Vitals

Chapter 6

That night was clear. Ora hesitated when she got out of the car. She turned and gave Klaus one last look. His hair was still a little stringy from the water and he had sand embedded on the hair from his calves. And once she turned away from his glance, she realized everything would be different now. No turning back to the normal friendly relationship they shared. All those childhood romances were turned to nothing, and what was soon to come was real. This was now real.

Another sleepless night left Ora very exhausted the next morning. Something changed about her because instead of dressing like a guy, she slipped on a pair of ballet flats and tied a red dress with black lace around her waist. Ora had girly clothes but ever since she had gotten into high school they just didn't feel right anymore. Today was different though; She felt beautiful.
But to her surprise, Klaus wasn't at school that day. It defeated the whole purpose of the dress. She felt that, honestly, she was lost. Her best friend was gone and her mind was focused on his warm chest and soft skin.
But her absent mind didn't excuse the unwanted stares from her fellow high school students. She felt their eyes and she knew their purpose. Dresses were not her thing but they sure seemed to attract attention: the cat-calls from the guys, and the glares and sneers from the girls. It made Ora feel slightly uncomfortable and a little self conscious. But it didn't diminish her rare feeling of absolute beauty.

Immediately as she arrived back home she picked up her phone and called Klaus. No answer. Where was he? On one of the most important days he was supposed to be present for, he was off the grid from Ora. She was starting to worry about him. So she dug through her closet to find a thick hoodie and she changed into a pair of black booty shorts.
Ora was alone in her house. Her brothers were at work and her mother had been out of town for the next few weeks. This was the perfect opportunity to break the rules, after all she had a reasonable excuse. Ora hopped on her bike and plugged in her headphones hanging around her neck. Klaus' house was halfway across town but she didn't care how far she had to go. This wasn't about their newly found romance, they were inseparable. And she had a bad feeling.

Ora's legs were tired. It was like a tense feeling in her thighs that was pulling on her muscles. But she was only a block away.
As soon as she pulled up, she turned off her music, slid off her bike and almost collapsed. She was so overwhelmed that her legs were starting to give out.
The first thing she noticed when she got to Klaus' house was that there were several cars parked out front. She new that she might regret pressuring herself with so much anxiety from all the staring eyes as she walked through the front door, but she had her reasons; her concerns. So she took a deep breath and instead of knocking, she intruded through the back door.
A roar of conversation could be heard from the family room so Ora slowly made her way across the house to get a closer look. She didn't turn the corner, but she could hear Klaus' mother in tears:
"It was a suicide. Klaus hasn't spoken to me since it happened."
This was enough to motivate Ora to run up the stairs to Klaus' room, unnoticed.