The fallen petal

Chapter one

"Elana Young?" There's a police officer at my front door. I look in the back of the cop car only to see my brother in the back of it. It's nothing new he's always up to no good. I hope my parents aren't mad about this. It could totally ruin my birthday.

"Yes. My parents aren't home but-" The officer cuts me off.

"About your parents. There's something you should know." I nod my head and take in a deep breath. My parents are at work. They're fine. I keep thinking. "I'm sorry ms.Young but your parents were found dead this morning in their office." My entire body starts to shut down. My heart stops beating.

"W-what? No. That's not true!" I shout daring him to disagree.

"I'm very sorry for your loss." He goes to walk away but I call him back.

"How?" My eyes shut trying to contain the tears. I've never been a cryer, but I haven't prepared for this moment just yet. My parents were young. Very young. It's not supposed to be their time yet.

"...Well we're not sure. But we have reason to believe that your brother murdered them." What? No. He loves our parents. They may give him hell about something but he would never kill them over something so small. Would he?

3 weeks later...

And that's how I ended up here. At my aunt Marideth's House well standing in front of her door to be exact. I can't find the will power to knock on the door. I knew the second I got on this flight that this wasn't a dream. I've tried so hard to convince myself that this isn't real but...it is. I can't go back. The sad part is I kinda believe that my brother did this. Whatever. I sigh and finally knock on the door. I still don't know why my parents would make my aunt Marideth and uncle Joe my guardians. They hated them. They hated Joe the most and I guess they hated Marideth because she married him. I don't know. I hate Joe for my own reasons. I never thought I'd have to face him again. But that's a story for another day.

"Hi sweetie!" You're joking right? How the hell is she so god damn happy after her sister just died? I just spent the last few weeks contemplating whether or not I should end my own life. I fought back that idea because there's so much I haven't seen or done. My moms always wanted me to go to Rome and London.

"Hey." I say dryly pushing past her and taking a look around. "Joe around?" I ask looking around the corner suspiciously.

"No." She come up to me hugging me from behind. "I'm so sorry honey. I can't imagine how hard this must be." You have no idea.

"I'll be fine." Eventually. "So. Where's my room?" She begins walking and I assume I'm supposed to follow her. We reach an all blue room. I mean everything in this room is blue. My favorite color but a poor choice at the moment. The throw pillows are covered in pearly white fur. Every wall is blue except the ceiling which is black with stars. "Hey? Do those glow in the dark?" She nods and I smile a little. This is pretty cool. It's like daytime and nighttime.

"I'll just be getting dinner started. You get unpacked and I'll call you down when it's ready." In the blink of an eye she's gone. I'm thankful though. It's kind of awkward being around her. She reminds me so much of my mother. Not just her looks but personality too. Sweet at heart but a little rough around the edges.

Throwing my duffle bag on the bed along with my suitcase, and travel bag I begin to unpack. Looking down at the floor I realize that this is white carpet. Fudge. That's gonna be hell to clean. Oh well. Once I'm done putting everything into their draws and hanging my jackets there's a knock at the door. Right on time aunt Marideth. Opening the door I realize it's not her. It's her husband.

"Joe." I breathe out in slight fear. His figure towers over mine causing my breathing to quicken even more. I'm only gonna be here until I graduate. Which is in a year or so. I'm a junior at the moment(an old junior-18) though it is the middle of the year. I should be fine. Right?

"Listen I'm sorry about your parents...and your um birthday so..." He trails off handing me a long jewelry box. Looking up I him I wave him off going back to my bed. I'm trying so hard to contain my fear. But I'm failing miserably. He walks in dropping it on my desktop. "I'm sorry." With that he walks out of the room not another word spoken. I stand up walking to my desktop and picking up the box. There's a note.

Happy birthday Elana,
You turned 18 today and we wanted to show you that we love you more than you can know. Don't worry this isn't everything. You deserve so much more for being so understanding and caring about everything. And especially for getting through to your brother a bit. We finally started talking again a few days ago. You are so much more than just our daughter. Your our moon, star, hell you're the whole galaxy,
          Love mom and dad.

A tear falls from my eyes and I roughly wipe it away. They wouldn't want me to cry and stop everything. They'd want me to keep living and having fun. How is that possible right now when all I can think about is how I'll never see them again? I open the box to find a necklace that reads 'Elana.' The necklace itself is gold but the name is covered in galaxy colors. The letters are small but not too small. Just right. I wrap it around my neck, clasping it close once I feel it's on just right.

"Thanks guys." I say aloud kissing the necklace before walking out of my room. Once I enter the kitchen I take a seat on a stool at the counter. "Can I help?" This necklace has definitely brightened my mood.

"Sure honey. If you're up for it." I grab the cutting board and start cutting up some celery. "You ready for school tomorrow?" No.

"Yeah. It shouldn't be that bad." I smile and for the first time it's some what real. Who am I kidding? I'm trying so hard to smile and mean it but...I just can't. I'm heartbroken. I lost my best friends.