Changing My World

Box

Marie's POV

I felt warm and tired as I forced my eyes open. The light burned and I blinked to rid it. I noticed Ryan sat on the sofa opposite me, looking off into the distance, completely zoned out.

I realised I'm back in the quiet room. I wonder how long I was sleeping for?

"Ryan?" I yawned, causing him to snap back into reality and stare at me with a look of concern, plastered across his face.

"What happened and how did I get here?" I moaned, kind of exhausted by this whole situation.

He looked down to his lap for a second, then back up to me. "You had another panic attack"

Those words brought it all flooding back. My so called mum coming over just after I told everybody about my ...dad? Then she gave me a parcel and ran off.

"Are you ok?" He asked.

"Where's the parcel?" I replied, ignoring his point completely.

"I'll fetch it for you"

He got up out of his seat on the sofa and quickly paced into the office, shortly returning with the brown, creased paper thing in his hand.

He handed it to me and I sat up properly on the sofa, leaving room for him to sit beside me, which he did. He put his arm round me and leant over my shoulder as I opened up the parcel.

It kind of felt heavy, not like 'hard to lift' heavy, but like 'really gonna hurt if I drop it on my foot' type heavy.

After taking a pause, and a deep breath, I started to unravel the paper.

There were layers and layers of it, guarding with care whatever was inside.

With the pull of one final layer, I saw a small box that sat resting between my palms. It looked a bit like a jewellery box, or a music box but still not quite the same.

"What's inside it?" Ryan asked.

I placed my hand on the brim of the lid and pulled upwards........but it wouldn't open. I tried and tried but it was like it was superglued on or something.

"Do you want me to try?"

"Yes please" I said quickly before handing him the box and awkwardly looking away. Such an emotional moment, completely ruined by my weakness.

Ryan also struggled with the box, neither of us could open it.

"Is there definitely something in there?"

He shook it against his ear and something made a rattling noise.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure" he said spitefully.

"Alright alright. How do we open it then?"

"I don't know. Let's look it up on the Internet"

"Alright but I'm not sure how much that will help"

He gave me the box back and we both walked into the lounge and I sat at the desk whilst Ryan stood behind me, leaning over my shoulder.

I opened up Google and typed in "how to open small wooden box with pattern on top"

"What are you to up to?" Asked Jody from her place at the pool table where she was taking on Tyler and Bailey.

"Trying to open the box" I said in my 'dur' voice as I clicked the first result.

"It says use a screwdriver to go round the edges and loosen the lid"

"Let's try that then" Ryan said.