Life & Love of the Tormented

Sixty Four

When morning comes I don't wake until after 10am. I open my eyes slowly, adjusting to the brightly lit room around me. I slept incredibly well and for the first morning since I can remember, I'm not disappointed that I actually woke up today. I'm not angry or hating the world. I'm not sluggish or moody or numb. I may even be happy.

  This is new...

  And very strange...

  I reach my arms up above my head and arch my back off the bed beneath me, allowing each vertebrae to extend. I welcome a morning yawn to move across my lips and point my toes toward the end of the bed, giving my entire body a tight stretch. When my muscles and bones can not be pulled any further I relax again, laying flat against the mattress.

  Fuck that felt good.

  A smile grows in the wake of my yawn when I glance at my phone and see a text from Carter.

'Good Morning Beautiful, hope you slept well. Shall we do a call when I get home form uni? Missing you xx'

I feel giddy and if this was a few weeks ago I would be furious that someone has affected me this way but I welcome this new feeling. My guard is slowly coming down and my heart is swelling at the light that is leaking into my darkness.

'Sounds perfect. Have a good day babe xx'

I hit send on my reply to Carter and climb out of bed.

As I walk down to the kitchen I can hear that Mum, William and Ria are awake.

"Good morning family!", I basically sing as I enter.

"Wow you're in a good mood", Ria points out as she looks up from her phone. She's sat on a bar stool and slumped over the breakfast bar in a white t-shirt and baggy cargo jeans.

"Good morning sweetheart", Mum replies smiling.

"Good morning Amelia", William says.

  They're both in their bathrobes at the dining table. Coffee in front of them. Mum has one of her books in front of her and William's reading the paper. The scene in front of me is a happy one. One I never thought I'd see in this house.

"Coffee?", Ria asks as she gets up from her chair and moves across the kitchen.

"Maybe we should go pick some up? There's a nice cafe down by the esplanade isn't there?", I ask.

"There is", Ria confirms smiling. "They do amazing frappes too."

"We can give those two love birds some time alone", I say while over exaggerating a wink and nudging my elbow toward the dining table.

Seeing as Carter is in Brisbane and I'm here, the only sec I'll be having is in my dreams, so I guess someone in the house should be getting some.

"Is Jarrod coming then?", Ria asks.

"Huh?", I blurt out. I can feel my good mood begin to drain from my body, "He stayed over?", I ask bluntly.

As much as he seems like an alright dude after apologising last night, I'm not jumping at the opportunity to be his friend and I can't seem to let go of the first encounter we had.

"Yeah?", Mum replied, "So?"

"Oh no, sorry, I was just surprised", I say trying to regain my composure and hold on to the tiny fragments left of my good mood.

"We all had a few to many after you went to bed and no one could drive.", Mum explains.

"Oh right... So where is he? I was trying to do you two a 'favour'", I say making air quotations with my fingers and laughing awkwardly in the hopes they catch my drift.