Untethered | ✏

1

Never trust a survivor till you find out what they did to survive.

Guns. Guns everywhere. The scent of blood had filled me with a sense of dread and before I knew it, tears were dripping down my face. I watched them fall right beside me. I watched the life get sucked out of each and every one of them and I did nothing to stop it. All I did was stand there, defenseless and motionless. When they stopped breathing, so did I. I let my life end right there, in that room, alongside the people I loved. My cowardice had caged me.

"Ivy?" Mom called softly, breathing me back to life. I lifted my head up from my bowl of cereal to find my family eyeing me in concern. Although I hated the lines of worry that had been permanently etched onto their faces, it wasn't fair to blame them. I gave them reason to be concerned.

Mom tucked a stray hair behind my ear and smiled reassuringly. "It's not the end of the world, V,"she whispered soothingly. My eyes immediately brimmed with tears. I blinked them back before the others could take notice. "I'll be back by lunchtime. And besides, you've got Izzy and Maxy to keep you company."

I glanced over at Max, who was trying his hardest to convince Izzy not to tell Mom about something. "Fine, I won't tell her,"Izzy grumbled. Mom and I stifled back our laughter, counting the seconds in our head before Izzy's tattle-tale timer would set off.

"Mommy, Maxy spilled maple syrup on your new coat!"

Maxy punched Izzy's arm and I reached over to give him a high-five. "Oh no! Looks like you don't have any other good coats to wear to the interview!" I sighed dramatically, then quickly leaned in towards Maxy. "You grab the maple syrup, I'll get the rest of her coats. Run, run, Little Man!"I stage-whispered, and Maxy immediately jumped out of his seat and dashed into the kitchen. Izzy ran after him, being the more responsible sister.

Mom rolled her eyes, but Dad just looked pained. "Ivy, you know you have to get out of here some day..."
I sighed. I was making it hard not only for myself, but for them too. I depended on them for everything. Wasn't it hard enough for them to deal with the loss of two children?

"Len, not now,"Mom urged, scared that I was going to have a breakdown. "It's okay,"I whispered. "It's okay." I was convincing them way more than I was convincing myself.

Leonard understood me so well that it was hard to believe he wasn't my real father. Sometimes he understood me even better than my mother did, and it was in those times that I truly believed that you don't have to be like someone to understand them.

That's how it was with you and me. Always. We were polar opposites, yet we understood each other better than anyone else could. We supported each other even when we didn't agree with each other. That day, all that changed.

"Maxy, no!" Izzy shrieked, running out of the kitchen. Maple syrup was dripping from her curly blonde locks. Mom gasped, while Dad hurried into the kitchen to grab a dish towel. Maxy giggled. "Vivi, look! Thyrup!"

Mom threw me a pleading look. I shook my head furiously, knowing full well that I was a lost cause. "Please?" Mom asked softly, and I mentally cursed her for being gifted with charmspeak.

I nodded numbly, handing over her handbag and walking her to the door. "You'll be okay?" she asked.

"Do I have a choice?" I shot back. She kissed my forehead and tucked back that curl that wouldn't stop falling onto my face. "You'll come back, won't you?" I whispered.

See what you did to me? I can't even do ordinary things like looking after my step-siblings for a few hours without fearing something will go terribly wrong. I can't even part with the people I love without feeling like it's forever.