The Last Cheer (Book 1 of the Cheer series)

Eight

Silence fills the car as I am driving home from the hospital, and for once, I actually enjoy it. All I can hear is the car driving on the tar and my own breathing. I sigh and my analytical mind starts to get the best of me.

Will Steven ever come home? Will he ever wake up? I am so tired of this, going to the hospital every free afternoon, and talking to what seems to be dead weight. Does he even hear me? What's the use of it?

I shake my head, longing for the silence that I had in my head. As I arrive home, I run upstairs into Steven's bedroom. I stand outside his door and pause. I sigh as my fingers curl around the handle. I haven't been in his room since his accident. I shake my head, and take my hand off the doorway, and turn back around to leave, but I convince myself otherwise and turn back around and open the door anyway. As I walk in, his strong scent hits my nose, and the familiar childhood memories flood into my mind.

"Help me!! The monster under my bed wants to eat me!" I shout, I jumped onto the bed squealing, Incase the monster grabbed my foot. "Steven, please help me!" I plead, calling for my brother.

"Let us sort him out!" He shouts, and walks into my bedroom with his blue light saber from Star Wars. "Where are they Lissa?" He asks, pushing the button which would light up the saber.

"Over there!" I shout, and point at the monster hiding by my closet. Steven runs, and swings his saber at the imaginary monster.

"You should be safe now." He smiles and turns around to face me. He tucks me into bed. "You want do have a sleepover?" He asks and I nod eagerly. Mu brother smiles and climbs into the bed next to me. I smile, and my hero and I fall into a peaceful sleep.

The memory comes back to me like it was yesterday. The memories keep coming as I look around the room. Every single thing he has put up in his walls means something different. His room is pretty messy. He has a lot of clothes scattered on the floor, along with a lot of yogurt cartons, as he is way too lazy to throw them away. Posters of football players, and football fields line his walls, and he has a shelf, full to the brim of miniature trophies he has won. His desk of piled high with clothes and papers, but in the corner, next to his football, lies a framed photo of myself and Steven. He is in his football gear, and I am wearing one of his football jerseys. We are both grinning widely and I smile at the fond memory. It was his first game as captain of the team.

I pick up the frame, and before I can stop them, tears start to build up in my eyes. All the tears I possibly have left, I cry out once again. I shake my head and wipe my eyes. I look around his room once more. He has a group of photographs on his wall. There is one of him and Cameron surprisingly, when they were smaller, a few of him and his team mates, some of them in their football uniforms, others of them in casual clothes. In each one of them, Steven is smiling, or pulling a goofy face. There is also one of him with my parents, all three of them pulling a silly face. Finally, in the centre of the group, is a picture of me and him both laughing, caught unaware by the camera.

I turn and sit down at his messy desk and start to look through his many papers. There are some on football plays, others are love notes from some of his admirers, and I make sure I do not read those. I shake my head, and I continue to search through the papers. I am almost at the bottom of the pile, and I find an envelope. I turn it around, and find that it is addressed to me, with my name scribbled in his signature messy handwriting. I hesitate a little, afraid that I am imposing on his privacy, but I rip open the envelope. After all, it is addressed to me. I open the letter and try to read the messy handwriting.

Dear Melissa,

I cannot express how grateful I am for you, for your love, your support, and for your beautiful and caring nature.

I hate the fact that we might separate when it comes to college, but I can only treasure my time left with you. Even though we might be only a few minutes apart, I am still older than you. You will always be my little sister, and I will always be your big brother. I will always want to always fulfil that role.

I can't help it when I am overly protective of you. You are so beautiful, and you have many admirers which you don't know about. I regret that Lissa. After Cameron left, I became extremely protective of you, after I watched your precious heart break. I have seen the way that you look hopefully at the new couples forming and wish that was you, yet I scare all the boys away. I can't stand seeing you upset, or broken.

Lissa I love you so much. I don't know if this letter will ever see the light of day, but I just want you to know that I would give up everything to see you happy. Your happiness is one of the most of important things to be. You being happy makes me happy. I am so privileged to have a beautiful little sister like you, who I can always lean on to pull me through tough times. I don't deserve you, and yet, I have you.

So, I promise, as your older brother, that I will always, awash be there for you as you were always there for me. I love you Melissa, more than you will ever ever know.

Lots of love,
Steven.

I feel tears streaming down my cheeks, some wetting the already crumpled up paper. I close up the letter and put it back into the envelope and I cradle it to my chest. I walk back out of Steven's room and into my own, and I hold the letter close. I change into my pajamas, putting the letter on my bedside table, and climb into bed, only to read the letter again. Then, slowly but surely, I feel my eyes start to close and I drift off to sleep, the letter still enclosed in my fingers.