“There’s only a week left before your wedding, Elijah. Are you excited?” Sora asked her childhood friend and soon-to-be brother-in-law.
“Absolutely! Thanks, by the way, for accompanying me to look for Kisa’s gift,” Elijah replied while browsing stores inside the mall.
“Well, I know my twin sister’s favorites so this will definitely help you out,” she said.
Sora and Kisa are twin sisters born about 15 minutes apart. They grew up together, thus, the unconsciously adapted from each other’s perks and movements including footsteps and even vocal abilities. They met their childhood friend Elijah when they entered pre-school together in a local school.
Sora developed her crush with Elijah when they were in middle school but was unable to tell him anything about her feelings. During senior high school, Elijah confessed that he likes Kisa and would gladly go through the process of courtship to earn her affection.
“How do you feel about Elijah, Kisa?” she asked her sister while they were hanging out on their veranda one night.
“Oh, I like him,” Kisa hesitantly answered.
Sora was a bit shocked with her reply and wanted to give her an earful, but she held back because she doesn’t want her sister to know about her feelings towards the same man.
“I always knew you like him, Sora. But I’m sorry for accepting his love despite having a hunch with what you feel; but I like him, too. Not as much as you do, but, yeah, that’s how I feel about him,” Kisa apologized.
Sora bit her lower lip to hold back her tears. Kisa gave her a hug and she returned with a tighter hug.
“I wish for your happiness. Let’s take my secret feelings to the grave. Promise?” Sora whispered to her sister.
“I promise.”
They officially dated soon after and even went to same college together, taking up the same business course. Being a supportive sister, Sora wanted to ensure that Elijah and Kisa will live happily together.
Devastated and wanting to move on, Sora enrolled in a different school far from home and decided to stay in campus dormitory. She didn’t date anyone throughout college and focused on finishing her degree in Digital Arts.
Shortly after the three graduated from college, Sora returned home. She planned to look for a job in her hometown so she can also stay with her sister. She thought she finally moved on from Elijah as he didn’t see them as frequent as before, but when he asked Kisa for marriage, Sora still felt the pain, worse than when she gave them their blessings few years ago. Still, she went forward and wished for their happiness in marriage.
“Do you think she will like this silver necklace? She’s not much into jewelry,” Elijah asked Sora, who was busy browsing earrings in the opposite counter.
“I think she just doesn’t like anything fancy. A thin, sleek design would be suitable for her,” Sora said as she tried pointing on the other jewelries. “A small pendant of either yellow or red daisy would definitely be the best choice.”
“This is cool! I knew your eye for designs are amazing. I’m grateful I have a designer friend,” Elijah delightedly said.
“Hey, I’ll be your sister next week, so I better get promoted from being a friend!” she joked.
After making their purchase, they decided to look for a coffee shop across the street. As soon as the pedestrian light went green, Sora went ahead. Apparently, an over speeding car was unable to hit the breaks in time and nearly hit Sora—if it weren’t for some person who pushed her to safety.
She got few bruises from the fall and wanted to check if the person who saved her was okay. She was shocked to see that Elijah took most of the impact and was gravely injured.
Both of them were taken in the hospital. Kisa arrived and checked on her sister in the emergency room. The doctors said it will take a while to visit Elijah as he needed a series of operations.
Sora finished her treatment after a few hours before answering the police inquiries. She received a text message from Kisa that Elijah had been transferred to a private room and can now be visited, while waiting for him to regain consciousness.
She went to look for the main room after the culprit settled her medical bills. Along the hallway, she saw Kisa sobbing quietly. Sora felt something was wrong.
“Kisa?” she called to her sister.
“Sora… Sora… Elijah… he…,” Kisa unable to finish her sentence, bawled her feelings out.
What? No. No way! Sora thought to herself. She entered the room in a rush and found Elijah sitting upright and looking by the window. When he noticed somebody entered the room, he slowly turned to the direction of the entrance.
“Kisa? Kisa, is that you?” Elijah asked desperately.
Sora quietly covered her mouth to avoid emitting the sound of her sobs. Elijah tried to reach out for who he thought was Kisa.
“Kisa? Are you there? Please tell me you’re right here,” Elijah, on the verge of tears, begged.
Sora looked behind her and couldn’t find Kisa. Out of panic, she ran back inside and held Elijah hands. She gently placed her face at the back of his hand, caressing it as if she wanted to say, ‘Sora’s right here.’
However, the words she uttered were, “Yes, I’m right here.”
Elijah showed a painful smile but was still genuinely happy to know that Kisa was there for him, or so he thought.
The doctor said that Elijah received a blunt force trauma in the head, hitting a crucial nerve that caused his blindness. They ensured that he is already safe, but the blindness can still be either temporary or permanent.
About four rooms away from Elijah’s, Sora found her sister who continuously crying. Thinking it was her fault, she knelt in from of her and cried hard on her sister’s lap.
“I’m sorry, Kisa. I’m so sorry!”
“No, I should be the one to apologize. Sora, I’m sorry but I can’t do this,” Kisa said.
“What do you mean?” Sora asked, puzzled.
“I can’t marry a blind man! I can’t bear to see him that way. I can’t help but think about how I can do my job if I need to take care of him,” Kisa said, raising her voice.
“No, Kisa. Please don’t do this. Please don’t do this to him,” Sora begged her sister as she continues to cry on her lap.
“Do you still love Elijah?” Kisa asked wiping her tears off her cheeks.
Hearing this question abruptly stopped Sora from crying. She had a bad feeling on what Kisa plans to do.
“I know this is selfish, but I don’t think he would know. He can’t even distinguish us in just voices. Please, Sora. You know how much I love him but please let me enjoy my life. I don’t want this to drag me down,” Kisa admitted. “This is also your chance to be with him.”
Sora was surprised with how her twin sister came up with this absurd resolution. She felt sick in her stomach and wanted to give her just one good slap. However, she couldn’t; she was still considering her happiness and dreams, even if it doesn’t include Elijah.
Kisa left the hospital soon after as Sora tries to understand this resolve. She walked up to Elijah’s room again and saw him lying down but awake.
“Kisa?”
“Yes, I’m right here,” Sora lied. “How are you doing? Do you need anything?”
Elijah slowly sat up while looking in Sora’s direction. “How’s Sora? Did she come by to visit?”
“She had to recover from minor scratches and bruises. She said she’d visit you soon—”
“No!” Elijah shouted.
Sora was surprised. She wondered why he didn’t want her to see him while he’s confined in the hospital.
“Please tell Sora not to come. Not today. Not tomorrow. Not anytime soon,” he said. “I hate her. This is all her fault! Because of her, the wedding won’t happen soon. Because of her, I had to suffer being blind, not knowing if I could ever get a glimpse of you again.”
Sora felt as if her heart shattered like a fragile broken heart. She had no idea that Elijah would hate him because of the accident. Somehow, she felt like he was blaming her for all his sufferings now.
Elijah sobs while muttering the word ‘hate’ over and over. Her mixed feelings of longing to hold him and trying to keep her distance made her clueless on what she must do next. She seemed to recall Kisa’s words, thus she took a big gulp and approached Elijah, giving him a tight hug.
“You’ll recover soon. I know you would. We’ll go through this together,” she told him.
Over the next few days, Sora stayed by Elijah’s side. She asked her office for another work arrangement so she can have longer time taking care of him. She was allowed to take a four-day work week setup and three full off days. With this, she was able to maintain a positive response from Elijah on his recovery.
Being confined in the hospital room increases the depressive mood so Sora brought Elijah outside to breathe some fresh air.
“Remember when we were kids? We used to draw a lot of weird-looking creatures. You even made one your cows in color purple,” Elijah said while grinning.
“Those are drawings. You can be as imaginative as you can be. There are no limitations—that’s what I believe in,” Sora replied as she was trying to recall that moment that she can barely remember. “I really liked drawing flowers, too.”
She quietly gasped because she realized that he was talking about Kisa’s drawing and the fact that she had always been drawing flowers when they were young.
I must be careful, she thought to herself.
While she thought of keeping Elijah’s smile into letting him experience that Kisa has always been there for him, she cannot help but fall in love even harder as they continue to bond. She had embodied Kisa’s identity because he barely mentioned any interest in meeting Sora again, nor was disinterested should she try to apologize.
“Ah, so you draw flowers now, too?” Elijah wondered.
“W-well, I think I got interested in Sora’s drawings. She likes daisies a lot,” she answered while stuttering.
“Sora…,” he paused, “how is she doing?”
Sora took nearly a minute to answer. She wanted to answer him outright at that moment, but she knew she could compromise her agreement with Kisa. She also thought that he might hate him even more if he knew she was there.
“She’s doing okay. Do you want her to come?”
“I’m not sure. All I know is that I’m contented with just being with you here with me,” Elijah said wearing a hint of smile.
She felt pain deep inside her again. She knew she had to keep herself as Kisa; she wouldn’t even mind if he would become permanently blind, as long as she stays beside him.
“But I’m pretty sure Sora is very sorry with what happened. I hope you can get to forgive her in time.”
The two returned to his room after their quick stroll in the hospital garden. His assigned medical physician approached them after the patient settled down in bed.
“How have you been doing, Mr. Elijah?” the doctor asked after knocking lightly on the door.
“I’m doing great. Thanks to my fiancée, I’m still sane,” he replied.
“That’s good to know. But I’ve got even greater news: we found out that you only have temporary blindness and may be able to recover soon enough. Since you’ve been responsive with medical procedures and medicines, we can now provide you your release papers,” the doctor shared.
Elijah flashed a calming smile after hearing the good news. It was the first time in weeks that Sora was able to see him give a positive aura after the accident. However, she thought that she needed to update Kisa about his progress and that they might be able to get back together. Sora knew that her sister would bet another chance in their relationship.
Sora went home feeling hopeful. While she accepted the fact that this will end her ‘Kisa duties’, she wanted to ensure that Elijah will still marry Kisa after he regains his vision. She got home excitedly and ran towards her twin sister’s room. She knocked and opened the door after hearing Kisa told her to come in.
She saw her sister packing a suitcase with almost all her clothes. She also saw her packing her books and other stuffs in a box.
“Hey, are you going somewhere?” Sora asked.
“Yup. I got promoted at work, but I’ll be transferred to another branch,” Kisa shared while she continued packing her things.
“How about Elijah?”
“What?” Kisa stopped what she was doing a look intently to Sora. “You’re here anyway. I won’t worry much now.”
“He’s expected to recover soon. What should I—?” Sora said, while looking down and on the verge of tears.
An awkward silence blanketed the twins in the room. It became too quiet because both didn’t expect this to happen.
“Like I told you, Sora, I always liked Elijah. But right now, I have other priorities. I can’t go back now from this,” Kisa said. She tried to avert her sister’s gaze because she knew how much the latter was hurting.
Sora clenched her fist as she analyzed the situation. She understood and respected Kisa’s decision. More than anything, her sister’s happiness is her top priority. But she wanted to give Elijah a break. He had suffered enough because of herself, thus knowing Kisa’s plans of moving away might devastate him more.
“Please break up with him,” Sora uttered.
Kisa understood her sister’s suggestion and didn’t ask any questions. She knew it would finally give them all peace of mind and would help all of them move on. She admitted halfway that she felt bad how this might end their friendship established decades before, but she just had to do it… for Elijah, for Sora, and for herself.
The next morning, Kisa went to the hospital to help Elijah to prepare for his discharge. Upon her arrival, she saw Elijah standing and looking out the window. He already had his bag prepared and his clothes neatly folded at the side table. Kisa wondered how he was able to prepare his things alone. Maybe Sora dropped by without telling me, she thought.
“Elijah?”
Elijah slowly turned his head towards her direction. He wore a big smile on his face, but immediately turned faint after seeing her.
“Are you… I mean, can you… see me now?” Kisa asked nervously.
“Where’s Sora? I thought she would be the first person I get to see after my recovery,” Elijah disappointedly said.
“How long did you know?” Kisa asked again.
“Ever since the day my vision turned black.”
Kisa couldn’t help but cried her feelings out. She apologized to him many times before receiving a hug from him. She felt like this was her redemption from the person she loved; she felt like this was the forgiveness she should’ve asked for several weeks ago. She continued saying sorry after she realized how much she became greedy and left Elijah on this battle alone.
At home, Sora was drawing a digital illustration of daisies that she planned to submit in an internal competition in the office. It has been a while since she focused so much at work, thus she wanted to give back to her employer’s generosity during the time she dedicated for Elijah. She then heard Kisa called her outside the room.
“Ah, you’re hom—,” Sora was supposed to greet Kisa but was surprised to see Elijah standing behind her.
“He wants to talk to you. In private,” Kisa told her sister. “I’ll prepare some snacks. Let’s have them after you finish sorting things out.”
Sora was confused but she nervously signaled Elijah to enter her room as Kisa proceeded to the kitchen. Elijah looked intently at Sora, but she refused to meet his gaze. He sighed loudly, showing his disappointment.
“Uh… good to know that you finally recovered,” Sora blurted breaking the awkwardness between them.
“Yeah, thanks to Kisa who took care of me after everything,” he said sarcastically. “Why didn’t you come and visit me?”
Sora looked at him with a confused look on her face.
“Now, you’re finally looking at me,” Elijah said while grinning from ear to ear.
She was so surprised with his action that she couldn’t help but blush. She returned to her working table and acted as if she was adding touch-ups on her drawing.
“I’m sorry, Elijah. I’m really sorry for everything,” she muttered. She pretended to draw something in her tablet, but teardrops began to fall on her screen.
Elijah quickly noticed her sobs and quickly hug her from behind. Sora heard him sniffled behind her, so she assumed that she was finally forgiven. He didn’t let her go immediately and it took her few minutes to realize that he really was hugging her.
“E-Elijah?” Sora whispered.
“Daisies. You’re drawing yellow daisies. I’ve heard, those symbolizes happiness and joy. Is that why you suggested daisies as Kisa’s pendant?” Elijah asked while still clinging onto her.
“Y-yes. I wished for your both you and Kisa’s happiness in your married life,” Sora said sadly.
Elijah released her from the hug but remained standing behind her. He lightly put his hands on her shoulders to keep her relaxed.
“I’m not marrying her. We decided to break off the engagement,” he said.
Sora quickly stood up and faced Elijah. Their faces were so close with each other, making the latter blush. He turned his face away, but Sora stopped him and held on his cheeks. “Why?!”
“I have fallen in love with somebody else. Somebody who was physically and emotionally been there for me through the hardes times,” he confessed. He took her hands off his face and hold unto them tightly as he continued. “I was too blind to see her love for me all these years, but despite me seeing nothing but literally black for almost a month, I was able to witness her clear and sincere affection towards me.”
“You mean, you knew?”
“Since the first day you held my hand after the accident. I knew I was holding yours,” he said as he slowly reached her lips for a kiss.
Tears began to fall for Sora as she slowly realizes what was happening. She couldn’t understand how he knew that she was the one present, but she became immersed with the sensation of this kiss that she involuntarily closed her eyes and accepted the confession.
“Thank you for being my white daisy, Sora. I love you.”
“I love you, too.”