1

01
Creative Writing
Fiction

Tearing at The Seams

Eva lays underneath the cotton covers of her twin-size mattress, sweat from her forehead as she strangles the bedsheets next to her
wrist. The room’s cold embrace tickles Eva’s nerves. She had the nightmare again. The same one she’s had for the past 12 years.
“Lynn!” Eva whispers.
Another head emerges from under the overs. A dark, tangled head pokes out from under the covers. The warmth of the nest of covers
falls away, immediately reminding her why she was tucked in them.
“What is it, Eva?”

Eva doesn’t respond. Her wide-eyed gaze is focused upward, on the ceiling. Lynn reaches across Eva and strokes her hair, allowing
her fingers to untangle any knots or snarls that had burrowed overnight.
“Was it the dream again?”
“It’s not a dream. It’s a nightmare.”
“What’s the difference?”
Eva slides her hand through Lynn’s and clenches it tightly. Lynn can feel the anxiety and fear through the tips of her fingers as they
shake.
“Dreams are fake. Nightmares are real.”
Her eyes well-up with tears. Even though she has tried to overcome her hardships, Eva can’t help but cry. It gives her a sense of self-
worth. As if she’s purging the nightmares from her mind. Yet, they return night after night. If I cry, then the nightmares will go away,
Eva thought. She didn’t want to have to suffer any longer. She was sick of feeling of being alone, forgotten, unworthy of fair
treatment, like an animal that might as well be roadkill.
 2

“C’mon. Let’s go.” Lynn says.

Removing the covers, both Eva and Lynn’s lower bodies are shocked by the crisp air that dwells in the room. Lifting themselves up
from the mattress, Eva brings her foot off the bed. Lynn does the same. They both bring their third leg down, and stand up. Traversing
across the creaky floorboards, the house echoes in pain. Small shavings of wood peel off and insert themselves in-between the girl’s
toes. The girls move with the lightest feet, as to not wake the other girls in the house. Especially Ms. Bulger. The last time that they
woke her up on accident, she locked them in a dog kennel for three days straight. For a regular girl, such treatment would be
disheartening, but because of their physical shortcomings, Eva and Lynn were especially affected. They were Parapagus Tripus
Dibrachius Twins, conjoined at the sides, sharing three legs, two arms, two hearts, three lungs, and a single liver. Just the process of
walking requires the effort of both the girl’s physical and mental attention. Their clothing, always custom made to compliment the
girl’s features. Stitched together pants, shirts and hand-downs filled the girls’ wardrobe. Their nightgown was the only piece of
clothing that wasn’t patched or cut up to suit the girls. It was just very large on them. 5

The emptiness of the house rings through Lynn’s singular ear. The kitchen remains still, dirty dishes stacked upon each other creating
a towering mountain of doom. Garbage infests the lower cabinets with wrappers, bags and cans. Mold grows up and around it, almost
as if to greet it. This is Eva’s least favorite place. Once, Ms. Bulger forced her and Lynn to get down on their knees and eat dog food.
Eva kept gagging just at the scent of the expired canned food, and ended up having it forced down her throat.

Even though the darkness coated the interior of the house, the memories of the girls guided them towards their destination. Even
though the house remained in a shadow of darkness, they easily found their path through the house from memory. When their dainty,
quiet feet felt the only carpet in the house, Lynn knew they had entered the living room. The girls were only allowed on the carpet for
an hour a day, while all the other girls could dance and play on it all day. I don’t need you stinking up the carpet she would always tell
the twins. The only other time they were allowed in the living room was on Christmas. On all other holidays, the girls were shoved
into their rooms and locked in, so they wouldn’t frighten any of the guests.

Eva had gotten used to the feel of the carpet. So, when the cold sting of the wood strikes her foot, she knew that they had arrived at
their destination: the bathroom. Lynn extends her dainty fingers for the light switch, which is a single string dangling from the end of a
lightbulb in the ceiling. She tugs on the string, allowing the light to blot out the imminent darkness. Shielding their eyes, Eva and
Lynn make their way to the sink with only one lever that allowed cold water. Looking in the mirror, Lynn forgot how much alike she
and Eva actually were.
 3

Granted that they were conjoined twins, their facial features and structure were identical. Lynn’s slender, sleek face matched that of
Eva’s green, emerald eyes. Both of their heads rested against each other’s, combining both of the girl’s black, shoulder-length hair.
Eva’s eyes are still red from the tears, and tear stained tracks run down her cheeks. Lynn twists the metal on the sink, allowing the
water to fall seamlessly down into the drain. The water coats Lynn’s hand with a fresh, cool feeling. Eva’s hand meets Lynn’s under
the water, creating a mini pool between the girls’ hands. The water splashes on Eva’s cheeks, slowly erasing the sadness from her
face. A couple more splashes and Eva feels refreshed. The cool scent of the fresh water travels through her nostrils, cooling the inside
of her body. Looking in the mirror, Eva’s moist lips release a small smile of gratitude. Lynn doesn’t need to hear Eva say ‘thank you’.
She can see it through her smile.
A thud roars across the house.
“Who is awake?!” The voice bellows.

Lynn realizes that she forgot to close the bathroom door, allowing light and the splish-splash sounds of water to escape into the rest of
the house. She doesn’t need to guess as to who might be calling for them. Loud stomps shake the floorboards sending vibrations of
terror up the girls’ spines. Both freeze in fear. They could run, but they wouldn’t get far. Not like this.

The stomps approach the bathroom door, and the shard of light reveals an angry, disheveled Ms. Bulger. She looms over the twins
with her immense body capacity and towering height. Her nightgown, stained with brown splotches is one of Ms. Bulger’s two staple
wardrobe items. It never gets washed. Bobby pins dot her unkempt hair where the scrunchie holding most of it is falling. Lines of age
and stress are accentuated in her fleshy forehead due to a permanent frown.
“What are you two doing up?”

The words stiffen the girls’ reactions. Even if they do respond, there is no getting away. Eva opens her mouth to speak, but is only met
with Ms. Bulger’s rabid brown eyes. Ms. Bulger lurches her way to the twins, grasping their shoulder blades with her sweaty sausage
fingers. The strength overwhelms the twins. Ms. Bulger yanks them out of the restroom and gets into the girl’s faces.
“Move it!”

Ms. Bulger’s breath reeks of old milk mixed with unclean toilet water that seeps through the skin of the twins. Lynn knows they have
to act quickly before something extreme happens. Lynn shoves her hand into Ms. Bulger’s face, giving the chance for the twins to
make a B-line for their room with Ms. Bulger in hot pursuit. They manage to make it through the living room and the kitchen
 4

smoothly. Before they can safely enter the refuge of their room, hot sweaty hands snatch Lynn’s throat and pull her back jarringly,
causing Eva’s body to follow. Ms. Bulger hurls them into the room, violently. Lynn’s head manages to land on the wood, but Eva’s
cracks the bottom of the bed frame with a loud bang.
“Go to sleep, or it’s the kennel for you freaks!”
Ms. Bulger’s words ring through Eva’s ear as the door slammed with great force.
“Eva!” Lynn whispers. “Are you alright?

Eva nods and looks away from Lynn to hide her tears. Lynn and Eva get up and reel themselves back into bed. Lynn can’t help but
know that something is wrong, but if she makes too much noise, Ms. Bulger will return in a more sour mood.
“Its ok, Eva. It’s over.”

Lynn caresses her hand over Eva’s throbbing forehead. Eva’s tears begin silently flowing down her cheek, much like the sink. Eva’s
nightmare had come true. And just like in the nightmare, she couldn’t do anything to stop it.
“Don’t worry Eva.” Lynn hugged her sister tight, wishing she could take all the pain away.
“Tomorrow is a new day.”