Santa's Daughter | ✓|Book One| ❅ (2015)

Chapter Nine

The next day, I went to Jake's house first thing. I saw Tara leaving, and shouting swear words at him, struggling with her suitcase.
"Merry Christmas and all you big fat idiot! May you rest your soul in hell, like your parents!"
She pushed me over and spat in my face as well as my shoes, as she struggled to balance in her heels.
Jake came running out and shouted something rude back.
"Oh. Hey Clara."
I turned towards him.
"Hi."
"Sorry about all that. She won't be coming back."
"Yeah. What happened?"
He sighed. "We had a fight."
"What about?"
He paused, looking down.
"About me?"
He didn't say a word.
"I don't want to cause any trouble.", I said, turning away.
"Please don't go."
I turned around and looked into his eyes long and hard, just like there is nothing around us.
"Please. Come in."
I smiled and stepped into his house, with him behind me.
I walked into the kitchen, and he followed.
"How are you?", I asked him.
"How do you mean?"
"Yesterday."
He sighed.
"Come with me."
"What? Where?"
He offered his hand. "I'll show you."
I took his hand and he lead me around town and the city, until we reached the cemetery.
The headstones were worn out and thorns were wrapped around it. Weeds grew around each headstone. The writing was faded, and the soil was almost rotten. We walked around each one: A boy died in 1981 and was born in 1972, from cystic fibrosis, an 87 year old lady who was taken in 2001 from terminal lung cancer and a girl who was in her late twenties who died after a car crash, buried alongside her husband. The grave was covered with a lot of dandelions and thistles and daffodils. It was also covered with apple blossoms and geums and ruellias and sunflowers.
Jake's parents.
He sighed as he looked down at the grave.
"Coming here brings closure.", he explained. "Coming here brings me closer to them."
"Yeah.", I said. "My foster Mum had cancer."
"Oh, I'm sorry."
"I used to come in, wondering if it could be her lying six feet under like everyone else here. I uses to sit at each headstone, and close my eyes, wishing that they will rise from the dead. Jake, my foster Mum almost died, and I blamed myself. I said that her life is over, and she believed me, so she missed appointments on purpose, because of me!"
I was in tears now. Talking about it brought back dark memories, past mistakes and salty tears. I just didn't want to suffer again, just like I did then, and I felt terrible for Jake. He wrapped his arms around me, and planted a kiss on ny forehead. I decided not to tell him about my dark route.
When you think about it, it wasn't serious. I was just deeply saddened, that's all.
"Is she well now?"
"Yeah."
He smiled. He smiled so widely, his face almost split.
"Shall we get some thistles?"
"Yeah. I'd like that."
We walked down, linking arms, to the nearest shop to the cemetery to buy some thistles. We went back and placed the thistles on their grave. I felt for Jake. I can't begin to imagine what he is going through. Then a risky idea came in my head.
"Jake?"
"Yes?"
"Do you believe in facing your dilemmas? Your fears? Your past insecurities?"
He sighed heavily.
"It's important. I think that we all should face it. Life's too short, that's what everyone here has learnt. Why?"
"Jus random curiousity.", I responded, with a smug smile on my face.