" I want you. All of you. Your flaws. Your mistakes. Your imperfections. I want you, and only you."
Alex
"God Faith you snatch like such a girl." I teased my beloved sister snatching the basketball out of her hand and scoring a basket.
"Alex I think you forgot but I'm a girl." She sneered snatching the ball back from the before scoring.
"If you..." I began but a crash stopped me mid-way.
Both of us turned to the house just in time to hear another crash. We looked at each other and sprinted inside.
Mum was sitting on the floor, there was glass around her because of the salad bowl which fell. Tears were streaming down her face. I instantly rushed towards her and carefully picked her up from the floor, seating her on the sofa.
"Beth, what happened ?" Faith asked Mum handing her a glass of water and rubbing her hand up and down her back.
"Ya Mom what's wrong ?" I asked her gently holding one of her hand
"James called......he......he said that.....that your Nana.........that she de.......dead...." She spoke before breaking into sobs again.
The world came crashing down into pieces. It could not happening. I had just seen her this morning humming in the garden.
"Mum. what did James exacting tell you?"
"He......he said that.....that she was driving back .....back home when she......she got a stroke and drove into a.....a tree. He said that it was death......death on impact."
I picked Mum up and took her to bed trying to coax her to sleep. And she did sleep after talking to James once who managed to calm her down.
When I went back to the living room I found Faith pacing the floor and pulling at her hair continuously. That was not a good sign.
"Faith," I called out gently placing my hand on her back.
In a sudden jerk, she turned back facing me. Her eyes were wide but no tears were streaming down her face.
"I just saw her this morning. She was humming in the garden Alex. How can she be dead? Tell me it's not true. Please, Alex, wake me from this nightmare !" She yelled the last part as the waterworks began.
"Faith" I spoke once more trying to get her attention.
"Oh my God Alex! I didn't get to say goodbye ! I didn't get to ........." but she didn't complete the sentence as she blacked out and fell limp falling in my arms.
Chris
I was sprawled on the sofa watching t.v. when Mum came running inside.
"She's dead" she declared dropping her bag on the floor.
"Who's dead ?" I asked sitting up.
"Faith's Nana. She's dead and the family is not taking it well. I'm going to go and make dinner for their family cause I don't think-".
But I never heard the end of the sentence because I was already running across the street to the Clearwater's residence. The front door was already unlocked so I bolted right in.
James, who had just come down the stairs looked at me with wide eyes before asking.
"Chris? What are you doing here?"
"I'm sorry for you loss Mr. Clearwater but I need to make sure that Faith is fine right now," I spoke before running up the stairwell......
..........But once again I met with someone who wasn't Faith. Alex was walking down the hallway with a glass of water in his hand. A puzzled expression took over his face when he saw me.
But before he could ask any questions I simply hugged him. He was shocked at first but eventually hugged me back.
"Alex, man I'm really sorry for your loss but I really need to make sure that your sister is fine at this moment."
"What do you mean?" he asked pulling away.
"When was the last time you saw her ?"
"I.......I put her to bed after she fainted hearing the news about Nana," he said frowning.
"Around what time did you put her to bed ?"
"Around two in the afternoon."
I checked my watch. I was 8.36 pm.
fuck.
The same thought must have crossed Alex's mind because he turned around and walked to her door trying the doorknob.
It was fucking locked.
"Faith? Please open the door love." he tried to coax her into opening the door.
There was no reply.
"Come on love. Just open the door." he tried again but in vain.
"Open the door Faith." he tried for the last time.
"I don't want to talk to anyone right now !" her voice boomed from the other side.
Alex sighed and ran his hand through his hair. I walked up to him and touched his shoulder.
"Hey, man. I got this trust me." I said giving him a gentle push towards his room.
He looked at me for a minute before walking to his room and slamming the door shut. I turned towards her door and knocked lightly.
"Faith, it's Chris. Please open the door."
"I don't want to meet anyone. Go away.
"Come on, just open the door. Everyone's worried about you."
"I said go away! Leave me alone for god sake I don't want to meet anyone."
"Well, that's too bad because I'm not moving till you open this bloody door."
There was a lot of shuffling on the other side before Faith yelled and began to open the door.
"What part of 'Go away' do you not get....."
She began but I never let her finish the sentence because I pulled her into my arm and hugged her tight as soon as the door opened.
She squirmed in my arms but eventually gave up fighting as she wrapped her hands around my neck like I had done to her waist.
I could feel my t-shirt getting wet as her tears soaked through them.
I shut the door with my foot, lifted her off the ground and carried her to her bed carefully putting her down and taking a seat next to her.
"Shhh.......It's going to be okay." I spoke rubbing my hand up and down her back.
"It's not going to be Okay! It never is! Nana........Nana's gone just like Mom. She left me Chris just like Mum did ! And she's never coming back." She yelled before breaking into sobs.
"Faith. I understand what you're going....."
"You don't understand what I'm going through! You never will! Don't you remember once upon a time you left me too! "She yelled pulling away from me.
Her words stung but they were a hundred percent true. I did leave her when she needed me the most. As if realizing what she said she turned towards me with wide eyes.
"I'm so sorry Chris. I didn't mean that...."
"No it's Okay. If is true. I did leave you once but I'm not going to make the same mistake twice."
She looked at me, puzzled.
"I will never leave you alone. Ever again. And that's or promise."
"Promise ?" she asked taking out her pinky.
"Promise," I said entwining them together.
-------------------
There was only one word which could describe the entire week.
Hell.
Nana's death had shaken up the entire Clearwater family. Beth had devoted her time to baking, she had 'surprised' our family with different kind of cakes and dishes every bloody day. James had drowned himself in work and was rarely seen at home.
Alex, well I'd gone to see him two days back along with Damon and he threw us out of his room saying he was perfectly fine which was a total lie. He was nowhere near fine. Nana's death had done a number on him. For a week he hadn't talked to anyone, not even Cory, and had not come out of his room as well.
As for Faith, there were no words which could describe her misery. It felt as if she had given up on life. She cried all day and then cried herself to sleep. And I had been there for her every time holding her in my arm as the tears fell down freely. As I'd promised.
Today was the funeral. I was going to pick Faith up and drive her to the funeral. It was almost time to leave when I went to her room and my eyes couldn't believe what I saw. The entire room was a mess. Clothes were lying on the floor, drawers were thrown out there was a broken chair lying next to her bed with splinters lying everywhere and in the middle of all of that was Faith.
She was running from one place to another. Sometimes opening her wardrobe and throwing more clothes out or sometimes opening drawers and dumping all the contents on the floor.
In the middle, I saw her wince as a wood splinter went up her foot and it began to bleed. Instantly I tried to stop her.
"Faith what are you doing?" step towards her.
"I....I don't' have a dress for the funeral. I can't find a single dress. She cried out opening another drawer.
"Faith...."
"No Chris you don't understand I don't have a single dress which I can wear......." but I cut her off and pulled her into my chest.
She instantly tensed up and then went limp in my arms slowly wrapping her own arms around me. I slowly stroked her him as she cried in my chest.
"I miss her so much Chris so fucking much."
"I know" I whispered before picking her bridal style and carrying her to the bathroom.
Then slowly but gently I set her on the edge of the bathtub. Then I took a towel, ran it under the tap, squeezed out the excess water and then bent in front of her.
Lifting her chin up so that her eyes met mine I said.
"I'm going to remove the splinter Okay? Then we'll go get you a dress."
She looked directly into my eyes before nodding. I took her foot in my hand. The splinter wasn't embedded that deep in her skin so I plucked it out in a go.
Faith winced as blood began to ooze out. I quickly pressed the towel to stop the bleeding. Once that was done I covered the wound using a band–aid. "Let's go get that dress Okay?" I whispered pulling her up.
"Okay." she whispered back before following me to her now destructed room.
---------------------
The funeral wasn't that big. We'd only called close family and friends. The Knights were there, though I couldn't find Cory. Faith went and hugged Damon as soon as she saw him.
We both were kind of fine after my 'great' confession.
Alex still looked like hell. He was wearing a black shirt with a black suit jacket and slacks. He had a slight stubble from not shaving and his eyes had dark bags under them. And then something shocking happened. His eyes lit up as he saw something I followed his vision and found Cory staring at him.
She was dressed in black like everyone else. Both of them stared at each other as Cory began to run towards Alex. She came near to him and literally flew into his arms and began to cry. So did he.
"I'm sorry" he muttered holding onto her for his life.
"I'm sorry too." She whispered before kissing him.
I turned away from them giving them thin privacy and found Faith coming towards me. We walked slowly but never breaking eye contact. I extend my hand to her and she grabbed at turning back towards everyone. We stood hand in hand as the funeral began.
"Today we have gathered at the funeral of Amelia Hope Clearwater."