The Locket.

Chapter 1.

When I was little, my grandfather gave me a gift. It wasn't one of those cheesy gifts, like a pony or an expensive computer; it was a locket. A gold locket with silver, cursive writing in the center of it. A gold chain kept it fastened around my neck. It was the most beautiful thing in the whole world. I was eight at the time and my grandfather was dying from cancer. I sat on the edge of the hospital bed and looked into his warm, brown eyes. His small smile stretched into a weak grin. He rested his big hands on my little ones. " Grace, I don't want to leave this earth quite yet, but i'm afraid, I have no choice in the matter. i've been fighting this terrible cancer since you were six and it's about time for my battle to end.", he told me with a grave expression.

" Are you ready to go?", I asked, trying not to shed a tear.

" No, I am not. Actually, that's not quite true. I am ready....to meet my Maker, but I am not ready to leave my little Gracie."

" I am not ready for you to leave either!"

The tears that I was willing myself not to cry began to fall down my cream-colored cheeks and onto the hands of my grandfather. His eyes twinkled as he himself tried not to cry. I was to young for this life-altering moment, this saddening event that is causing so much stress and heartache for me right now. Yes, I know that he has been battling this for over two years, but it stills hurts because this time he is not winning. He's not going to win. He's not going to win. I keep telling myself that, so that way I might be able to accept it better, but no, I can't. Nothing could prepare me for this. It made me kind of angry. He just laid there on the white Hospital bed, looking at me with brown, wizened eyes. He slid my brown curls behind my ears and lifted my face up to him.

" I know that.", he said, barely above a whisper. His voice was giving up too.

" Where will you go?", I asked, scooting closer towards him.

" Someplace high up in the sky and above the clouds!"

" How will I ever.....see you?!". I broke into a loud sob. I struggled to catch my breath, but it was out of reach, just like my grandfather would soon be. I shook the thought from my mind as I listened to his response.

" I don't know the answer to that...yet. Although, I do know one thing!", he told me.

" What is that?"

" I will always be in your heart. No matter what you do, who you become, where you are, I will always and forever live in your heart."

That's right! He would always be in my heart! I didn't know what to say, so I wiped my tears with my sleeve and said, " I will save you a spot....you know...in my heart."

" Thank you, Gracie."

" Your welcome, Grandfather." I hugged him tightly, ignoring all of the wires that were attached to his fragile body. It felt so weird. Here he was in my little arms, but pretty soon, he wouldn't be. He would be gone in...Heaven. I mean, my parents told me about this. They did their best to explain it to me, but I still didn't quite understand.

" Grace, I have something for you.", he said as the grave look took over his cheery face again.

" Yes....", I trailed off waiting for him to continue.

" Here, my dear, It was your grandmother's, but now it's yours.", he said. He pulled out a gorgeous, heart-shaped locket out of the hospital pillowcase. " They took all my belongings, so I hid this.", he finished. He handed it to me as he welcomed the smile back to his face. I gently lifted it from his hand and placed it onto mine. I stroked the locket's chain with my index finger. A smile crept onto my tear-stained face.

" Pretty, huh?", he asked, while he gazed into my green eyes.

" Yes, Grandfather, it's beautiful!", I chimed.