Take Me Away | ✔️

23. THE STORY

I HAD WOKEN UP IN MY BED without even realizing that I was moved. I was always a light sleeper because of the nightmares and just by nature but that night, I don't remember being woken up to walk up to my room which meant that my brother must've carried me out of the taxi, inside the house, and up to my room.

Not bothering to shower first, I had walked to mom's rooms immediately to see if some of her things were still there but I was wrong. All of it was in the three boxes by the bed and all I could imagine what were the things inside it—her clothes, bags, even makeup. Mom had owned little amount of things and it didn't matter to her whether she would wear the same thing over and over again and that was why I figured it was easy for Sean to put it all in the boxes.

Everything had already changed in the days that I was gone and it made me wish that mom was still alive and telling us everything we should do even if she would always claim that I would always do the opposite.

Empty closets. Empty drawers. And an empty bed.

As I sat in her bed, I couldn't help but just eye the three boxes in front of me. Especially the letter that was on top of the bed with my name on it, bold and huge letters.

SAMANTHA.

Sean did mention that there were letters each assigned to us—her family. Somehow, it was even different seeing it than knowing about it. I picked up the letter, my fingers running through her handwriting. It was messy but still beautiful—no doubt she was definitely in a hurry to write this letter for us.

Yet, even If it was already in my hands, I couldn't manage to open it.

Sighing, I walked back to my room and placed the letter down to my bedside table, then went downstairs, smelling the bacons that were being cooked halfway down the stairs. There were already pancakes on the plate in the middle of the table. I watched as Sean grabbed the plate again and put the bacons beside the pancakes.

"Everything's ready," Sean announced, cocking a brow at me. "Grab some plates and I'll get the juice and the mugs, yeah?"

Agreeing with a nod, we had set up the table in a matter of minutes and had already grabbed the food between us, me going for the bacons first while he went for the pancakes.

We ate in silence or a while, watching my brother chew and swallow as I did the same. Soon enough, I wondered how many times he was here at the house, eating alone. Did he ever just go to the guys and eat there or invite Alex over? Did he even eat at all? He looked like he lost a few pounds, now that I have noticed it, which meant that he wasn't eating as much as he was now.

"So," the urge to shake my foot just to try and get rid of the awkwardness that I was feeling was getting stronger but I knew I had to quit that habit. "Should I expect everybody coming here because they know that I'm here or—"

Shaking his head, he took another bite of his pancakes. "I haven't told anyone yet. So, you get to choose who you want to tell first that you're back. Your phone is with Alex, by the way, they're trying to use it to pinpoint your location but I'm pretty sure they know you are already given that they check the cameras in the street."

There was no doubt that all he said was truth but if Alex already knew I was here, why hasn't he come here? Why was I even questioning this? I knew that Alex would come sooner or later but there was part of me that wished that he would barge into our door right now and yell at me for leaving him, or for not telling him where I would go.

He told me he still loved me and yet, I left him. Just like how I left Travis.

God, Travis. I miss him. I really, really, really do.