the_alliance
Cadet
Turning the key in her apartment door, Kelleigh tries to get out of the rain after her last final in the fall semester. The next time she takes finals will be before she finally graduates from college. Her roommate sits on the couch watching something on TV and drinking what looks like hot cocoa.
“It’s really pouring out there, Anne,” Kelleigh says as she puts her umbrella against the wall. She keeps her jacket on because her apartment doesn’t have a heater.
Anne gets up to get a refill from the kitchen, which was set off from the living room by a short counter. “By the way, Clive called about 20 minutes ago”. Kelleigh continues walking towards her bedroom. “Kelleigh, call me stupid, but I think he likes you.”
“No he doesn’t,” Kelleigh responds with a smile and closes her bedroom door. She turns the lock and it clicks shut. Putting in one of her favorite CDs, she plops on her bed and stares at the ceiling.
“It's funny how a day can change your life. You wake up and realize there's nothing left inside. Nobody wants to say the words, it's easier to hide.”*
I get off the school bus with my math project. I can’t wait to tell my parents that my teacher gave me an A. I run to my house and both my parents are outside. My dad has a suitcase in his hand and gets into his car. My mom is chasing after him, yelling some thing that I didn’t quite hear. My dad’s car peels out of the driveway and zooms off down the street away from the house and me. Later that day, I asked my mom where my dad went and she told me that he’s going to take a vacation from our family for a while. She didn’t know he would be back.
Suddenly, Anne knocks on the door. Kelleigh opens her eyes and sits up with a jolt. She looks at the clock and sees that it’s just past 9 o’clock. Outside the window, it’s too dark to see whether or not it is still raining.
“Kelleigh? You alright in there?” Anne asks. Kelleigh opens the door a crack. “Sorry, did I wake you up?”
Kelleigh mumbles, “Oh, it’s ok. I didn’t mean to doze off.”
“Clive’s in the living room, he hadn’t had dinner yet, so we’re eating dinner out here. You wanna join us?” Anne asks, knowing that Kelleigh also had not had dinner yet.
Kelleigh opens the door all the way and decides to join them. She hadn’t eaten anything all day and notices her hunger. It appears that Anne ordered pizza from Blondie’s. After all, it would have been stupid to walk up Telegraph just to get pizza. No offense, but not even Blondie’s was worth the risk.
“Hey Kelleigh,” Clive says as he finishes chewing the piece in his mouth. “Did you get my message?”
Anne and Kelleigh look at each other and Kelleigh says, “Yeah, sorry I didn’t call you back. I was kinda tired when I got in.” Anne shoots her a look but Kelleigh quickly dismisses it. “What did you wanna tell me?”
Clive took another bite and says, “Oh, nothing really, just wanted to say hi and ask if you wanted to go to a concert with me this weekend at the Greek Theatre”.
Kelleigh sits at the card-table-turned-dining-table and takes a small piece of pizza. Pepperoni was never a favorite of hers. “I dunno. I’m not sure if I have plans or not.”
Clive chuckles and says, “Today’s Thursday. If you had plans for the weekend, you should know by now, right?”
“I’m not sure, okay? I’m not sure if I have plans this weekend!” Clive and Anne look at each other in shock at Kelleigh’s sudden outburst.
“Kelleigh, calm down, I’m sure he didn’t mean it that way,” Anne says trying to comfort her.
“Yeah, Kelleigh, I’m sorry. I just meant that...” Clive starts, but Kelleigh cuts him off.
“Don’t apologize, I don’t know why I just burst like that,” Kelleigh says, trying to smooth over the problem. Deep down inside, she knew that she was lying.
“And they call me happy go lucky. They don't know my heart is dying inside. A smile's a frown turned upside down. I do my happy go lucky so well I'm even fooling myself.”*
My mom tucked me in and kissed me good night. She left my room and turned off the lights. For some reason, I couldn’t go to sleep that night so I got up to go to her room. As I got closer, I heard a noise coming from inside her room. I stopped right outside her door and realized what the noise was. She was crying. From that day on, it became my routine to hear that sound from her room.
Clive left shortly after dinner and Anne finishes brushing her teeth before going to bed. “Kelleigh, just a reminder, I’m going back home for the holidays tomorrow morning. If I don’t see you before I leave, I just wanted to say Merry Christmas.”
Kelleigh forces a smile and says, “Merry Christmas to you too.”
Once back in her bedroom, Kelleigh pulls out her locket from inside her pajamas and opens it. She looks at the two faces inside and remembers what Christmas meant to her for the past six years. As usual, tears start streaming down her cheeks.
“All the laughter that we shared would be a memory. I cannot count the tears you’ve cost me, if I could have seen.”*
I carefully carried a tray with a bowl of warm soup and a pill on the side. I opened the door to my mom’s room where the curtains were drawn and the humidifier was spewing vapor into the air. I put it on the nightstand next to her bed and gently tapped her shoulder. She slowly woke up and I told her that it was time for her medication. She forcefully swallowed it and took a sip of the soup and smiled at me.
The next morning, Kelleigh awoke to find that it was almost 10 in the morning. Anne undoubtedly had already left for the holidays and now Kelleigh was there by herself. Mechanically, she starts brewing a pot of coffee, her pick-me-up since she was in high school. On the table, she notices a small package. It is wrapped in Christmas wrapping paper and there’s a note besides it.
She thinks, “Clive, the things you’ll do. It better be good after that remark last night.” The coffee was ready so she puts off opening the package. She turns on the radio and sits at the table with her coffee.
“When I close my eyes and you're not there, I feel this emptiness inside. Do you care? If you have to go I'll understand, but the pain's so hard to take when we're apart. You'll never see me cry. It's locked away, but there's this feeling deep within me wants to stay. And if you were here would things be right? I need to find my way alone to win this fight.”*
Most girls have a big party for their Sweet Sixteen and some even get a car as a gift either for their birthday or Christmas. Not only did I not get a car, I didn’t even have a birthday party when I turned sixteen. Instead of a gift and party, I got a tragedy and another ceremony. Six years ago, around Christmas, my mother passed away. It was a long illness that I saw as I nursed her to no avail for almost four years prior to her passing. She should not have gone out that day while I was at school. The driver couldn’t stop in time and witnesses confirmed his claim. Manner of death: car accident. I knew better. Manner of death was actually suicide. After such a long illness, she finally couldn’t handle what started it all: losing the trust of the man she loved.
Kelleigh jogs along Bancroft and stops at the light. She scratches her leg from all that brushing up against the bushes during the jog. After she gets back to the apartment and after she showers, she notices the package on the table again. She wraps the towel around her hair and opens the present. Inside the unwrapped box is a locket. Inside the locket is a picture of Anne and an older man she doesn’t recognize. She reads the note on the table and it says:
Hey Kelleigh,
Don’t know when you’re reading this, but I just hope that you’ll like this gift. I know that you’ve gone through rough times, but I wanna help you through it and move on. I know it’s hard to do but it’s possible. I’ve never shared this with you in the past four years we’ve known each other, but I lost my dad in a car accident when I was 12. It was hard to cope at first, but I realized that he would have wanted me to live life to the fullest and not be hung up on what’s happened in the past. So I just wanted to pass on my experience to you. There are lots of opportunities to seize life all around you. Clive bought those tickets for the two of you to go, because he knew this was your favorite band. He didn’t go home for the holidays just for the concert. Give him a chance. He’s a good person.
Love & friendship always,
Anne
Kelleigh looks at Anne’s locket and puts is back in the box. She takes out her own and looks at the faces within. Staring at it for a while, she unhooks it in the back, closes the locket, and places it with Anne’s locket in the box. There was a knock at the door. Kelleigh opens it to find Clive standing at the doorstep.
“Hi,” Clive says not really looking Kelleigh in the eyes. “Anne called to tell me to make sure she unplugged the radio in her room. You know how she’s paranoid about things like that.”
“Yeah, she is a bit isn’t she?” Kelleigh responds with a smile. “Come in.” Clive accepts her invitation. He quickly makes his way to Anne’s room and comes out.
“Turns out she didn’t forget to unplug it.” There is a brief moment of an awkward silence. “Well, I guess I’ll go then.”
Clive makes his way to the door but the Kelleigh asks, “About tomorrow, you still wanna go to the concert? It turns out I’m free.”
A big smile appears on Clive’s face. “Yeah, yeah. That’d be cool. So I’ll come by around 6?”
“Yeah, 6 is good.”
“Okay, then I’ll see you then.”
---------------------------------------
ok, so nobody in the story really dies, but a character dieD, so i hope that works. sorry if it's kinda bad. i did it all in one sitting one night. i'll take any comments about how to make it better.
*song lyrics, not original
“It’s really pouring out there, Anne,” Kelleigh says as she puts her umbrella against the wall. She keeps her jacket on because her apartment doesn’t have a heater.
Anne gets up to get a refill from the kitchen, which was set off from the living room by a short counter. “By the way, Clive called about 20 minutes ago”. Kelleigh continues walking towards her bedroom. “Kelleigh, call me stupid, but I think he likes you.”
“No he doesn’t,” Kelleigh responds with a smile and closes her bedroom door. She turns the lock and it clicks shut. Putting in one of her favorite CDs, she plops on her bed and stares at the ceiling.
“It's funny how a day can change your life. You wake up and realize there's nothing left inside. Nobody wants to say the words, it's easier to hide.”*
I get off the school bus with my math project. I can’t wait to tell my parents that my teacher gave me an A. I run to my house and both my parents are outside. My dad has a suitcase in his hand and gets into his car. My mom is chasing after him, yelling some thing that I didn’t quite hear. My dad’s car peels out of the driveway and zooms off down the street away from the house and me. Later that day, I asked my mom where my dad went and she told me that he’s going to take a vacation from our family for a while. She didn’t know he would be back.
Suddenly, Anne knocks on the door. Kelleigh opens her eyes and sits up with a jolt. She looks at the clock and sees that it’s just past 9 o’clock. Outside the window, it’s too dark to see whether or not it is still raining.
“Kelleigh? You alright in there?” Anne asks. Kelleigh opens the door a crack. “Sorry, did I wake you up?”
Kelleigh mumbles, “Oh, it’s ok. I didn’t mean to doze off.”
“Clive’s in the living room, he hadn’t had dinner yet, so we’re eating dinner out here. You wanna join us?” Anne asks, knowing that Kelleigh also had not had dinner yet.
Kelleigh opens the door all the way and decides to join them. She hadn’t eaten anything all day and notices her hunger. It appears that Anne ordered pizza from Blondie’s. After all, it would have been stupid to walk up Telegraph just to get pizza. No offense, but not even Blondie’s was worth the risk.
“Hey Kelleigh,” Clive says as he finishes chewing the piece in his mouth. “Did you get my message?”
Anne and Kelleigh look at each other and Kelleigh says, “Yeah, sorry I didn’t call you back. I was kinda tired when I got in.” Anne shoots her a look but Kelleigh quickly dismisses it. “What did you wanna tell me?”
Clive took another bite and says, “Oh, nothing really, just wanted to say hi and ask if you wanted to go to a concert with me this weekend at the Greek Theatre”.
Kelleigh sits at the card-table-turned-dining-table and takes a small piece of pizza. Pepperoni was never a favorite of hers. “I dunno. I’m not sure if I have plans or not.”
Clive chuckles and says, “Today’s Thursday. If you had plans for the weekend, you should know by now, right?”
“I’m not sure, okay? I’m not sure if I have plans this weekend!” Clive and Anne look at each other in shock at Kelleigh’s sudden outburst.
“Kelleigh, calm down, I’m sure he didn’t mean it that way,” Anne says trying to comfort her.
“Yeah, Kelleigh, I’m sorry. I just meant that...” Clive starts, but Kelleigh cuts him off.
“Don’t apologize, I don’t know why I just burst like that,” Kelleigh says, trying to smooth over the problem. Deep down inside, she knew that she was lying.
“And they call me happy go lucky. They don't know my heart is dying inside. A smile's a frown turned upside down. I do my happy go lucky so well I'm even fooling myself.”*
My mom tucked me in and kissed me good night. She left my room and turned off the lights. For some reason, I couldn’t go to sleep that night so I got up to go to her room. As I got closer, I heard a noise coming from inside her room. I stopped right outside her door and realized what the noise was. She was crying. From that day on, it became my routine to hear that sound from her room.
Clive left shortly after dinner and Anne finishes brushing her teeth before going to bed. “Kelleigh, just a reminder, I’m going back home for the holidays tomorrow morning. If I don’t see you before I leave, I just wanted to say Merry Christmas.”
Kelleigh forces a smile and says, “Merry Christmas to you too.”
Once back in her bedroom, Kelleigh pulls out her locket from inside her pajamas and opens it. She looks at the two faces inside and remembers what Christmas meant to her for the past six years. As usual, tears start streaming down her cheeks.
“All the laughter that we shared would be a memory. I cannot count the tears you’ve cost me, if I could have seen.”*
I carefully carried a tray with a bowl of warm soup and a pill on the side. I opened the door to my mom’s room where the curtains were drawn and the humidifier was spewing vapor into the air. I put it on the nightstand next to her bed and gently tapped her shoulder. She slowly woke up and I told her that it was time for her medication. She forcefully swallowed it and took a sip of the soup and smiled at me.
The next morning, Kelleigh awoke to find that it was almost 10 in the morning. Anne undoubtedly had already left for the holidays and now Kelleigh was there by herself. Mechanically, she starts brewing a pot of coffee, her pick-me-up since she was in high school. On the table, she notices a small package. It is wrapped in Christmas wrapping paper and there’s a note besides it.
She thinks, “Clive, the things you’ll do. It better be good after that remark last night.” The coffee was ready so she puts off opening the package. She turns on the radio and sits at the table with her coffee.
“When I close my eyes and you're not there, I feel this emptiness inside. Do you care? If you have to go I'll understand, but the pain's so hard to take when we're apart. You'll never see me cry. It's locked away, but there's this feeling deep within me wants to stay. And if you were here would things be right? I need to find my way alone to win this fight.”*
Most girls have a big party for their Sweet Sixteen and some even get a car as a gift either for their birthday or Christmas. Not only did I not get a car, I didn’t even have a birthday party when I turned sixteen. Instead of a gift and party, I got a tragedy and another ceremony. Six years ago, around Christmas, my mother passed away. It was a long illness that I saw as I nursed her to no avail for almost four years prior to her passing. She should not have gone out that day while I was at school. The driver couldn’t stop in time and witnesses confirmed his claim. Manner of death: car accident. I knew better. Manner of death was actually suicide. After such a long illness, she finally couldn’t handle what started it all: losing the trust of the man she loved.
Kelleigh jogs along Bancroft and stops at the light. She scratches her leg from all that brushing up against the bushes during the jog. After she gets back to the apartment and after she showers, she notices the package on the table again. She wraps the towel around her hair and opens the present. Inside the unwrapped box is a locket. Inside the locket is a picture of Anne and an older man she doesn’t recognize. She reads the note on the table and it says:
Hey Kelleigh,
Don’t know when you’re reading this, but I just hope that you’ll like this gift. I know that you’ve gone through rough times, but I wanna help you through it and move on. I know it’s hard to do but it’s possible. I’ve never shared this with you in the past four years we’ve known each other, but I lost my dad in a car accident when I was 12. It was hard to cope at first, but I realized that he would have wanted me to live life to the fullest and not be hung up on what’s happened in the past. So I just wanted to pass on my experience to you. There are lots of opportunities to seize life all around you. Clive bought those tickets for the two of you to go, because he knew this was your favorite band. He didn’t go home for the holidays just for the concert. Give him a chance. He’s a good person.
Love & friendship always,
Anne
Kelleigh looks at Anne’s locket and puts is back in the box. She takes out her own and looks at the faces within. Staring at it for a while, she unhooks it in the back, closes the locket, and places it with Anne’s locket in the box. There was a knock at the door. Kelleigh opens it to find Clive standing at the doorstep.
“Hi,” Clive says not really looking Kelleigh in the eyes. “Anne called to tell me to make sure she unplugged the radio in her room. You know how she’s paranoid about things like that.”
“Yeah, she is a bit isn’t she?” Kelleigh responds with a smile. “Come in.” Clive accepts her invitation. He quickly makes his way to Anne’s room and comes out.
“Turns out she didn’t forget to unplug it.” There is a brief moment of an awkward silence. “Well, I guess I’ll go then.”
Clive makes his way to the door but the Kelleigh asks, “About tomorrow, you still wanna go to the concert? It turns out I’m free.”
A big smile appears on Clive’s face. “Yeah, yeah. That’d be cool. So I’ll come by around 6?”
“Yeah, 6 is good.”
“Okay, then I’ll see you then.”
---------------------------------------
ok, so nobody in the story really dies, but a character dieD, so i hope that works. sorry if it's kinda bad. i did it all in one sitting one night. i'll take any comments about how to make it better.
*song lyrics, not original
