The Silent Falls Twins: Last Post

It's true, all of it, not that I ever doubted it.

The sleepover came, Kirsty and Ava arrived. I reluctantly bought Skye a charm bracelet, that I didn't think she deserved. She bought me some new pyjamas and bubble bath. Mum bought us matching hoodies, even though we don't feel much like twins any more.

The evil trio picked out some random films to watch, mainly films I'd never heard of. Mum made us pizzas and other snacks. The three of them sat huddled together on the livingroom floor, bundled up in blankets, giggling and whispering. I sat alone on the couch. I knew that no one would miss me if I slipped out the door. But there was something wrong. I knew it from the minute the doorbell rang with the arrival of Kirsty and Ava, wearing their almost matching outfits and looking at me with pure hatred. I wondered what their problem with me even was, but my stomach was in knots. They were up to something. I had to watch them. I had to wait for them to sleep before I went anywhere. None of them acknowledged me throughout the course of the night.

I felt myself getting drowsy at one point, and I must have dosed off on the couch. When I opened my eyes, the clock on the wall said that it was just after 1am. Kirsty and Ava were still awake, focussing on the TV, where some woman was wandering around an empty house. There was a gap between them, and looking properly, I saw that it was Skye. She had dosed off, curled up in a ball. I smiled to myself, remembering that this was what happened when Skye stayed up late, remembering all of our late nights and sleepovers over the last few years.

Almost as soon as I smiled, Kirsty and Ava's heads snapped back to look at me. Both of them looked down at Skye for a second, then back at me.

“She's asleep,” Kirsty said, with a smile. This was possibly the first she'd ever spoken to me.

“Yeah,” I said, rubbing my own eyes. “She's not good at the late nights.”

“She's not good at much,” Ava said.

“Nope,” chimed Kirsty. “Not late nights, not maths, not being a sister.”

“What?” I asked.

“Well,” said Ava. “She's not been much of a sister, has she?”

I shrugged my shoulders, wishing that they would go to sleep soon, but I felt uncomfortable. Skye snored quietly between them. She looked so vulnerable. She always was the soft one, and I always wanted to protect her. Not now.

Kirsty and Ava were watching me, as if they knew that I was realising my urge to protect Skye was gone. Just like the bond. It wasn't there any more. She meant nothing to me. My only concern was how long it would be before she finally killed me.

“You should hear how she talks about you,” Kirsty said, grinning. “She thinks you're a wimp, always running off to tell Mummy when she's been bad.”

“To be honest,” said Ava. “We thought she'd have smothered you in your sleep by now. She wanted to, so many times she said that she was going to. She was so annoyed those nights you stayed with your friend. Missed opportunities.”

A rage was burning inside me. It felt so bizarre. I'd never felt anything like it before. My body was tensing, my heart racing. I hated Skye. I hated her so much. Why was I just sitting here waiting for her to kill me?

“You could get there first. I would only take a few minutes.” Kirsty said, as the two of them stood up. “We're off to brush our teeth.”

Ava gently tossed a cushion to me as they made their way out of the living room. I heard their footsteps climbing the stairs. I gripped the cushion, looking down at Skye. Horrible waste of space that she was.

I don't remember deciding to kill her. But I remember placing the cushion over her face, and holding it there. I remember how she struggled, her muffled screams, her arms and legs flailing in the air. And then it stopped. Her body lay limp on the floor.

I turned around to see Kirsty and Ava, with smug grins. I was one of them. But I didn't want to be. I let out a scream. Mum and Rose came rushing downstairs. And I told them. I'm a murderer, I don't want to get away with it.

Only they didn't listen. Mum was screaming, trying CPR, Rose calling an ambulance. It was too late. Skye was already dead.

I told paramedics that I killed her, even explained how I did it. But they didn't listen, they were telling Mum it was likely to be some sort of heart failure.

Kirsty and Ava's parents came to collect them, offering their condolences to Mum and Rose, saying that they knew how it felt. I even tried telling them, that I had done it, but it was as if they just didn't hear.

“They won't hear,” Kirsty said. “No one wants to know. Not here. They'll never find out.”

They left. Rose sent me to bed. I wondered if she knew, but even she seems to be under the spell. She stayed up, comforting Mum.

I killed my twin sister. Yet, there is no punishment for me. This town lives in denial. Skye is just another dead twin. I can see her reflection in the mirror. She stands alongside Sarah, who looks at me now, both of them full of rage.

I want the world to know what I have done. I want someone to come here and arrest me. But no one will. No one ever comes here.