Shaded

Chapter 1

Strings. The feeling of strings brushing against my light fingers. The sound it makes when you combine the chords. It's magic. All of it. It's one of those types of things where it makes you feel free and weightless. When I play the guitar, I'm in another world. No my own place where I can be free to imagine whatever I want. I can choose my own sounds. My own music. I set the instrument down on the floor beside me. I take one last look around the room. This is where I grew up. This is where I had lived for the past 16 years. Was once filled with color and life, is now filled with emptiness and gray. "Kira!" My brother Nicholas chirps as he slips into my once was room and swings around the doorway. "Mom told me to tell you to check and make sure you have everything. Oh, and we're leaving in 20 minutes." And just like that, he was already in the kitchen kissing everything he saw and said his goodbyes. I'm going to miss this place. I walk to the left side of the room and run my fingers across the wall. It seems as if nobody has lived here in year. It feels... Dusty and without life. I sigh as I take one last look at my room and close the door.
*           *            *         *         *          *
It was an hour drive to the airport. Although it seemed like minutes to me, we were there at 6:00 pm. I guess when I listen to music, time flies by. Everything flies by. Everything was but a memory. After a long 4 Hours of airport food and charging electronics, we finally got on our plane. I couldn't remember much after that. I guess I fell asleep or something. But when we got to Virginia, I couldn't help but look outside. It was beautiful. I always imagined Virginia to look bland. Boring. Untouched. But it was more in between untouched and lively. There were pretty fields and gray skies. "Your dad would love it here." My mom said in a low voice. It wasn't quite a whisper. It wasn't soft like a whisper, it was a low strong, almost sad voice. My dad died two years ago when I was 14.
*           *            *         *         *          *
I was at the beach with my ex- best friend Tiffany, when I got the call. I remember my mom. When I answered. I remember dead silence. It lasted for what seemed like minutes. I finally asked what was wrong when she started to cry. I started to get scared, so I asked her again, this time with more enthusiasm and intent on getting an answer. Turns out, my father was killed by a drunk diver. My mom was on the phone with him when it happened. She told me that she was talking to him about me. Talking to him about how lucky they are to have me and my brother. She told me that when she heard the car slip and the phone die, she knew what had happened. We didn't go to the hospital because when we called an ambulance, they told us that he was clearly dead and there was no hope in binging him back. I remember pain. And heartbreak, I remember thinking of the river we used to go by every Saturday. We used to sit by the river and say one good thing that happened to us that week. He would tell me something, and I would always try to debate why my one was better than his. I remember he would always dare me to drink the water because it was always discusting. I never did. But the river was beautiful. But it was also deadly. Just like love. The thing is, you get so attached to something that you forget how lucky you are to have it in your life, and when something happens to it, there's no going back. You lose it forever.

*           *            *         *         *          *