Say Hello to the Stars

Chapter Fourteen

Johnathan's feet hit the ground ahead of me as we run towards the house. My mind wanders slightly to the days before. What really happened? What happened to Andy? To Baxter? To me?

It's all a blur; like it was so long ago. So many loose ends were left and I don't feel complete until they're tied.

Johnathan falls back so he's jogging next to me. "Check out who's waiting for you." he mutters.

My eyes strain. God, I need glasses. Yet even from this distance I can make out who it is. Great timing as well. Baxter sits on the front step, mindlessly picking off flower petals from our flower pots.

"Should I shoo him away?" Johnathan whispers.

"Just let me talk with him for a few minutes," I say. "But keep a close distance; I don't want anything bad going wrong."

He nods his head as he veers off to the left of the house. I set my path forward. Baxter catches sight of me and stands up quickly.

I could lie and say he looked terrible, but that would be a downright lie. The sun illuminates his dark hair and brings out his eyes. His regal composure shines as he waves me over. In that moment, I could've forgotten the last week.

"Hey," he says. "I was wondering if I could ask you something. I tried to catch your eye in school but you ran away."

"Sorry, you just spooked me. This is all new to me, the talking and the adventures. I'm not used to it and honestly I'm not sure if I can react to it properly."

"I know you have some... problems when it comes to social speaking. I can help you, really, but that's not why I came." His eyes drift to his shoes. "When we were talking that night in the car, you said I was 'already gone.' What did you mean by that? I mean, I'm still myself, right?"

I sigh. My mind wonders if I should tell him the truth or not. A few months ago, he was a quiet guy. He never spoke, and never did anything to draw attention to himself. Whenever I'd see him, he'd have his head in the clouds, thinking of oblivion. To be honest, I had a bit of a crush on him back then.

Over the past few months, he's started changing. That quiet boy has started yelling, shouting, as well as becoming apart of the popular crowd... he wasn't himself anymore. This boy he had become, was a monster in itself. I'm not ready to break that to him, at least, not yet anyways.

"I agree with you in a way; you still have yourself within you, yet you just haven't realized it. You've changed a bit over the last few months, that's all." The words slip out faster than it should have, not giving me the time to take them back. Instantly, I feel a pang of guilt collide with my chest.

"Except change is good, right?"

"Yes it is," I press my lips together, "but sometimes people can change for the worst."

The look of realization starts creeping on his face as he puts the missing pieces together. His shoulders sag as he hangs his head low. "Oh..." he trails off, allowing his mind to wander.

It's bad; I almost feel sorry for doing this to him, for telling the truth. He wasn't ready; I know that. My heart longs to comfort him, and tell him it's okay, that I can help him, yet my mind says otherwise. How do you heal someone who's broken so many?

The sky has turned a faint purple, indicating night is nearing. I adjust myself in the seat and try to get some rest; tomorrow's going to be a long day.

-

Home never feels like home until you part ways with it for a day or two.

I rip open the curtains, allowing the light to shine through. Dust particles dance through the air in light of the sun. The familiar sound of footsteps from Andy thunders in the silence; a small flow of relief floods through me. Losing your parents is one thing - having your brother taken from you is another. If he's gone, I don't know what I'd do.

No doubt he's indulging himself in one of those goddy textbooks; his C's dropped to D's within the past two weeks. Those people probably wound him up so tight - I wouldn't even try to imagine his emotional state.

But they were only children, fooling around for money.

Children or not, they took my brother. That's not how you mess with someone; it's how you create an enemy. Lucky for them, I'm not the revenge-giving type. All I want is to live a normal life, do good on this play, and then escape back into my realm of invisibility.

Now heading upstairs, I can hear Andy murmuring to himself. I intrude into his room and boldly snatch up my script.

"Ready to get back to the usual?" I ask.

"I wish I'd never left."

His head is knee-deep in work. "Stop staring at me," he mutters. "It's distracting."

"Are we going to forget about what just happened?"

"Of course we're not going to forget. We're just putting it behind us, for the time being. Once in ready to talk about it, I will."

"Andy, I'm your sister. I went through a few things as well. Don't block me out because I'm another human being. Keep me near because we're family."

He closes his textbooks and stares at me. "You had just left for school. I was still at home, scrambling for papers and projects; the usual routine. I knew I was going to be working late that night, so I said I should be home around eight o'clock, since my shift ended at 7:30. Drake picked me up and we faked our absences in homeroom. After leaving the weight-lifting room, a few guys waved me over, asking if they could talk. I figured that I didn't have much of a choice, so I obliged."

He pauses. "They chloroformed me. Should've seen it coming, but I was already disoriented as is. I probably blacked out for two, maybe three hours. I woke up to my hands tied and my mouth gagged. Everyone was asking me where the money was and how they're going to use you to get it for them. My mind was boggled; I had no clue what they were talking about. All I knew was that I had to keep you safe, and the easiest way to do that was to keep my mouth shut. And I did, up until the point to where you and Baxter negotiated my life and rescued me. You did good, baby sis."

"I had to get you back. I wasn't going to leave you; you're all I have left." I murmur.

Andy walks up and embraces me. My body goes frigid; hugs aren't my thing. For this one time though, I accept it. "You're just like mom," he whispers.

Tears well up into my eyes; what I've been holding in for the longest while suddenly bursts free. I sob into Andy's shirt as my knees buckle. He collapses onto the ground with me, never letting go. I never cry; crying is a weakness in so many books. It's becoming accepted, but I've had a hard time letting it out. My body doesn't let me cry, no matter how badly I want to. It just builds up into a storm, waiting to be set free.

I miss my mom.
I miss my dad.
As much as I adore Andy, he's just a piece of the puzzle. And this picture has lost a few sections, never to be whole again.

"If only the light could come and set us free." I say.