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She wasn’t overreacting, or feeling sorry for herself Living in the past, or being paranoid She was facing the truth

Jem had put Tressa’s needs over hers And his own

“I knohy,” she told Kacey later that night as the sisters sat on Kacey’s balcony with a bottle of wine on the table between theet over it And everyone who knows me knows that”

Kacey’s silence didn’t hit her at first Until it hung there, between thelanced over to see tears sliding slowly down her twin’s face

“What? Oh,on?”

Shaking her head, Kacey looked over at her “You’re right”

“What? That you’re hurt?” Ready to call an ambulance, she knelt at Kacey’s feet She couldn’t lose her Kacey was her rock Her foundation Herother self

“Don’t you dare kneel ather back to her chair She knelt then, at Lacey’s feet “You’re right that you’re easy to disappoint, Lacey To take advantage of Because your et over it and life goes on That’s why you got passed over and I got chosen, don’t you see? Even with Mom and Dad Because I made a stink I made noise I made it hard for people to pass me up”

“So what are you saying? That I should make more of a stink?”

“No! I think you’re perfect” Kacey ran a hand along Lacey’s cheek and Lacey turned her head, placing her lips in her sister’s pale,” Kacey said “The world needsMore selflessness And the rest of uswe need to protect you from our own selfishness”

She was talking nonsense, of course And yether words struck a chord Hadn’t she had a sie of his goodness?

Tressa the noiseet her way While Laceyshe’d understand Be steadfast in her kindness Get quiet And get over it

Except that she hadn’t

She’d gotten out For the first time in her life

She walked out on the one person who truly loved her above all others Forever When he’d needed her most