Ms. Mary Ann (part 3)

"How old are you?"

"I'm 14 now. Liza's two years older than me. I was just 12 when I started freshman year last year... I was born on June 30, 1981."

"Oh, Liza was born on January 1, 1979."

"You know, Liza's got some health issues. It messes with her well-being, her mood swings are all over the place because her hormone levels are all whacked out. It's an imbalance from her meds too."

I listened intently, just staring at her as she started talking about Liza.

"That's why she's like that. When she's kinda normal, she's got this intense vibe like she's always grumpy, treating me like her annoying little brother."

"Liza's the youngest, you know. Her older brother is Lloyd. Then she's got a twin."

I stared hard at Nurse Ma-An, 'cause this was new info about Liza.

"She's a fraternal twin with her sister Leia. But they look like identical twins. If you ever get to PSU, Leia's in 4th year high school now... When you see Leia, you'll know it's her 'cause she looks just like Liza. It's like Leia is the best version of Liza. Liza's real personality is grumpy, lazy, hot-headed. But we love her to bits, no matter how she acts. We totally tolerate her 'cause we understand it's just her sickness. Plus, she's got this dominant personality. She feels older than her twin even though Leia came out first. They were born an hour apart. Leia was born on December 31, 1978 at around 11pm, then Liza on January 1, 1979 after midnight. I was around 9 years old when I was taking care of them. We lived in the same compound, so I treated them like my own siblings. Their older brother and I are the same age, just a few months apart.

I really miss my niece."

I just kept listening, noticing that Nurse Ma-An was getting teary and her voice was shaking while she talked about Liza. It felt like something bad had happened to Liza. I tried to block that thought, but my heart got ahead of me, and the tears started flowing. They poured down, and I pulled my shirt up over my face. I started wailing and sobbing like a donkey. Nurse Ma-An moved closer to me in my seat, and we both squeezed in. She rubbed my back, and I could feel her chin pressing into my shoulder as we cried together.

_End of Chapter 3_

_End of Book 2_