On The Edge

:: C H A P T E R 2 | REMINISCENCE

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     She sighed helplessly. Those days seemed to be centuries ago, yet some memories were vivid images etched in her mind like they happened yesterday, unlikely to fade away with time. Recalling them placed a temporary smile on her face, only to be snatched away and replaced with a miserable frown that was an indication of the present life she led.

     She laid her head against the wall on her left and made herself comfortable. It was somewhat comforting to think of joyous times she was once allowed to enjoy with her family. It gave her the same feeling one might get when sitting in front of the fireplace with a mug of hot chocolate in a snowstorm. Ariana smiled to herself as she recalled the time José had tried to recreate the snow experience for her.

     She was eleven and had been learning about the different types of climates. In her country, they had a tropical climate and while sunlight and rainfalls were abundant, she had never experienced snow. It fascinated her. She had seen pictures, of course, and had fallen in love with the white carpets of pure, white snow stretching endlessly across landscapes and was eager to experience it for herself. She wanted to build snowmen, make snow angels, go sledding and do everything else that children did in the snow.

     She had begged her parents to bring her to a place where it did snow, but they had kindly explained their financial situation and how they were trying really hard to make ends meet at the moment. Although she was trying to understand and be mature about it, looking at the pictures in her book made her burst into tears again. A strong pair of arms had enveloped her in a hug and as she breathed in her brother's familiar and comforting scent, she had sobbed into his shoulder about how she'd never be able to roll around in the snow and go snow sledding with him. He had told her not to worry and that he'd surely grant her wish in some way.  

     Two days later, she had been studying in her room when José had burst in and told her to come quickly, there was something she had to see. She had curiously followed him into an empty room in their house which had been used for storage of old and broken furniture. The sight that greeted her had made her scream in delight.

     There was an old sandbox filled with white sand and the entire room had drawings of snow-filled landscapes. He explained that the white sand was the closest he could get to real snow, and assured her that she'd be able to build snowmen just fine. As she giggled in delight and jumped around in the 'snow', she abruptly froze as she was drenched completely by a bucket of ice-cold water.

     "Well winter is supposed to be really cold," José had feebly explained with a foolish laugh. Ariana broke into giggles as she hugged her brother and ruffled his unruly dark curls while exclaiming that he was the best brother in the entire world and that she didn't know what she'd do without him. At that time he had told her that there was nothing he wouldn't do for her and that he'd always be there for her.

     If only that was the truth.

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Author's Note:

Thank you all for reading! Remember to vote and comment if you enjoyed reading. I'd like to thank each and every one of you for your support, but pleaaase try not to be a silent reader (❛ัॢᵕ❛ั ॢ)✩*ೃ.⋆ I wanna know your honest opinions so don't hesitate to leave any comments x