One-Hundred - A Collection of Short Stories

We Could Be Heroes.

Her pale green eyes were blank as she stared out at the rain-soaked street. Every once in a while, a car would drive past, spraying water as it went; aside from this, however, the only sound heard was the soft drumming of rain against the window pane.

"Hey," a man's gentle voice interrupted the soft pattering of the water against the window.

Involuntarily, Blaire turned to look, even though she knew who it was.

"Hey, Koda," she said quietly. She had tried to put more interest into it, but it came out as half-hearted as she felt, and it hurt her even more when she saw his face fall. It was a combination of understanding, sympathy, and concern; Koda would know that something was bothering her, he always knew.

"What's wrong?" He asked quietly, his brow furrowed slightly.

But Blaire just shook her head, turning back to the window. Her shoulders sagged, and her elbows rested on her knees; one hand was reached up to her face, and she rested her chin in her palm, staring forwards blankly. "You know what's wrong," she answered, her voice almost a whisper.

Blaire felt the bench sag, and she knew that he had sat down beside her. "Mom," he confirmed simply, staring forwards. Out of the corner of her eye, Blaire saw him look down, his jaw clenched. It was a tough subject for both of them; and yet, every year, they are reminded of the day she died. She never found clarity, never found peace, not even in the moments before she took her last breath. Blaire remembered standing there, wishing that she had never been born; if she and Koda had never been brought into he picture, her mother would have had the chance to live her life. She would have had a chance at happiness.

"She did love us, you know," Koda said, looking up at the ceiling, a deep breath vibrating in his chest. "She didn't regret keeping us. She told you, she told me."

Blaire did not move. "But if she had given us up, or if she had never even made the mistake of dating that man in the beginning, she would have been happy. She would have been alive." She looked over at Koda, and though he met her gaze steadily, she could tell that he was unsure. He stared for a few moments before finally turning away, looking down, his jaw clenching again, but only for a brief moment.

"Remember when we got lost in that field?" He asked, though he was obviously not expecting an answer. "It was the middle of winter. We would have frozen to death if we were out there any longer." Koda said, beginning to recite the story. "Mom had just taken her medications, like she did at the same time every evening. She probably just wanted to sleep, you know how they made her; tired, disoriented. She hardly knew where she was going when she took those, so she stayed in bed." A brief pause; it may have seemed like it was to let his words sink in, but Blaire knew that it was probably because he was trying not to cry. "But she still went out to find us. She probably saved our lives, Blaire. She wouldn't have done that if she didn't love us."

Blaire looked over at Koda for a brief moment, then out the window, then at the ground. "Maybe," she said. "But it just... It makes me feel awful. She worked so hard, she helped us. She was our hero that night, and she still is. She's the reason we're alive, and who we are today. I've never done anything like that."

"But you can," Koda insisted, his voice sincere. "You will. You might already be someone's hero, you just don't know it. Anyone could be a hero. We could be heroes."

Blaire nodded, lifting her head to stare out at the street once again. "I know," she told him. "But we can also be villains."

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Starring;
Blaire, introduced in the last prompt, "Did You Steal My Poptart?". In this prompt, we are exploring her darker side, a part of her past that she is forced to confront over and over, every single year.
Koda, Blaire's twin, also known as her better side. He is serious, but a gentleman, and loves his sister dearly. For a while, she tried to cut him out of her life, and all he has ever wanted was to have her back; its hard to live when you're missing your other half.

Word Count; 673