Hanging by a Moment

3

Chapter 3

*Prom dresses, they always fit better on the mannequins

(This chapter should help you get a feel, of what some of my favorite characters look like. Thanks for reading.)

I hadn't been home in four days, but after Monday's surprise I could not bring myself to go back. Even though I wasn't home, I made sure to spend time with my sister on Thursday. She came over to Hay's house and we had dinner and watched Scandal together like we would normally do. I wasn't going to let my mother's presence stop me from seeing the most important person in my life.

On Saturday, I finally decided to drag, myself back home. My friends were expecting me to meet them at the mall in twenty minutes and I had to get my money to buy my dress.

I knew my mother was in there, I mean where else would she be? So I tried to be as quiet as possible when I opened the door, I was desperately hoping I didn't alert my aunt.

No such luck.

"Your home," auntie stated the obvious.

"Yeah, but not for long, I have to go get the money for my prom dress and then I'm off to the mall," I explained.

"Oh yes, it's just around the corner," she said using the overused phrased.

I smiled and nodded, a sudden movement in my peripheral caused me to snap my head to the left. The death glare on my face was all I needed to get my feelings through to the runaway-mother. She opened her mouth to say something, but then closed it. I smiled at her uncomfortableness.

My sister and I, along with my mother have the same emerald green eyes, but that was where most of the similarities ended. My mother was pale, whereas my sister and I were brown-skinned. Our father was black, and she's white. They were best friends turned lovers according to my aunt. I never really knew my father because he died in a boating accident when I was four, and his body was never recovered. I never really knew my mother either, except for the faint memories that I have from when I was five and under.

Maya was standing next to her, and I realized then that they had the same color hair. Well what do you know another similarity between them. I realized that I had been staring at her and quickly looked away diverting my attention to Maya.

"Do you want to go shopping for my prom dress with me," I asked.

"Of course!" she sang smiling widely. She ran up to me and hugged me, and I hugged her back. Maya and I were closer than any other siblings I've known. Our circumstances led us to lean on each other for support and comfort, and love.

I pecked her on the forehead and smoothed out her dark brown curls. "Well then get ready, we are leaving as soon as I get my money," She nodded and left to get her shoes.

Without acknowledging my mother, I ran upstairs to my bedroom. I paced over to my old white dresser, and opened the third drawer to the bottom. I reached all the way to the back, and used my hand to find my music box. It was the music box that my mom gave me right before our 'trip' here. It was an antique looking box, and had dancers engraved all around it. On the top of the box, there was a glass compartment, big enough for a wallet-sized picture. There was a picture of  her in there, along with my father. That was the only picture I had of the both of them together. It used to play Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata whilst a beautiful ballerina twirled around in circles on pointe.

Listening to the melody was the only thing that got me to sleep those months after she left. I played it so much, that one day it just stopped. I stopped just like my hope that she would come back stopped. Ever since that day I've never attempted to fix the music box, I didn't see the point. It's just a place where I keep my money now.