The Phoenix Girl (Editing)

Chapter 7

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"Life is too short to live in sorrow"

This thought been on my mind ever since I had woken up. And I had believed it to be true. But maybe for some, life had seemed too long to not live with some sorrow. Even for some, they lived over one life and carried more than their own tales. A burden almost everyone must endure, as to never forget who they loved. I had woken up not too long ago and finished all of my things before Grandpa woke up. A staff member took him to the bathroom to help him do his business since he still had some trouble walking. Meanwhile, he was away another staff came in and brought breakfast on a tray and placed it next to his bed. On the tray were two bowls placed neatly and a spoon on each side, with what seemed to be oatmeal inside of the bowls. As soon as Grandpa came back, they helped him sit up on the bed and handed him one bowl along with a spoon so he could eat. The staff that brought the food in gave me the other one, and I thanked them before they all left, leaving Grandpa and me by ourselves to eat.

We enjoyed this time together in comfortable silence. The only sound was the spoon hitting the side of the bowl occasionally. And I looked at my Grandfather, with all of those wires hooked up to him. Today he seemed happy, relaxed and at ease. He seemed at peace as if everything had resolved itself and he could let go of all of his worries.

Once we both had finished eating, I took our bowls and placed them outside of the door so that the cleaning staff could take them later on. I cleaned my hands and walked back to the bed. Sitting down, I waited for Grandpa to make himself comfortable.

"Today we will finish our story, so be prepared. The next part contains events that may not sound pretty, but horrific. Please bare with it and listen to it with an open mind and heart, as you have been all of this time." I told him I would. I grabbed my journal and pen, ready to write the next and last part of this long tale.

One day, during her senior year, she stayed after school for band practice. She used her bandmate's phone to inform her Stepmother about the arrangement, and her Stepmother promised to tell her Father. What neither knew was this one night would change the rest of that family's lives. By the time that she left her practice, it was already six-thirty, so she walked back home, humming the new song they were practicing when something caught her eye. Against the dark and moonless night, where no stars could be seen, there stood a house with hungry flames devouring it. The horrors that had unfolded before her was one she could not hide from.

It was none other than her own home in flames. Dropping her stuff on the sidewalk, she ran to her home, and with no care ran inside. The door was already gone, broken off its hinges. She ran to her parents' room, attempting not to touch the hungry flames. The sight in the room was even more devastating. On the king-size bed lay her Stepmother with a bullet wound to her head. Tears streamed down her face as she fell to the ground.

Worried for her younger siblings, Victoria stood up and ran to their room, but when she searched and searched, she could not find them. As she was about to leave and search in another room, she heard small faint cries. She followed those cries that lead her to the closet door. Opening it slowly, Victoria found them huddled in a corner hidden behind the clothing. She ran to their bed and ripped off the blanket. Running to the bathroom she soaked the blanket and threw it onto her younger Sister and wrapped another one around her younger Brother. Picking up her younger Brother and taking her younger Sister's hand, she dragged them out of the house.

Passing her parents' room, she tried to make them go faster, so the kids wouldn't have to see their beautiful mother dead. They were so close to leaving the burning house when Victoria heard glass breaking. She stopped and pulled the kids closer to her, seeing her father's silhouette through the smoked windows. She turned around, still holding onto her younger siblings, and ran towards her back door. They finally made it outside. Victoria threw the blankets she had used to keep the kids safe from the hungry flames to the ground. Kneeling down in front of her Sister and Brother she checked for any injuries or burn marks. Only when she was fully satisfied that there was nothing, did she stop and look at them.