Behind The Church

XXXVII

Marley

"Christina!" Esther squealed as she ran to hug her sister. Tina holds her tightly and kisses the side of her sister's head.

"Hey, you." she smiles.

"We miss you." Esther tells her. Christina's eyes found mine and her smile grows a little. My best friend of fourteen years. She lets go of my girlfriend and immediately traps me in a big hug. I feel her kiss my head as she squeezes me so tight.

"I miss you, bro." I chuckle.

"I miss you, too, buddy." she says, somehow squeezing my even tighter.

"How come you didn't squeeze me like that?" Esther whines.

"Come here, you big baby." Tina rolls her eyes and brings us both in for a group hug. I almost cry at the contact from my best friend. I truly have missed her. It's not been the same at home.

"Do you want your surprise?" Esther giggles excitedly. She truly is just a little kid in a sixteen year old's body.

"Go on, then."

Esther reaches into her backpack and pulls out the tub that contains her surprise.

"Pice ar y maen!" she exclaims.

"You are the best sister ever!" Tina gasps.

"I know." Esther flips her hair over her shoulder with a cheeky grin.

"Let's go sit down." I suggest, motioning to one of the benches on the field.

We all sit down, with Christina's therapist there as well, and evenly share the Welsh cakes out.

"Wow, these are good." Doctor Clarke nods.

"I know right?" Esther agrees. We had Adrianna make them as she is the best cook we have in the house at the moment. Sure, Esther, Kate and I can whip up some mean dishes but nothing can beat Adrianna's cooking.

"How come Kate isn't visiting?" Tina questioned.

"I'm not speaking to her at the moment. I told her that she couldn't visit you." Esther says, crossing her arms.

"Why? I want to see her. Why'd you do that?" Tina questions.

"Don't you know what she did?" Esther spat.

"It better really fucking bad, Esther." Tina warned.

"She went to go see dad. You know, the man who single handedly ruined our lives?"

"Esther. He didn't ruin our lives. The fact that we're here getting better and moving on, speaks volume. And besides, I know she did. I'm proud of her. She had the balls to go and face the man who hurt us. She's so brave for doing that. I'm not angry at her and neither should you be. And it's certainly not enough to keep her from visiting me."

"I don't think she should've done it." Esther shook her head. She always had too much pride to admit she was wrong.

"Just because you aren't ready to face dad doesn't mean you should hold it against Kate. She did good by it. She got closure. And dad wants to give me closure. He wants to send me a letter." Tina explains.

"Tina, you can't accept that." Esther begs.

"Why can't she, Esther?" Doctor Clarke chimes in.

"What if she reads it and it sends her spiraling again? What if she tries to kill herself again because the man who has hurt her, traumatised her, wrote on a piece of paper and sent it to her? I can't lose her. I cannot live without my big sister. The person who always took the bullet for me. She always took the blame for everyone. What if it's too much? It could overwhelm her. She'd have a meltdown and hurt herself. I can't lose her."

"Those are valid concerns. But what if I told you that Christina is ready for the closure. I truly think it'll do her some good. It would be a massive step forward in her recovery." Doctor Clarke explains.

"What if it's too big of a step? What if she falls?"

"Esther, you're taking that metaphor way too seriously. I won't fall. I'll be fine. But I do want to speak to Kate first. I want to hear her opinion."

"Okay." Esther nodded.

"How are the kids?" Christina asked me.

"They miss you so much. They asked me to get you to record a video for them. So, I brought your phone in. So you could call us."

I hand her phone over the picnic bench and she takes it.

"I think Kate might've taken some selfies for you, but I'm not sure. You know how she is though. Can't leave a phone lying around." I chuckle.

Christina opens her phone and goes straight to the gallery, "Yup, there she is."

A couple of selfies taken by Kate left in the camera roll. And a video too. I'll let Christina watch that in her own time, but right now, we need to catch up.

We talk for the next two hours. Doctor Clarke tells us that Christina is making tremendous progress and they even went to the gym this morning. Christina and I used to be gym rat lesbians. Before the pandemic, we'd go together all the time and our girlfriends would be all over us when we came back. Running their hands all over our arms. Kate and Esther would spend that time together at Kat's house and wait for us to come home. It was just after Tina's sudden growth spurt. And then the pandemic hit and we had to stop it. Oh, how I miss those days.

A nurse comes out to tell us that our time is up. We give Christina goodbye hugs and kisses before exiting the field. I'm gonna miss my best friend.
But we have to go home and tell Kate to book a visit. And Esther needs to apologise. Her anger towards Kate really hurt everyone. Kate is so kind and brave she didn't deserve the unnecessary anger.

The car ride home was silent. I think we're just basking in the happiness of seeing Christina.

I park in the driveway and head inside, my girlfriend hot on my heel. Kate is on the couch, scrolling through TikTok with a coffee in her hand.

"Hey, how'd it go?" she smiles, sadly.

"She's really improving. I gave her the phone so maybe you'll have a call or a text soon. She wants you to visit her soon." I explain, sitting next to Kate. Esther sits on the other side of Kate and cwtches into her.

"I'm sorry for being angry at you. What you did was brave." Esther pouted.

"It's okay, I get it. I'm not gonna hold it against you. What do you say? Best friends, again?" Kate says.

"Best friends again."