Sadness and Sunshine

Chapter 11

Frank woke up before me and noticed his bag was packed. I felt a light tap on my shoulder and woke up immediately, panicking for a second. The minute I didn't see Frank in the bed, for whatever reason I thought the worst. But there he was beside me.

"Oh, hi Frank," I laughed nervously.

He smirked and rolled his eyes fondly, pointing at his bag. His eyes were big and bright.

"Did you pack my bag for me?" he asked, his eyebrows raised.

I nodded, sitting up in the chair. I couldn't tell if he was happy or angry. I'd never seen him angry before, just annoyed, so I wasn't sure of the difference.

"Yeah, sorry. I just wanted to do something nice for you," I said, sounding more timid than I meant to.

Frank giggled and sat on the bed, facing me. Something about him placed up against the storm outside felt very interesting to me; it was a strange contrast. It was getting dark and Lorraine would be back soon to say goodbye. I was excited but I knew I'd miss her; it just kind of felt bad.

I listened to the sound of the rain for a while and waited for Lorraine. She came in late with a bouquet of roses and a bag full of treats and other things. The roses were for Frank and she brought candy for both of us. As we started looking at our goodies, she picked things up and made a pile of my things. In a frenzy, having forgotten to pack, I left Frank's side, accidentally kicking him. My foot hit his chest just barely, and though he was fine and I didn't hit him too hard, I apologized to him like there was no tomorrow.

"No, you're fine, go pack," he said, furrowing his brow while being momentarily stern.

Frank was eating some of the candy and as I got my bag, he started talking to Lorraine again. I liked how friendly they were with each other; my two best friends were getting along. As they spoke, I got my bag all packed. The excitement I felt was unlike any other. I'd been to concerts and been all over the country, but getting to stay with Frank had to be the most exciting thing of all.

When all was ready to go, I gave Lorraine her card. Her eyes got a little red and watery as she read it, and she motioned for me to hug her.

"Oh sweetheart," she said with a sigh, "I don't think anyone has ever been nice enough to give me such appreciation, let alone call me a second mother."

The hug was warm and loving. It felt like home to me, and that's where the mixed feelings came in. I just knew I had to keep in touch and that's all there was to it. Things would be okay.

As the night came to an end and Lorraine had been and gone, I sat up watching a movie with Frank. He was laughing and trying to eat popcorn, though it kept making him gag. His heavy lidded eyes were getting heavier; sleep was upon us. I wanted to stay up all night with him and talk and just have fun, considering it was technically our last night alone together. I'd miss it just being the two of us. Perhaps it wouldn't really be that bad. I knew I'd be happy, I just didn't know how long it would last.