Silenced

Jacob

After third class, Lily seamlessly collected her books and quickly deposited them in her locker, avoiding rush hour traffic while her year were in the cafeteria. Ensuring her hood was fastened tightly around her face, obscuring her colourings, she left the school, nodding at the secretary in acknowledgement. Lily never wanted to be rude.

Once she left the gates behind her, she broke into a fast run. She hated it, any form of physical movement created a grating pain which she couldn't ease. It was agony. But she had no other choice. 

It always pleased her to see the bright colourful gates of the Montessori looming.

She stopped immediately. Seeking to regain control of her breathing before he heard it. It wasn't like normal breaths. The wheezing infiltrated even the subtlest of breaths. Lily knew something was wrong with her lungs, but what could she do? It was only in the last week. Since He had been home early.

"Lily!!!" She heard, and nothing could keep the smile from her face as the small ball of energy threw himself into her arms. She held in the gasp of pain as she grasped him tightly to her.

She raised her thumb, questioning how his day at school was.

"It was amazing Lily. Me and Niamh played racing all day long. Even Miss Hayes said it was fun!"

"I even learned how to spell my name, ready? J-A-C-O-B."

She clapped her hands quickly to show her excitement and pride at his new skill.

"Tomorrow, I'm gonna learn your name so I can write them both in a heart. And Niamh's too."

Lily looked down at the little boy and smiled adoringly at him.

She pointed at her lips to show her wide smile before shaping her pointer finger and middle finger in a V and rubbing her stomach with the other hand. 

Jacob understood her sign easily. They had created their own form of sign language so they could communicate with ease.

"Yay!!! I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!"

She laughed as he skipped out of the school yard. She followed him closely, his schoolbag on one shoulder and hers on the other. 

Immediately, from she moment she saw her little boy, her day seemed much brighter. He was her sun, moon and stars. She would give anything for him.

Lily survived so Jacob could thrive.

Hey, I'm just finished Leaving Cert exams, and I had forgotten about this book. But I hope to continue it now that I'm going into college and I'll have more free time. 

KTK