Hello

Amber's Firestorm

Her eyes peered into the flood. A blurry fog puzzled her more than anything else. She struggled to focus as the scent of so many people mixed with her annoyance. 

The uprising chattering of people arriving to visit their families, to do business, or enjoy the sights of Jamaica's splendor induced her with frustration.

Why wasn't she happy?

"Yo, how you look so?!" Damian's voice dragged her out of her mental marsh.

Amber was hugged tightly and smelt the deep fresh tangy aroma that came off Damion's broad body in that polo shirt that was way too big.

"Mi sister, mi love! You good?" Damian said. Yes, fill her with all the love they could give her, because she needed it right now.

They separated as Gerald and his father stood on the side. In the busy hurried state of the airport, it was good to be amongst her family.

Amber giggled too long and cut her eyes. "I am. I am. Just tired." They had a busy schedule and she was hoping to get through it like any normal person would. The problem with today was that it was the date after last night, after the sleepless night, up thinking about the words she said, the panic in his voice, the beep of the call's end, and the brittle silence of her dark bedroom.

Amber was alone for seven long hours and she was going to make sure she wasn't alone right now.

Not now. 

Amber would deal with what happened last night later, but not now.

She tried to hug Gerald, but he became rigid in his stance as if the surprise hit him differently. Amber squeezed and Gerald's arms suspended over her shoulders. 

Didn't he want to hug her? 

"Easy, don't mush up my suit," Gerald said. 

Amber was not going to get rejected by anybody today. Hellfire to this gray jacket and white long-sleeve shirt, for Amber squeezed harder. 

"Hey!" Gerald grunted and rubbed the top of Amber's head which solicited a slap from her. Damion laughed, while Amber fixed her hair and shot a frown at him. 

“Stop onnu romping man, come,” dad said.

They all left the airport and jumped into the SUV. 

“It is good to be back, I swear. Love yard so much,” Damion said.

Amber sandwiched between her two brothers and inhaled trying to keep her raging emotions sated.

They drove from the airport to her parent's house where Amber busied herself with her mother preparing dinner, while her brothers and dad talked up memories. 

Once dinner was served, Amber disappeared. It wasn't that she didn't have any appetite. The mood was absent for her, besides Damion and dad were smoking hurricane tobacco in the living room and she had too much life to live to get cancer from secondhand smoke.

Amber tried to sleep again for the second night in a row and got some success, if two hours was successful.

The morning came with an urge to hear the familiarity of Solomon. 

She frowned at herself. Amber knew the silence between them was artificial. She blocked his number out of wanton fury.

What was he saying anyway? It was probably some intricate lie or a confused mess of lies that barely constructed any reasonable sense.

Either way, she couldn't handle reading any of those right now. Amber wanted to protect her heart and knew any lie could weave her back into his clutches like a spider trapping it's prey.