Brighter Than The Stars: Book One

𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇 𝐹𝑜𝓊𝓇: 𝒞𝑒𝓁𝑒𝒷𝓇𝒶𝓉𝒾𝑜𝓃𝓈 & 𝒮𝑜𝓇𝓇𝑜𝓌

                                                                                      𝟚𝟘𝟘𝟠

"Graduation couldn't have come fast enough," Claire moaned as she flung her arms around Madeline. "I'm so damn over this place. College freedom, and actual fun, here I come!"

Madeline gave her friend a delicate squeeze, unable to experience the same energy. High school being over was great, but despite their town, which was not the one her high school was in, not being significant enough to end up on state maps, she treasured it. She'd been to cities, and found them all to be overpowering. Too many people, too much clamor, too much violence.

And now, in only a few months, she'd be residing in one.

Mrs. Baker strode over to her, looking stunning all done up for the big day. Her blonde hair with only hints of grey curled, her blue dress wrinkle free, and her grin just as bright as always. "Mind if I steal Maddie for a minute?"

Claire let go of her best friend and stepped back. "Fine. We have to be in our seats in ten minutes, though."

This wasn't Mrs. Baker's first rodeo. She'd been teaching at the high school for ten years. After stepping away from Claire, her favorite teacher gave her arm a light squeeze. "He'd be so proud of you, Maddie. You know that, right?"

Just the word 'he' and knowing who it belonged to was enough to bring tears to Madeline's eyes.

Mrs. Baker had been Elijah's teacher. He was her first student who really struggled, within the classroom and outside the doors of the school. She'd seen it. She'd done her best to help him in every way she could, including getting social services involved. Mrs. Baker had fought for him, cried for him, and stood by him through all the issues he'd had in school. Flunking classes, or getting suspended.

Maddie hadn't known this woman existed until the third or fourth week of her freshman year. She wasn't her teacher then, but she'd walked right up to her as she was getting ready to leave one day, and confirmed her name was Madeline.

"I'm sorry, this must seem strange, but you're Madeline, right? Madeline Martin?"

Madeline thought she was in trouble when she slammed her locker closed and turned to the teacher she'd never met before. "Yeah?"

The teacher jerked her head as a signal for Madeline to walk with her and followed her to a near empty hallway.

"I saw you at freshman orientation," the teacher explained as she pulled an envelope out of her bag. "Years ago, I had my favorite student give me this letter to give to you. He told me in five years, there'd be a student coming my way with big, curly brown hair named Madeline Martin. He gave it to me the day before he turned eighteen, so I had a feeling I'd never see him again.

"It was a good thing, I guess. Broke my heart that I couldn't help him as much as I wanted to. He wouldn't let me. But he trusted me to do this part, which is looking after you. I still remember the sound of his voice when he handed me the letter and begged me to watch out for you. I told him it would be my honor, so here we both are.

"I'm sorry it took me so long to talk to you, but I'd honestly forgotten where I put the letter."

Madeline's hands shook as she took the envelope from the teacher's hand.

"He may be gone, honey, but he's always watching over you."

"I thought I'd miss him less by now," Madeline admitted. "It's been nine years, and I still worry about him every day."

Mrs. Baker swayed her head, a tormented smile gracing her lips. "I'd say you don't need to worry about him, but the truth is, I'm in the same boat. I still feel like I could have done more for him. But Elijah is a survivor, honey. I know he wouldn't want us to worry about him. He'd want us to live our best lives, so that's what I'm here to tell you now. Go out there and live your best life, Maddie.

Madeline wiped the tears from her face and gave Mrs. Baker a nod and a quick hug. "Thank you for looking out for me."

"It's been my pleasure, honey. I've fulfilled my promise to Elijah, and had his favorite person in life be a part of mine. You, Maddie, were an absolute pleasure to teach. It was an honor."

The speaker bellowed across the lawn, telling all graduates to take their seats. Madeline looked for her parents in the crowd, gave them a wave and said goodbye to Mrs. Baker, before continuing over to her marked seat.

Few students listened to the announcement, so Madeline was left alone with just her thoughts. Closing her eyes, she recalled the last look Elijah gave her before he disappeared into the garage. She'd seen him cry, so many damn times it wasn't fair. No one so young should endure through so many tears. But at that moment, he wasn't allowing them to fall; not again. That closed-lipped smile tore her tiny heart into two pieces that still felt mangled to this day.

Yet, as she was reaching this epic moment in her life, Madeline couldn't help but feel him there. Whether it was his spirit or through recollections, his presence surrounded her. Madeline could only hope that didn't mean he was dead; his ghost keeping a watchful eye on her.

If Elijah had died, would she ever know? Would anyone contact his father to make him aware of the death? Would her father extend the courtesy of letting her family know? Of course he would. The sick bastard would have taken pleasure in it.

'Guess you couldn't keep him safe forever, could you?' He'd say.

How a father could never love his son, especially that son, was something Madeline couldn't wrap her head around. Maybe Harrison King was incapable of love.

As the crowds of students reached their seats, she closed her eyes and allowed the last image of Elijah to enter her mind. "I miss you every day, for the rest of my life."

There was a palpable fear within her that after being so badly hurt, both physically and mentally, Elijah had never, and would never, open his heart to another person. The sort of misery he suffered was an easy thing to carry with you for the rest of your days. She didn't want him to leave this Earth and be forgotten, whether it had already happened, or would happen seventy years down the line.

Madeline refused to allow him to become one of the forgotten.