The Fields Sisters

Girl, That Ain’t What Happened

Briana sat back in the café booth with her arms folded tight across her chest like she was tryna keep herself from either crying or cussing somebody out.
The little café smelled like burnt espresso, cinnamon, and warm pastries, but neither one of them cared about that right now. Too much history was sitting at that table.
Too much hurt.
Camryn rubbed her hands together nervously and sighed. “Girl… you really thought I just disappeared on you like that?”
Briana let out a dry laugh. “Camryn, what was I supposed to think? One day you gone with Daddy, next thing I know it’s radio silence for years. Had me out here feeling like the forgotten child in a Tyler Perry movie.”
Camryn winced. “See, and whole time I thought YOU ain’t want me around.”
“Me?!” Briana almost choked on her iced coffee. “Girl stop playing in my face.”
“I’m serious!” Camryn shot back, laughing a little now. “Every time I called you sounded mad as hell.”
“Because I WAS mad as hell!” Briana said loudly enough for an old lady nearby to look over. “You left me with Mama, them bills, and that raggedy apartment AC that only worked if you kicked it.”
Camryn burst out laughing instantly. “Not the AC catching strays.”
“I’m dead serious. That thing sounded like a lawnmower fighting for its life.”
“Girl remember when it started smoking and Mama rebuked it like it was possessed?”
Briana tried holding her laugh in.
Failed immediately.
“Oh my God,” she wheezed. “Mama was standing there with a Bible and a flip-flop.”
Camryn laughed so hard she grabbed the table. “Talking bout, ‘Not today Satan!’”
Both sisters cracked up, and for a second the tension melted clean off them.
Just like old times.
Then Camryn got quiet again.
Her smile faded a little. “I never stopped being your sister, Bri,” she said softly. “I just… ain’t know how to come back after all them years.”
Briana looked down at the table fast, blinking hard like she refused to cry in public.
“Yeah well…” she muttered. “I ain’t know how to miss you without being angry too.”
Camryn clutched her chest dramatically. “Oooo. Girl that one hit. You been practicing speeches in the mirror?”
“Girl hush.”
“Nah because that sounded like something off Grey’s Anatomy.”
“Camryn.”
“I’m just saying.”
They both laughed again, softer this time.
After a second, Briana reached across the table slowly. Her hand shook just a little, but Camryn grabbed it quick like she’d been waiting years for that moment.
“Aight,” Briana said. “New rules.”
Camryn narrowed her eyes playfully. “Here you go.”
“Nah listen. No more picking sides. No more old drama. And no bringing up 2015 every five business days.”
Camryn snorted. “Dang. Can I at least bring it up on holidays?”
“No.”
“What about birthdays?”
“Girl no.”
“What about when I need sympathy?”
“You better journal.”
Camryn laughed and squeezed her sister hand tighter. “Okay then. Just us.”
“Just us,” Briana echoed softly.
Outside, sunlight stretched across the street all golden and warm while people walked by minding their business like the world wasn’t shifting inside that little café booth.
But inside?
Two sisters were piecing something back together.
Slow.
Careful.
Like rebuilding a cracked phone screen and praying this time it don’t shatter again.
The pain ain’t magically disappear that day. Trauma don’t work like a Netflix finale.
But it loosened up some.
And for the first time since 2015, the Fields sisters weren’t standing on opposite sides of old hurt anymore.
They were finally back to being family.
Loud family.
Messy family.
Joking-through-the-pain family.

°Sunday Dinner & Old Business

Three days later, Briana realized reconnecting with Camryn came with consequences.
Because somehow Mama turned “y’all should talk more” into a full family Sunday dinner.
Which meant drama.
Chaos.
And at least one argument before dessert.
“You invited Uncle Derek?!” Briana whisper-yelled while setting plates on the table.
Mama looked offended. “That is my brother.”
“That man start drama recreationally.”
Right on cue, Uncle Derek walked through the front door holding a bowl of potato salad.
“Where my favorite nieces at?” he yelled.
Camryn ran over hugging him. “Hey Unc!”
Uncle Derek pointed at Briana. “She still got an attitude problem?”
“And you still built like a thumb,” Briana shot back.
The entire living room exploded.
“OOOOOH!”
Camryn almost fell on the couch laughing. “Girl leave that man alone!”
Uncle Derek clutched his chest dramatically. “See this why she still single.”
Briana gasped. “Not in front of the macaroni!”
Mama yelled from the kitchen. “IF ANYBODY TOUCH MY MACARONI BEFORE PRAYER IM THROWING EVERYBODY OUT.”
Everybody immediately backed away from the stove.
Camryn leaned toward Briana whispering, “Mama still guarding that macaroni like it’s state secrets.”
“As she should,” Briana whispered back. “Last year Cousin Tremaine made a plate before grace and almost got disowned.”
Right then Cousin Tremaine walked in.
Mama pointed immediately. “And DON’T touch nothing!”
“I literally just got here!” he yelled.
The whole house cracked up laughing.
Later everybody squeezed around the table while music played low in the background.
For a minute everything felt warm.
Normal.
Then Mama sighed heavily.
“Now that both my daughters finally speaking again…” she started.
Briana groaned instantly. “Lord.”
“No, let me talk.” Mama pointed her fork around the table. “Y’all wasted too many years being stubborn.”
Camryn looked down quietly.
Briana crossed her arms. “Mama”
“Nuh uh. Let me finish.” Mama softened a little. “After your daddy left, this family broke in different ways.”
The room got quiet.
Even Uncle Derek stopped chewing.
Mama shook her head slowly. “And instead of healing together, everybody picked sides.”
Camryn swallowed hard. “I ain’t mean for that to happen.”
“I know baby,” Mama said softly. “But hurt got a way of making people disappear from each other.”
Briana stared at her plate for a second before muttering, “Daddy definitely ain’t help either.”
“Girl please,” Uncle Derek jumped in. “That man could start confusion in an empty room.”
Everybody laughed.
Even Mama.
Camryn finally looked over at Briana. “I really thought you hated me.”
Briana frowned immediately. “Girl shut up. If I hated you, would I let you use my Netflix again?”
Camryn gasped dramatically. “YOU noticed that?!”
“You got seven profiles!”
“Why you judging BigCeeDaRealest?”
“Because who is that?!”
The whole table burst out laughing again.
And somehow, between the jokes, the yelling, and the side-eyes…
Healing happened.
Not perfectly.
Not all at once.
But enough.
Enough for Briana and Camryn to sit on the porch later that night shoulder-to-shoulder while the rest of the family laughed loud inside the house.
Camryn bumped her shoulder gently. “So we really okay now?”
Briana thought about it for a second.
Then smiled a little.
“Yeah,” she said quietly. “I think we finally getting there.”
Camryn grinned. “Good. Cause girl… I missed having somebody to talk about this family with.”
Briana laughed. “Honestly? Same.”
Inside the house, Mama yelled again.
“WHO LEFT THIS SPOON IN MY GREENS?!”
Both sisters looked at each other.
Then burst out laughing together like old times.