Victoria's Secret

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

I emerged from the water, my hair plastered to the sides of my head as my lungs hungrily took in the much needed air. Standing on the dock was Connor with a bath towel in his hand. He stood there calmly with a blank expression across his face. I climbed out of the cool water on to the wooden surface as Connor placed the towel around me without a word.

We walked back to the house in silence. Both of us engulfed in our own thoughts. My head spinned around Ms. Ross.

How the hell could she be dead? Just like that. How? God knows I loved that woman with all of my heart. My life was filled with so little people that I could trust and love and yet He still took her from me...

Why? I wondered to myself.

As we entered the house from the back door and went through the kitchen I felt my stomach twist at all the memories I had of Ms. Ross cooking in here. I stopped in the middle of the kitchen and closed my eyes as I felt Connor stop as well.

"Victo-" I cut him off before he could finish.

"Please tell me this isn't real Connor," I whispered, "please tell me I'm dreaming or... Or that this is one of those pranks where the camera crew will come out any moment telling me that all this isn't real. That I'm on some reality TV show where they prank people or something." Connor sighed behind me.

"You should change out of those wet clothes before you get sick. The air conditioning is on." he said instead.

I opened my eyes and looked down. My soaked clothes and shoes had wet the floors and there was shoe prints all over the white tiles. I pulled the towel tighter around me as I began to actually feel the coolness of the house.

"Y-you should g-g-go," I forced out, my heart feeling heavy.

Connor looked worried. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," I lied, "I want you to go. I'll be fine." I gave him what I thought to be a reassuring smile and his frown deepened.

"Tori," he started.

"Please..." I shook my head. "Please go." I didn't want anyone to see the tears that were ready to spill. Especially not him. He had never seen me cry.

He put his hands deep in his pockets of his shorts as he said, "ok." then he left.

The following day I ignored all of his phone calls. I wouldn't leave my room if he said he was coming over. I just didn't want to be bothered. I ate and drank only when I was on the verge of passing out. Food was tasteless. When I'd put a little in my mouth I felt as if I would throw it back up.

Marie was in no better condition than me. Alcohol was what kept her going. She rarely touched anything thing in the cabinets to eat. She walked around like a zombie and hardly ever came out of her room. I could hear her phone ring and ring, begging to be answered but she'd always ignore it.

I surprised me how much Ms. Ross death affected her. I had never noticed before but Ms. Ross meant something to her. Often at night I'd heard her sobs that matched my own.

The day of the funeral, a week after her death, we dragged ourselves out of bed. I stood in the bathroom and just stared at the dark circles underneath my deep brown eyes. I splashed water on my face and busied myself with getting ready.

I stood under the hot sun with a bouquet of white lilies in my hand as the reverend continued with the prayers at the funeral. Ms. Ross laid shut inside of her polished casket near the hole that they would lay her in.

There were other people who stood under the sun listening to the prayers being said. I assumed them to be her family and friends. It felt so weird that she had a family. Ms. Ross had always been mines. My family. I never thought about her life when she wasn't at my house working... That's what I was; work.