Forgetting - Part 4

It's been three whole days and Kim still hasn't talked to me. She gets up later than I do, and she takes her breakfast into dad's study. She stays home curled up on the couch in the basement watching sappy chick-flicks. I feel worse than I ever have. It's like we aren't related anymore. I don't know what I did really. I only want to know why she's acting this way.

The phone rings. My parents aren't home and I'm not going to relay on Kim while she's mad at me, so I answer it.

"Hello?"

"Hey little sis!"

"Eric!"

"Which one of you am I talking to, and don't lie."

"It's Julia. Kim is...not herself today."

"Ah, I see. It's one of those things, is it?"

"No! She's a little sick." As I said that I hear footsteps in the hall, Kim's for sure, and the bathroom door closing. "How was the first year at Yale?" Eric is a journalism major.

"It was nice. I got a good spot on the paper." I can hear Kim hacking up in the bathroom. Maybe I was right, she is sick? "I'm in Paris today."

I forget about Kim and gasp, "Really? What's it like?"

"I can see the Eiffel tower from my hotel room. The cheese really is as pungent as rumored, however the people are not as rude."

"What'd you get me?"

"That is something you don't get to know until I get back. I go to Spain, Ireland, and Great Brittan before I get back to the U.S."

"Fine."

"Hey, I gotta go. I don't want to waste the minutes on my phone card. Tell Kim to get better for me. I love you, both of you."

"I'll tell her. I love you too."

"Goodbye."

"Bye."

I hang up and notice that Kim is still in the bathroom. I softly knock on the door when I hear her crying.

"Kimmie? Look, I know you're mad at me but you have to let me talk to you." I wait but she doesn't answer. "Please?"

She doesn't answer but I open the door anyway. Kim is lying on the floor, she threw up. I can tell because she didn't get it all in the toilet. I help her up and let her lean on me while we go upstairs. I leave her in her bed and go to clean up her barf. For some reason, I feel better that she's just sick. I guess that's why she flipped at me. Soon she'll be better and things will be back to the way they used to be.

This is what is going through my mind as I go back into our room. I stop dead in the doorway as I see Kim sitting on the floor and beating herself in the stomach. Her eyes are crazy and tears are running down her face. Under her breath she's saying "No" over and over again. What's going on? I'm scared of her.