"Alice, come on! If we don't leave now, we're going to miss our plane," my mom's voice calls from downstairs. I let out a hefty sigh, knowing that she's right. I look around my now-empty room one more time. It's hard to believe that I'm actually moving out of the house that I've lived in ever since I was only two years old.
"Coming, Mom!" I holler back down. I look at the small holes in the walls where my shelves were hung, where all of my soccer trophies and medals were displayed. I focus on the stain on my floor where I spilled apple juice when I was running with the glass when I was eleven. I look at a random quarter that is laying flat on its side and recognize it as the one that fell out of my wallet two weeks ago that I never got around to picking up. A few tears prick my eyes, but I hold them back as I promised I wouldn't cry anymore. I cried enough after my dad's funeral, and afterwards, I told myself that I would never cry again. Not after all that.
I shake my head once, trying to clear my thoughts as images from that rainy day come flashing back through my mind. All of my family members gathered in one place, to celebrate not his sudden death, but his long life, the rose I layed on the big wooden casket, and then as everyone left, I stayed behind and watched as it was lowered into the ground and then covered with dirt. After it was in the ground, it seemed as though my father had never even existed at all.
"Alice McHenry, if I have to come get you I can promise your going to regret not coming down sooner!" Mom threatened- well tried to anyways, after dad died she lost some of her fire.
I ran down stairs, not because I was afraid, but because I was tired of the past. Sure, I would miss the house, but it was empty. Not just furniture wise, but the spirit it use to have. Ever since dad died, every room I walked into I had to hold my breath, had to be careful to think of anything but the memories we'd created. So naturally, mom's way of "handling" his death, was to move.
I didn't want to. You can't build 16 years of life somewhere, and then just up-root it at the first sight of tragedy. Families are supposed to work through hard times, not block them out. Mom couldn't see that, she thought she was doing us a favor, but honestly, it hurt Blake and I more than anything.
I rushed down the steps, stumbling on the thirteenth one like always, the board split when Blake and I rode down it in laundry baskets. Mom definitely had enough fire left to burn us for that.
"There you are, what were you doing up there?" mom demanded.
"Blake asked me to get his charger, and maybe a little reminiscing occurred." I said carefully, trying not to cause any tears.
"I know it's hard Ally-Cat, but it's harder to stay here, he's gone and staying here, being miserable, will not bring him back." She said with silent tears slipping down her face, my own face wet from seeing her pain.
With that we walked to the car and joined Blake, not looking back. I said goodbye as we drove away, goodbye to the town , and to the familiar feeling of home.
YOU ARE READING
Meet the McHenry Family...
Teen Fiction*Remember: this is fictional, all the towns are made up, as well as the story line.*
