Love After Love

Chapter III

The next two days go by in a mix of getting ready for the first day of class and missing home. I call Emma and James as many times as I can, yet it doesn't feel like enough. I tell them all that happens to me, everything from the food I ate to the fact Deirdre wakes up to do yoga while the sun rises, I tell them about the people I've seen from a distance that have caught my attention, I tell them about my class schedule and about how nice our bathroom is. I miss them a lot, but at least I can see them and hear their voices everyday.

 Mom and Dad are very busy with work, as always, so I have only talked to them about superficial things like the room and the weather change. I guess it's understandable; they are not in summer vacation after all. I can't help but think even if they were; they wouldn't care about how I was doing. It makes me sad; because when we were young they were happy people living a family driven life. My mom said she named me after what lights up the sky at night, because I was born at night and it was the only thing she could see from her hospital room's window when she first held me. She also said Emma was named after her favorite love story by Jane Austen. Dad used to carry us in his shoulders and laugh and play with us. Now, they're both work robots, they have no time left for looking at the sky or reading love stories.

Class starts tomorrow, so I prepare by trying to make me think happier thoughts and pampering my body while Deirdre is at a party. She invited me to go, and though it would be cool to attend a College Party, I can definitely use some me time. Deirdre doesn't drink, but she's very not awkward in social situations so she doesn't get bored. I am not an extrovert, so parties are not my setting. I get my favorite mud mask, a hair mask, my exfoliating cream and a bath bomb, and proceed to spend an hour in the bath, until the water turns cold again. I have one of my favorite bands, Keane, playing the whole time. When I'm done, I dress myself in my old pajamas and read to calm my nerves. By the time Deirdre gets back, I'm seventeen chapters into re reading my favorite book, Inkheart, and it's past midnight. So much for getting agood night's sleep before the first day, right?   Well, since I had a coffee at like 17:00, I am not tired at all. From what I can see when she comes back, Deirdre isn't either.

"Hey, Moon, tell me about your family. What are they like?" And here she goes, making me all sentimental again.

"Well, they are amazing. There's Mom and Dad, they're both accountants, and therefore they are busy most of the time. I see them maybe once a day; the rest of my time is spent with my sister Emma and our neighbor James. Emma is thirteen years old, but she simply is wise. She has big, brown eyes that look serene even in the most disastrous situations. Her advice is the best you could ever ask for, and sleeping next to her makes me feel safe, even though I'm much older. Maybe I feel safe knowing she is safe, I don't know. She is the most important person in my life, that's a spot I could never give to anyone else. She loves art, her paintings are amazing and her dancing is just as good."

 I do not know when the tears started streaming down my face, but I can hear them falling onto the pillow with a perfectly balanced mixture of nostalgia and love. I checked to see if Deirdre was still listening, and sure enough she laid on her side towards me, listening carefully to my words.

 "Emmy and I have this secret habit or ritual or however you want to call it... if one of us is feeling down, we call upon a 'secret night', in which we get together in one of our rooms with popcorn, candy, blankets and an eighties or nineties movie. We watch the movie and then talk about whatever is on our minds with the company of gummy bears and a chocolate bar for each." I can perceive Deirdre's smile in the dim light; I guess she is picturing the whole thing. I take a deep breath and continue on. "And then, there's James..."