Marie nodded slowly. There was a quiet moment when only the sound of the distant shower was heard. Then, the older girl asked, "Annie's never coming back?"
"I don't think she can, ever," Gloria replied.
Marie took a deep breath. She looked directly at the younger girl. "Gloria, you're a much nicer person than Annie was." She smiled meekly. "Will you be my little sister?"
"I'd like that very much," Gloria accepted and returned the smile.
Marie gave her a gentle hug.
"Can I call you Big Sis again?" Gloria asked.
"Yes, you can," Big Sis consented.
After the hug was done, Gloria asked, "Do you think I should tell Mother and Father? About me not being Annie, I mean."
Big Sis thought for a short moment. Then she shook her head. "Mother won't believe you. Father will want you to see a shrink, seriously. You don't really need to tell them. In fact, you didn't need to tell me."
"Yeah," Gloria agreed, "But I needed to tell someone. It didn't feel right going on as Annie without telling someone about it."
Big Sis shrugged. "Don't worry about it. Now help me out of this dress. It's a pain to take it off on my own." She turned and presented the zipper at her back.
"Is this really okay?" Gloria asked with concern.
Big Sis tossed a smile over her shoulder. "It's okay. We're sisters, right?"
***
Big Sis sat at her computer, leaning sideways against the back of her chair, which faced the door. Gloria was laying out both dresses on the bed next to her handbag and other accessories. She was laughing at a funny story that her elder sister had just told her about college.
Suddenly, Second Sis burst into the room. "Hey, are you having a slumber party without me?" Then her jaw dropped when she saw her sisters. Gloria was standing there without her clothes. Above the back of the chair, Marie's bare shoulders could be seen.
"You're both naked!" Carrie exclaimed disbelievingly, "You too, Marie!?"
"Oh, do join us," Big Sis invited.
Gloria pulled Carrie's hand. "Yeah, take off your clothes and join us!"
Second Sis stared hesitantly at Gloria for a second. "No!" she cried as she snatched her hand away. "You're both crazy!" she added before she fled the room, slamming the door behind her.
Big Sis chuckled. "You're right. That look on her face was funny." She pulled the straps of her bra back up. The back of her chair had hidden from Carrie the fact that Marie still had her underwear on.
Gloria laughed with her.
The next day, it was even funnier to watch Second Sis' behavior. Carrie refused to be alone with either of her sisters for any length of time and definitely not with both. She hid in her room most of that Sunday. And she very cautious whenever she went to the bathroom. She would listen at the door and peek in to be certain that it was absolutely empty.
She definitely avoided her sisters' rooms.
Whenever Gloria bumped into Big Sis that day, their thoughts would immediately turn to their sister's reaction. They would then share a private moment of quiet laughter.
Mother wondered why her usual verbal-dance partner was abnormally quiet at dinner. But she was easily distracted by Gloria with talk about the family dinner the night before. Then Gloria mentioned going through the photos together with Big Sis in her room. That drew an amused smile from Marie and a look of horror from Carrie.
The day after that, things were back to normal. Second Sis appeared to have forgotten about the whole affair and was her usual cheerful and chatty self.
***
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