Bounded Souls

4.

Solana gripped the handle of her suitcase until her knuckles turned white. After a couple of hours of sitting on the plane, thinking about going back home, weighing out the pros and cons of her decisions and watching loads of Girlfriends, she was now home.

The city was calm as many people walked around her and departed from the airport. She looked down at her phone and sighed with relief when she received a notification that her ride had arrived. The sleek black car stopped in front of her and the trunk opened. With the help of the driver, she stuffed her things inside the trunk and made her way into the car.

"Thank you."

"No problem," The driver looks at her through the rear view mirror as he drives out of the airport lot. "So...what brings you to the city?"

Solana was never one for small talk, but she also wasn't the biggest fan of awkward silence either. She wasn't going to leave the man hanging even if all she wanted to do was sleep and be in her own bed.

"I was born and raised here. Just coming back for a bit to see some family."

"That's good. Family is everything," He nodded.

"I guess."

She didn't believe that. Family wasn't everything. She loved her family, but she also claimed her grandmother's friends and her mothers friends as family. She claimed her aunt as family and they turned their backs on her when she was just a teenager who was losing her mother day by day. They weren't there when she needed them most.

Family wasn't everything.

She leaned back into her seat and notified Mark that she had landed and was heading to the house. She wanted to get a hotel, but Sherrie insisted that she come to the house.

Let me know how it goes. Call me if you need anything.

A soft smile lit up on her face.

Mark was family. He cared about her and was always there when he needed her and vice versa. He took her for who she was and didn't shun her during dire times.

After thirty minutes of radio music and trying her best to not fall asleep in the back of a strangers car, they finally arrived into the familiar neighbourhood. Solana looked out of the window as they drove past the convenience store near her grandmother's house. She shook her head and pursed her lips. Her eyes trailed down the houses until the car came to a halt.

"And, we're here."

Her nerves began to eat at her as she grabbed her belongings and stood in front of the navy and white brick house.

"Thank you so much."

"No problem. Enjoy your stay."

"Five stars for you," Solana chuckled.

"Thank you," He smiled and quickly drove off.

Solana blew out a long breath and gripped her belongings. As she looked around the neighbourhood, she remembered the sadness that filled her as she looked at her house for the last time.

Vivian looked down at the envelope in her hand. Her eyebrows furrowed with confusion as she continued to look at the plane ticket. She looked up at her granddaughter as she packed her belongings into her suitcase and made sure that she had everything with her.

"W-what is this?"

"A one way ticket to DC," Solana spoke simply. "I'm leaving, Nana."

"For what?"

"For what?" Solana chuckled bitterly. "I can't be somewhere that I'm not wanted. I'm not going to stay here knowing that all of these people hate me because of my mother and ridiculed her every chance that they got. This place has nothing to offer me here and if I stay here any longer I'm going to go crazy!"