Date: Mon, 6 Apr 2009 06:00:34 -0500
From: Brianna Theis <gogogirl.brianna@gmail.com>
Subject: The Keeper 8

Katerina was stunned into silence, unable to process what Bella just
informed her of. Before her was the deceased twin sister of her girlfriend.
Bella had never mentioned siblings and Katerina only assumed that she had
none.

"Your...twin sister?" the older girl asked quietly.

"Yes," Bella answered, not looking at Katerina. "She died five years ago; we
were twelve."

"How...?" Katerina asked. She couldn't even imagine the kind of pain Bella
felt.

"We were at the beach in March. It was really hot out and my mother and
father decided to treat us to China Beach. Keira and I were ecstatic, we
loved swimming and had taken lessons for years. It was very crowded that
day, especially with all the tourists and also the regulars looking to cool
off. When we got there, Keira and I didn't even put on our suntan lotion and
ran straight for the water, ignoring our parents' cries to come back so we
didn't burn," Bella explained. Her voice was deadpanned and monotone,
completely devoid of emotion. "We were splashing around and wrestling in the
water. We soon decided to have a race. There was no specific finish line,
though, but we wanted to go out further, away from the crowded part of the
water."

 Bella placed her hand on the cool surface of the headstone and rubbed it
back and forth, as if trying to soothe it.

 "In our excitement, we didn't realize how far out we swam. She always had
more endurance than I did and stopped swimming only a few yards ahead of
me...but that was all it took. She got caught in an riptide.

 "A lot of people think that riptides pull you under and keep you under, but
that's not true. The undertow that pulls you under only lasts a few seconds
before you're above the water again. The lethal part of riptides is not
knowing what to do if you're caught in one. You're not supposed to swim
against the current and toward the shore. It's nearly impossible to do and
eventually, you'll get so tired you can no longer swim and you'll drown. We
didn't know you shouldn't swim to the shore...and that's what Keira did.

 "We were already tired from swimming for so long and doing the race. To me,
it looked like my sister was just goofing off and swimming around. I was
floating on my back, trying to regain my breath and energy. I didn't even
see her struggling and the waves and people was too loud to hear her
shouting my name if she was."

 Bella was silent for a few minutes and Katerina didn't say anything,
knowing that more was still to be said. The seventeen year old took a deep
breath.
"I didn't see her anymore, so I went back to shore to see if she swam back
to mom and dad. She didn't. After looking for her for an hour, the
lifeguards had everyone come out of the water," Bella said. She spoke in a
whisper. "When the water was clear of all the people...that's when we found
her body. She was face down, floating near the shore fifty yards away from
our spot on the beach. The lifeguards tried to revive her, but it had been
almost two hours since—"

 Bella wiped away the tears that had silently crawled down her face as she
retold her sister's death.

"Bella...I'm so sorry," Katerina said and gently grabbed her hand.

"She's supposed to be here with me. She's supposed to celebrate our birthday
with me...but she's not here. No matter how long it's been, it still hurts.
We were so close—the best of friends, then she was gone. I didn't even get
to say goodbye. I don't even remember what my last words to her were. I
never told her how much she meant to me, how much I appreciated and loved
her," Bella said, her voice cracking. "I'll never watch her grow up with me
and see what kind of person she'd become. Would she have been like me, or
would we have grown different over the years? Would she be proud of me?
Would we still be as close as we were when we were young?"

 Katerina pulled Bella into a very intense hug and held her close and tight
as she tried to console her heartbroken girlfriend.

"Of course she'd be proud of you," Katerina whispered into Bella's hair.
Bella only cried harder into the older girl's shoulder.

 They stood there for a few minutes as Bella released her sadness onto
Katerina. When the parted, Bella dried her face.

"There's more..." she whispered.

"What?" Katerina asked, shocked. How much more pain could Bella have gone
through?

"While we both loved our parents and they loved us both, I had always been
closer to our mother and Keira had always been closer to our dad. After her
death...my dad became distant and started drinking. It probably didn't help
that Keira and I were identical twins, so he was reminded of her every time
he looked at me. After two years, he just left. No note, no goodbye,
nothing. We have no idea where he is and we haven't heard from him in three
years; we don't even know if he's alive or not," Bella explained.

"Bella," Katerina whispered.

"It's okay. You don't have to say anything. There really isn't anything to
say," the younger girl said. "This is why I don't like celebrating my
birthday. It's extremely difficult and painful to celebrate the day my
sister and I were born when she's not here to be with me. I can't bring
myself to be happy because she should be at my side, each of us compromising
what kind of cake to get and wondering what kinds of presents we'd receive.
Which of our friends to invite to the party and the decorations we should
use. I can't decide all of that on my own and I don't want to."

"If I'd had known..." Katerina said.

"It's my fault. I should have told you sooner."

"No, it's not your fault. I should have listened to Kayla," the older girl
said. Bella looked at her, her eyes and faced confused.

"Kayla?"

 Katerina sighed.

"I went to her a few days ago and asked what I should do for your birthday,"
she answered. "She told me to leave it alone, but wouldn't tell me why. I
didn't listen to her because I thought I could pull you out of this birthday
funk."

"You wouldn't be you if you didn't try," Bella said, lacing their hands
together. Then, she looked down at her sisters' grave and actually smiled a
little. "Well, I suppose this is as good a time as any."

"For what?"

 Bella didn't answer, but she sat down on the grass instead and patted the
ground next to her. Katerina took the hint, puzzled at what was going on.
"On the fourteenth day of every month, I come here and talk to Keira. I let
her know what's going on in my life and how mom is. Last time I was here was
when we decided to go on our first date and I told her about you," Bella
explained. "I know it sounds crazy, but I just know she's here when I talk
to her."

 Katerina put her arm around her girlfriend's shoulders and pulled her so
close, she was almost on her lap.

"That is not crazy; I believe she is," she assured Bella as she nuzzled her
neck with her nose and mouth. Bella relaxed completely in her arms with a
silly grin that Katerina couldn't see.

"Okay then. Keira, there's someone I want you to meet. This Katerina, my
girlfriend," Bella said out loud. Both girls felt a slight tingle up their
spines as Bella, for the first time, introduced Katerina to someone as her
girlfriend; it didn't matter to either of them that that person was no
longer alive. "Katerina, this is my sister, Keira."

"Hello, Keira. It's a pleasure to meet you and happy birthday," Katerina
said. There was a small part of her that felt a little strange for talking
to someone that wasn't physically there, but she knew that this moment was
extremely important to Bella and she wasn't going to mess it up for her.

"I promised you that I was going to tell you about my date with Katerina the
next time I visited," Bella said. So, the living Peterson sister told the
deceased one about her time with Katerina, who added a few missing pieces
that Bella accidentally let out.

 They spent and half an hour talking to each other and to Keira, both of
them getting their own words in. However, Bella realized the time and said
her mother would be worried about her. They stood and stretched their
muscles out.

"Bye, Keira. Love you, sis," Bella whispered as she touched the granite
stone. She gave it a sad, longing look, then turned to walk away. Katerina
made sure that Bella was out of ear shot before she looked at the headstone.

"I'll take good care of her," she said quietly to Bella's sister, whom she
truly believed could hear them. Then, she turned to catch up to her
girlfriend.

 In the car, Katerina noticed that, while Bella was still sad, she was in a
much lighter mood than she was before they left and this made Katerina's
heart soar. She hated seeing the younger girl so down.

 They reached Bella's house and Katerina was invited inside, which she
accepted. When the two girls stepped inside, Diane was sitting in the living
room waiting for Bella to come back.

"Hey mom, is it okay is Katerina stays for a while?" she asked. They both
noticed Diane's look of surprise, but also elation as she smiled widely.

"Of course," she answered immediately. "Are you hungry, Katerina? I can whip
something up for you girls if you want?"

"Actually, if it's okay, I have some food I had packed for Bella and I in my
car," the dark haired girl said.

"That's great," Diane beamed. Katerina left to get the picnic she made.

"So, what happened?" the mother asked her daughter. Bella gave her a sad
smile.

"I told Katerina what happened with Keira and Dad," she answered. "Also why
I hate my birthday. Then..." this smile wasn't sad, but it was small. "She
sat down with me and talked with Keira, as if she were alive. She didn't'
think it was crazy or weird; she completely supported me and comforted me."

"Bella, that's wonderful, honey," Diane said, tears in her eyes as she
hugged the birthday girl. "She seems like an amazing friend."

"You have no idea," Bella whispered. She had to bite her lip to keep from
grinning too much.

 Katerina came back a minute later and the three women sat in the living
room and ate the food the nineteen year old made, while laughing and joking.
Katerina told Diane about her self defense business.

"I think I might have to quit the AmericInn. Some of the women I'm teaching
have suggested the class to their friends and I'm now having at least three
people each session," Katerina said. Bella raised an eyebrow.

"Really? You didn't tell me that," she said.

"Well, I've just been thinking about it recently. It's been getting pretty
busy. I'll feel bad if I do quit because I haven't worked there very long,"
the instructor explained. "Also, if business keeps growing like it is, I'm
going to purchase a small building to turn into a gym to hold my classes."

"Kat, that's wonderful!" Bella squealed and hugged her lover.

"That will be quite risky and expensive," Diane pointed out. Bella chuckled.

"I'm not too worried about the financial aspect, but I don't want to fail
either. I'll hire an advisor, learn the ropes and everything. Perhaps an
accountant to handle the money," Katerina said. Diane looked at the older
girl with her eyebrows raised, clearly surprised by the amount of money she
was willing to spend on a business that might not even take off.

"Mom...Katerina's very, very well off," Bella explained. This only confused
Diane further.

"My aunt left me an extremely generous inheritance several years ago and I
was able to access it when I turned eighteen," Katerina said. "I've never
held any desire for college, so I began to work just to pass the time. I've
thought long and hard about what I would use my money for because I don't
want to waste it away and I figured that I'd start investing. I have a few
stocks in the Stock Market and I was planning on investing in real estate,
but then the housing market started taking a turn for the worse and I began
to put it off for a while."

 Diane was certainly taken aback.

"Well...you seem like a very well put together young woman. I'm very
impressed," Bella's mother said as she smiled at Katerina, who blushed
slightly.

"Thank you," she murmured. Bella smiled with pride. Diane suddenly started
laughing quietly.

"Maybe you could teach Bella a thing or two about defending herself. Keira
would always win their wrestling fights," she said. Bella scowled.

"Not always. I could win a few. I was stronger than her, but she was always
faster," the seventeen year old said, crossing her arms. Diane rolled her
eyes and shook her head at Katerina, who laughed. Bella turned her scowl to
her girlfriend.

"I would love to teach her some moves," Katerina said.

"Kat! You're supposed to be on my side," Bella hissed.

"I am, you goof!" Katerina exclaimed, playfully pushing Bella's shoulder. "I
don't want you to defenseless if, God forbid, something were to happen to
you. I wouldn't be a very good friend if I didn't share my knowledge. Don't
worry, I won't be working you to a black belt or anything like that, but
just enough to get yourself out of a sticky situation."

 Bella sighed and looked between the two women and knew there was no way to
get out of this.

*Well, this is a good thing. Not only will I learn how to kick some ass,
I'll also be able to spend more time with Katerina* Bella thought with a
smile.

"Okay, I'll do it," she agreed.

 The arrangements were made and, too soon for the two lovers, it was time
for Katerina to go home.

 "I'll walk you to your car," Bella offered. Diane went up stairs to get
ready for bed as the two girls went outside.

"I have a present for you," Katerina said. She reached into her pocket and
pulled out a small velvet box. Being a girl, Bella instinctively knew what
it was.

"Kat...you shouldn't have," Bella whispered, but was actually happy.

"Of course I did," her girlfriend said with a slight scowl. Bella smiled and
opened it, then gasped. It was a silver Claddagh ring.

"Do you like it?" Katerina asked timidly. Bella looked up her, looking
positively delighted.

"Oh, Kat! It's beautiful! Thank you!" she said and hugged the older girl.

"I'm glad," Katerina breathed out, relieved. She wasn't sure if she was
going too far with that, but it seemed that she did just the right thing.
She put it on Bella's right hand ring finger and they hugged again.

"Happy birthday, Bella," Katerina whispered into Bella's ear, then kissed
her lips tenderly and lovingly.

"Thank you," Bella said. There was so much feeling put into those two words
and Katerina knew it wasn't just for the ring.

"You're welcome."

 They stood there in another embrace, then Katerina left. Bella watched her
go down the street, and then she went back inside to her room.

"You know Bella, I really do like Katerina. She is a very nice girl. I'm
glad you're friends with her," Diane said as she stood in the bathroom
doorframe while her daughter got ready for bed.

 Bella felt a slight twinge of guilt for leading her mother on about her and
Katerina being only friends, but she wasn't even close to ready to come out
to her yet.

"I know, she's great."

 Bella finished washing her face and went to her room. Her mother joined her
and, before Bella got under the covers, Diane hugged her in a tight,
motherly embrace.

"Happy birthday, love," she whispered, kissing Bella's head. When Bella
didn't reject her words, Diane feared she was about to cry with joy and
didn't want to do so in front of her daughter. "Good night, honey."

"Good night, mom."

 Diane left the room and shut the door. Bella changed into her pajamas and
laid down in her bed and sighed into the comfortable pillow. For the first
time in five years since her sister's death, Bella went to sleep on her
birthday with a smile on her face.


Author's Note:
Hey guys! Sorry for the wait. Things have been so hectic lately with school
and my friends. But I finally got this chapter done :) I hope you guys liked
it. The part where Bella tell Katerina how her sister died was actually very
difficult for me to write. I have a sister two years younger than I am and
we are extremely close. In chapter 4, when there is a description of how
close Bella and Keira are, that's me and my little sister, Katie. So, when I
was talking about Keira's death scene, it was very hard for me to not
picture Katie. I teared up even :( But, I am happy with the way it turned
out. The part about the riptides is actually true, so for those of you who
like to swim in the ocean, be careful about the riptides! Don't forget to
visit my blog: www.princessauthor.blogspot.com