Loose Ends - Book One

Levi ~ Dangerous Question

Chipped, almost-empty cabinets and drawers surrounded me, dropping dust that had piled up too much. The kitchen has a couple of pots and silverware lying around, still. The yellow backsplash covered in food spots has gotten crusty and old. The refrigerator remains plugged in and running, loudly. The white tile floor is sticky with a clear substance, making my footsteps noisy. Yet, I can appreciate the blinds that were left behind, still covering the windows.

            There's a "for sale" sign on the front door of this place, and it was locked. I picked it with a nearby paperclip that was on the ground. Anabel said nothing was going to stop her from finding her knight, and I had to make sure that stayed true. She didn't tell me why she's looking for this singular chess piece, or why it means so much to her, but I could tell she was serious.

            I've been through their old dining room and kitchen, and found nothing. All that remains is a couple old books, one broken dining room chair, and what looks like pet fur on the ground. I guess they had a dog.

            I'm about to do a once-over to make sure I didn't miss anything, when I hear stuff crashing in another room nearby.

            I follow the noise and find Ana knocking stuff over, searching frantically and desperately.

            "Ana," I slowly start approaching her.

            "It's not here." She's behind an old dresser, her voice starting to shake.

            "Ana, come here."

            "No, my mother said she didn't have it which means she must have missed it, so where the hell is it?!"

            She stands up and advances over to the other side of the room. I follow her.

            "It's a small thing."

            She ignores me. She's now in a closet, throwing around hangers and boxes.

            At the risk of getting slapped, I reach down and grab her hand, ceasing her search.

            "No, Levi, I have to find it. I know it's here!" Tears start to build up and gloss over her penny brown eyes.

            "Ana, why do you need this thing so much?"

            "It's not a thing!" She yanks her wrists from my grasp. "It's the only piece of my grandpa I have left. It's the only 'thing' left of the man that was more of a father to me than my actual father. The man who passed away and had this huge funeral while I was eating shitty food in a crazy box in yellow grippy socks.

            "That knight was from the only chess set he's ever owned," she starts pacing. "It was the only connection I had to him which makes it the most valuable thing in the world."

            Tears begin spilling, one after the other, and her lips quiver as she runs her hands through her hair. It's breaking me because I understand all too well. I ran and couldn't take anything with me, when I got separated from my mother. I'm lost without her.

            "Why?" Her voice breaks. "Why did the world have to rob me of the one thing that kept me going?"

            I have a five-second debate in my head; I'm not a hugger, and seeing a girl cry usually makes me uncomfortable. Maybe it's empathy, or the new growing feelings I have for her, but I have to do something, this time.

            While she holds her face in her hands, I approach her and pull her into a slow, secure embrace. I hold her tight. The small, quiet gasp she lets out expresses her shock, but she quickly relaxes into me. She cries quietly into my chest, each sob taking a strike at my heart. The last time someone's weeps pained me like this, I was listening to my mother.