The Good Sister

“I fucking hate her!”

I glanced up from my notes. “Huh?”

She was in her forties. Attractive woman but so angry. She took another drag of her cigarette. She snorted with her arms folded across her chest.

“I hate my sister-in-law,” she said.

“Why?” I asked. The woman, let’s call her Margaret, huffed as she told her story.

“Angie has always been a goody two-shoes! Everybody loves her. It’s always Angie this, Angie that. Angie, Angie, Angie!”

Margaret gritted her teeth. “Grrr! Makes me so angry!” She took in another breath.

“Why though?” I asked.

“She’s too nice. Angie is the walking embodiment of rainbows and sunshine. I want to strangle that bitch!” She trembled like a junkie. I watched her as I waited for her to speak. Margaret took another breath.

“I’ve known little Miss Sunshine for years. When I first saw her in the first grade, I knew that I hated her. Always smiling. Everyone was drawn to Angie. Teachers liked her. The girls wanted to be her friend. The boys had crushes on her. Made me want to puke.”

“Did you ever bully her?”

“I tried to. I ended up as the bad guy.”

(Gee, I wonder why.)

“She didn’t get mad or cry. Angie just smiled at me. I screamed in her face and she still smiled.” Margaret’s face was so red. She took in another breath.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. This… This isn’t me. I don’t normally do this. It’s just…” She took in another breath.

“She just does this to me.”

I said nothing. Margaret felt compelled to keep talking.

“Angie won’t leave my life, you know. My stupid brother had to go and fall in love with her. They got married last year. She asked me to be the maid of honor. She still wants to be my friend!” Margaret snorted.

“The nerve of her! The nerve!” She looked like a pouting child.

“So why did you come here?”

She threw her hands up in the air. “I don’t know!”

We just sat there for the rest of this record. She wasn’t a pleasant lady to be around.