MANY months after the Ghotham took in the child they found in the woods behind their house, they received a piece of news. A work of a miracle. Silvia Ghotham was pregnant. They were overjoyed. They thank their God for the gift, they donate every end of the week of the month to the children in the orphanage as a 'thank you' for the gift, and their love for their children became bigger. Silvia thought that Stella was a God's test to her either she was able to be a parent to the child or not and as a gift, she received her own.
Lily was a small child. She loves to follow her sister around. She was a trouble-maker in the family too. But all that made people looked favorably at her. Because she was pretty. Some say she looked like an angel. Like a doll. One that people adored compared to her sister's title.
Lily may smile when people praised her and she smiled too when people talk bad behind her especially about her sister. Her smiles are those as fake as a doll was. Inside her heart, a fire as big as the statues in front of the bazaar ablaze with curses. No one would know or would hear of such curses could be uttered by her pretty smallmouth because all of it was inside her heart.
She never liked her pretty face or her pretty hair or her pretty 'hands' as people said because all these pretty things that they said came from the same mouth that spewed insults to her sister. She hated this kind of person. They were the trash of society. The one that pollutes the world. The one that better off died with their intestines used to choke themselves!
"Lily."
She looked at her sister's face as she broke out of her daydream. "Yes," she replied with a smile that could shine the world.
"Have you found anything that you wanted to buy?" Stella asked.
"Umm, no."
It was a school holiday at that time and it almost over. So, they came to the bazaar. With the money that their father gave, the walked around the huge bazaar on their own since they were popular, so their father had no worries if they were to get lost inside there.
Honestly, they were lost but Lily does not want to make a fuss about it. Stella seemed okay or that she did not know how to read her sister. One of her many failures in making her the perfect little sister to Stella. But they are still small and she just entered the elementary that Stella went to.
Her eyes caught a glimpse of a snack on a stall. It smells so sweet that it enticed her stomach.
"Do you want to eat?" her sister asked.
Lily nodded quickly. Who would pass such an amazing chance for her to eat snacks and sweets?
One of the many reasons why these Ghotham girls were lost was because they kept on stopping on food stall one after another.
After nearly finished all of their pocket money, they found the book shop though this was the first time for them to arrive in that old-musty-yet-luxurious looking book and stationery shop. The bell on the door rang, the click clacks of them walking on the wooden floor, and no one greeted them on the counter.
"Hello?" Lily called.
No one answered. Lily was afraid of going to shop for the unattended shop because people would accuse of them thieving if something goes missing and that if she wanted to buy something, it would be a hassle to find the owner.
"You go find your colour. I'll go find the owner," Stella assured her.
"Okay," she replied timidly.
The book shop was bigger than Lily imagined. The ceiling was high and the collections of books for a book and stationery shop compared to the ones that their father usually brought her to.
As she was searching for the stationary aisle, she saw a big window framed overlooking the town she never sees before. The buildings built were not as cramped as she knows of and the buildings were tall and majestic looking. The houses – no, mansions were built largely apart on the hill and as it descended the hill more townhouses with colourfully painted walls and huge balcony windows that they even put tea table with a parasol. More so that, she saw a moving box by using four wheels, drove through the pavement.
Yet, with all extravagant settings, it's all felt empty. The people walked fast by; everybody was so busy to even greet each other. Their clothes even though they looked so fancy; it was just a parade of wealthiness. Somehow, the humid air of summer does not affect the cold atmosphere of this part of town.
She left the scene and properly started searching for her coloured pencils. It took her 10 minutes to find the isle which was supposed could be done in a matter of a couple of minutes because the isle was located near the entrance. As her father would usually say, that Lily is someone with her head in the clouds when walking but it was more like she does not have a sense of direction.
When she arrived at the counter, she does not saw her sister anywhere near but only a man of middle-aged. His stature was below average but he looked big to the eyes of a child. He has a big fat belly, plump cheeks, and half-bold. He bore a friendly smile ad his eyes disappeared when he smiled.
"Are you the owner?" she asked curiously.
"Unfortunately, I am," he replied with a heavy sighed.
"Do you know where my sister is? She was supposed to find you."
"That little lady? She went upstairs to look for something. Do you wish to purchase only that?"
Lily put her the coloured pencils that she had selected with her feet tiptoed to reach the countertop.
"I want to go find my sister first," she requested.
"Oh, there's no need. Your sister coming down now," the owner said.
True, Stella was stepping down the staircase from the second floor of the shop with a book tightly hugged in her arms.
"What you got there, Stella?" she asked interested in the books that looked so old that the bind was barely ably banded the pages.
Stella showed the book that she found. The front cover font was hazy and the colour has seen its better days. Where did her sister found this book?
"Joyce's teeth! Where ever do you get that? I swear that book was in a case last month," the owner said looking surprised after he adjusted his small glasses.
"I found it on the shelves upstairs," Stella replied honestly and Lily knew that her sister is incapable of lying. She does not know if this personality is a blessing in disguise or ticking time bomb because usually, the receiving end of it would be her. It was not a pleasant memory considering her naughty deeds never lasts for more than an hour.
The owner rubbed his chin, his head looking up on the ceiling or that it was his gesture of figuring out the mystery. Then, he laughed. He looked so happy.
"Well, I had that book ever since my grandfather of grandfather opened this shop and it was the last copy too. I kept it in the case in the back store because of how old the book was and it was tattered. I guess it must have found its owner rather than the owner found it."
Stella was caressing that book gently. The way she looked at the book itself (though her eyes were obscured, mind you), it was as if she had made herself attached to it in the matter short amount of time.
"Do you know the title of the book, mister?" Lily asked considering the letters were hardly seen.
"If I'm not mistaken, The Dancing Cat Journal."
A what cat journal?
"Well, if you read the letters using the old language it means 'Lake of Desire' and since your sister to be fond of that book, rather than it collecting dust, I'll give it for free."
"Thank you," Stella offered and the book returned to her arms.
Lily chuckled. There is no stopping Stella if she had said that and since it was rare of her wanting something for her own. Thus, she proceeded to pay for her coloured pencils. The owner packed her belonging inside a wrapper and he also included a few cute notebooks and bookmarks.
"I've been wondering, where are you girls come from? You don't look like you come from around here," he asked while wrapping.
"We're from the humble town of Chamberly," Lily answered.
"Praise my lord, that is so long away from my shop. This is like the nearest entrance to the Upper street of Kimberly."
Lily's face was red with shame. "We're sort of lost on our way to the bookstore."
"You mean to say that you accidentally found my bookstore?" He squinted his eyes.
It was Stella who found it. In the busy road of posh boutiques and modern café, she dragged her hand to this bookstore.
The owner gave the girls the easiest direction to go back to Chamberly and he bid them goodbye as he sent them outside. He waited until the girls disappear from the high street that went straight to Chamberly.
AS they walked back home, Stella was still fascinated with her back that she does not have any intentions of letting it go any moment or do she realize of her best friend coming over to them. They met when they had reached the center of the bazaar. He looked out of breath as if he was running around the bazaar before meeting them.
"Are you okay?" Lily asked out of concerned but that little nut just ignored her and went straight to Stella.
"Stella! Where you've been? I searched for you all over the place and I don't see you. Your father said that you went to the bookstore but you're not there! Do you know how worried I am? Why didn't you asked me to go together with you? What if Kai saw you and bully you and I wasn't there to help you? What if something bad happened to you and I don't know? What if you get admitted into the hospital?"
"Enough!" Lily had to step in before he continues on his nagging like some kind of an old lady with a lost kitten. She shoved his hand from holding on Stella's shoulders. He was shaking her sister from the very start of his nagging until she stepped in.
"Are you some kind of mother bear? Is my sister your cub or what? She has me, so chill. We just got distracted that's all. Right, Stella?"
Stella nodded.
Lily threw Gitto her smug face and that boy was furious. That was not the first time they had this kind of rivalry and Gitto was the only boy that Lily could show her true colours.
After a few minutes of exchanging unsaid cursed words between their eyes, Lily, Stella, and Gitto went back home though having a peaceful walk was useless as a matter of time.
"Why'd you buy that book?" Gitto asked Stella. He was walking on Stella's right side while Lily was on her sister's left.
Lily was curious too as to why her sister picked that book up. Her sister was acknowledged by their family as someone who is a huge curiosity about anything but she seldom picked up the book so suddenly unless there was a reason. Even the title was a bit weird to her too. How does a cat dance?
"The book sings," her sister answered.
Lily and Gitto exchanged glances.
"They called to me; this book is."
"Do they still sing?" Lily never bothered Stella peculiarity instead she loved it. It really what made who her sister is. It made her world one less dull than it is.
Stella nodded.
"Can you sing it for me? The song?" Lily begged.
"Hah? Wait! Stella can sing?" Gitto asked like his mind finally blown away by that fact and they had to stop walking because of it.
"Are you a chump? Don't you hear my sister singing every morning? Are you even our neighbor?"
Gitto furrowed his eyebrow and he thought for a good 10 seconds before his mouth went agape. It was amusing though.
"That was you? That's your voice?"
"Nincompoop," Lily uttered under her breath but Gitto caught her word nonetheless.
"You little runt, you dare say that word."
Gitto was easy to get a ruse on and Lily enjoyed it as much as she can. "Nincompoop, twit!"
"Come here you small sasquatch, you think you can get away with that pretty mouth of yours!"
Gitto was fast. He was popular for his genius brain and fast feet. She knew if she tried to run, it would be a waste so she just let herself captured in her attempt of so-called run away from the monster. He headlock her and twist his fist on her scalp that she had to shout for forgiveness
But, all he ever did to her, it did not feel hurt at all. Furthermore, he was gentle and made it easy for her to run yet she chooses not to. Maybe she was a masochist or maybe she just like him so much that times like this was her opportunity to get his attention.
At that time, the way Gitto treated Lily made her happy. It was different than the others. It was not a fake conversation where they always praised her beauty or having any other motives. It was suck, for seven years old to know how ugly people can be. The only thing that she did not know was how deep Gitto's affection for Stella and how ugly her heart can be.
LILY looked into the mirror. There was a girl, with honey blond wavy hair and a touch of sandy brown highlight, pretty blue-green eyes, high nose, plump limps and she was petite in her navy blue pinafore and white shirt, an epitome of goddess-like beauty (she needs to barf every time she heard that title). That girl in the mirror looked ready and Lily was ready for whatever world want to throw her into.
She descended the stairs and went to the kitchen. Surprise, surprise. He was there.
"Hey, Lily! My little chibi devil."
"Don't touch my hair," she warned Gitto coldly. She even glared at him and he backed away.
"Okay, okay. Sheesh, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed," he commented. He took his seat beside Stella who calmly ate her breakfast like always.
"And someone been using our kitchen for his morning crush date," she said sarcastically. She took her seat, obviously away from him. She does not want to ruin her breakfast mood just because of some lousy jealous of her own.
Sullivan laughed. "Sorry darling, I invited him. Saw him at the front gate this morning. Listening to your sister's singing I bet," he defended Gitto but it made her appetite gone.
"More like trying to catch a glimpse of the dawn," Silvia teased while patting Gitto's head and he laughed with flushed on his cheeks.
"Nah," he denied. "I just love to hear her sing. Nothing else." He looked at Stella who religiously focused on her breakfast, not caring for anything in the world. Over the years, it has been hard for Lily to see her sister's face and understand what was she thinking about because she wanted to be someone who received that kind of loving look and still be cool with it.
She stood up suddenly. "My friends here," she said.
"Really? I don't hear them calling for you," her father commented. He tried to rise but was stopped by Lily.
"It's okay dad. I'm going first, bye!"
"But Lily your breakfast!"
"Bye!" she shouted when she reached the door. She slammed it before her mother caught her laying though she met her friends while going down the slope a few minutes later.
She knew that Gitto saw through her heart. He knew that she loved him more than a little sister should and it was hard for her to just sat there and watched. It suffocating her. Her jealousy was drowning her.