Kiss the Rain

Goodbye, Hello

I stand looking at the plain concrete stairs that lead to the front porch of my old home. Where it was once bright and full of life, it is now dreary and colourless.

Summoning up the last small piece of valour within me I step onto the porch and stop directly before the white chipped door looming over me as if challenging me to enter. My hands shake and I wonder if maybe sending Lewis to the Murphy's was such a good idea. No, it was. I need to do this by myself, I want some alone time to say goodbye.

Raising my quivering hand, I grip onto the handle and push swiftly through the entrance.

Instantly I'm hit with the stuffy heat and smell of salty dust. It's obvious the house hasn't been occupied since the accident, it seems as though the windows and doors have been clamped shut to obstruct any air from entering.

Taking a while to have a look around I also realise that most of our old furniture has been taken away, leaving bare rooms to my right and left. Closing the door behind me I venture further down the small hallway and head through the first doorway to my right into my old lounge. My earliest memories swoop like a wave from the storage of my brain to the very front, taking centre stage. The time I fell head first into the wooden table that once occupied the middle of the room; when Lewis and I played indoor Frisbee and cracked the TV screen; having the huge dark green Christmas tree light up with the brightest lights we could find and a small angel sitting on top that I always helped place, while we ripped open our presents on Christmas morning and sat with our parents as we played with our new toys. I cling to those memories, hoping I never forget.

Before I know it my cheeks are soaked and my eyes sting from the continuous crying. The house seems to have taken my last ounce of strength from within me, leaving me feeling overwhelmed and fragile.

Leaving the lounge I look at the other bare rooms before heading to my bedroom to lift anything that I might want to take with me.

***

Picking up the last of my old photographs I glance once more around the room, trying to keep the tears from falling. Suzie took any clothes and jewellery I had to her home after the accident but there are still some photos and ornaments that I want to keep before they're removed.

The walls are bare - each poster that hung there taken down, the furniture gone. The only items left are my suitcase and a small chair across the room to the right of the window.

Hearing the doorbell ring I leave the room behind and skip down the stairs, thankful for the interruption to my own dreary thoughts. Although I didn't think anyone knew I was here.

Pulling open the door I gape at my best friend Gracie Forster standing beside my other close friends Shane Docherty and Harper Black. What are they doing here?

Before I get the chance to ask, Gracie flings herself in my direction circling her hands around my shoulders hugging me to her chest. I don't hesitate to hug back just as tightly. I've missed my friends so much. After taking turns to hug both Gracie, Shane and Harper I invite them in and we sit on the brown leather couch in the lounge - the only piece of furniture left to occupy the space.

"What are you guys doing here?" I ask.

"Did you really think we would let you leave without saying goodbye?" Harper answers, raising her eyebrows as a slight smile tugs on her lips. "We went to the Murphy's since we know that's where Lewis has been staying and they told us you were here."

"Ah, I see."

Shane lightly touches my arm as he leans his head on the back of the couch, keeping eye contact with me as his face turns to a frown, causing little creases to appear between his brows. "I can't believe you're leaving Addy. We're going to miss you a lot."