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 Whatever I had done wrong, I couldn’t just ignore it and go back to how things were before. After finally having my little sister back in my life, I could not simply allow her to disappear once more without at least trying to keep her.

 So, I breathed in, and knocked on my little sister’s bedroom door.

 “Allicia. Can we talk?”

 […What do you want], I received the message on my cellphone.

 “I want to apologize to you… And I want to know what did I do to hurt you.”

 [Why do you even care?]

 “Because I don’t want to repeat the same mistake again! For all this time I thought I was alone in this world, then you finally got back into my life… I can’t bear to lose you again.”

 [But you weren’t alone, right?]

 [You had Sarah.]

 “Sarah…?”, why was she bringing my only friend into that conversation? “Well, she’s a good friend, really, but we’re not family.”

 [So, you’d prefer if the two of us weren’t related?]

What was she trying to say?

 “No, I can’t possibly imagine a world where you’re not my little sister. I need you by my side, Allicia. Just like we used to play along when we were children.”

[Is that also something that Sarah told you to say?]

 “What? No, that’s what I genuinely feel.”

 [Then, why haven’t you reached me before? Why haven’t you tried to save me before? Why did you go half a decade ignoring me?]

 My heart tightened, and a knot appeared in my throat. I leaned against the door, frowning, and closing my hands into fists. That hurt. But the pain that Allicia must have felt must have been much worse.

 “Because I thought you didn’t want to have anything to do with me anymore. Because I thought my presence reminded you of unpleasant things. Because I thought you’d be better without me.”

 […Is that why you substituted me?]

 “Substituted…? Are you talking about Sarah?”

 [You spent all your time with that girl, when you should have been by MY side! You already had me, but you chose to stay with HER!]

 [I’m sorry if I wasn’t the perfect little sister you wanted… But I was giving my best.]

 [All this time, I spent trying to get back to society by myself; I created social media accounts, I talked with people online, I gave my damn best. Only for you to remind me that you have been enjoying yourself without me.]

 “I… never knew that this was how you felt, Allicia. And I’m so sorry.”

 “But I can promise you this: I’ll never let you alone again. I’ll never turn my back to you again. You are the most important person in my life… and I want you back.”

[…Really?]

“Really.”

 [I don’t believe you.]

 “And how can I prove this to you? I’ll do anything! Anything that you ask, I’ll prove that I care more about you than anyone else!”

At that, the door slowly opened for me, and a melancholic Allicia showed up through the ajar door, looking down.

 “Anything?”, she asked meekly.

 “Anything”, I confirmed, certain of what I had said. “I don’t care if you ask me to do something embarrassing, or if you make me apologize on my knees, or even cook your favorite dish for a whole month! I’ll do anything to get my little sister back.”

 “Then prove it”, Allicia said, her cheeks turning red as she looked up and straight into my eyes. “S-Sleep with me!”
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Author's note: The next chapter will be an extra again ;)