her tone teasing but sincere. "But I thought you hated him."

Sunshine shrugged, pulling open the creaky gate that led to the sidewalk. "Things change."

As she motioned for Violet to walk through so she could shut the gate behind her. But the moment Violet stepped off the property, she vanished into thin air.

Sunshine's eyes widened, her mouth parting in shock as her mind struggled to comprehend what she had just witnessed. One second her sister was there, and the next—nothing.

Sunshine dropped her backpack to the floor as she dashed for the front door. "Violet!" she shouted, her voice ringing with urgency.

She burst through the threshold, scanning the area of any sign of her sister. "Violet!" she called again, panic clawing at her chest. She rushed through the house, glancing into the kitchen, but the space was empty.

As she moved into the hallway, a sobbing Violet rushed past her, barreling out the front door, her face streaked with tears and confusion. Sunshine's heart plummeted.

"Violet, what the fuck?" Sunshine called out, her voice laced with concern, but her sister didn't respond, just continued to run.

Violet reappeared, sprinting from the kitchen with wild eyes, her hair a disheveled halo around her face. Sunshine blinked in disbelief, struggling to process how she had crossed the house so quickly.

Violet rushed into Sunshine's arms, burying her face in her sister's shoulder, her sobs desperate and frantic. "I don't know what's happening."

Sunshine wrapped her arms around her sister, holding her tight as confusion swirled in her mind. "It's okay, Vi. Just breathe," she murmured, her heart aching at the sight of her sister so distraught, feeling utterly helpless.

Tate appeared in the hallway, his face drawn tight with worry. He looked between the two sisters, concern evident in his eyes.

Violet pulled away from Sunshine, her gaze turning sharp and accusatory at Tate. "Why am I running around like a crazy person? Did you drug me?"

"What? No!" Tate exclaimed, shaking his head vehemently, his voice rising slightly. "Violet, listen to me. I was hoping you wouldn't have to find out this way, but... I have to show you something. You have to trust me."

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"It's so disgusting down here," Violet complained, her voice laced with revulsion. The darkness of the cramped space seemed to amplify her discomfort, the air heavy with dampness and an unsettling mustiness.

"Okay, come on," Tate urged gently, his tone calm yet insistent.

Sunshine watched as Tate extended a hand, carefully assisting Violet down from a brick platform. Tate then turned to Sunshine, raising his arms up to help her down.

When Sunshine hopped down, Tate's hands slipped away from her waist. Dust particles danced in the faint beam of light from Tate's flashlight, and Sunshine felt as if she were inhaling death.

Tate looked between the sisters. "Close your eyes. And remember... everything's going to be okay."

Sunshine nodded, locking eyes with Violet, whose fear was palpable. Tate took Violet's hand firmly while Sunshine grasped her other hand. With Tate leading the way, the light from the flashlight flickered and bounced off the damp, wooden beams. Sunshine squeezed her eyes shut tightly, the oppressive darkness intensifying her anxiety.

After a while, Tate halted, and the atmosphere shifted. The air thickened with the buzzing of flies, a chorus of disquiet that made Sunshine's skin crawl. The foul stench invaded her nostrils, sharp and acrid, twisting her stomach in knots.

"Open your eyes," Tate instructed, his voice steady yet strained.

Sunshine reluctantly peeled her eyes open alongside Violet, and what met her gaze sent a wave of horror crashing over her. The sight of her sister's lifeless body sprawled on the ground, partially decayed and covered in a swarm of flies and writhing maggots, struck her like a physical blow.

"Oh my god." A hand shot to Sunshine's mouth, the shock rendering her momentarily breathless as she instinctively dropped Violet's hand, turning away in sheer disbelief. 

Her baby sister was dead.

Violet's anguished wails echoed painfully in the confined space, her hands desperately clutching at her hair. "I died when I took all those pills..." she gasped, the realization hitting her.

Sunshine stood frozen, her back to the horror, her hand pressed tightly against the wall for support. Tears streamed down her face as her chest heaved, her throat constricting as nausea churned violently in her stomach. 

The stench of decay filled the air making her swallow hard to keep her bile from rising. The suffocating weight of grief wrapped around her, and for a moment, she couldn't breathe.

"I tried to save you. I did. I tried to make you throw them up. You threw up some. Not enough," Tate explained, his voice thick with remorse as tears rolled down his cheeks. "You took so many, Violet."

"I hardly feel anything," Violet shuddered, her voice thick with mucus, retreating further into her own despair.

Violet stumbled toward Sunshine, collapsing into her sister's arms as they both fell into a pit of sorrow. They sobbed together, Sunshine's fingers weaving through Violet's hair in a feeble attempt to calm her sister.

"It's gonna be okay," Sunshine whispered, her face splotchy from crying.

Tate approached them,  rubbing Violet's back through his own tears. "I didn't want you to find out this way, Violet. You or your family. I never wanted you to see this. I'm so sorry, Violet..."

Sunshine opened her free arm, inviting Tate into their embrace. The three of them held each other, their cries echoing in the stillness of the dark space beneath the house.

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