KAYLEEN
I can’t stop crying while explaining everything to my family but they are only giving me their disappointed faces. They don’t look like believing in anything that I say.
“It’s not me! It’s Shaira!” I repeated but no one is listening anymore.
“You are a murderer. You don’t deserve this family.” A familiar voice took my attention. She is standing at the door behind my family.
“Shaira,” I uttered her name and pointed her. “How can you be here? You are the real murderer!” I shouted in anger. “Not me!”
My family looked at the door but it seems like they can’t see her. It only made my mom cry harder while my brother is hugging her. Shaira’s smirking face is very irritating and I want to pull her hair off her head leaving her bald.
“Kayleen listen.” My dad went near me trying to hold on my arms. I just let him do so while I’m staring at him. “You need a doctor,” he whispered.
“Why?” I asked with my heart shattered to pieces. “Can’t you see her? She is here. Right at the door.”
My eyes can’t help but look at Shaira at every second and then look at my family. Dad is still giving me a look that’s convincing me to go to the doctor.
“I’m not sick,” I said and pull my arms off him to ran out of the house. Their voices are loud, calling me to come back but then I covered my ears. I’m still crying hard while running to nowhere. The road looks wide and empty. The sun is brightly shining while I’m depressed as the storm. The weather is contradicting my feelings.
After running and got all worn out, my knees gave up on me as I fall to the ground. My sweat is dripping down my chin, some crawling down my neck and my shirt is a bit soaked. Some strands of my hair are like pasted on my neck and face.
I suddenly realized I’m wearing the same outfit as Shaira. I’m also wearing a hoodie, the same color of shirt and jeans. The darkness with the moon took over the day making me realize, I’m sitting there for almost the whole day. I look like some homeless woman on the side of the street waiting for someone to drop me a penny.
My eyes are swollen after crying so much but I still feel horribly depressed. I still can’t believe what’s going on.
“Kayleen!” That was mom’s voice.
Before I could go somewhere else, a pair of strong hands grabbed me and pull me inside the car. After being taken inside, I saw my brother on the driver’s seat with my mom and dad is holding me tight. They took me back home and lock me inside my room.
“I told you, I didn’t do it,” Shaira spoke from the corner slowly showing herself from the darkness.
“It’s you,” I corrected her and hug both of my knees sitting on the top of my bed. She sat on my bed too.
“No. It’s not me,” she said.
I buried my face on my knees trying not to look at her more.
“Why don’t you kill your family too? So they won’t be able to speak about the murder.”
“Shut up!” I burst out exactly on her face but she seemed unaffected at all. How can she be so heartless? Someone knocked at the door and open it making me turn my head to check who was it. It’s my parents and they are with someone, a doctor. Shaira is gone again from sight. I roamed my eyes to search for her but I can’t see her. Now I feel like there’s something wrong with me.
My parents left me with the doctor inside the room.
“I heard so much about your bestfriend, Shaira,” she broke the silence while sitting at the chair with both hands on the top of the small table my parents provided for her. I’m still on my bed sitting at the corner.
“I’m not sick and I saw her kill Carlo,” I said coldly with my eyes all fixed to the floor. I don’t want to lock eyes with her.
“Don’t worry, I believe you,” she said and it convinced me to finally lay my eyes on her.
“Now tell me about her. How did you two became best friends?” Her calm voice is soothing making me feel comfortable about talking to her. It’s making me cry knowing someone believes in me. Her face is saying it all.
“She is the only friend I have. Nobody likes me but she did,” I started telling her the story trying not to burst into tears. “She played with me, laughed with me, helps me at everything. She’s my best friend until we grew up.”
“Have you ever meet her parents?” I shake my head to say no.
“Do you know her full name?”
“She is Shaira—“ I started so sure and realized that I’m actually blank. “Shaira—“ My body started shaking unable to breath normally. “I swear I know—she’s Shaira—“ I stammered.
“It’s okay if you can’t remember. Here.” She handed me a piece of small paper and a pen. I took them from me.
“I want you to write down her favorites. And then her address, everything about her.”
I followed her instruction though my hand is still shaking a bit. After a few minutes, I gave it to her but she didn’t take it from my hand. She just looked at it and then me.
“Now, read them.”
I’m confused but I did. I read them and then stopped at the address.
“Are you okay? Why did you stopped?” she asked.
I took the pen to write another address but I can’t write anything else. Now, I can see Shaira from her back smiling wickedly at me.
“Why did I write everything about me? This is my address,” I whispered slowly tearing the paper apart. The traces of tears are visible on my lap as they we’re falling. I started sobbing. “This isn’t true.”
“Kayleen, listen.”
“I don’t understand anything.” I threw the torn paper away from me including the pen and cry even harder.
KAYLEENI’m trying to read him, if he is being serious about what he just said. He looked more than serious and is even looking at my lips like crazy and bite his own lower lip. I admit his threat is effective. Pushing him won’ help since he is too strong.“She want me to leave!” I said all fast. The strong arms holding me loosened so I went free. I inhaled a lot of air to feed my lungs with oxygen since I forgot to breath normally a while ago.“Well, this is my house. You can’t listen to her. You only listen to
KAYLEEN“Why did you stop?” he asked right away noticing that I’m no longer doing anything. My eyes are nailed to him feeling really embarrassed.“I just realized I’m not a kid anymore to act like that,” I answered turning my eyes down.“I love—like it. I’ve never seen someone who can be happy with small things like this.” He walked towards me standing at my side. With a quick hand, he caught a firefly in front of me. I was am
KAYLEENI see no changes from Zeke. He is the same man as usual, carrying his own emotions with him. The days have passed but I still couldn’t leave the house. A lot of chances are left ignored as I remember how he is wanting me to stay. My trust has grown since that day he told me about his past.The door is unlocked but I can’t open it and ran away. My body is hesitating. I ended up staying and thinking about it over and over again. His gray eyes are reminding me to be with him.It’s Saturday again and he brought me with him to the hospital. It’s another day that my feet have stepped outside the house. My heart is filled
ZEKE“What happened to your family Zeke? What’s with your past?” Her question is the same as Johanna’s.“I will tell you everything, Kayleen,” I told her as I guided her to the living room. We sat there silently. I’m composing myself as I start to remember everything while she is waiting for me to say something. She is sitting on the parallel couch with mine. Her beautiful brown eyes are sparkling with the lights.As I started talking, the memories flashed against my eyes.
KAYLEENI can’t help but cover my mouth with both of my hands. How can he just hide something like this?These are skeletons of his family sitting on separated chairs still wearing their clothes. Cob webs are all over their bodies and the room doesn’t smell that pleasant. The chairs are like thrones with the king in the center. The huge portrait of their family are plastered at the back. They look like a happy family together. Zeke has a sister with dark gray hair and sparkling gray eyes like him. She is curly too and looks like a porcelain doll.Their parents both have gray hair too. The father has the curliest while the mother has a
KAYLEENEverything’s been normal the next day. Zeke seemed like he didn’t remember what he just did. Maybe he is too drunk that night. I decided to go to him early but I can’t find him in his room. I roamed around until I found him on the kitchen drinking a glass of water still looking so messy.His surprised gray eyes meet mine when he noticed my presenc