Beyond the Echo

My fiancé slept with me before our engagement, whispering my twin sister's name. He thought I was her. I played along, let him believe it until he murmured how easy I was to fool. I'm mute, not stupid. I shared a face with my twin sister for 23 years. I was mute. Vivian was born sharptongued and radiant. She is the kind of girl who could make an entire room laugh with one sentence. Because of this, my parents always paraded her around at high society galas. They wished she was their only daughter, and they wished I would just vanish forever. 23 years of being erased. But Julian Ashford, my childhood sweetheart, was the one exception. He told me over and over he could tell us apart. The one he loved was only me. Then, the night before our engagement. Stay with me the whole night, please. A man, breathless, pressed against me. voice low and drunk. Vivian, if only you could stay longer. Vivian, my sister's name. I shoved him off and made it to the edge of the bed just in time, dry heaving and laughing at the same time. So everyone wanted me gone, him too, no exceptions. Fine, I'd already figured out how to give them exactly that. Vivian, Julian grabbed my shoulders, voice urgent, what's wrong, where does it hurt? Could you be... pregnant? He hadn't figured it out. He thought I was still her. Was it last month, those three nights at the resort, or that night at the hotel near the pier when we stayed up until dawn? Something emptied out behind my eyes. Don't want to talk? That's fine. Go to sleep. He pulled me in completely unsuspecting. Serena comes back tomorrow. I'll do the engagement thing with her, just the hotel here, nothing big. Keep it simple. Next time you're back, we'll go to that island you love. Do a real party there, just for us. My fingers dug into my palm hard enough to shake. Oh, we still need the license. He smiled into my hair. The one I filed with Serena today was fake. Took some doingthe venue, the officiant. All arranged to fool her. she's so easy to fool. His voice trailed off, my blood went cold.

When he fell asleep, I slipped out of his arms, got up, and opened his phone. The messages he hadn't had time to hide were all therea family group chat, one I'd never been added to; last week, a birthday gift for Vivian, a full set of diamond jewelry, three carats total; same week, my engagement gift, a cubic zirconia pendant, barely five points. I kept scrollinghundreds of photos from a trip abroad—Julian, Vivian, my parents, my brother—all of them laughing. New family portrait, get it printed big, hang it in the living room. In 23 years, I had never been allowed in a single family photo. While I was invisible, they had built a second family. I put the phone down, got back into bed, closed my eyes. I looked at the man I had called my salvation, and I laughed without a sound until the tears came. By 5 AM, Julian was gone. At 7, my phone lit upvideo call. His face filled the screen, fresh showered, smiling. Morning. Ready for today? I held up the earbud I'd hidden the night before and gestured toward the camera. You left something here. His smile didn't move. I don't think so. I flipped to the next page. Who were you with last night? A beat, something shifted behind his eyes. then it settled. I came to check on Viviana. Steady. reasonable. She said she wasn't feeling well. I wasn't gonna just leave her alone. He smiled again, the patient kind. Today's our engagement. I wanted everything to go smoothly. That's all. Still lying.

It's one of Viviana's old dresses altered. Marcus appeared in the doorway, frowning. It's just an engagement. No need for something new. Julian agreed. A safety pin will hold it. A blunt pin pushed through the fabric at my waist. It broke skin. I gasped. Bear with it, Vivian will take it from there. When Vivian would step back into the life I'd been holding in place, that was always how it worked. Vivian would eat whatever she wanted, go wherever she pleased, wreck whatever she touched, and when she was done, I'd be brought out of the east wing to clean it up, to sit exams she'd skipped, to apologize to people she'd wronged, to keep grades high enough that no one asked questions. Once, Vivian told Dad she didn't like the college I'd been accepted to. He changed my application without telling me, withdrew my acceptance to Columbia, enrolled me in a school 40 minutes away that I'd never heard of. From now on, she could have all of it. An hour later, Julian arrived. He saw the dress, he touched my hair. Next time, he said, I'll get you something better. I didn't answer; I looked at the car waiting outside. The hood was covered in white flowers—chrysanthemums. Marcus's jaw tightened. Julian appeared at his elbow. voice low. Vivian called the florist; she thought it would be funny. The moment Marcus heard it was Vivian's doing, his expression cleared completely. Fine, let her. The two of them turned to look at me, waiting for a reaction. I walked to the car and got in. The whole drive, people stared. Someone laughed. Which family decorated a wedding car with funeral flowers? I didn't react. I let Julian lead me out into the hotel, into the ballroom.

I took a breath, gestured slowly. If you could only keep one of us, which one would it be? What kind of question is that? Silence. My chest went hollow. Never mind. Forget I said it. I ended the call. Then I opened a new message and typed. "I've decided. I need you at the hotel today, noon. " The reply came fast. "You're certain? " Yes, I typed back. "The whole family will be there. Let them all watch. " A long pause, then, "I'll be there. " I exhaled before I could stand. The door opened without a knock. Mom walked in with a team of women behind her. Serena, it's almost nine. Why aren't you dressed? Get up. Get dressed. She waved a hand. They descended on me immediately, yanking off my pajamas without ceremony. Don't embarrass me today. She looked me over with undisguised contempt, then sighed to herself. God, you look exactly like her and somehow it doesn't translate at all. I stood still and let them work. I'd heard some version of this every day for as long as I could remember. In their minds, I had never once measured up to Vivian. Why is there a tear in this dress? One of the women frowned, pulling at the fabric at my waist. Is this secondhand? You're wearing this to your own engagement? I looked down. There was a visible split along the seam, old fabric pulled apart at the thread.

The ballroom was full by the time we arrived. The moment we crossed the threshold, the screens went dark. Serena Vivian's voice filled the room, prerecorded, bright, warm. I couldn't be there in person, but I made you something. Please watch the whole thing. The room went quiet. Julian, she said, since Serena can't exactly say this herself, let me make sure you're taken care of. Julian prefers his showers at exactly 98 degrees. Don't go higher; he hates it. Make sure you rememberhe loves blue shirts, but for undershirts... a little laugh. Gray, trust me on that one. And when he sleeps, he always pulls you in close. Tuck yourself a little lower so his arm doesn't cut off your circulation. Five minutes, thirty items—every single one intimate, every single one delivered like helpful advice from a very close friend. Julian lunged for the AV panel. I stopped him. He stared at me. I shook my head. I let the recording finish. When it ended, I turned to face the room, people staring back at me, some horrified, some fascinated, a few with their phones already out. Then I turned to Julian. "It's okay," I gestured. "Thank her for me. " His face went blank.

Serena, he caught my arm backstage the second the formal portion ended. Listen to me, none of that was... I looked at his hand on my arm; he let go. She made most of it up, he said. We barely spent any time together. This is Vivian. You know how she is; she just... I looked at his ring. He was still wearing it—the band he'd had engraved. I could read the initials from where I stoodnot J and S, J and V. His other hand moved to cover it. When did it start? I signed. Long pause. What do you mean, when did it start? You two, when? Julian looked at the wall, wouldn't meet my eyes. We're talking about the same face. he said finally, flat, almost irritated. You know that, right? She's your twin. It's the same. You told me you could tell us apart. I signed. You said it a hundred times. And so what? The patience cracked. You can't even speak, and you're always stuck in that sidebrokendown room. Every time I see you, the time is so short. How could we ever build a relationship with some time? He stopped then cold. I didn't do anything wrong.