Secrets Untold

𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓽𝓮𝓻 4

𝐈 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐍𝐄𝐃 against the wall opposite of the front desk, humming a short tune which was stuck in my head. It was a lullaby that my mother had sung to Lila and I when we were young. We both knew the song off by heart and Lila would sometimes sing it if she was stressed or just whenever she felt like it.

I missed our mother like hell, and I knew Lila did too. Tomorrow was the day she died. Soft notes of a piano melody flew into my head as I recalled all the happy memories we had together. Mom was painting one of her beautiful pictures to hang up in the living room when Lila and I stuck our hands in the paint. 

Lila had looked up at mom and waved her messy painted hand in the air. Chuckling, mom had let us place our hands on her painting. She then dipped her hand in the paint and added her handprint.

Grinning at us, she kissed out cheeks, "It's gorgeous darlings. Good job!"

When Lila and I started school, mom was there to pick us up and drop us off everyday. She worked so hard. I remembered one time, we went to a concert, where mom played the piano beautifully. She had always loved playing the piano and painting. Those were her hobbies that she told us she'd never give up.

She even tried to teach us both piano and painting, only Lila excelled in both of those. Mom had laughed dismissively when I failed, "It's okay bub. You're probably good at something else!"

I had pouted and Lila grinned up at mom.

I didn't even realise that I was smiling slightly until a poke in my side and a voice interrupted my thoughts, "Hey, you're smiling!"

I looked across to my right, where Lila stood grinning at me. My smile disappeared and Lila frowned, "Keep smiling, you look really pretty. You rarely ever smile anymore."

"What do you mean?" I protested in defense, "I smile plenty."

A sad look overcame Lila's features as she pointed out, "You think I don't know? Those smiles, they're just for show. You're thinking about mom, aren't you?"

"Yeah," I admitted sheepishly fiddling with my hands, "We're going home now, okay?"

Confused, Lila shrugged, "Sure. If it means I get to miss stupid school, I'm down."

I held my hand out, "Keys, I better not find a single scratch on my precious baby."

Lila rolled her eyes, "Your car is in perfect condition. Follow me."

Lila lead the way through the carpark to where my car was parked, and sure enough, when I checked over it, there was not a scratch or dent in sight. I nodded my head in approval, "Good job."

Just as Lila had climbed into the car, a voice called our names, "Akira, Lila!"

I turned, thinking that it was our father. Instead, in the distance, I saw two figures heading towards us. Squinting my eyes, I peered closer, unsure of who it was. As soon as they came close enough so that I could identify who it was, I muttered under my breath, "Perfect. Nope, nope, and nope."

I opened my side of the car door and hopped in, starting the car. I slammed my door shut and put the car in reverse. The figures came closer, and Lila gaped, "Is that who I think it is?"

Grimly, I replied, "Yup."

While Lila and I were conversing with each other, those two sneaky pricks snuck up on us. A tap on the other side of my window startled me. Angrily, I rolled the window down a little bit, "What do you want?"

"Now, now. That's no way to talk to your caregivers," uncle reprimanded me. 

Lila fiddled with her fingers, anxiously tapping her foot on the floor. Our Aunt looked us over, "You look dreadfully tired as if you haven't slept Akira."