Together Apart | ✓

|Chapter XXV|

I find that when you live life, life will love you back

Chapter 25: For richer or poorer...

I dug deeper into my closet searching high and low for the last five minutes. I regret placing it right at the back of the closet but then again I didn't want anyone to get a hold of it. Even though no one would be snooping in my room, I still kept it hidden.

I squinted in the dark relying on the only light coming from the lamp on my night stand. When my hand came into contact with the texture of cardboard, I dragged the heavy box out.

A few particles of dust were on it due to how long it had been in there for. The word private was written with a bold sharpie on the side of the box. I remember writing the words when I officially moved here.

I was given the choice of where to live. Either I could move out of the state to my grandparents or stay and let Cali be my guardian. My parents left her to be my guardian if anything were to happen and I trusted their decision plus I've known Cali my whole life to also trust her.

I could've been an orphan sent to a foster home if my grandparents were non existent and if I had no close family friend. But fortunately I was an orphan who wasn't dumped in the next foster home that was available. It didn't sound fortunate that I was an orphan but that was one of the things I was going to be labelled as for the rest of my life.

I carefully took off the lid of the box nervous of the contents withheld inside. It's almost been a year but it was still difficult for me. A heavy feeling would weigh on my heart from any picture of them, the mention of them, an object of theirs—pretty much anything triggered me.

My hand reached in and pulled out a random photograph that was still in perfect condition. I hadn't yet looked at the actual image scared to bring back the memories but it was time I faced my fears.

For a whole year I've avoided looking at an actual image of them to purposely try forget how they looked but they were imprinted in my head. It's quite impossible to just forget about the people who raised you from the moment you breathed for the first time (although I couldn't breath on my own at birth).

My eyes closed and I let out a light breath to prepare myself for the emotional wreck. I focused my mind on something else to distract myself.

I opened them first looking at night sky through my curtains then to the photo in my hand.

It was my first athletics meeting I attended where my talent for sprinting was discovered. Both my parents were there since parents usually tried to always be there when your little to show their support. I know I would've flopped the race without the cheers from my parents, well my father, mom was the more civil one.

That's where I got my formal mannerisms from. Mom always had a straight posture, legs crossed, exceptional table manners—no elbows on the table, always eat with a knife and fork—those sort of things. Naturally I adopted these acts becoming who a mini presentation of her.

The 'wild' side I told Tyler about I got from dad. It just didn't come out often especially around acquaintances. Reason to why I appeared shy to other people only because they never took the efffort of getting to know me. I didn't let anyone in easily, I believed you had to earn someone's trust, it's not given.

My thumb lightly traced over the image making sure to not smudge it. Last thing I needed was a precious memory ruined. I learned to appreciate pictures more than I did before.

My smile was so bright holding up a shiny gold medal and a trophy. On either side of me was each parent having proud looks on their face. Their only child at the age of nine already receiving awards.