I wake up to the sound of my mother yelling. I cautiously wait. When I don't hear anything, my eyelids droop. Another cry sounds and sit abruptly up in bed. It was the first day of April break, so it was fairly warm. I had on running shorts and one of Luke's old shirts. I smiled at the previous day's events. He had come to my house and knocked on the door, much to polite for normal Luke.
"Hey." He said rocking back on his heels.
"Hi...?" I say questioning his odd behavior.
"We should go get coffee this weekend." He says mustering up some courage.
"Okay... That sounds great." I say tucking a strand of brown hair behind my ear.
"I'm working tomorrow, but you could come and visit me?" He says smiling at the fact that I said yes.
"Sure." I say biting my lip.
"Okay." He giggles.
"Okay." I say smiling like a child.
He begins to back away from me, right into one of the two shrubs that guard my front door.
"There's a bush there." He smiles embarrassed.
"Yeah I see that." I grin.
"Why would she do this? We gave her everything!" My mother screams again.
I peel the warm covers of my body and walk across my plush carpet to the door. Once it's open, I jog down the stairs into the kitchen, where all the noise is coming from. My mother is bent over the counter, and my father has his hand on her back. She's clutching a note.
"What's wrong?" I say out of breath.
"Well,-" My father begins.
"Your sister ran away." My mother cuts my father off as she stands up from the counter.
"What? Why would she do that?" I ask, furrowing my brows.
The bigger question is why would they care? She's 18 now, legally an adult, and she has her own credit card, car, and cell phone plan. She didn't rely on them much. Only for food, and some of college payments. The only reason why they could be mad is college. My mother gets up and hands me the note coldly.
"Was it something I said?" I ask my father once she is out of the room.
"No. Your mother is just upset. But she'll come around." He says reassuringly and gives my shoulder a squeeze as he walks out behind my mother.
I look at the note and sigh. Her cursive was recognizable. I sit down on a stool at the kitchen island and begin to read.
Dear family,
You're probably all very confused. I didn't mean to make anybody upset. I just didn't want to make this a huge deal, with going away parties and money to help me along. For once in my life, I want to be fully independent from anyone but myself. Mom, you're probably hunched over the counter crying, asking why I would do such a thing. Dad, you're probably comforting mom, but asking yourself if you did something wrong. And Bleu, you're probably just as confused as you'll ever be. I'll keep in touch. You don't have to worry about me. I have all the money I have saved since I was 10 and a heart full of curiosity to keep me going. I love you all so much. I apologize for not sticking around and explaining this. But paper has always been easier than words.
Love always,
Aubrey
I blinked a couple times, processing the fact that she was gone.
"Bleu?" My mother comes into the kitchen quietly.
"Yes." I say.
"I'm sorry."
Little did I know that I should cherish the few apologies she would give after that.
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