Sister Secrets

My name is LaLa, and I was born in Mississippi. I arrived as a chubby cherub angel to my mother and father, who never thought they could have children.

My family told me throughout my life that I was a blessing.

I was the only child because all other IVF attempts had failed. However, I never felt alone with my seven cousins. While my mom had difficulty getting pregnant, my Aunt Prue did not. I loved spending time with my family and felt like they were my siblings because we did everything together. My aunt loved sharing the joy of a big family with us; she was a big part of my life. My life was blessed with love and security.

During one of our big Thanksgiving dinners, I could feel the strain between my mother and my aunt. They are usually on the best terms, but they disagreed about something and have been at odds with each other lately. I don’t like it when they fight. It would cause us all to suffer.

I’m glad we came together for the holiday, there for a moment, I wasn’t sure it would happen. This was the longest argument they’d ever had, and I rarely got to see my cousins because of it. It has been going on for a couple of months now.

My aunt cleared her throat to give an announcement, and all the clanking of silverware to plates ceased. You could only hear my mom asking her to please stop. I wondered what was happening, but it seemed like my aunt was about to tell us.

“I want to give thanks to our precious, LaLa, who has been a blessing to my sister and our family all these years, but I feel the need to share a secret I can no longer hold,” my aunt announced.

My mom sighed with resignation. Whatever my aunt was about to say, she did not want her to say and felt defeated. My mom’s shoulders slunk, and she eyed me with sad eyes.

“LaLa, when your mom did the IVF treatment, she suffered greatly. She tried and failed. I could see the toll it was taking on her. You were born into this family as a gift from the heavens. However, it took a great sacrifice on my part. Well worth it, as I did not want your mother to suffer any longer,” Aunt Prue cleared her throat.

This was obviously harder for her to say than she thought. My mom looked at me with sad eyes and smiled softly.

“Oh, get on with it. You’ve been so damned determined. Just do it!” Dad said. He seemed irritated with the entire ordeal, which he often was whenever they fought.

“Fine then. LaLa, your mother used my egg, so you are a part of me, child,” my aunt said. I sat back in my chair with the shock of the news. What did this mean, and why was she telling me? All of a sudden, my perfect world shattered around me.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you enjoyed this, you might also appreciate exploring other fictional short stories.