Polished Piece #2

“What’s wrong with you?!” Anna shouted. “You’ve been acting like a maniac this past week, and don’t deny it! You’re never home anymore and when you are, you’re either locked up in that dungeon you call a bedroom, or you’re passed out. And I haven’t actually seen you eat anything in weeks!”

Olivia just stared at her feet; she was trying her hardest to look as though she was ashamed or sad, or didn’t want to talk about it, maybe then her sister would dismiss this pointless and dramatic lecture.

“Answer me!” Anna screamed, now inches away from Olivia’s face.

Anna began shaking Olivia violently as if to wake her up from whatever spell she was under. Finally when Anna stopped, Olivia looked up at her sister:

“I’m fine,” she said. “I’m just tired lately. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have homework to attend to.” She then walked away as if nothing had happened. Anna hated that about her sister; she was so disconnected, she could care less about any situation. You could be holding her by her hair over a cliff and she wouldn’t show the faintest sign of emotion. Anytime Anna ever wanted any sort of explanation from her sister, she practically had to fish around in Olivia’s head and yank it out herself.

Anna had been studying Olivia’s behavior for weeks now. She would constantly offer to make dinner and Olivia would politely decline and explain she had already eaten. Anna also bought loads of groceries, even sweets, anything to lure in Olivia’s attention to the kitchen, but every time she would go to check, nothing had been touched, with the exception of what Anna had eaten herself.

Anna watched day by day as her sister began to sink into herself more and more; her hair growing thinner, her cheekbones bulging out of her small-framed face and sunken in eyes. The worst was her spine, it looked as though some sort of monster had settled under her skin and was trying it’s hardest to break out. Eventually, Anna thought Olivia was going to disappear.

            Though Olivia had insisted she was fine, Anna knew better, something had to have been going on. Anna followed after her sister:

 “Olivia, please just let me know if you’re okay, or if you’re in any trouble? You don’t have to say what, just…do you need help?”

“Help?” Olivia spat the word back to her sister as if it had been an insult. “I don’t need anyone’s help, what makes you think I need help? I’m perfect! Look at me!” Olivia threw her arms into Anna’s face, as if to display how slender she had become.

“Exactly! Look at yourself; you’ve lost so much weight! You’re spine practically wears you! You think that’s perfection?”

            Olivia began turning red, the rise and fall of her sunken in chest began to speed up, her hands were shaking and tears began to well up in the corners of her eyes: “I’m beautiful now,” she whispered. “And I’ll do whatever it takes to stay this way.”