Makenna walked towards her home as the taxi drove off. She felt the rock that was slowly weighing on her heart as she drew closer to the front porch. Images of her childhood with Rachel played out in the garden, the stairs, and the porch as time slowed. She tried to get her erratic breathing under control as she warded off the images.
Stumbling up the stairs, she reached for the pillar with her trembling hand to steady herself. She closed her eyes and focused on her breathing not wanting her parents to see her this way. Not again.
When she felt better, she opened her eyes and was glad that the images were gone. She swallowed and walked to the front door. Twisting the knob, she pushed the door and walked inside. Shutting the door behind her, Makenna headed towards the stairs but stopped when she heard her mum's voice.
"Killian, is that you?"
Makenna clenched her jaw because it stung a little bit, as much as she didn't want to admit it. Of course, her mum would think it was her brother when she rarely came home. Her mum's footsteps drew closer and Makenna wanted to make a run for it but dug her feet in.
Makenna almost missed the sharp inhale she heard before she turned and saw the surprised look on her mum's face.
"Honey." Her mum whispered lovingly with a tentative smile,
Makenna smiled a little,
"Hi, mum."
"Sweetheart, who's at the...?"
Makenna looked from her mum to her dad as he joined them in the hallway.
"Hi, Dad."
"Sweetheart," Her dad said, "Is that our daughter standing in our house?"
"Yes, darling."
"Oh," Her dad said with a sigh,
She looked from her dad to her mum and back.
"Oh, come here." Her mum reached for her and pulled her into a hug, "Let me give my baby a hug."
"Mum!" Makenna's hands were trapped by her sides with her mum's hands wrapped around her, "You saw me at New Year's."
"That was weeks ago, honey." Her mum pulled back to look at her,
"And you were here for just a few hours." Her dad moved closer to give her a hug too,
"And that was a few hours too long." She muttered but her parents caught it, "I just came to grab my textbook."
Makenna turned to go up the stairs as her parents stood at the bottom of the stairs and watched her go.
"Will you stay for dinner?"
Makenna stopped at the top of the stairs and turned to look at her,
"I don't..." Her voice faded,
Silence settled for a few seconds.
"It's ok." Her mum smiled sadly, "I made extra if you decide to stay."
Makenna nodded and turned, heading down the hall towards her room. She came to a complete halt in front of her door, her gaze fixed on the knob. Her forefinger tapped persistently on the side of her leg as she drew attention to the nagging feeling it brought her. That was better than focusing on the feeling that came with her room.
It was like receiving an anonymous gift when you have a stalker after you. But she knew what was inside this gift box and she didn't like coming back to look at it. She could count the number of times she'd been inside on one hand in the last three years.
Fuck nostalgia!
Makenna thought as she mentally grasped at all the willpower she had trained herself to have. The last time she'd been back here, it hadn't gone great. This time, she was more determined.
Her guard up and walls in place, she reached for the knob and pushed the door open. The door opened wider as numbing silence filled the air around her. As the door hit the wall, her room open in front of her, Rachel's laugh mixed with hers echoed deep within her.
I can never be prepared for this.
Makenna thought as her eyes slowly teared up.
She closed her hands into tight fists, her nails dug into the sides of her legs and then bit into the heel of her palms. She felt the tremor in the ground beneath her, or was that just her?
Makenna swallowed back the dry and growing lump at the back of her throat. She blinked back the tears that welled up in her eyes and once again took a deep breath. She walked into her room, one leg in front of the other. With one look here or there, she was constantly fighting the memories away. She walked to her desk and grabbed the textbook she didn't need.
Makenna looked at the book and remembered why she was really there. She felt herself get comfortable with her decision to come there. Her shoulders relaxed as she turned and stopped when her gaze locked on her bed.
She'd laid in that bed for months after everything. The memories came and she let it.
Makenna walked, getting closer to the alleyway.
'No.' A voice rang out,
She ignored the voice and kept walking. She heard the voices coming down from the alleyway ahead. She frowned and picked up her pace.
'No!' The voice called louder,
Makenna walked faster and stopped when she came up to the alleyway,
'NO!' Her voice rang out as she watched the scene unfold in front of her.
Makenna tossed and turned in her bed, muttering frantically in her sleep as she shook in fear.
'Kenna?' Another voice called out and she tried to follow the sound,
'Kenna!' She jerked awake and stared at her dad's face, 'It's ok. You're ok, honey.'
Her dad ran his hands down her hair which lulled her back to sleep.
Makenna could remember the look on her dad's face that night. It was the look of a father that was hurting to see his child in pain. It was a look that she couldn't bear to see on his face ever again. And what was worse than seeing that look on his face, was knowing that she was the one who put it there.
It was the look of a broken father.
I'm not entirely sure Broken has readers from the US yet, but I hope you all had an amazing 4th of July.
Also, I just want to say a quick Hi to the new readers. I saw a lot of notifications and noticed some new readers actually binge-read the entire thing and have caught up with us. That's absolutely insane and is something I would actually do if I enjoy the book/story. Hence, it's so crazy for me to see readers doing the same for my story.
So, Hello and thank you for joining in! I hope to get to know you guys in the comment section. I think I DMed one of you yesterday cause I saw your comments. Would really love to get to know the rest of you.
See you back here on Saturday. ♥