Letters To My Mate

Chapter Nineteen

NINETEEN

With the delicate golden key in my hand, I strode over to the wardrobe and pushed the clothes to the side once again to reveal the small box that had taken over my mind. Would anything be in here? Is it the letters that Ethan and I exchanged? I doubt that they were the letters as he would not go to all that effort to hide them away – but this did not stop my interest in the box. The box was small and made of a dark wood; it looked like an antique and probably had a high value. On the top of the box was a very intricate carving of many spirals and flowers – it looked as if it came straight out of a Disney princess movie. There was no doubt that it belonged to my mother at some point within her life.

I inserted the key and twisted it, closing my eyes in anticipation but I opened them once again when I heard a small click that signalled its opening. Slowly lifting up the lid with both hands I was both in awe and in shock at what was in the box.

The box was filled with pictures of my mother on her own or of the three of us together; there were also old theatre tickets, restaurant receipts and other items that must be souvenirs from the dates my mother and father went on together. Also in the box was jewellery that I remember my mother wearing all the time when I was younger. This box was completely filled with memories of the time my mother was in our lives. Why had my father kept all of these in a box? Did he ever look inside this box within the past eleven years?

I heard noises outside the house and hurriedly shut the box, securely locking it and placing it back. I positioned all of the clothes back to how they were and shut the doors before planting the key back into the picture frame, turning it upside-down once again – I didn't want anything to look out of place. I exited the room, shutting the door gently behind me.

* * * * *

"What about this one?" Seb asked, pointing to a picture on his smartphone as I shook my head in amusement.

Sebastian was attempting to persuade me to dress up and look fancy/smart/beautiful (as he said this he panicked and rambled on about how beautiful I already was and how I didn't need makeup or to dress up to look beautiful) for when Ethan came home. He had written a list of things that I needed and a plan for the day – according to him, I should dress up and wait at their house while they picked him up. However, I knew that Ethan was expecting me to meet him at the airport, too. We had joked about going overboard with huge signs and getting to do the cliché running up to each other as we hug... In all honesty, however, I do not think I will be able to go. My father is almost always home now, just like he used to be, and I cannot let him know that I have friends as he would hurt both me and them. My father believes that if I am close to people, then I will confess to them about what happens at home; this is the reason I have not been able to make friends since my mother's death. Also, I know that Ethan will be disappointed if we finally meet. He has an image of a perfect girl that he wants and needs – a girl that is not me.

"I appreciate the suggestion Seb, but I don't want to meet him that way." I admitted, looking down at my hands that were resting on my lap, afraid that I had hurt his feelings.

"No, no. Don't feel bad as it's up to you, after all." He assured me, placing his hand over my own to calm me down.

"Thank you." I smiled back at him before suggesting my own ideas about meeting Ethan at the airport – it may not happen but if it did I wanted to be ready and surprise Ethan. For the rest of our lunch period, we jotted down ideas of what to make and do for Ethan when he finally comes home. And for Logan, of course – you can't forget about Logan.

When my last class of the day, English, was finished I was about to walk out of the door when Mrs Greene called me back into the classroom. I hadn't spoken to her other than when raising my hand in class, but I knew that she has been worrying about me a lot in the past few weeks.