Chapter one ...
It's just another story to most people but to me it's a little different . I'm just that girl in the back ground .. Not everyone liked me . When mostly no one did . But I had two friends that were girls . And they would always be there for me when others weren't . They were like best friends in a way. Ha the funny thing is that I never really told them anything to deep about me . And I never really opened up to anyone . I'd keep everything to myself especially what happened at home .
I had a lot of problems I had to deal with. But I wasn't like every other girl. Mostly every girl at school was pretty and would wear make up. A girl named Leslie who you could say was my friend in a way would wear a lot of make up. Every guy chased her . Me on the other hand never wore make up. I just thought about it and it was a stupid idea . I never even got ready for school. I'd wear a normal shirt, some long jeans and my converse. I always had my hair tied back in a ponytail.
Everything started happening when I was In the third grade . I had gone to Florida that summer . Well it wasn't really much of my third grade year but going into fourth grade . I went to Florida for the first time ever I went to meet my grandfather . And I still remember that moment everyday. I remember seeing my dad as the happiest man alive. I had one week to spend with my family down in Florida. So we just decided to take a little advantage of that and go out a lot .
Six months later I had to go back down to Florida. No one at school cared or even wondered what happened to the ugly girl.. My grandfather had just died .. I had to go to Florida for the funeral but most importantly I had to go to support my father who needed me the most at the time . After I found out the news I was in shock I didn't know what to do. I was at the hospital at the time visiting my little cousin who was sick.
A while of sitting and talking with my aunt and cousin made the room go quiet.. My mom's phone started to ring . It was ring after ring . My mom answered she didn't know what to say.. Her smile had faded .. She looked up at my older sister and I.. She began to say I'm sorry over and over again. What I didn't understand was why my mother out of all people was sorry ? She hadn't done anything wrong .. She then said your grandfather just died down at Florida .
Hearing the news of losing my grandfather who wasn't in no way near to me hurt me . I ran out the room and I felt my heart ache . It ached with a really strong pain.. I began to feel my heart skip beats . My heavy tears rolling down my cheeks heavier and heavier by the minute . I was only nine. But how was a nine year old suppose to take this in.. I had never been in a death situation .
I watched as my sister was crying . I didn't understand why this had to happen to all of us. We had just barely met him for the first time . I remember getting home from the hospital and seeing my dad's car in the driveway . I ran up the steps to my house . Unlocked the house and I began to run as fast as I could to my dad's room. I stopped at the door I watched him .. He was packing his things . I wondered in my mind "was he really just going to leave us"? The saddest part was watching my dad cry for the very first time ..
After a while of silence he began to speak . His words were .. "Look I understand you all have never seen me cry but this is to much pain for me to endure .. I understand that you are all worried about me packing but I'm heading to Florida tonight I have things I need to help with."
Then I began to speak .. "Fine if you're leaving I'm coming with you . My sister had agreed with me . My father had no choice but to say okay. We were all ready to leave the next morning . And I knew it was a long car drive but I didn't mind it was time to face reality . But before leaving my dad told me that we had to go up to my school.. Oh just great ._. School.. We were going up to the school the next morning . That's when someone spoke out my name .
I turned around it was my friend Leslie . And next to her was my two best friends Abby and Araceli . I walked over to them . My dad who was out of sight was already in the school. Leslie began to ask all these questions . I just responded with one thing I was leaving for a while . She didn't really care she just needed to know . Deep down I felt like Araceli wanted to know why I was going to be gone . But at that moment I began to walk away.
That same night after going up to the school we all got in the car. That's when I got my heart aches again. I didn't understand much about what was going on. I was only nine . And no one wanted to tell me how it all happened . Leaving Omaha and leaving my mom with my younger sister behind was the worst . As we were on the road and everyone was sleep except for my older sister, dad , my older cousin and I, I had stayed up only to cry out my eyes all over again.
We were in Florida the next day or two. Arriving was the worst part . No one said anything . We just all sat there . We were staying at my one of aunt's house. She told me to get ready. We were going to my other aunt's house tonight to pray . I had put my simple clothes on. Like always just a shirt, long jeans and my converse . No make up just my natural beauty I guess . My hair tied back nothing different.
We arrived at my aunt's house a lot of cars and a lot of faces I didn't recognize because maybe I didn't know the people. I walked in slowly not knowing what to except inside . All I could hear we're people talking and crying. After a while I heard my sister's name being called "Rosa, Rosa, Rosa ,Rosa ". It was my aunt . She was crying a lot . She was saying we lost him.. We lost him.
Hours and hours of crying .. I wasn't even sleepy . I didn't even care about sleep at that point I just wanted to go home and sit in my room cry while listening to music . I hated being in Florida . Only one reason my grandfather had died there . And walking up the steps remembering seeing him for the very first time. He got up and hugged me . Saying I was his little granddaughter and that I looked like him. Ha . I miss being able to just hug someone as tall as him.
Every now and then I think about him.. I see him in my dreams . And I wonder what It would have bee like if he was still here by my side . But at the same time I've been getting use to the fact he is in a better world . Maybe he was right .. I shouldn't think or cry to much for him because at the end of the day he will always watch over me.
My grandfather was different. I loved him even though I had just met him. He was my happiness and while I don't have him anymore I'm starting to find new happiness around me .
