Possessions

"Caley, I won't ask you again."

"Mom, I'm not throwing anything out," Her mother sighed.

"Caley," she paused, her tone turning serious. "One box by the end of the day," she said sternly before walking out of the ill-furnished bedroom.

Caley frowned, arms crossed over her chest. She looed over to the adjacent window, the stormed over sky doing nothing to brighten her mood. Surrounded by brown boxes, she decided her best bet was to open one. The game plan so far, as her inner dialogue declared, was to unpack her boxes and replace the items she wanted to throw away into them.

Caley walked over to where the boxes laid in front of the mirror. She takes a glance at herself before picking up the box by her feet. She rolled up the sleeves of the white sweater she was wearing, pulled back her brown hair into a quick pony tail, and took the scissors placed on the ledge of the desk. With the scissors in one hand, Caley slid the closest box between her legs and sliced through the tape. Immediately the familiar scent of burnt matches and peppermint flooded the room and the familiar blanket of nostalgia wrapped around her. The item on top caught her attention, and careful hands pulled it out. The pads of her fingers slid into line almost automatically with eh soft fur of Mr. Snuggles. Mr. Snuggles, the bay pink bunny, had been her bet friend since she was six. She couldn't stop the grin that slid its way onto her face the moment they locked eyes. 'Well' she decided, 'I can't throw away Mr. Snuggles.' The movie nights, picnics in the park, late night chats, and days at the fair spent with Mr. Snuggles were precious memories she couldn't stand to throw away; at least, not just yet. Cupped hands placed Mr. Snuggles on the shelf above the bed, and dove back into the box. There were a few old stuffed toys that'd seen better days, ant other so torn up by their old mutt that even her memories weren't enough to spare them. She couldn't help but to feel a sense of pride as she tossed them in a box.

There were old duds, but the box held other well kept gems. There was Cuddlesby the cat, Mrs. Fluffers the dog, and even Goldy the fish; on of her less original names. She, of course, had to place them next to Mr. Snuggles, and didn't bother resisting the feeling of home that as she felt as she looked at her family.

As Caley felt a soft kind of happiness, it was taken back all of a sudden by a knock at the door.

"Hey," muttered Garrett, in one muted syllable.

Caley winced slightly, still not used to such a neutral tone from her brother.

"Feel free to come in," she gestured, disapproving of her brother's tendency to lean against door frames dramatically.

He paused for a millisecond before sitting down beside his sister. Caley sat in silence, feeling as though she couldn't sort through her "life that had been" in front of her sibling. Eventually, the silence became too much, and Caley spoke out.

"Garrett, no offence, but did you need something or..." Her brother rolled his eyes.

"Wow, well never mind now, I can go-"

"Gare, come on." Caley more softly, managing to catch her brothers eye.

He paused, his back to her as he stood up.

"I got fired today, from Dino's." Caley let the silence hang above them in a thick fog before speaking.

"Garrett are you serious?" She couldn't hide the hint of annoyance in her voice. "You know Mom needed you working, what were you thinking?"

Garrett still didn't face her, but responded. "It was some stupid customer complaint or something, I hated that job anyways. I've had it since forever and I want to just...I don't know, move on." Caley furrowed her brow.

"Gare..." She trailed off, not exactly knowing what to say.

"Caley it's fine, it's just, maybe some things are better left in the past." He turned back to her finally, showing a soft smile as he left the room. Caley sighed, feeling as though the room was less grey without her brother there.

All these memories and sullen conversations were getting to be too much, and Caley coped the only was she knew how; by going to the lake. She dusted herself off, walking down the steps quickly, heading out towards the lake. It was short distance, and she knew the well. Very soon, she found herself staring at reflective waters. Soft shores and sunken skies combined, created the atmosphere of calm that allowed her thoughts to flow freely. She thought of the ones she loved, the ones she knows, the ones she ceased to know. Ever since her Dad left she always found herself here, at the lake, thinking about what could've been if he was still around. She picked a smooth stone, and threw it as far as she could, until the fog covered even the ripples in the lake. 'Maybe some things are better left in the past', Garrett's voice was repeating in her head. She found herself walking back to the house, opening the front door and sitting back down next to the half empty box.

She threw in some old clothes, broken jewelry, and Nancy Drew novels, before coming upon the last item. It was an old photo, probably taken a few years ago, in the park by their old house. She refused to look at it too long, the sight was almost tragic; a perfect family, a perfect day, a shattered life. The picture frame was broken, with a crack sliced down the middle. She could replace the glass, but she couldn't replace the cracked family or broken memories. Caley took the photo, and carefully set it to the side. She thought of Garrett, her Mom, her Dad, and her sister Phoebe, as she stared at what she decided to keep.

"Cales? Are you done?" Her mom's voice pulled her out of her trance

"Hm? Yeah I-" She took one slow look around the still unfamiliar white walls. She looked at the shelf above the...her bed. With two arms wide she grabbed everything off the shelf and slid them into the box. She wanted to keep what they represented, but the things themselves she knew she could let go of. In the end, Mr. Snuggles was just a stuffed rabbit, a job was only temporary, and a picture was just an image on a stupid piece of paper.

"Here Mom, I'm done."