Ugh, I can't believe Christi! I mean, I do sorta get why she's mad at me, but still. At first, all I was doing was trying to get on his good side. But it just so happens that I might have gotten a little too in character, or... I don't know! Actually, I might. But I really hope my theory is wrong. Because, if it's not, I have no idea what I will do.
But anyway! My life is pretty boring right now, since Christi and I aren't talking to each other. I really do miss her, but I feel like she needs to apologize. Not me. But she probably thinks the opposite. Ahh, I don't know. It's all pretty darn confusing.
Right now, I am lying on my bed, at seven o'clock right now, and I have been up almost all night. I have mostly just been pondering things, and just being a very weird person in general.
I bolt upright.
Today is Kai's funeral.
Tears gather in my eyes, but I angrily brush them away. Save them for later almost. I invited Christi. Hopefully she'll still come. Although, it might be pretty awkward.
At the thought of going through this without my best friend, I quickly burst into tears. I can't help it. They just keep coming, like a faucet that can't be turned off.
I sniff, and bury my face into my soft yellow pillow. Subconsciously, I reach for my necklace.
It's not there. Of course. I start to scream quietly into my pillow, letting all my frustrations and worries out, into that old cushion. This is why I need my dog. He always helped me get through these things. I would run my fingers through his soft fur as he lay on my pillow. Normally, when he would jump up on my bed, I would shoo him off. But not when I was sad. And he knew it.
I try to pull myself together in vain. But whenever my thoughts drifted even a little bit, all the pieces just fall back apart.
Eventually, after about ten more minutes of this, I manage to pull it together and go downstairs for something to eat.
I'm home alone right now, Jago is out running, and both my parents are at work. I pour myself some cereal, but then decide that I don't want cereal, so I pour it back into the box. I take a pot out of the cupboard, and fill it with water. I set it on the stove and wait until it boils. Then I take out some pasta and pour them into the hot, boiling water.
While that cooks, I take out shredded cheese, flour, and milk, and pour the milk into a different pot to let it simmer. Then I add the cheese and flour in to make cheese sauce. I strain the noodles, and mix the two together. Ah, nothing like homemade mac and cheese.
As I eat my noodles, I try to mentally prepare myself for what is to come. Which is something so devastating, I don't know if I can handle it.
Kai was always very comforting for me. I've had a few minor fights with Christi in the past, and I always turned to him. Now I'm in my biggest fight with Christi yet, and no Kai to help me through it. Life is cruel in this way.
I sigh. I better clean up my dishes, otherwise my parents will not be happy.
I push myself out of my chair and tidy up the kitchen. I try to shake off my depressing gloom, and decide to go for a swim.
Oh wait. I have my boot. AGHH! Can't something go right in this world!?
My phone rings from the living room couch. I plod over to it, and see it is Mom. I take the call.
"Hey honey," my mom says, sounding tired.
"Hey," I say, my voice cracking slightly from disuse.
"I have some good news!" she tells me, her voice slightly contorted from the phone.
"What?" I ask, hope creeping up on me like ivy. I try to push it down, but to no avail.
"The doctor said you can get your boot off today! As long as they quick make sure it's healed properly," she explains. Yay! Finally something that goes right.
"When are we going?" I ask into the phone.
"I'm leaving work right now, so I should be there in ten minutes. Be ready when I come home!" she informs me.
"Great! Bye mom," I say.
"Bye honey," she responds. I click the red button. Well, at least something turned out well!
I race back upstairs, now refueled with the hope of swimming. I toss around some clothes, until I find some yoga pants, and a soft yellow shirt. The one that says: Life is a journey, not a destination. I think it's a pretty good quote. It really is quite beautiful when you stop and think about it. But I don't have that kinda time.
Since I have no braiding ability whatsoever, I just brush my mass of red, and call it my arm workout for the day. Then, I shove one shoe on, and bring the other one along. (Hey, that rhymed! I think...) I then check my phone and wait for Mom to come.
I only have to wait about half a minute before I see her car pull up. I race as fast as I can, to the car and yank the door open. I hop in and slam the door shut, and wince at the loud sound.
"Let's go, let's go, let's GO!" I practically shout. Mom smiles slightly, and we back out of the driveway. I am basically shaking in my seat at this point. But now that I stop and think about it, why am I so excited anyway? I mean, I'm just getting this stupid piece of plastic that has weighted me down for so long off. And now I see it! Well, sort of. I guess I'm mostly so excited because this is one little bright spot shining through the mass of grey clouds. Wow, I could be a poetry writer! Okay, maybe not. But still!
"Moooom, are we there yet?" I ask impatiently.
"You sound like you're three again!" She half scolds, half chuckles.
"But are we???" I beg for an answer.
"Just a few more minutes," she tells me. I bounce in my seat, imagining all the wonderful things I can do without this stupid, stupid boot. Swimming...OH! I could go so fast and do so many cool things! I bet I will even run, just out of pure of joy of how fast I can be without the boot.
At last! We have arrived. Or at least that's what the GPS says. You know, you would think that my mom would know how to get here by now. But nope!
"Come on!!" I say, unfastening my seatbelt hurriedly, and slapping my arm with it in the process. Mom sighs, and slowly, slowly, gets out of the car. I tap my foot impatiently.
As soon as she's out of the car, I grab her hand and practically drag her to the door. Funny. This is the first time I have actually been excited to come here. Let's make it my last too.
When we get inside, the receptionist glances up and asks for the name. My mom tells her all the information she needs, and we go off to the waiting room.
One of my least favorite things about the doctor's office, is that it smells weird. And no matter what, it always makes me feel nervous. I don't know why. But it just kind of smells like antiseptic, and sickness. But mostly antiseptic.
Lots of kids, mostly younger, wander around, with their parents occasionally looking up to find them.
"Sabrina Waller?" The lady calls. My mom and I both stand up, and walk over to her.
"Second door down," she tells us. Then she disappears into another hallway. Wow, a woman of a lot of words.
I follow Mom down the short stretch, and enter through the open door. We wait for a few minutes, then the doctor comes. We make sure it has healed properly, and then I finally get to take it off.
As soon as that horrid thing is off, it's like a weight has been lifted. Literally, and figuratively. It's just so amazing! I am free!! My foot feels amazing, without that stupid piece of plastic. I bounce around the room joyously. Ah, to be free.
"And if it starts hurting again, you know where to find me!" The doctor calls to our retreating backs.
"It's amazing!" I gush to Mom. She smiles.
"I bet. Come on, I can take you to Christi's house if you'd like," she offers.
"Uh, no. No thanks, I think I just want to swim," I say quickly. She doesn't give it a second thought though, and we just continue our way home. I need to get my swim stuff anyway.
Soon, I hear the crunching of the tires on the driveway, and I jump out of the car. I bounce impatiently on the doorstep, waiting for mom to unlock it. She chuckles a little, and unlocks the door.
I race upstairs, sounding like a herd of elephants, and rummage around for my swimsuit. I soon locate the navy swimsuit, and quickly change into it.
"I'm ready to go!" I shout to Mom as I snag a towel from the closet. She's waiting for me at the door, and we both exit the house.
🎔
Ah, to feel like cool water, rushing over your face. It's like silk, only, well, not. I'm at the gym's pool right now, because the ocean still brings back unwanted memories. Plus, almost no one is here right now, because it's lunchtime. Naturally, my stomach grumbles, but I try to ignore it, because if I eat now, then I take away precious swimming time.
I surface, gasping for air. My goggles cling to my face a little too tightly, so I take them off. What I really like doing is leaving them on for a while, then taking them off while I'm underwater. It feels so nice to have the cool water rush over your closed eyes. I know, I'm weird. But it's true! Swimming is amazing. Plus, it's something I'm actually good at soooo...
I stop swimming for a few minutes and think about, well, life. Mostly Christi though. I can't think about Kai for too long, otherwise, I think the pool might turn to saltwater.
But I don't see why she's so mad at me. What did I do? I mean, yeah, I was friendly with Kase, but why is she getting so worked up about it? I'm just trying to get on his good side. Then maybe I can get some information from him! I know that sounds really bad, and I'm not even sure that I like it, but I have to take action.
I hoist myself out of the pool and check my phone. Oops, Mom's coming soon. I'd better get ready.
Since we're going right to Kai's funeral, I just have to take a quick shower here, and change into black.
I attempt to choke back a sob, but fail pretty miserably. Luckily, no one is really around. I mean, that would just be weird if you walked into a bathroom to find a dripping wet girl, crying in black clothes. Just saying.
I quickly brush my knotted hair out, and try to dry it to the best of my ability. This is hard for me, yes. But I need to be strong.
I know that if I knew someone who had a funeral for their pet, I would say that they are rich, and all that weird stuff. But really, we don't have that much money, I mean, we have a fair amount, but we are only about average. But we are doing this out of love that we had for him, not because we just can. He has been such a big part of my entire family's life, that it would seem wrong if we didn't give him a proper funeral.
He used to go for runs with Jago, and when we took him to meets, he would try to run alongside him. He always comforted me when I didn't do so well in school, or in swimming. My parents used to take him for daily walks, and even let him up on their bed on a good day. But those days are all gone.
I start to cry again. I really need to stop thinking about it, but it's hard not to.
My phone beeps. My family is here to pick me up. I give my hair one more brush, and stash my brush away, along with my towel and flip-flops.
As I hurry out of the pool, my black dress swishes around me. I generally hate dresses. But this time, I don't care. The dress goes down to about a little past my knees, with one thick strap. It is literally the only dress I really own.
Water from my hair drips onto the back of my dress, and my bare shoulder shivers.
I find them waiting in the parking lot, and I quickly hop in. Most of the time, mom would never have let me have wet, dripping hair for an event, but I think right now even she doesn't care; which just makes me even more emotional.
"How long is the drive?" Jago asks, breaking the uncomfortable silence.
"Just about five more minutes Jago," Dad replies dully. Kai might have been my dog, but he really meant a lot to the entire family. He was just such a sweet dog, and practically loved everyone. But I know what he would have wanted. He would want us to get another dog, and give them the life that we gave him. To save another dog, and give it a new life, a fresh start.
I rest my forehead against the cool glass window of the car, and stare absentmindedly into space. Then, I see our destination.
🎔
It's just as dull as I imagined. Or, I might say, depressing. For me at least.
We are at my Uncle Lucas's house right now. Yes, I know. Weird right? But they have a huge property, and they have this little zen garden, and an empty field kind of. Okay, not a field. Like, a large patch. But it works.
Well, I mean, what can you expect I guess. Death is kind of depressing. Well duh! A little Christi says in my head. But I should at least try to compose myself.
I take some deep breaths, and open the car door. Since we are the people who are basically family, we are the first to come. I see a few other people here, mourning their loved ones, but besides that, it's basically empty.
"Oh! Hello Lucas," my mom greets my uncle.
"Hey Mackenzie!" He says warmly, pulling her in for a hug. "Good to see you Xander," he adds. My dad shakes his hand.
"And you," he replies. After all the introductions, we go inside to see our aunt. They don't have any kids, but that's okay, because my dad's sister has plenty.
"Hey, Aunt Cossette," I greet her.
"Oh hello, honey," she says, pulling me into a warm embrace. She does the same for Jago.
"Refreshments, anyone?" Cossette asks, always the 'mom' of everyone.
"Uh, no thanks," I decline politely.
"Do you have cookies?" Jago inquires hopefully. Aunt Cossette laughs and guides him over to the plate.
"Knock knock!" Christi's dad says from the other side of the door. I cringe slightly. For some reason, her family always does that. It's... interesting. I run my fingers through my hair, and hope that this won't be too awkward.
"Hey," I say, opening the door. I refuse to look Christi in the eye.
"Hello, Sabrina!" Christi's mom greets. "I hope you don't mind, we brought one of Easton's friends."
I gulp.
Kase.