Marlina was woken from her sleep by the persistent knocking at her door. Slowly, she made her way to the front door, holding back the exhaustion still weighing on her body. As soon as the door was opened, she was shocked to see her sister, Lysandra, standing there with a sweet smile on her face. Marlina, who didn’t have the chance to say anything, let Lysandra hug her tightly.
“Marlina! I’ve missed you so much. I want to stay here for a while. Is that okay?” Lysandra said in a sweet tone.
“How do you know where this place is?”
“Your husband told me. He said I could stay here with you.”
“Why do you want to stay with me?”
“Eh... you’re my sister. Of course I can stay with you anytime.”
“Don’t you know that in-laws can be a problem?”
“I’m not here to poison you.”
“At first, maybe... but after a while, you’ll flirt with my husband, get pregnant, and then try to kick me out, right?”
“Hey… how could you say that, sis? Remember, Dad always told us to help each other. Is this what you can rely on when needed?”
“Hey, my sister… don’t you remember Mum used to say not to bring siblings to live together after marriage... you can visit, but no longer than three days. Now you want to stay with me for a while? A while? You could eat for days, Lysandra. Do you remember when I was in my rented house back in college, and you came to visit, but stayed there for six months?”
“Well, that was your responsibility as a sister, right?”
“I’m willing to take responsibility if you’re really a good and obedient child. I haven’t forgotten how you dirtied that house as soon as you arrived, it was so filthy that there was no place to step, and all my friends moved out to find new places to live. I had to pay ten thousand dollars  to the landlord as compensation because you dirtied his house, broke the furniture inside, and brought your friends to have fun there.”
“Enough, sis. Marlina, I’m not like that anymore, I’ve been good since you kicked me out that day.”
“No, Lysandra. I know you. In a minute, this house will be as dirty as it gets, you’ll break the furniture, and tonight your friends will come and have a party, right? No… I won’t let you oppress me again, Lysandra. Get out of my house!”
Marlina picked up Lysandra’s luggage and threw it out into the yard. Lysandra was shocked by Marlina’s actions, as she had always followed all the family’s demands, including hers.
Lysandra quickly knelt and hugged Marlina’s legs, crying out loud.
“Forgive me, Marlina. I promise I’ll follow your rules in your house. If I do anything again, you can throw me out of the third floor of your house,” she said, crying uncontrollably.
Marlina’s neighbours started coming out of their houses and onto the street, having heard the commotion.
Marlina was stunned by the scene but eventually nodded weakly. She let Lysandra back into the house, though her mind was full of questions. Her 30-year-old sister appeared as cheerful as usual, but her outfit was very eye-catching. The tight, short dress made Marlina feel uncomfortable.
In the following days, Marlina noticed that Lysandra’s presence in the house started to create an odd atmosphere. Even though Marlina avoided talking to her, her sister still asked numerous questions.
Every day, Lysandra would ask the same question, “Marlina, when is Merilton coming back? I haven’t seen my brother-in-law for so long.” Marlina would only give brief answers or avoid the question altogether. She knew Lysandra liked to get attention, and she didn’t want to engage in a conversation that would hurt her feelings.
Lysandra often gazed at their neighbour’s house, especially the house of Tenuksia and Orena. Every time Marlina noticed her sister’s keen gaze, she felt uneasy but didn’t say anything. As long as the house wasn’t a mess and she didn’t bring her friends to party here, thought Marlina.
Lysandra, with her lifestyle and appearance, quickly became the talk of the neighbourhood. The men, especially Melanko, Tenuksia’s son, were often seen sneaking glances at Lysandra. Even Gaja, Tenuksia’s husband, couldn’t hide his lecherous gaze whenever he crossed paths with Lysandra.
But Marlina didn’t care. Every night she would lock the gate and the door of her house, keeping the keys. That was the only way to prevent her sister from throwing a party at her house. She sat in her chair, watching the three muddy fish she kept in a glass jar beside her bed. These fish had been caught the night she took her cat to the forest behind her house. Every night, she sat by the glass jar, watching the fish swim slowly in the water.
“You never sleep,” Marlina whispered as she stroked the glass jar with her fingers. The grey cat, her beloved cat, sat by the bed, watching her with an interested gaze.
However, Lysandra’s presence began to stir tension in the house. Marlina started to notice changes in the way Lysandra spoke and acted. One night, when Marlina was preparing to sleep, Lysandra suddenly entered her room without knocking.
“Sis, I can’t sleep. I feel like someone’s watching me from outside the window,” Lysandra said, sitting on Marlina’s bed. She looked genuinely scared.
Marlina got out of bed and walked to the bedroom window. She looked out towards the small garden at the back of the house but saw nothing suspicious. “There’s no one out there. Don’t worry, it’s probably just your imagination.”
However, when Marlina returned to the bed, she noticed something strange. The cat, usually calm, was growling softly while staring at the door. Marlina immediately tried to calm the cat, but her heart started to race. Was something wrong?
The next morning, Marlina found Lysandra sitting in the living room, staring at Orena’s house with an odd look in her eyes. She seemed lost in thought, and when Marlina asked what she was thinking, Lysandra just smiled and said, “Nothing, sis.”
But Marlina knew her sister was hiding something. She began watching Lysandra’s every move more closely but didn’t want to make accusations without evidence. Marlina tried to busy herself with housework, but she couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling.
One night, while Marlina was sleeping, she heard a noise coming from the kitchen. She quickly got up and took a small flashlight from the drawer next to her bed. Cautiously, she went to the kitchen, with Grey Cat always on alert.
When she arrived in the kitchen, Marlina saw Lysandra standing by the open back door. Lysandra’s hand was holding something that was glowing, and her face looked pale in the moonlight.
“Lysandra, what are you doing here?” Marlina asked firmly.
Lysandra was startled and quickly hid the object in her hand. “Nothing, sis. I just wanted to get some fresh air.”
Marlina eyed her sister with suspicion but decided not to press her that night. She knew something was wrong, but she needed to strategies and find the answer without causing a confrontation. It was her own fault too, for forgetting to lock the kitchen door that night.
In the following days, the tension between Marlina and Lysandra grew. Marlina couldn’t deny that her sister’s presence brought more questions than answers. She began to wonder what Lysandra’s real intentions were in coming to her house.
Marlina knew she had to be prepared for whatever would come next, including the secrets Lysandra might be hiding.
Lysandra, with her suspicious behaviour, took advantage when Marlina was in the bathroom. With her phone in hand, she called Merilton without her sister’s knowledge. “Brother-in-law, when are you coming back? I miss you,” she said in an inappropriate tone. Merilton, shocked by the call, simply responded, “Lysandra, this isn’t right. Don’t contact me again.” However, Lysandra’s cynical smile showed that she wouldn’t stop there. She looked towards Tenuksia’s house, her eyes filled with something hard to explain, as though she was plotting something.