Heart On A Platter

Past Remains

Walking away was hard for me. He was what grew to be my best friend, but now he couldn't be anything to me. I feared hurting him, and funny that was what it lead to either way. I wanted Declan to have a happy life, and that couldn't be with me!

"OLD TOWN, NEBRASKA!" The bus driver shouts as I take my duffel bag and walk towards the front of the bus.

"Thank you" I tell the bus driver as I walk off the bus, sitting my bag on the bench. As the bus leaves the exhaust suffocates me as I start coughing, eradicably. But I deserved it.

As I started my walk, two miles to my fathers I submerged myself in guilt. How could he have feeling for me? The question berated my mind for the the two miles I walked. What kind of monster could sit there and feel nothing for the man that held her hand through it all? As the rain started pouring I finally saw it, my father's new home! A farm house that was in the middle of nowhere and I began to run to the door, my clothes soaking from the rain as I knocked on the door.

"Rose?!" My father calls out my name, his voice stammering as he doesn't even think about mouthing another word to me, instead he just pulls me into a tight hug. As a slight smirk arises on my face I let myself fade into his warmth, my shivering body finding it too easy. "I missed you" He whispers into my ear as I hug him even tighter at his confession.

"I missed you too" I confess to him as he pulls away and examines me.

"Are you okay?" He ask me as he lifts up my arm and finally notices my wet appearance. "What happened to you?" He ask me as I chuckle.

"Funny story" I remark as he closes the door behind me and I set my soaking bag on the floor beside me. "But I don't really want to talk about that right now" I admit to my father as he nods.

"Okay" He says shortly. "But we will talk about it over breakfast tomorrow" He order me as I nod, "Wright will lead you to your room" He tells me as he back away and I finally see Wright. He looked nothing like my little brother, as I laid my eyes on him I finally say a smile on his face instead of a blankly smirk.

"Follow me" He says to me as I nod and pick up my soggy back up off the ground and follow Wright upstairs, and into a single room that was all mine. "Here's your new home" He declares as I know they meant well but this was never meant to be my home. And I guess my thoughts were apparent as Wright interrupted my thoughts. "What's wrong?" Wright ask me as I smile at his try.

"Let me change" I stall.

As I walk into the bathroom and lock myself in. Changing into my Christmas pajamas, with little snowmen scattered all over the holiday pants. Taking two deep breath I realized I lost the only person that held my hand, now I needed to hold my own.

Walking out of the bathroom was hard, harder than I would have ever thought.

"Look!" Wright yells as I open the door and finally see a friendly face. I see none other than my dog, greatness, laying on my pillow, smiling at me with those big puppy eyes of his.

"BUDDY!" I scream out of nostalgia as I cuddle greatness in my arms.

"Thought you could use a friend" Wright says as I sit on the other side of my bed, ready to talk to him, for him to ask the inevitable. "What happened Rose?" He finally ask as I can't help it and I crave actually being close to my brother, and I lay my head on his chest as he lays against the pillows, cushioning the headboard.

"Do you think I'm a monster Wright?" I ask him as only silence fills the room. "Because that's what I think I might be" I finally admit my fears aloud.

"Why would you think that?" Wright ask me as I can't take her words any longer. "Just because you can't feel what others do doesn't mean your some kinda monster Rose" He lectures me as I sigh, for once he was wrong.

"This is not about my feelings Wright" I admit to him as he's left confused. "It's about my mom" I say as he's silent, he knew as mush as I did I was never apart of our mothers family and I didn't want to fit into my biological mothers twisted way of a family.

"Tell me" He says unexpectedly as he takes my hand into his. "Tell me it all" He encourages me as I feel important.

"It crushed me Wright! She thinks I'm some kind of monster like her, how? How could she?" I question everything. "She is in prison! She thinks I'm every bit like her, she killed my biological father for fun! I could have known him, and now!" I say as I finally realize it. "I'll never know him" I say calmly as I pet Greatness's head. "And now I fear she's right" I start, "That I will be just like her, everything she wants" I admit aloud as Wright doesn't say a think, he just pulls me closer to him as kisses me on the forehead.

"Rose" He calls my name. "Your nothing like that woman, you feel bad for something you can't control. Because you have empathy, that makes you ever bit human as me." He says as he fluffs my hair as I smile at his words, they showed some truth.

"Thank you" The gracious words part through my lips. "For treating me like a human" I thank him as he snickers at my thank you.

"You are a human" He combats my thank you with. "You are more human than most of us could wish to be. Just remember that" He reminds me as I sigh and doze off to my brother's praise.