The Missing Piece

Prologue

He made a vow, had three kids, and now? He's gone. I look longingly out the window of my bedroom and see the snow falling on the road our house is on, or rather his house is on. The Christmas cheer has been completely drained out of me.

I hear Skia, my twin, crying in the bathroom. She has the water running, hoping no one hears her sobs. I know how you feel I think to myself.

My mom walks into the room and places her sad, shaky hand on my shoulder. "Bently," she began, a sob stuck in her throat.

"Don't. Don't tell me you knew it was coming. Don't tell me it isn't his fault. I know it's his fault. He made Skia cry. He made the strongest person I have ever known cry. Don't try to make him look like a good person when clearly, he's not."

"I wasn't going to say any of that." she said as she moved her hand to my thigh and sat down next to me on my bed. "I don't want your father leaving us to ruin Christmas." She said what I was to shocked, angry, and scared to say. My father left us. On Christmas Eve. Left my mom. Left Skia. Left my brother Charlie. And what hurt most of all, left me. "So," she continued, bouncing me from my thoughts, "before your father left, we had gotten you and Skia each used cars so when you turn 16 in a week you'll have cars to get around."

My feelings were muddled. Sure, I was excited to have the car, but the anger and sadness from my dad clouded the joy. I say a quick thank you and my mom leaves the room. I get off my bed and enter the hallway. Charlie's room is across the hallway from the room I share with Skia. I walk up to the door and hesitantly knock.

"Hi Bents." I jump at the answer. Charlie, a happy and kind person, had anger and sadness trapped in his voice.

"How did you know it was me?" I said, walking into his room. His room was my idea of a typical guy's room. Sports posters all over the walls, video games on the table near his tv, and food rappers everywhere.

"Well," Charlie started,"Skia just walks in and mom is always humming. Well... She did" Silence falls between us and isn't interrupted until Charlie speaks up again. "I hate it."

"Hate what?"

"I'm the spitting image of a man who leaves his family the night before Christmas and without any goodbye or even a note. And we know he's not just going to a store or something because all his stuff is gone." He spoke harshly, with a tone I had never heard him use before. A growl-like tone was in his voice. "The only thing I don't have of him are my eyes." I stare into the familiar blue-gray eyes , the same ones Skia and I both have.

"But you're a nice, caring, happy person. It's the personality that really counts. And you got that from mom too." I stare into his eyes and see the sadness behind them.

"What about you?" he asks.

"Me?"

"Yeah, you've kept to yourself all day, mom's worried. I however can and always will be able to read you like an open book Bents. You and I are more alike than you may realize. I can see then muddled look behind those eyes, I just can't seem to place what is in the mess of emotions behind your calm image. You're not as strong as you appear to be."

I turn my head and look to the floor. I was done talking about my dad, I want nothing to do with him and I wasn't going to talk to Charlie, Skia, my mom, or anyone else about my father. I want to hide my emotions too. But Charlie was always one of the two people who could read me. Him and my dad.