Sisters in Arms

The pair climbed into the conspicuous lime green SUV. In unison they clipped their seat belts together. In silence Candice started up the car. She looked to her sister who nodded her forward.

They made a stop at the store to pick up some ready made treats, the ones her sister preferred. Although the stop should have been shorter, Candice decided to do a bit of grocery shopping.

Within the hour the two were back at the large house. While Cecelia unpacked the groceries, Candice started cooking.

"Have you talked to Mom?"
"I haven't called her yet, no."
"You should, she is always thinking of you."
Candice sighed as she nodded in agreement.
There was a silence that was broken by the sound of the water coming to a boil.
"SO!" Cecelia started, "How was it?"
"The tour? It was ok I suppose. "I mean, I don't know if people really get it..."
"What's there to get? Music is for dancing right?"
Candice chuckled. "I suppose so..."
"Thats what you used to always tell me!"
"I suppose I feel more like an artist than a entertainer. But then again, I suppose I am a better entertainer than artist."
"Poppycock!"
Candice turned toward her sister, steaming spoon in hand. "I'm young and idealistic. I wanna make a change. I want to effect people... I want to be something"
"You are something! You are my sister! ... But really you really should let people make their own mistakes. Not always take them on for yourself or push people into their own downfall."
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
"Exactly what I have said! Expecting people to change just because you are around them is unrealistic."
Candice grimaced, cleared her throat and put her hand to her head. "and just who am I forcing?"
"The people you want to see change. See, its like this, you try to tell people what's best for them, but they never, Never Listen!"
"are you projecting your own feelings on me?" Candice squinted her eyes at her sister. "Who isn't listening to you?"
Cecelia started breathing heavily. Her chest rose and fell. Her hands became tight fists. The held her lips between her teeth. She was very agitated.
"Who, who is it who isn't listening to you?"
She blurted out loudly, "YOU! YOU AREN'T LISTENING TO A THING!"
Candice put her utensils down and approached her sister. "I am right here, What do you have to say?"
Cecelia wouldn't match her gaze. In a meek voice she began. " Speaking of mistakes... No, not mistakes... just..." She blurted out again, "CORBY'S MOVIE!"
Candice blinked several times quickly. "Corby's movie..?"
Cecelia put her hands together and fidgeted her thumbs. "Are you going to go see Corby's movie?"
"I wasn't invited."
under her breath she grumbled "who needs to invite you to go see a movie?"
"Are we seriously getting into a fit now? I mean I haven't seen you in almost a year. I am here making you a meal, giving you a place to crash, and providing myself for what you need from me, and here you are giving me grief! Corbin hasn't contacted me in months. He sure as hell never said anything about a film, but he spent most of the conversation talking about you. I will suppose that He has talked to you with some regularity and has at least invited you to a prescreen some nonsense like last month."
"It was three actually."
Candice slumped back towards the stove.
"Well if you would return people's calls once in a while you wouldn't feel so left out!"
"I don't want to be let in! I just want a peaceful existence."
"LIAR! BULLOCKS! If you wanted that you would have bought that farm!"
"One cannot man farm alone."
"YOU SNARKY BITCH! Get over yourself already!"
"I don't know if wrestling is good for you, It's made you awfully argumentative."
Cecelia pinched her lips together.
Candice looked up at her and stared straight into her eyes. "I was where you are now before. The only difference is that I directed all of that at Corbin. And you know what it did? It sent everyone away. Of course it didn't help that popular music at the time seemed in push us that way. But still. If you want to see me change something you have to do it gently. All this screaming and carrying on just makes us feel like fools. I won't lie and say that I thought it was ok, but something just drove me to act out. I had to learn everything about myself all over again. I was boisterous and cruel, and it estranged me from everything. It's not worth it, Believe me." She finished preparing dinner. She set up two plates. The two stood in the kitchen, eating steamed foods silently.

After the dishes were done, Candice moved into the living room and turned on the tv to a radio station channel. She slumped into the couch and patted the cushion nest to her. Cecelia slumped down on the other side, "Ok Hear me out.
Corbin is always thinking of you. I'm not sure why but he has all this guilt wrapped up in you. He just wants to make some peace. Its obvious that you aren't getting over it, whatever it is, and he is always worrying over it."
Candice raised an eyebrow in doubt.
"You could at least give him some time or attention by going to see what he has made."
Candice cleared her throat, causing her sister to pause. "please, do go on."
"It's not like you to miss one of his recitals. And now he finally has a film which is staring out main stream. And you can't say he didn't invite you... he had been calling you every week to invite you. But since you never answered or called him back, he just thought perhaps you were still mad at him, so he stopped trying."
"... I called him back, but he didn't answer. Its not like he left a message or anything. How was I supposed to know what he was getting at?" She stood, reached out her hand, and said "come with me."

Her little sister took her hand to follow her. Once they were in her studio Candice went into the closet. She began removing things until she could get way into the back corner. She lifted out a decorated box and set it down on the floor with a grunt. She slid to her knees and opened it. The first thing she pulled out was an unpopular thriller story about zombies. Then she set down a small hard covered children's book. Then a teenage romance that followed the lives of a group of monsters. The she dug around a little more a pulled out a three ring binder. Within she found an old drawing. She held it up to her sister.
"This is us..."
"Everything Corby has ever made is in this box. And here," she resurfaced a Hershey's kisses tin with a girl pushing a chocolate to a boy with his eyes closed and lips pursed, "is every note he ever sent me. You see..."
Cecelia snatched up one of the folded pieces of paper. She read aloud:
"Candy-Cane, How is life in High school? I bet by now you are being hounded by boys. I hope the homework isn't getting you down. If it is, you know we can throw it on the fire and take the car down town." She looked quizzically at her sister.
"David Bowie, he listened to it all through college."
"Oh. Well... I was thinking I might come home for fall break this year. My mom is bugging me about it every time I call. I better cave now or else none of us will ever hear the end of it. But my Girlfriend, 'Capital G,' wants me to go visit her family. But no matter how much she asks, I really want to have a slice of your pumpkin pie once more. 'Oh how sweet!'"
Candice smiled.
"Midterms are quickly approaching, so I am busy trying to think of something to turn in for my film studies class. I want to write a screen play, but everything I try comes out more theatrical than my professor likes. He keeps telling me that I should take some classes in the Drama department, but I really prefer movies to plays. I guess I should really write less stage direction and more story, but I always thought actors had a director to expand on the writers vision.
Being a student is all about learning. And I sure am learning. If I wasn't they wouldn't be pushing me so hard.
Send everyone my love.
See you soon.
'And he drew a little face.'"
Candice rolled her eyes into her head and shrugged.
"It's a love letter!"
"It is so Not a Love Letter."
"When was this?"
"The year you 'n mom took that cruise."
"The one where you had dinner with the Dallas'?"
"Yess'm"
"So."
"So what?"
"Is this?"
"A correspondence."
"But that was like," She counted out loud, "Nine years ago."
"yep. Since then I have been collecting whatever I can get my hands on."
"you still, L-"
"Yep."
"You have to go see his film."
"Alright."
"You should call him!"
"no thank you."
"For Christ's Sakes! He's your brother!"
Candice flashed angry eyes at her sister. "Exactly."
"remember when we were kids... you two were inseparable. We were all family. What could have possibly happened to put you two at odds?"
"I suppose it was the capital G."
"The girlfriend. Well thats no reason to hold a grudge now."
"we will see." Candice packed away everything once more. As she listed the last parcel into storage she asked "How about some karaoke?"
"I want dessert!"
"You piglet!" She tussled her little sisters short hair. "Piroline Neopolitan?"
Cecelia scrunched her face up in disgust, "Yuck!"
"It's what I got, you will deal."

The two sang into the early morning while their ice cream melted. They drank their desserts and retired to bed.

The next morning Cecelia woke to the scent of pancakes. She stomped sleepily into the kitchen wearing a pair of her sisters pajamas.
"Good Morning!"
"'ello"
"Those PJs look good on you, would you like to take them with you?"
"sure, I mean, if its ok."
Candice smiled sweetly, "of course you can! Now what time was it you needed to be out of the house?"
"Ten."
"Well then, you'd better hurry," She pointed to the clock, "thats in twenty minutes."
"URG! Why didn't you wake me up?"
"Because you were sleeping."
Cecelia ran off to the bathroom. Candice started packing breakfast into tupperware. Then she went into Cici's room to put together a care package of clothes, toiletries and snacks. As she was zipping up the gym bag Cecelia came in, aggravated. "Get OUT!"
"Fine! No Doritos for you"
"Fine by Me!" She slammed the door after her sister purposely walked slowly out of the room.

The pair climbed into the conspicuous lime green SUV. In unison they clipped their seat belts together. "I'll wash your clothes in a few days. Do you need me to send them to you?" Candice asked.
"Not really, I'll just get them when I come back."
"sounds good. Eat your breakfast." She eyed the small container on the dash.
"Strawberries?!? WEEEEEEEEEEEE!" She tore off the lid, filling the car with the aroma. "Blackberry syrup, Pineapples, and an egg?" She looked at her sister, "You love me, you wanna kiss me."
Candice put her fingers to her mouth, kissed them once, and smacked her sister on the cheek. "You've just been kissed by my heart attack."
Cecelia snorted a laugh. "God, its just like high school all over again. same line and everything." Greedily she tore into her food. Between bites she explained, "I was thinking last night, about you and Corby. See, I think you two are like you and me. I mean like he's like the big brother we never had. Right? And you always had him around and he protected us... well me anyway. How I see it is like this: you two really need one another. And I don't know if it's cause you're old or what-"
"I'm only two years older than you!"
"Like I said, Old, It makes you stupid to some things. You can't forget the past, or else you'll never grow up. And like in the past you always had one another. You always feel so alone, and you keep yourself alone. He's alone too. Both of you have these houses where no one lives. You should live together, make amends, and work it out, you know?"
"People grow apart from one another."
"But they don't have to, you know."
"Yes, it is just like high school all over again."
"But my point, You're both lonely, you both care about one another, you both keep hiding behind your artistic facades to pretend nothing can touch you. Well... at least you do. Its not really my business if you want to or not, but I really think you should give him a call. To open up the lines of communication at least. You know, let him know you're alive."
"I am fairly certain he knows I am alive."
"You know what I mean."
Candice coughed. Her sister took the opportunity to scarf down the rest of her meal.
With a hard swallow, she pounded her chest. Candice handed her a thermos of now lukewarm tea.
"I'm gonna make you a promise Cici. I am gonna call him after I drop you off."
"Then I'm gonna call you tonight so you can spill."
"Oh great, now I have to do it. And here I was just trying to get by on another empty promise."
"Serves you right. Sooner or later you have to do the things that have to be done."
"Does it really need-?"
"Call him."
"Fine." They pulled into the parking lot of the hotel where the bus was waiting to be loaded. "When does it leave?"
"In a few minutes."
A strapping young man walked over to the open luggage case and carefully put his bags away. He then stood up, looked around, and crossed his arms, steeling his gaze on the horizon.
"Is that one of them?"
Cecelia smirked and answered, "Yeah... one of them." She had to hide her smile.
"oh Cecelia... you're breaking my heart..."
"Oh Stop it!"
"What's his name?"
"Kevin."
"Kevin?"
"Cummings"
"What a fake name."
Cecelia glared at her sister. "You're one to talk, Candy-Cane!"
"Cecelia Cummings. That works."
"I'm gonna hurt you."
"Bring it."
The passenger took the seat belt in her hands, squeezed it and sighed. "I have to go."
"I know." Candice leaned over and smooched her sister once on the spot she had preciously hit. The door flung open. She hopped out.
"You be good now missy. And don't forget your bag"
"Right-o Mom."
"That's right!"
"Ok, I got everything, I'll talk to you tonight."
"Sounds good. Say hi to hubby for me."
"Will Do."
The passenger door was slammed. Candice watched from the car the two of them greeting one another. The was a nod then a look from the young man in the direction of the car, so the two of them climbed into the bus. Candice shook her head. She sat waiting until the vehicle piled up with the crew, and finally pulled away.

Candice got out of her car. She went into the lobby of the hotel to make herself a cup of coffee. She sat down in a chair to enjoy some of the thoughts bounding around her head. But she wasn't even four sips in before she was approached and asked for a photo with a fan. He was a pudgy young man with bad skin hooked in hand to a pudgier girl with long dark hair, hanging in two braids down to her breasts. She put her cup of coffee down as she stood. The girl held the camera up high and made a kissy face into the lens. He pushed himself into Candice, pushing her into the girlfriend. Candice winked with a smile and the shutter clicked, just before his weight made her lose her footing. She stumbled forward as they rejoined to look at their new MySpace user pic. Candice took up her coffee. Without a look back she got into her car, and headed home.

In the silence her mind wandered about what she had been told. Her sister made some good points. They couldn't have ever been so estranged that her calling him would have been something to worry about. In all truth, he was practically her brother. Even so, the ride home was nerve racking. She sat holding her cellphone in her hands. Hovering over his name and number, her finger was stuck. She couldn't press down. Finally she cleared the screen. If she wouldn't call him now, she would have to do it later. She slid the device into her coat pocket.

Back at home, Candice was prepared to make a big mistake. This is how she validated her pounding feelings that banged around her head like religious fanatics having a field day on an accused witch.
With her mind racing like a cat on crack, she found some ability to pick up the house phone. As much as she knew where/who/when/how she was, there was a silence that was teamed with a distance that made her question if she was real. Then came a cracking splitting attack on her consciousness that hit like lightning. In its wake she found herself cognoscente enough to press the 11 buttons to numbers which had been burned into her memory against her will.