~Amanda (September 3)~
Dear Matilda,
Why did my fourteen years go by so quickly? I could swear that only yesterday, Aunt Amanda came roaring into Shrep’s life on a banged-up motorcycle while wearing a genuinely ripped pleather jacket. That actually happened seven years ago. Still, I’ve never forgotten the awe radiating from Shrep’s face as Amanda skidded to a stop a few inches from the sidewalk, raising her visor as she greeted us.
“HEY, KID,” she shouted, trying to speak over the deafening roar of the engine.
I pointed to my ear and mouthed, I can’t hear you.
“WHAT?!?”
“I CAN’T HEAR YOU.”
“OH. THEN WHY DIDN’T YOU SAY SO?” Aunt Amanda obligingly turned off her motorcycle. Then, swiveling towards Shrep, she stuck out her arm, gripped Shrep’s hand, shook it erratically, and snatched her own hand back. “Nice to meet you, kid. What’s your name? I’m Lai’s aunt, Amanda.”
“Ummm…” Shrep mumbled, subtly sweeping her hair over her crimson ears. “Nicetomeetyoutoo. I’mShrep.”
“What’s that? Sorry, I’m a little hard of hearing. I say it’s because of Gimli–that’s my motorcycle–but my family insists I’m just like that.” Aunt Amanda smiled ruefully, half-embarrassed and fully enjoying herself.
“Anyhow…” Turning to me, my aunt tamed her ecstatic features. “I’m so sorry for being late, Lai. I hope you girls didn’t have to wait too long, but I wanted to get you something special, and the little boy in front of me in line took a whole five minutes deciding what type of transformer he wanted. And before that I had to choose between the thirty different types of miniature cars they had, and then I looked up the name of the color of each car because I feel like color names are symbolic, sooo here you are.” She tucked an old-fashioned, cobalt cruiser into my palm. “Blue is the color of kept promises.”
“You’re rambling,” Shrep informed her, a smile creeping across her face.
“Thank you, kid,” Aunt Amanda returned dryly.
“Um, actually, my name’s Shrep– short for Shpresa. It’s Albanian; it means hope.” Having finished pulling her hair back into a ponytail, Shrep stuck out her hand.
Aunt Amanda tilted her head at Shrep, as if observing her anew, then shook the offered hand firmly. “Pleased to meet you.”
As she turned towards me, however, her face broke out into another wild grin. “Alright, then. Lai, Shrep, get onto Gimli behind me. I have a sister to appease.” She laughed. “Good thing I bought her a miniature car as well.”
***
It’s been seven years since that moment. Shrep went from adoring Aunt Amanda to patronizing her; she saw only Amanda’s virtues, then only her faults. It comes from Shrep growing up and finding her sea legs, but that doesn’t mean she should wallow in her feelings instead of trying to find a way out. In that sense, she and Amanda have the same problem. They’re both avoiding me—or, more likely, what my sickness means—but in different ways. Oh dear. I love them both, but this feels like a bit too much.
‘Till I write again,
Wang Xin Lai
***
Matilda,
I’m sorry for my shaky handwriting, but something crazy just happened to me. It was night again, and I found the golden orb under my pillow. I took it out, feeling a warm, buzzy sensation vibrate through my bones. The vibrations ebbed and flowed in a steady rhythm.
As I gripped the orb, the world around me fractured into an assortment of bulky polygons, a puzzle of shapes sickeningly reminiscent of geometry. All the shadows blackened, the whites burned brighter, and everything in between melted into a muddled grey. In this orb vision, my skin was a marbled black and gold, with the orb spooling bright tendrils of ochre into my hand.
Matilda, I’m afraid I haven’t been completely honest with you. This orb— I had it before, but I’d lost it. I’d let myself forget about it; then in the end, I’d thought it never existed. This orb… when I held it, I saw an onyx doorway outlined in gold shimmering before me. The jamb slowly drew itself into the air, the doorway colored a swirling ebony. And what waited behind the door? Well… I’d find out eventually, maybe sooner rather than later.
Photo credit: https://pixabay.com/photos/toy-car-retro-vehicle-boy-1802372/