My life began when I met my sister. The best elder sister in the world. She was nothing like the sisters back in the horrid place, from where this sister had brought me to my new home from. They had been silent and uncaring. They had been selfish as well, having left one after the other before me, without a goodbye, never to return.

But they had been bearable compared to the horrible place, I had been stuck with them and forced to call home for all those years. It wasn’t even my birthplace, but I had lived there for the most of my life, for as long as I could remember. The place had been cold and dark. The doors were always shut, until it was time for one of my sisters to go. Crammed in there with all my sisters, the only reason I lived this long, was because I knew that one day, someone would come to take me away as well.

And that day did come, and I was introduced to my new family. A father and a mother were there too, but I didn’t look much at them. I only looked at my sister, who had pulled me into a hug, the moment she had been. Her name, she told me, was Anna. But for all that she did, Angel would have been a better name.

Anna, was the best sister, who loved and cared for me. She never let me out of her sight, and protected me from harm. She would feed me and help me shower, because she thought I was too little to do so alone. We would play and dance together as well, and afterwards she would make me beautiful with pretty dresses and make-ups.

But from all my times with Anna, I mostly enjoyed the times we had spent, after night had fallen. When the sun had set, and the moon had risen, she would always show me the twinkling stars and sing in a girly voice. She would sing and sing, until mother came to hush us into bed. Anna always insisted mother to tell us a story. Some nights she would, other nights she wouldn’t. But every night mother did tell us a story, Anna would fall asleep yawning.

“Goodnight mommy”, Anna would tell mother as she slowly fell asleep. Mother would then reply good night to Anna as well, before she left our room quietly without waking Anna up.

I couldn’t remember ever having slept a single night in my life, but with my sister beside me, I never minded that I couldn’t. The happiest I felt was when she slept beside me, some nights hugging me close to her, as she dreamed. With her I felt safe and protected, happy and cherished, and most of all alive. I could never imagine my life without Anna, and I never wanted to leave her side.

But one day, everything changed. Anna woke up tired, and wouldn’t talk to me, wouldn’t say a word. She didn’t get out of bed and take me to play outside like she usually did the other days. She forgot my breakfast, and her own was brought to her by mother who had a worried look on her face.
And then days began to fly by, without us doing much together. All the things we had done, began to feel like a distant dream. I couldn’t understand her actions, nor could I understand mother’s. When mother thought Anna wasn’t looking, I could see her eyes fill with water, an action that left me confused. All the while I would sit by her side, feeling alone and abandoned.

And one day things got worse and Anna started coughing. But before I could comfort her, she began doing things I couldn’t understand. I stood there horrified, as she coughed out something red and liquid, and began to shake uncontrollably. I wanted to help her, but I was too scared to move. I wanted to scream for help, but I was too shocked with what had happened.

Thankfully, mother did arrive to the rescue, so did father. They saw what was happening to sister, and understood what was happening to her. Without any further delay, father scooped up Anna in his arms, and they both left running. Before I could tell them to take me with them, the door shut close with a slam.

When Anna didn’t return hours later, I started to worry. Even though I hadn’t understood what, it was clear that something serious had happened. Even after night had fallen, she didn’t return and neither did mother or father. I wanted to search for her, but I wasn’t sure where to go. I had never explored the house without Anna, and I had a feeling that she would be upset me with me if I did.

The night passed and the sun rose, but Anna didn’t return. But hours after the sun had risen and rain had started to fall, mother did return and she acted very strangely. She walked around the room with a sad look on her face. And then she came to me and hugged me for the first time, but so tightly that I feared she would hurt me. And then she began to cry, like Anna did when she got hurt. I was speechless and wondered what had happened to hurt her. As far as I could see, mother wasn’t injured.

“She’ gone, she’s gone, she’s gone”, mother wailed, repeating the same thing over and over. But I didn’t understand why she was this sad. Anna would be gone for hours some days, to her grandparents’ house she would tell me, but she always did return. So she had gone today as well, but why was mother this sad. She was only gone, but she would return. Unless...

Then suddenly, I remembered what I had watched all my life. Sister after sister had left and they had gone, never to return. If Anna was gone, never to return as well… And then slowly but surely, I began to understand what was happening.

But before I could react the same way as mother, she lifted me in her arms without much trouble and brought me to the window. Before I knew what was happening, she pushed me and basically threw me out of the window and into the rain, with one last scream.

I spent my last hours in the rain, feeling confused and sadder than I had ever been in my life. Anna, the best sister I ever had, was gone forever, never to return. And mother in her desperation or madness had abandoned me and left me for the dead. It felt as if though the whole world had toyed with me, as if though I was never meant to be happy.

There was a sudden flash that lit up the sky, and something struck me very hard and just as quickly. In moments my whole body was aflame. I was burning, but felt no pain. I wanted to scream but I couldn’t make any sound. I wanted to run away, but for some reason my legs wouldn’t move. I heard a deafening sound over the rain, just as the flames engulfed me. I couldn’t hope for the rain to save me as the flames were sure to burn someone as little as me quickly.

But that was okay, because deep down I had known my life would end, when my sister's did.