I watched as Connor disappeared. I wanted to chase after him, but he was too fast and my legs felt heavy and weighed down. My chest was rising and falling as if I'd just run a marathon. I didn't know what to do, so I just stared at the empty horizon, trying to make sense of what had just happened.

There was crunch of a twig. My sister—Or so called sister. How did we share the same DNA? I'd almost forgotten she was still there, and my shock and grief over losing Connor suddenly turned to anger. She had just destroyed everything. Not entirely true, my lies had laid the groundwork. But still, there was no forgiving her for this, ever...

"Are you happy now?" I asked moving towards her. "Do you fucking know what you've done?"

McKenzie looked at me blankly. Was she even capable of remorse?

"Do you?!" I screamed this time. I didn't care where we were or who could hear us. "Well?" I asked again.

And then, a slow smile broke out across her face. Her eyes flashed with an acknowledgment and then, pure evil. "Yes, Sadie. I do know what I did. I know exactly what I did."

And that was it, that smile, that was all it took to tip me over the edge as an emotional avalanche slammed into me. All the anger, the pent up frustration, and the dashed hopes after ten years of pining for Connor. And all that rage at Mckenzie after all the fights and her bitchy comments. It all came crashing down on me.

I don't know how it happened really, but before I knew it, I was on her and then we were both on the floor. Rolling, and grabbing and pulling and shrieking at the top of my lungs, but also, crying. Crying not only for what had just happened, but for everything; the years of taunting and downright bitchiness.

"I hate you!" I wailed. "I hate you!"

I felt my hair being yanked back as she grabbed at me. I grabbed back at whatever I could get my hands on and I heard a rip. It might have been a shirt, who knows? We became a writhing mess of hair and arms and I no longer knew where I ended, and McKenzie began.

"What's going on here?" I heard a voice behind us but I didn't stop. Not until I felt two big arms wrap around me and we were forcibly pulled apart. Through my hair and tears I saw Mr. Jenkins pulling a kicking McKenzie away. I looked down at the hands around my waist; they belonged to Mr. Crab.

A crowd had gathered around us and I wondered how long they'd been watching? I'd lost all sense of time and sanity.

"I'm going to get you." I screamed back at my twin as I tried to break free of the teacher's grip. But he was too strong. My arms and legs thrashed and kicked, as we were dragged into the empty club house.

"There's nothing to see here!" Mr. Jenkins shouted at the japing, smirking crowd before slamming the door closed. Once inside, Mckenzie and I came face to face with the two teachers.

"What's going on?" Mr. Crab barked at us while wiping a dollop of sweat off his forehead. It appeared that keeping us apart had been a serious workout.

I folded my arms and said nothing. McKenzie too.

"What's going on, you two?" he barked louder this time looking from McKenzie to me and back again.

Mr. Jenkins stepped forward now. Usually he intimidated me, but not that day. My seething rage drowned out any other emotion I was experiencing.

"If you do not tell us what is going on," he said. "You are both getting suspended for a week." He folded his arms now, obviously trying to look more intimidating.

I turned toward McKenzie and glared at her. She turned toward me and glared back. Without blinking or responding to our teachers, we both folded our arms and stood our ground.

Mr. Jenkins threw his hands up. "Okay, that's it. You're both suspended immediately. Follow me to the office so I can call your parents."

As our teacher opened the door, McKenzie shouldered past me so she could leave first. "Bitch," she said, just loud enough for me to hear.

God, I hated her.

**

Ten minutes later we were both squashed together uncomfortably in the back of my father's car. Sports cars are not ideal when you need some space from the person you hate most in the world.

We all drove home in silence and I could feel the tension in the car mounting by the second. My father looked like he was going to explode. He kept looking back in the rear-view mirror, glaring at us. I wished I knew what he was thinking. I didn't give a damn that McKenzie and I had just caused a public scene at school. I was more upset that I'd clearly disappointed my dad. My father skidded into the driveway and then turned to both of us. "Inside. Now!"

He rushed us into the lounge and pointed at the couch. "Sit."

McKenzie and I sat down immediately. I could tell she was as scared of our father right now as I was. I'd never seen him like that before. I watched him curiously as he paced up and down the room, and then finally stopped.

"There's something I want to say to both of you," he started. "I probably should have had this discussion with you ages ago...." He put his hands on his hips and looked down at us and I felt my body stiffen in anticipation of what was to come next.

"You two used to be so close. Don't you remember that? Don't you remember how you used to spend hours playing together? You even had your own special language that no one else could understand. It used to drive your mom and I mad, we never knew what the hell you were talking about. Remember?"

I shifted uncomfortably. I'd forgotten all that. The language that we'd made up, which allowed us to talk to each other without anyone else understanding. I shot a tiny glance toward McKenzie. For a second, our eyes met. Then we both looked away.

"God, the two of you wouldn't even sleep in separate beds," he continued, "but now look at you now." He paused and looked at us for the longest time, and then a look washed over his face I had never seen before. Something caught in my throat as my dad's eyes looked like they clouded over. "Do you know how lucky you are?" he asked, his voice cracking.

But I didn't feel very lucky right then. On the contrary. I felt like the unluckiest person in the world right now.

My father spoke again, his voice quivering this time and I could hear that his throat was tight. "Do you know what I would give to have my brother back?" he asked. "I would give anything, anything, for one more day with him. One more chance to hear his voice. To laugh with him, to just look at him even, I would give anything for that. But look at you two. Just throwing it all away like it doesn't mean anything. But it does. It means everything to have a sibling, it's one of the world greatest gifts, and I know this because I know what it's like to have a sibling, and then not have one. And trust me, not having one in the worst feeling in the world."

I felt my own throat squeeze and a salty sting burned in my eyes. My dad had lost his brother to cancer when he was a teenager. I'd only seen pictures of him and heard the stories, but from what I'd gathered, the two had been very close and my dad had never really been the same after that.

I lowered my head. If I looked at my dad anymore, I was going to cry.

"And over what... a boy?" My dad suddenly kneeled on the floor in front of me and I forced myself to look up at him, and when I did, a massive wave of emotion hit me. His face changed again, it looked softer this time.

"A boy that hasn't noticed you, the way you want him to notice you, for ten years, Sadie... "

I couldn't stop the tears and my dad gripped my hand. "You are worth more than that." Out of the corner of my eye I thought I saw McKenzie move towards me, but then stop herself.

"You want to travel the world. Don't throw that away for some boy that has never seen how special you are. And definitely don't throw your relationship with your sister away over that either. He is not worth it, Sadie." His words felt like they sliced through me, like hot blades, piercing me in the most painful parts imaginable, and suddenly I felt sick to my stomach.

My dad got up and held his hands out. "Phones. Give them to me." He snapped his fingers impatiently, his voice was stern again.

We both obeyed and handed them over.

"Now, you two are going to stay in here until you sort this out."

Then he left and locked the door from the outside. McKenzie and I were alone. Locked in a room together.