Dead and Crinkled Flowers [ON HOLD]

Chapter Twenty Four: April 2015: Brooke

Brooke quickly walked out of the hall, almost being pushed by Melanie's mother, who was muttering under her breath, cursing the very existence of her daughter.

"I'm so sorry," she apologized. "I had no idea she was going to freak like that." She quickly sat down, rubbing her temple. "Sit down, will you?"

Brooke sat on the bar stool, next to her- friend? enemy? who was this person to her?- and twiddled her thumbs in nervous silence.

After a moment, she spoke.

"What...happened up there?"

Melanie's mother sighed. "She's had mental problems ever since she was born. She's hot headed and gets angry easily. Her chemical balance in her brain is imbalanced, so her mood is constantly swinging. As a result, she tends to yell and scream and demand from different people. She depends on them to keep her in balance."

"That's why Zachary went so well with her," Brooke muttered. "He was always looking for someone to save..."

"And now that Zachary is gone she's even worse in her brain. Like I said, she depended on him. For everything. She didn't realize the mistake she made until you were going out with him and it was too late."

"The mistake being the break up?"

The mother sighed again. "Unfortunately, yes."

They both were silent for a moment, listening to Melanie scream and cry and kick the wall.

"She was always jealous of you," the mother said suddenly. "She would talk about you a lot. How she first met you with her boyfriend's jacket slung over your shoulders..."

Brooke shook her head at the thought. "I was cold in my dress. He put the jacket on me. I didn't ask him to. I didn't even tell him that I was cold."

"Are you suggesting that he's extremely nice to his ex girlfriends, because that is not what I see here. He wasn't nice to Melanie after they broke up. Barely. Only when he needed to."

Brooke shrugged. "I don't know what I'm suggesting. Just that he cared you know? He cared a lot..."

Another moment of silence for Zachary Kohl.

Poor Brooke was on the verge of tears.

"Do you have any idea why they broke up?" The mother asked. Brooke shook her head. "It was because of you."

"Me? What did I have to do with it?"

"Zachary had a newfound popularity with the ladies at school. Think he's God's gift to women or something. Melanie was jealous, though he was seemingly doing nothing with the girls. And then...she started to insult you. Calling you horrible names. And Zachary...he stood up for you. Defended you, even though you weren't there. And that was the last straw for Melanie and she broke up with him."

Brooke had been listening intently through the whole story, and sat there in shock...but also in pride. A small smile was playing at her lips. She had been trying to heal and smile and laugh all day. She knew it would take time to heal, but suddenly the very thing she was trying to heal from was the thing making her smile.

"He...he didn't even tell me why why split up...just they there was an...incident."

"Well..." Melanie's mother looked her in the eyes. "That was the incident."

A moment that would be silent if it wasn't for Melanie's screams.

"I think it's best you leave now."

Brooke nodded, grabbing her bag and walking to the door.

She stopped, turned around, and looked at the mother.

"Will she..." she glanced up at the ceiling. "...be alright?"

The mother nodded. "Yes. She'll be fine."

Brooke nodded slowly back before turning.

"Did you ever get over him?" The mother suddenly asked. "Was there ever a moment that you were sure that you could move on without thinking of him?"

Brooke shuddered and a tear slid down her face, her hand on the door handle.

"No...ma'am. There are some people you just can't get over." She twisted the handle beneath her fingers. "Good day, ma'am."

"Goodbye, Brooke," the mother whispered. "I hope you get over him."

And with just barely hearing that, Brooke walked out the door and shut it behind her.