TIME FOR THE TRUTH
Lily felt the warmth of the sun on her skin as she lazily floated in the crystalline water of the pool. She had been swimming for hours in her yellow two-piece bikini, simply enjoying the feeling of weightlessness and the rhythm of her strokes.
Eventually, she decided she had had enough and swam to the edge of the pool. She pulled herself up and out of the water, letting her skin dry under the sun.
As she lay on the deck chair near the pool, feeling the heat of the sun on her body and the gentle breeze that rustled her hair, she closed her eyes and sighed in contentment.
"Mind if I join you?" Camily's voice broke through her thoughts, and Lily opened her eyes to see her approaching.
"Sure, come on over," Lily said with a smile.
Camily sat down on the chair next to hers, and they fell into easy conversation, talking about everything and nothing at the same time.
They talked about their plans for the summer, reminisced about old times, and discussed their favorite TV shows. Lily discovered that Camily was an easygoing person who simply wanted to know her more.
As they talked, Lily couldn't help it, she was curious about what caused the bad blood between Jack and Camily.
"I know it's not my business but notice that you guys are not really talking and then Jack has become so moody, anytime I talk to him nowadays, it's like I am talking to a wall." Lily was looking at Camily, waiting for her reaction.
"Curious, huh?" she said, her eyes sparkling mischievously.
"Yeah, I'm curious," Lily admitted with a laugh, she was glad that Camily was not upset by her observation.
"Well, it's all because of Debbie, our sister, she committed suicide and died and Jack feels I am the reason she killed herself.
Lily was surprised, she thought Debbie died from an accident. Moreover, she hasn't even seen Debbie's picture before.
"If you have noticed, there is no picture of the family around the house," Camily said.
Lily widened her eyes in realization, Lily realized she had never seen any of their pictures hung on the walls, it was only expensive paintings from all over the world, she could see on the wall. The reality of how dysfunctional this family was, was shocking to Lily. Other families had pictures of their loved ones on the wall but this family lacked that.
Camily sighed sadly, "We were not exactly the happy family you know, my mom gave birth to four children, Debbie, Jack, Roberto, and I."
Lily was surprised, "you mean you have another brother apart from Jack?"
Camily smiled bitterly, "We all weren't that close, Roberto was more interested in my Dad's business than hanging out with us. Jack and Debbie were closer to each other and I loved to hang out with my friends, I guess we didn't like each other company, and sucks to know that we didn't utilize the time we had together."