Six Letters To You

♚ Letter Four ♚

She was running, running so fast that she could not feel the ground underneath her; she felt like she was floating in the air, floating through the throngs of people on the streets. Take left turn, straight, then a right turn... she muttered silently as her heartbeat thundered in her ears. As she saw the large green cross in front of her, she increased her speed and dashed right in. 

It has been ten minutes she received the call from him. He sounded desperate, he sounded devastated. He was on the verge of breaking down; she could tell. That was why she sprinted all the way to the hospital with nothing on except a tank top, shorts, and slippers. 

The strong, pungent smell of antiseptic invaded her nostrils as she flew into the hospital. Slamming her right palm on the front desk, she said in between short breaths, "Where is Mrs Linton? Mrs Mary Linton?" The nurse sitting comfortable in her seat at the front desk looked up irritatedly from her paperwork. She was in the midst of a phone call, and she did not seem too pleased to be interrupted by a seemingly deranged girl with barely any warm clothes on in autumn.

But, the girl couldn't care less. Leaning forward and wrenching the phone out of the nurse's hand, she asked again, "Where is Mrs Mary Linton? Tell me now!" 

The nurse gave her a death stare, before harshly typing in something into the computer. "Room 304," she said shortly, before snatching the phone back out of the girl's hand with an equal amount of brute force.

The girl, without a moment of hesitation, sprinted up the stairs. Elevators were too slow, in cases of emergencies like this. 

At last, she reached the hospital room. The boy was sitting slumped in his seat, his head in his hands. She stopped short in her tracks, her slippers making a dramatically loud entrance as she arrived. The boy immediately looked up, his red and swollen eyes making eye contact with the girl's ones. 

The girl's heart stabbed painfully when she saw that his eyes were red from crying. She slowly walked to him, and sat down quietly next to him.

"Hey," she said, sneaking a glance at the boy, who was now staring at the floor.

"Hey," the boy replied, his voice coming out no louder than a whisper.

"Where's..." the girl cleared her throat, not bearing to use such an endearing term 'girlfriend' on the she-devil. After all these months, the strong liking for the boy still has not died down. On the contrary, it has grown stronger, too much stronger for the girl to bear. 

Fortunately, the boy seemed to understand her meaning. "She...she's uncontactable," he said in defeat.

The girl was at a loss of words. She certainly had much - too much - to say about that she-devil, but she did not want to sound as if she was badmouthing the boy's girlfriend right in front of him. It would be wrong, rude even. So she decided to change the topic. "How's...Mrs Linton?"

The change of topic made the boy feel even worse. Rubbing at a stray tear, he said, "She suffered from a heart-attack. The doctors are still trying to revive her."

The girl nodded, finally understanding the graveness of the situation. She knew that Mrs Linton was the closest to the boy. Unlike other boys his age, the boy did not mind admitting that he loved hanging out with his mother. Since the boy's father was frequently overseas due to his job, the boy grew even closer to Mrs Linton, and they were inseparable. If Mrs LInton were to pass away...

The girl couldn't even imagine what would happen to the boy.

The door creaked open, and two doctors and a nurse walked out of the room. The boy, even with his gaze cast to the floor, knew the verdict. Their footsteps spelled it all out. Heavy, regretful, despondent. 

"I'm sor-" the first doctor, a stout man with a bald head attempted to apologise, but the boy didn't care for his apology anymore. His mother, his dearest one, was...dead. He charged into the hospital ward, and froze as he stood at the foot of her bed. 

Her lifeless body, covered with a thin blanket, laid rigid and stiff on the hospital bed. The boy wanted to move, to run forward and fling the blanket off his mother. She was still alive, this must all be a mistake...She couldn't be gone... he thought as he shook his head in denial. 

The girl strode into the room shortly after, and her heart lurched as she saw the boy standing there, looking forlornly at the lifeless body that was once filled with laughter and vigour.

She took baby steps toward him, until she was only a few centimetres away from the boy. She vaguely made out the boy's muttering. "Not dead, still alive...Mother...not dead..."

And somehow, although Mrs Linton was not on close terms with the girl, she also felt the immense amount of sadness the boy was feeling. So, she did what mothers do to their child when they are feeling sad.

She tentatively slid her arms around his waist, and if it was even possible, the boy's body froze even more. Sensing the boy's discomfort, she attempted to retract them, but almost immediately the boy's rough hands held hers, stopping her from doing so.

With a swift movement, the boy spun round and pulled the girl into a tight embrace. A small gasp left the girl's mouth, but she quickly recovered and wrapped her arms around him, relishing in his warmth, providing him with the comfort and consolation he desperately needed.

This hug was filled with desperation and need, but even though it was filled with all of that sadness, it was a surreal moment for the girl.

*

Dear Kade,

It must have been a hard pill to swallow for you. I know she was your dearest; your closest kin. Having to lose someone dear to you must be really terrifying and devastating. After your mother's death, I used to imagine how I would feel if someone close to me left me all alone in this world.

To this day, I still chastise myself for thinking so. Why did I have to let my thoughts wander so much? I vaguely remember a superstition that went: What you think will most probably come true.

Now, I knew. I knew what it was like to experience the loss of a loved one, and it hurt. It hurt even more than stabbing your heart with a knife.

I knew what it was like losing you.

Love,

Kaylee xxx

I placed the pale yellow enveloped on Kade's grave after capping my pen. There would be rain soon; I could feel tiny raindrops on my face, and saw some that had landed on Kade's grave. It had been half a year since Kade passed on, and I honestly did not know how I managed to pull through the ordeal of living without him. I still continued visiting the shrink, but most of the times, I only listened half-heartedly to her preaching and advice. Sometimes, I would sneak out of the shrink's office during her frequent visits to the washroom. This was one of the several occasions I did so.

Now, standing before Kade's grave, I felt my nose stinging once again. The tears were coming back again. 

Feeling an irritating vibration in my pocket, I exhaled a huge sigh. Fishing out my phone, I harshly punched the 'Decline' button on my phone. The shrink was calling again. I just had to rush back to the office with some goodies for her to satiate her humongous appetite as a bribe for her to keep mum about my little escapades.

Typing in a short message, "Be right back. Blended coffee or a chocolate éclair today?", I stuffed the phone back into my pocket, and squatted down, my trembling hand touching the grave. I traced the golden italics that were engraved on the tombstone, spelling Kade's name. Feeling a vibration in my pocket again, I took my phone out once again.

Both this time round. 

"Moneygrubber," I said in disdain, as I sat down on the wet grass, the now heavy rain soaking my clothes.

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Fourth letter to Kade. :/ Two more to go and we're done!

Vote and comment if it touched your heart. :)

Love,

-Calistarilarila <3