The Girl in Lace

Chapter 1

"Bye mom," I said quietly, hugging her tightly. She kissed my cheek and a small tear made it's way down her slowly aging cheek. Even though we had more than enough money to prevent aging, my mom never did. I saw other posh women, and not very posh women too, who resorted to plastic surgery and all the treatments down that line. I'm sorry, I don't mean to be mean, but it just looks so fake. Like they're denying age, getting old, death.

It's kind of sad, in a way. Millions of people would kill to get to be an old granny or granddad, and yet here we are denying how old we are. Some people might say they just don't want to look old, which is understandable, but in my opinion, old people are beautiful. I know my granny is anyway. Whenever I see her, all I see is love and wisdom and pure beauty.

I made my way over to my beautiful granny next. She pulled me in close. She always gave the best hugs, well along with my mom. Maybe my mom got that from her. I hope I will too.

"You're going to have so much fun, sweetheart," My granny smiled softly at me, with eyes, which brimmed softly with new tears, shining in earnest. They made her deep blue eyes shine even more. She held me out, and just looked at me. Like she was searching for something. Then she pulled me in again, even closer this time.

"But please don't have too much fun. I do want you to come back soon, you know?" She laughed heartily. I could feel her chest moving unsteadily as the laughs tumbled out of her mouth. When they subsided, I felt a few warm tears land on my cheek. I looked up to see my granny smiling but crying at the same time.

"Go. Go Nalia, love, before I start crying again," My sweet granny laughed again while she pushed me encouragingly forward.

The gate stared at me threateningly. Not that I wasn't looking forward to it. I had always wanted to do this. Just, I had kind of forgotten that I'd have to leave my family for a while.

There they were. All of them. Well, OK, maybe not all of them. They'd had a little going away party last night for me, where all my cousins and aunties and uncles had come over, along with all my friends and some of my parents close friends too. My mom stood there, beside my dad, with his arm around her and her hand holding onto little Effie’s hand for dear life. Effie's small four-year-old brain didn't really know what was going on. She knew I was going away to an orphanage, where lots of little kids had no parents to love and mind them. She knew I was going over to help them and work there. She knew it was in Brazil, but she didn't know where Brazil was. She knew her big sister wouldn't be back for a month but she didn't know how long a month was. Still, her tear stained was evident for all to see, although she had long since stopped crying since I had given her my favourite ring. It was a delicate looking, silver claddagh ring. The two hands held the heart in the middle. There was some type of tiny sparkly grey stones lodged into the crowned heart. She had looked up claddagh rings online, and seen other people wear claddagh rings to, but she had never seen one like hers. It was simple, but so beautiful, and Effie had long admired and longed for it.

I had told her to mind it for me until I got back. She had nodded happily, and had hastily tried to fit it onto her fingers. It was too big though. I had taken it from her while her big blue eyes with grey flecks in them had stared, worriedly at me, thinking that I was taking it back. I had smiled comfortingly and taken her small, chubby hand in mine and fit the ring onto her thumb. Then she had looked up at me, her eyes bedazzled, along with her contagious smile and she'd hugged the life out of me.

I looked at them all now. Standing there staring at me with happiness and sadness in their eyes. I could tell they were trying to be happy for me but they were also worried. Just in case anything happened. Even though my mom knew the woman who ran the orphanage over there, which was the only reason she was letting me go.