Ecstasy

Chapter 1 - Empty

White noise. Replaying in my head on repeat. Voices were drowned out by the overwhelming roar of it. I lay in bed, curled up with my arms wrapped tightly around my pillow. I wanted them here with me. I just wanted to see them, one more time. To tell them how much I love them.

Their beaming faces stuck out in my mind like a pair of headlights. I remembered every tiny detail about them, and kept imagining them over and over, trying to keep their images fresh in my mind like I was going to forget what they looked like.

My mother. Soft hazel eyes, hidden behind long feminine eyelashes. Her petite nose like a button in the center of her face. Her smile, oh, her smile. Her smile could bring me out of the darkest times in my life, no matter how far I'd gone. I missed that the most.

My father. Piercing blue eyes that had initially drawn my mother to him in the beginning, and there wasn't a day she didn't stare deeply into them and tell him how beautiful they still were. His voice was a low, calming tone, like ocean waves rolling onto shore. Many a time that voice had comforted me when I most needed it. Now it was always silent.

"Alex."

I ignored the call and continued to lay as a stone statue on the bed.

"Alexandria."

I felt a hand touch me gently. I rolled over to see who had come.

Sophia. My day one since kindergarten. It's hard not to be best friends when you live 10 feet away from eachother.

"Alex, you need to get going. Your flight leaves in an hour and a half and you know how traffic can be around this time."

I let out a deep sigh, closing my eyes to stop the tears that had been flowing, then pulled myself up. Mascara stained my rosy cheeks.

"I'm ready."

Sophia helped me up, then pulled my suitcase out of the bedroom door and into the living room. I lingered in the doorway, glancing back into what was once my parents room. Now it was just a museum of lost memories.

I joined Sophia in the living room, saying my last goodbyes to the house before walking outside. Sophia helped me load my luggage into her trunk and then slunk into the passenger seat. Sophia looked over at me before starting the car.

"This is going to be good, Lex. You need some time away from the house. From here. Try and clear your head."

She gave me a warm smile before turning her key and bringing her car to life. She was right. I did need time away from the house. The memory of my parents seemed to linger like a gray cloud over me when I was there. New Jersey would be a nice change for a little while. Then I could come home. Then I could have peace.