My closest friend married my sister, who has Down syndrome. While she was fighting for her life, he took hold of my hands and said, “Now it’s time for you to understand the real reason I married her.”
My sister, Gemma, is one year younger than me. When we were growing up, some children kept their distance from her or treated her differently because she had Down syndrome.
But my best friend, Gabriel, never did.
“Gemma, you’ll always have me and Gabriel,” I would tell her.
Gabriel was always there for her. He made sure Gemma was included instead of being left behind. Back in fourth grade, he even promised her that someday he would take her to prom.
For years, everyone assumed Gabriel and I would eventually end up together. But when we grew older, he surprised everyone by asking Gemma to marry him.
I cried even harder than she did. My best friend had become my brother, and my sister had found genuine happiness.
When Gemma announced at their wedding that she was pregnant with twins… We were absolutely overjoyed.
But the pregnancy was far from easy.
At thirty-four weeks, Gemma was rushed to the hospital. The doctors gave us very little reason to be hopeful. They were doing everything possible to save her and the babies.
Gabriel refused to leave her side. He looked terrified, all the color drained from his face. Then, without warning, he grabbed my hand and pulled me into an empty hallway.
“What’s happening?” I asked.
“Before the surgery, Gemma made me promise that I would only tell you this if she didn’t wake up.”
Gabriel looked like he was struggling not to cry.
“Now it’s time for you to understand the real reason I married her,” he said, gripping my hands tightly.
My stomach sank.
“Gabriel, why would you even say something like that?”
My thoughts immediately turned toward the worst possibilities.
Had he married Gemma because of money? Was he trying to get his hands on our parents’ inheritance? Or even worse… had he married my sister simply because it gave him an excuse to remain close to me?
Gabriel studied my face for a moment, almost as if he knew exactly what I was thinking.
Then he said,
“It’s much worse than you think. You’d better sit down.”
He pulled a sheet of paper out of his jacket.
I barely got through the first line before I screamed.
