13 Reasons Why (Emison)

Tape 1, Side B

"Welcome back. So glad you're still listening. Are you having fun? You must be wondering who's next and why. Is it you? What did you do? How did you end up on these tapes? Maybe you did something cruel. Or maybe you just watched it happen. Maybe you didn't eve realize you were being cruel. Maybe you didn't do anything at all. And maybe you should have. Too late. I think you know exactly what you did. And after these tapes, you'll never forget it. I know I won't. Oh, and by the way... I'm still dead."

I pull my headphones out, breathing hard. I can't listen to this right now. Not so early in the morning.

A knock on my door sounds and then my mother's voice is there. "Emily, wake up. I made breakfast."

I furrow my brow. "You did what?" My mom never makes breakfast. Usually it's grab a granola bar and go.

"We're all having breakfast together this morning."

"Oh. We are?" 

"Yes," My mother insists. "Be down soon."

I hear her walk away and sit up, slipping the headphones back on.

"Friendship. It's complicated. But don't worry. You won't go through this alone. That's not fun. Trust me. I've been there. Now it won't always be easy. It might even hurt a bit. Or a bit more than a bit. That depends on you. But fear not, we'll get through this. Step by step, tape by tape. You and me. Together. And don't forget... there are others." 

I stop the tape, again deciding that I can't handle anymore right now. It's just all too much. Getting up, I grab a towel on my way to the bathroom to shower. Then I pull on some jeans and a black t-shirt. I make my way downstairs for whatever breakfast thing is going on down there.

"Eggs will be ready in a minute," my mom says. "Dig into the french toast."

I grab a mug and fill it with coffee, sitting down slowly. Seeing all the food on the table in the morning is just such a foreign thing to me. "So... why are we doing this?"

"Well, it has been almost two weeks since we sat for dinner together as a family," my mom says, finishing up the eggs. "I am nothing if not a realist so I am proposing that we have family breakfast everyday instead. We just each have to get up a little bit early."

"How early did you have to get up? Yesterday?" I joke, looking at all the food in front of me.

My mom chuckles. "We won't do the full spread every day, but it's nice to start off right." She sits and begins spooning some fruit onto her plate.

I pick up my glass of orange juice and see a prescription pill bottle sitting there on the table. I lift it up, reading that it's mine.

"Emily, we know the last few weeks have been hard." My mom sighs and leans forward.

"I stopped taking these two years ago," I state.

"They're still available if needed." Mom reminds me.

I narrow my eyes. "They're not. And they're probably, like, expired anyway."

"It's a new prescription," she says.

I look at my parents, glancing between the two of them. Do they think I'm still crazy? I don't have anxiety anymore. I set the pill bottle down and stand up. "I gotta go get ready for school." 

I get up to my room and put my headphones on. For some reason I want to hear Alison's voice right now. 

"See, I can guarantee that one of the reasons that you're still listening is that you really wanna know. Who are the others? Who else is responsible for my death? Well, you're going to learn soon enough. And, of course, they're going to learn about you, too. If they haven't already. What? Feeling paranoid? On edge? Yeah. High school does that to a person."