Sudden Silence

Chapter 4: On Replay

Evie's POV

The elevator dinged and it's doors open into a hall. "This is what we call the bedroom hall." Josefina smiles at me, waiting for some sort of response that she most definitely wasn't gonna get. We started our ascend down the hallway. She cleared throat, probably an attempt to ward off the silence. "So these are your brother's rooms." She says so cheerfully. My heart stopped and so did my feet.

"Wait," My voice got really low. "Are they here right now?" I don't know if I'm ready to meet them all again, I'm sure they are all very different people who didn't have any time for their newly orphaned little sister. "Oh, my no!" She exclaimed. "I didn't mean to worry you like that." I guess she could she the horror on my face. I started walking in desperate need to just get away.

The floor was a soft woven carpet. It went perfect with the gray-blue paint on the wall. The whole room felt almost like a stock photo though. Every piece of furniture matched and so did the sheets to the comforter. I didn't know that rooms were like this real life, it was too nice. Josefina was talking but I couldn't really focus on her. Despite it's perfection the room felt like it didn't have any life, like it was constructed just for a picture in the Architectures Digest. It had no mistakes-zero-except maybe the fact that it was sort of mine.

Once again the feelings rush all over me. Before I could even think it through I said, "Actually Josefina I am good." It was rushed and weak but, within a minute she left me alone. Finally alone. I tried for a second to win back my emotions. Tried to stop the falling of anymore tears. I failed miserably. I could feel how my heart was going faster than my thoughts and how my lungs stung with no air. Panic Attack, I thought. It was the worst one I had ever had, I quickly found the nearest corner and crumbled into it. I wanted call for help but I couldn't. The more and more I fought to calm my breathing my ribs shook with pain.

~

I didn't know one could have a large enough closet to fit all of their clothes. I took up 5 hangers and 2 drawers. The sun was about to set but, I had no idea what time it was. I had discovered that I had a balcony attached to my room. The skyline was different than I am used to. Silhouettes of buildings littered the sky and the familiar fade from blue to black had begun. It was so beautiful that I found myself wondering if mom would want to take a picture of the sky, like she does, like she always did. Before I knew it I was crying again but, softly. Simply thinking of everything that my mom wouldn't be able to do.

My mess of hair waved in the almost still breeze. I found myself in pain again as the last bit of pain medicine wore off. I suddenly remembered all again, the source of my pain. The shards of glass falling into my skin and cutting deep, the way my shoulder slammed into the door to the side, flipped, and flipped again - on replay. A sharp wave sent to my ribs. Shit, this means I have to go and find Josefina, Mrs. Gloria probably gave her my prescription to relieve the pain.

You know when your scared to open the door and walk out of the place you have deemed safe, yeah that is what is happening to me right now. Just open it, I say to myself. On one, two, three I grabbed the nob and opened and took a step, a shaky breath left my lips. Deciding against the elevator I start down the stairs. I excepted pictures to hang all along the walls but, I guess they didn't care for a lot of pictures. A single large frame lay on the wall at the break in the stairs, of all of them.

I have 4 brothers. The oldest is Corbin, he was 11 when they left. I still have a pair of his old pj pants. Sadly, they fit me; I have always had the body of an 11-year-old boy. The next one is Wilder, he stood next to my dad. Noah was beside him, the side of my mouth curved thinking of memories of him I vaguely have. I was almost too scared to move to next boy.  Nearly a mirror image of myself was next to Noah and his name is Ethan. Ethan is my twin, my best friend, my heart strings pulled a little. I wonder where they all are right now.

They were many people in the house when I reached the stairs. Bustling and walking and talking into phones or ear pieces. They moved quick, it had to have been at least 50 people, fast like cars on the highway. Suddenly I remember it all again. The way the cars passing shook the flipped car as I helplessly dangled. I shut my eyes and tried to breath smoothly. The shards of glass falling into my skin and cutting deep, the way my shoulder slammed into the door to the side, flipped, and flipped again - on replay. All these people and nobody noticed me. I started to stumble back up the stairs. "Evie?" a voice said. I thought that if I turned around it would be like those movies were everyone and everything stops to look at you but, when I finally did I was met with no such thing. I was met with the face of my eldest brother and he looked just as scared as I was.