I'm Riley, and this is my story. I'm just going to tell you now; there will be no happy ending - there never was going to be one. This life was set for me from the beginning. Well, not exactly the start, but then again in all technicality, I could say that it was. But who really wants to sit here and dig a hole deeper than it needs to go? It's pointless and wastes time. Especially with what little I have left. If there's one thing you'll learn from this.
Please value your time, it's precious.
I suppose I'll start right from - well - the start.
I guess I would have been 6-7- ish (you can't honestly expect me to remember the whole birth process and onwards) and I also guess I was just an average kid. I had many friends, a wonderful family and a great neighbourhood, I mean, what more could a kid ask for?
I had a brother and two sisters. All of which were older than me. My sisters were twins - Katia and Rose - they were 13-14 at the time, and my brother - Josh - was 15-16. My mother and father used to take us out on these little trips in the summer break and we used to have great fun. We'd go out to the beach because the seaside was quite close to our house and sometimes we'd go off to the park and have a picnic then go camping.
My sisters and brother had a closer bond than I did to any of them, and I suppose I could say I felt a little left out at times. But I understood. I was just the kid, meaning I was more of a task than anything; just someone to look after. Whereas, for them they were just that little bit more independent, they didn't have me to worry about when they were together. Did it sadden me? Yes. But they still made an effort and mother and father always did things to make me happy.
I was pretty spoilt actually.
I had lovely clothes to wear wherever I went. I had a large room with a television in it. And anything I asked for, I pretty much got. I thought it was because my parents felt guilty for leaving such an age gap between me and my siblings.
With all the perks there comes a flaw.
On the lead up to my 15th birthday I remember my parents had promised that I could have a beach party with my friends and family. I was so excited. I went around the school inviting all the friends that I could, and I remember talking continuously about it to my best friend Marco.
Marco and I had been best friends for as long as I could remember, we used to play around at the park or just hang out together at school. The older we got, the closer we got. But I want to keep things in order, so that's another story for another day.
That's if I last another day.
It was the day of the party. A load of people were coming. It was a hot summer day too, and boy did I love summer. I was prancing around in my room feeling pretty darn ecstatic about the upcoming events of the day.
Barbecues! Cake! Music! Along with dancing and swimming, and don't forget seeing other family members again. Who wouldn't be excited? I was wearing this beautiful yellow halter neck dress that I had gotten earlier that morning from my parents; it had a tail and a slightly raised front - just above the knee or so - and some flowered sequences around the neckline, my swimming costume was underneath ready for use when I wanted to hit the water.
The doorbell rang and I rushed downstairs and through the hall in hopes to see Katia, Rose or Josh. They'd all grown up and moved out, so I hadn't seen them for a while. All I knew was that the twins were sharing an apartment and Josh was living with his girlfriend. They did visit every once and a while, but those visits became less frequent as their own lives progressed.
Upon opening the door I was met with Marco instead of my siblings, I held back my slight disappointment and let out a squeal before embracing my friend tightly. He handed me a present. It was in a box I believe. I invited him inside and thanked Marco for my present, I then called up to my parents to let them know of Marco's presence within the house before making our way up to my bedroom.
I opened the box, which revealed a stunning heart shaped silver plated necklace with our initials engraved within it. I was so grateful, although I did wonder where he got the money from, I knew he did a few jobs here and there, but a necklace like this must have cost a lot of money and would have required a lot of saving. I know this seems like your typical romance story, but you know what? I'd like to think it was.
He put the necklace on me and grinned, which was a rarity considering he was such a serious person who's smiles were also rare. That necklace therefore reminded me of that very moment. That moment and necklace will forever remain in my treasure chest of memories. I mean, I'm still wearing the necklace now.
Marco and I sat on the green and blue floral patterned duvet on my bed and spoke about future events and life. Our conversations usually just trailed on to anything and everything, surprisingly we never ran out of things to say. Sometimes we'd be talking about the most basic things I'd find myself laughing for whatever reason, and Marco would just stare at me with amusement and a hint of 'this girl *shakes head*' in his eyes. Which only resulted in me laughing even more, I knew him, and he knew me. That was all that mattered.
After a period of time, we ended up just laying on the bed. Waiting. I finally got impatient and got up off of the bed and headed to my parents' room and knocked the door, I also asked them how long they were going to take (in the politest of ways of course) and I also remembered the panic in their voices and crazed shuffling on the other side of the door. Clearly indicating they had forgotten about the party. It was a little upsetting, so I dragged myself to my room and contemplated on fully throwing myself onto my bed. I saw Marco laying there peacefully and the temptation to crush him with my body weight in the process grew. But I decided against it for whatever reason and wrapped my arms around him instead, he embraced me back but looked at me, with concern in his eyes. He was so good at reading my emotions.
I told him how my parents had forgotten about the party. He nodded his head and responded with an 'mm' before holding me a little tighter and told me my parents wouldn't be long. I wanted to kiss him in that moment.
I should have kissed him.
My father came into the room and apologised for the delay, he then greeted Marco before telling us to make our way to the car.
We never made it to the beach. And the party never happened.
Imagine you're in a car filled with people you care about. The guy you want to be with forever is sat next to you, your head on his shoulder, half asleep. You feel the warmth from the sun on the side of your body through the car window. A cool breeze blows your hair around from the slightly open window. Your eyes are closed but the orangey- yellowish glare of the sun is still there. He has his arm around your shoulder, you feel like you're finally at peace. Your mother is in the front messing around with the radio station, finding this channel then switching it until she gets to the one she likes. Your mother and father begin to sing, and talk and laugh together, and every now and again your childhood friend makes a little small talk with you. You wouldn't mind reliving this moment or living in it forever. His cologne is pretty strong but you've never minded before. You're there with him and he's here with you and you're about to have one hell of a birthday.
But then your mother gasps "Oh God!" And you open your eyes just in time to feel the jolt. The energy from the truck colliding with the right side of the car rushes through your body. You're flying now. No. You're being thrown around, through the air, here and there. The seat-belt stops you from being flung out of the window, and now the car is rolling...rolling...rolling. Where to? You don't know.
The glass has shattered, you can no longer feel the soothing warmth of the sunshine. Only the burning. The breeze has gone yet your hair is all over the place. You can't open your eyes and the rays are painful. His arm is gone and you're feeling fear and panic build up within you, the radio has stopped and so has the singing. You hate this and it's not a moment you wish to remember.
But at least behind the scent of blood fumes and sweat. You can faintly smell his cologne.
