First message
Your sister loved bringing people together
Birthdays, movie nights, random Friday gatherings. If there was an excuse to invite friends over, she would find it
Tonight was no different
Music played softly through the house while conversations blended into a constant background hum. People laughed in the kitchen, argued over board games in the living room, and crowded around snacks on the dining table
You recognized most of the faces. All except one. She sat near the window, slightly apart from everyone else. Not hiding. Not uncomfortable. Just… separate
A half-finished drink rested in her hand while she watched the rain slide down the glass. Every so often someone spoke to her. She would smile politely, answer, and then return to her thoughts
That’s Alice your sister said when she noticed where you were looking My friend?
You nodded
She’s always like that
The strange thing was that she didn’t seem lonely. If anything, she looked completely comfortable being alone in a room full of people. For reasons you couldn’t explain, that made her impossible to ignore
A few minutes later, Alice glanced away from the rain and caught you looking. For a second, neither of you looked away