So why had he jumped into the backseat of Erin’s car that day? How could he have done something so stupid? He should have been less rash. Finn could have gotten into the front seat, couldn’t he? And then pulled the emergency brake twenty feet from the house? He could have done something besides allowing Erin to careen around on icy roads. Of course, it was easy for Matt to run through hundreds of alternatives. That was the nature of things like this, wasn’t it? The gift that keeps on giving. Hours, days, years, of agonizing thinking ahead of him.

Gee, the future just looked brighter and brighter all the time.

The doorbell rang. Matt frowned. Who in the world could that be? As he started for the door, he heard the surprising sound of Celeste’s footsteps tear out of her room and down the stairs. And even more shocking, the sound of absolute jubilation as she yelled out, “He’s here! He’s here!” She couldn’t possibly have invited someone over, could she?

He stopped at the top of the stairs and listened, but the conversation lasted mere seconds before Celeste slammed the door. Only one set of footsteps thundered through the entryway and into the kitchen.

“Matty! Matty! You must witness the grand reveal! You must be here for… for the unveiling! Everything is going to turn around.”

Unnerved by the now-uncharacteristic thrill in his sister’s voice, he made his way hesitantly into the kitchen. No guest was with her, but Celeste looked undeniably happy. Her eyes were bright and her face flushed with excitement. She stood in the center of the kitchen, hands on both cheeks, staring at the large rectangular shipping box on the floor. Considering how long and flat the package was, Matt had to wonder what sort of party supply this could be. More importantly, what had she ordered that had lifted her spirits so dramatically? Well, whatever it was, Matt was damn happy it was here.

As he opened his mouth to speak, Matt realized that he didn’t know how to address this version of Celeste. Speaking to a happy girl had become unfamiliar to him. He watched as she rummaged in a drawer and located a pair of scissors.

“I am going to use significant caution as I remove the tape that is sealing these edges. Cuts, tears, and other tragedies would be a result of my rushing ahead. I cannot let my enthusiasm impair my performance.”

“What…uh…” Matt cleared his throat. “What do you have there, Celeste?”

She knelt down, poised with open scissors, as she assessed the package. “I am having difficulty determining how to approach this.” Celeste looked at Matt, real happiness in her eyes. “Would you please assist me? My hands appear to be trembling, and I would not want to ruin this moment with an injury inflicted upon myself or him.”

Who the hell was him? Who cared right now? Celeste was interacting with him, reaching out to him in a way she hadn’t in months. He noted that it was now impossible to ignore that her speech patterns had become noticeably more odd over the past few months. He hadn’t had much of an opportunity to hear her voice given how little she’d had to say recently, but he shrugged it off. He was just pleased to see her so animated.

“Yeah. I… I guess so. You’ve got me curious.” He walked to her side and squatted down next to her.

Celeste handed him the scissors. “Now, you must promise to use the utmost care when severing the packaging. Okay? Okay, Matty?”

He smiled at her. “Sure. Of course I will.”

Matt confidently slid the scissors between the folds of the brown cardboard. It must be some sort of giant poster, although considering the cost, he was pretty sure she’d completely overpaid. No matter. It was nice to be doing anything with his sister that didn’t involve stony silence, cutting comments, or catatonia.

“There! You have done it!” Celeste announced. “I will lift the top off myself. I do so appreciate your assistance with this.” She took her hand and placed it on Matt’s knee.

Matt took his hand and put it on top of hers, looking at her with curiosity.

Celeste lifted her face and flashed a smile. “This is going to make a profound difference. Everything is about to change, Matthew. I am flooded with genuine anticipation and optimism.”

“Then… then so am I,” Matt agreed. “Let’s see what you bought yourself.”

“It’s not an it,” she said, clearly affronted, and she pulled a long, flat shape from the folds of the shipping cardboard. Celeste lifted up the object as she stood. “It’s a him.”

Matt felt his stomach tighten and his pulse pick up

“Oh my God, Celeste.” He wasn’t smiling anymore. “What have you done? What have you done?”

 Matt started to shake his head back and forth, struggling to understand. In front of him stood a flat, life-sized cutout photograph of Finn.

The prodigal son returns.

Celeste had positioned some sort of flap near its feet so that this creepy replica of his brother stood on its own. She stepped back and admired her purchase. “Matthew, meet Flat Finn. Flat Finn, meet Matthew.” She spun to face Matt and waited expectantly.

He could feel his whole body beginning to tremble, and he continued shaking his head.

Celeste wrinkled her nose in irritation and whispered in Matt’s direction. “I believe that it is considered polite to introduce yourself or to otherwise impart some words of greeting upon meeting someone for the first time.”

What did she want him to say? Oh, good. Finn’s home! At last! All he could do was feel positively ill. He was surrounded by pain all the time, and now he was being asked to converse with this… this nightmare version of his dead brother? It was hard enough to look at pictures of Finn without being overwhelmed with grief, but this was too much. It was too crazy.

“No. No way, Celeste.” Although he spoke slowly, his voice was harsh. “Get it out.”

“What? What is the matter?” She took a step closer to Flat Finn.

“You’re not doing this. Get rid of it. Why would you want that? Why?”

Celeste’s face fell. “I do not understand why you are so angry with me. You are not responding the way I had envisioned you would.”

“You thought I would like this? God! Wh…what exactly do you plan on doing with this thing?”

“It is not a thing. He is Flat Finn. He is going to be my sidekick and accompany me as I participate in daily activities. Flat Finn will watch over me as I sleep, he will have a place at the dinner table, and I have a feeling that he will be quite helpful with my history homework.” She leaned her head in closer to the picture, positioning her ear by the mouth in the photograph. “Oh.” She giggled. “He says that he has arrived to rescue me, just like the real Finn would do if he could. That is very kind of him. Matt, this is symbolism at its finest, I believe. Flat Finn will stay with me as a representative of my real brother.”

“I’m your real brother!” Matt could hear himself screaming now. “I’m real! I’m here!”

“I… I… I know that, Matthew. I did not mean to imply—”

Matt moved swiftly across the room and grabbed the cardboard cutout with both hands. Celeste had gone insane. This was going into the trash right now.

“No! NO! Matty, no!” Celeste grabbed Matt’s arm and dug her feet into the floor. “I need him!”

“No way. You are not doing this to yourself. Or to Mom and Dad. I’m putting this piece of crap out front in the garbage.” Nearly blind with emotion and from the tears that were clouding his vision, he started for the front door. “This never happened. It’s done, okay? It’s all done.”

He was almost at the entryway when he heard a noise come from Celeste that stopped him cold. An excruciating, mournful howl. He closed his eyes as a wave of nausea swept through him. A thud sounded as Celeste dropped to the floor and released another guttural moan. Somehow he managed not to vomit. Matt left the Flat Finn thing where it was by the door and went back into the kitchen.