Blanket of Stars [completed]

✩One Wish

✩..One Wish

Liza sat on sofa, huddled inside the colorful quilt mom had stitched for me years ago. She was reading Inkheart, one of my favorites novels. Her head pressed against the cold wall, she would occasionally smile then her eyelids would drop over. She was tired, so was I. We were waiting for Dad. I stood by the door, ready to open it. He was unusually late. At ten, he usually would be doing our dinner dishes- laughing at our silly antics as we helped him put the glasses in the cabinet.

I paced around the floor length window in the living room- looking any signs of his blue Chrysler. It was beginning to snow- according to the channel seven forecast, this was supposed to last snowfall of the season. White stars fell from the sky, reminding of the time when Devlin had taken me to visit his mother. He'll be back soon, that's what he said when he called me: "I'll be back in a week" I remember how strange his voice sounded on the phone...

A loud thump-thud resounded behind me. The thick spine of Inkheart had slipped out of Liza's fingers. She was exhausted- there were fatigue lines dragging a road across her face. A four hour cheer practice and seven hours of school ought to tire a teenager. I wanted to ask Liza if she wanted to eat dinner and go to sleep. She had school tomorrow while Thursdays were my off-days from college. I could stay up in her place.

I didn't ask her about it though, knowing how angry she would get at the mere thought. This was our little tradition that mustn't be broken. It was something as a thread that held us together. Sometimes these small traditions, these silly meanings can make a world of difference. For Liza and me, it was our sense of comfort. It provided us with this secured feeling of dad being here for us.

"Should I call dad again? Maybe he'll pick up this time," I offered with a kind smile.

Liza rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand. "Do you think he's okay?"

"He's fine." I assured her for the tenth time. "Probably got stuck in some work,"

She rubbed her arms with her hands as if reminiscing a bad memory.

"What are you thinking about?"

She stared at the wall silently, her arms wrapped around her knees- her chin resting on the tangle of her fingers. I took a seat next to her and placed my hand on her cold fingers. "What were you thinking, Liza?"

She faced me, tear shinning in her eyes. "You really want to know,"

I nodded.

"Every time you and dad are out somewhere I get really scared. I get scared that you won't return just like mom didn't. She promised me, Alice, she promised that she was going to come back home soon." Liza sobbed in my shoulder. I hugged her as tightly as I could.

"We're not going to leave you. You will always have us by your side, Liza. There's no reason to be scared," I pulled away and wiped the tears trailing on her cheeks. "One day all of us will have to go -when our times comes. It's not something we can control so it shouldn't be something we should fear either,"

She sniffled, smiling slightly. "I know. I just can't help it,"

I knew what she by meant that. Sometimes we can't control our fears, our emotions. We've kept them bottled inside of us for so long, too long. Their bubbling under skins, almost close to the breaking point. Whenever a familiar situations arises, they tear all are facades apart. Our pride, our ego to remain strong -turns to dust. Poof, we turn into this weak, broken duckling.

I stroked Liza's hair. She gripped my arm, the way she used when she twelve whenever she was scared, when she didn't have a baggage of worries to carry around.