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Happy birthday, Kristen!
“She loved birthdays.” Diane smiles as she places the balloons next to the grave.
Why didn’t Tyler say anything?
She straightens. “How’s your weekend going?”
“It’s going okay.”
That’s a lie. My perfect weekend has turned into the worst day imaginable.
“I heard you went to Krew’s baseball game yesterday.”
I stand there, frozen, next to my mother’s grave.
“I was sad I couldn’t go,” she says. “I had a nail appointment I couldn’t miss. But Beverly Ulrich said it was a very exciting game.”
Why is Diane bringing this up? She wouldn’t, unless she suspects something.
“It was a good baseball game,” I say. “I was happy for the boys that they won.”
“Kristen would have loved his games. She would have been the perfect team mom, taking pictures and bringing treats.”
“I’m sure that’s true.”
“In fact, when Tyler was in college, he played baseball, and she was his biggest fan. She went to every game and knew all his stats. It was annoying how proud she was of him.”
A weird, jealous feeling tugs at my heart again.
Diane looks up at the sky. “Kristen would have loved the weather today. She would have had something fun planned for her birthday. Maybe a trip to the beach with Tyler and Krew. She said they were a trio, their best selves when all three of them were together.”
A trio.
Why does that hurt so much to hear?
“Have you ever seen a picture of her?” Diane asks.
I have. They were all throughout Tyler’s house when I was there last weekend and this morning, but I hadn’t wanted to truly see them. I hadoverlookedthem. I wanted to pretend that there was space in that home—in their lives—for me.
But I’m not part of the trio.
Diane motions for me to come to her. “I love this picture.”
I weave through the graves and join her. “She’s beautiful,” I say reverently.
Kristen has the kind of face that screams charisma, hair that I would kill for, and a smile that probably took Tyler’s breath away.
“She was always the life of the party, always happy, always laughing.”
I’m nothing like that.
I’m not evenatthe party, let alone the life of it.
Diane lets out a small laugh. “That’s what Tyler loved about her the most, her spirited personality and her kind heart.”
That’s not good news for me.
I don’t have a kind heart. I’m jealous of Kristen, and I hate Anna Mae. I’m the farthest thing from kind there ever was.
