The Ultimate Sacrifice

Chapter 1 Part 1: Moving Day

I woke up drenched in sweat with my tank top clinging to my skin. Sitting up, I rested my elbows on my knees and held my head in my hands.

"Just breathe," I muttered to myself, moving my fingers backwards through my hair.

As my heart rate calmed, I began to come back to reality. I checked the clock; it was 6:32. That meant my alarm would go off in thirteen minutes. I wiped the sweat off my forehead.

"Just a dream. It was just a dream," I whispered, wiping the sleep out of my eyes.

Too wound up over the nightmare to go back to sleep, I slid my legs to the side of my bed and slowly got up, making my way to the bathroom. As I felt the cold tile hit my toes, I flicked on the bathroom light.

"Ugh, too bright," I groaned, covering my eyes with the back of my right hand.

I slowly waddled my way forward to the sink, putting my hand down and squinting in the mirror. My hair was all tossled about, some clinging to my face from the sweat. My eyes were red and droopy with a slight brown stain underneath them from lack of sleep and dehydration. To put it simply, I was a mess.

"Nothing a nice shower can't fix."

But before that, I'm reminded of my nightmare and what made me look this bad in the first place; I needed to take my medicine. Reaching into the medicine cabinet, I pulled out penicillin, ibuprofen, and Hydroxyurea pills. Holding the pills in hand, I filled up a paper cup with water and swallowed them whole.

As the pills made their way down my throat, I realized how raw it was. Was I screaming in my sleep last night? I quickly dismissed the thought and turned the shower water on, letting it heat up as I undressed. Looking down at my bare skin, I saw my belly had swelled again, making me look five months pregnant. A tear slipped down my cheek as I stepped into the shower.

The gentle stream of hot water was soothing to the touch, calming me down as it trickled through my hair and down my back. I squeezed a dime of shampoo into my hand and combed it through my scalp, rinsing right away. Scrubbing all the sweat and oils off my body felt so good, and, by the end, I felt fresh and calm again. Just after I put a dollop of conditioner in, I turned the tap off and stepped out of the shower, wrapping my drenched body in a purple towel.

After drying off, I put on a pair of skinny jeans with a v-neck and plaid shirt to go on top. It wasn't going to be that warm today, maybe 65 at most, and I didn't have much motivation to put on anything cuter. As I was gathering my clothes to put into the hamper, I heard,"Demi! You up? We're gonna be leaving soon!"

"Yeah, just a few minutes!" I hollered back.

My dad was always adamant that we be early to anything we had to go to. But I don't mean a few minutes early. Last time we went out, we were there half an hour early. Still, it's,"better to wait than to be late," as he always says.

Today, however, was an exception. Usually, my mom goes along with his passion to be early to things. Now, however, my mom didn't even want to leave the house, because leaving the house meant she would come back to it with one less person; today, I was going off to college.

Before leaving the bathroom, I took my medicine bag and put it in my backpack. Then, I slung it around my shoulder and grabbed the two suitcases as well, heading out of my bedroom door for the last time in a long time.

"Hey, let me take that. We don't want you carrying too much," my dad said, popping out from his bedroom just as I walked down the hall to the stairs, already dressed in khaki pants and a polo.

"Dad, I'm fine," I pleaded, hating being treated like someone who is weak and can't handle anything.

"Demi, give me the-"

"What's the matter?" my mom intervened, stepping out of their bedroom with a comb in her hand, dressed in a nice black dress with red heels.

"Nothing," I muttered, not wanting my mom to worry any more than she already does on her own.

"Demi thinks she's miss independent now that she's off to college and is refusing to obey DOCTOR'S orders," my dad explained to my mom, emphasizing the word 'doctor's' and throwing his arm out in my direction in accusation.

"Demi, you know how important it is to follow instruction. Promise me you'll be more careful at college and take care if yourself?" and I could see the fear grow in my mom's eyes.

"Mom, I'm gonna be fine," I sighed.

"Okay," my mom sighed, relaxing her shoulders,"now let your dad help you out."

I reluctantly handed him a suitcase and continued to walk, heading down the stairs.

"Ahem," my dad grunted, holding out his left hand.

"Dad, really, I'm fi-"

"Do it for your mom," he said, giving me that look parents give their kids when they are waiting for something.

I stepped back up the stairs and handed him the other suitcase in defeat. I may not be fine, but I was fine. It may not make sense, but I knew my limits and how far I could push them. I just wished they could understand that.

Turning around, I headed back down the stairs at a suitable pace so that they wouldn't get their panties in a wad any further; it was too much for one morning.

I opened the van door and put my backpack in my seat. Besides the two suitcases, the rest of the bags, or bins, rather, were already packed in the car from the night before. I didn't pack too heavily, just clothes, sheets, my kindle, and a laptop with my music. That was plenty for me. Besides, if I had much more, it would become a hassle, especially with my parents not wanting me to lift anything heavy for too long.

My dad trailed closely behind me and put the suitcases in beside me.

"Where's Mom?" I asked.

"Still doing her hair. You know how she is," he replied, hopping into the driver's seat.

"Mind if I say one last goodbye to this ol' place?" I smile, sliding the door open.

"Sure. Don't be too late though."

I jumped out of the car and headed to the deck, wanting to have some fresh air. Leaning over the ledge, I saw my neighbor, Mr. Healy, tending to his garden. He was an older man in his early 70s, with a wardrobe that mainly consisted of overalls and sweaters. I'd known him all my life; ever since we moved into that house, he'd been living there. So I considered him family in a way.

"Hey, Mr. Healy," I hollered, stepping down the deck's stairs and heading to the gate that separated us.

"Hello, Demi. Where are you off to?" he asked with his crooked smile, taking off a glove to shake my hand.

I took his delicate hand in mine and smile,"Off to college."

"You must be excited. Nervous?"

"A bit, yeah. First time out on my own," I sighed with an unsure smile.

Mr. Healy put his other hand on top of mine so that my hand was now sandwiched in between his. "You'll do just fine. You have a great future ahead of you, you know? I see great things ahead of you. Just don't get yourself too worked up, okay? And learn to trust; that's the only way you can truly love."

"I will, Mr. Healy."

"Alright, good girl," he smiled, releasing my hand from his grasp.

"Well I better get going; you know how my dad is. I'll try to write to you before I get home for break. See you then."

"Okay, Demi. Stay safe," Mr. Healey said, pulling me in to one of his warm hugs.

"Demi! You ready?" my mom hollered from the deck.

"Yeah, coming!" I yelled back.

I turned back and said,"Thanks, Mr. Healy," before I said goodbye to the only world I had ever known. With the click of my seatbelt, the van pulled out of the drive and I was about to embark on one of the biggest adventures of my life. There was no turning back.